Jury seems to still be out on what works best, but here's the Readers Digest version:
I think most of the trials with the different shaped wicks seem to be coming to the same conclusion: The ceramics definitely wick, the shape & configuration don't have a lot to do with it. Some appear to work better than others, but after they break in, they all seem to keep up....As long as the wicking capabilities keep up with YOUR demands - no need to go further. I haven't seen anyone complaining about dry hits from them in quite some time.
I think right now the biggest issue is the "Heat Sink" effect of the larger diameter ceramics (Vape-lag). The smaller diameter wicks seem less affected by it than the mega-wicks, but the trade-off is the fragility of the thinner wicks. Its a major drawback. You can also generally get more wraps on a thinner wick (and hit your desired Ω rating) which helps with generating better flavors.
I personally like the ribbon Kanthal myself for the same reason; takes a wrap or two more to hit the same Ω rating (better wick coverage). I seem to be getting better flavor from the ribbon compared to round wire.
My take at the moment is that a robust small diameter wick (or a larger wick with LOW MASS) would be ideal. I still haven't tried the Birdcage wick, but I think that has some major potential in the "Big Wick" area ...
Just my observations, and I may be way off, but everyone's perspective is different. Please chime in if you feel differently....
Spot on.
Something that hasn't been mentioned yet and I have kind of thought of lately is the concept of air vacuum / liquid suction through the wick.
Most here are aware that you need airflow with these wicks thus you get much better results with the fill screw off.
When you puff and the fill screw is off, you create a vacuum effect with air pressure traveling through the fill hole and creating a suction force that will drag the juice along the wick and upwards to the active coil.
The more juice you can feed the coil per second, the more vapor.
Most people initially approached this by switching to ever larger wicks, but as the wicking results didn't meet initial expectations, people have been innovating wick designs to aid the flow of juice from bottom to top.
Surprisingly, many have noticed better results with the tiny 3/32 wicks than with any larger sizes. Some people have suggested this is because no juice is traveling within the wick and only along the surface. I think that's impossible, otherwise you wouldn't be able to wick vertically with a tight wrap of .8mm ribbon as in the video I uploaded previously.
I think these wicks are delivering juice both through capillary action and flow along the surface, but something that hasn't been considered yet (at least from what I've been able to read) is the fact that for the human lung it will be much easier to suction juice through/along a 3/32 wick than through a 1/8 wick or even larger. I haven't tried or tested a hollow, straw-like wick but I'm afraid that would bring some problems such as easy wick breaking and flooding inside the atomizer.
I could be wrong, but it's definitely something to consider when making new wick shapes and designs.
seriously loving this .5mm ribbon wire. First 3 people to PM me...I'll send you a freebie strand of this wire! (US only). Include your name and address and whether you'd prefer to get the .8mm instead 
