Honest Review of the Sidesho (after 1 month)

[BubbleBobble]

I've been wanting to give a review of the Sidesho e-cig (from ModernVapor) for quite a while, but I didn't want to post a review prematurely. I've had my Sidesho for just under a month, and now I think it's time to give my opinion on this device.

The first thing I should state is that I am new to vaping. With that said, I have done massive amounts of research on e-cigs. Mostly through this forum. I have been on here everyday, literally, reading for hours. I just received my mini-copper (big battery mod) and have tried the Smoking Everywhere e-cig at my local mall. Eventhough I haven't vaped on a lot of different PV models myself, I feel I still get a *somewhat decent idea of how the Sidesho stacks up to the competition. This is because I've watched numerous 'youtube' video reviews and read tons of written reviews here on ECF.

The Sidesho was my first e-cig. I chose to go with ModerVapor not only because of the great reviews, but also because of the customizable options available with the Sidesho.


Okay, now that that's out of the way, The Review:

Customer Service
--First thing mentionable for the Sidesho is the company it hails from. ModernVapor. I can't say enough about this company, and namely it's owner Tony. Everything from the layout of the website, to the box the kit comes in, to the design on Tony's business cards. It's all very, very professional and sleek! Tony never ceases to amaze me. And I mean that in all sincerity. Tony has answered all of my emails within 10 minutes. Even the ones that were sent at 2am. He is always prompt, courteous, and helpful. For example: my auto battery was seeming a little "iffy" to me. It wasn't as sensitive as I thought it should be. Tony sent out a new one immediately. The button to my manual battery got caught in the PCC. The button was torn off while removing the battery. I emailed Tony explaining the problem. He immediately sent me 5 extra manual buttons (extremely easy to install) and a new PCC, as well as a free case to hold a complete Sidesho! Tony has also thrown in "extra's" in all but one of the 5 packages I've received from him. He really is great. You can absolutely rest assured, if you decide to order from ModernVapor, you will be taken care of. Amazing customer service. I can't say enough.

Aesthetics
--On to the e-cig itself. First off, the Sidesho looks great. My expectations were fully met when I first assembled my stainless silver battery on my black atomizer & black cartridge. It looks just beautiful. Since my original purchase, I have ordered a black battery, a white battery (w/ stripes), the white atty with black logo, and white carts. All of them look just as good as they do in the beautiful pictures on ModernVapor.

Vapor Production
--So, how do they vape? At first I was only slightly impressed. The vapor production was so-so, and the tobacco flavored pre-filled carts didn't have the best flavor. But these atties show major improvement once broken in. It is like night and day. After two days of pretty much constant vaping I found myself blowing out huge plumes of vapor. Now, if you're considering buying a Sidesho and you're like me, then you've probably went to youtube and tried to look up videos of 'Sidesho reviews'. And, if you're like me, you only found 2 videos that really didn't really help all that much. For whatever reason, the amount of visible vapor produced in those videos is *not* an accurate depiction of what the Sidesho produces. I don't know if it was the camera's used to film those videos, or if the atties were not broken in, but I can confidently say, that my Sidesho produces as much vapor as any analog I've smoked (if not more). It is a completely satisfying vape IMHO.

Flavor
--I can't say too much about the flavor the Sidesho gives, only because I haven't tried many other models. So far my mini copper is giving a much more flavorful hit, but I think that can be expected with any big batt mod. Be that as it may, the Sidesho has produced, what I would consider delicious flavor from the different juices I've tried (ModernVapor and Johnsoncreek). I really have enjoyed the Pineapple from MV, it has become my everyday vape. The price of the e-juice from MV is pretty steep, but I have enjoyed it greatly. I am currently trying different vendors for comparison, but I have a feeling I'll always be returning to MV for my pineapple...

Battery Life & PCC
--Battery life has been what I expected. I have been vaping a LOT since I first received my starter kit. I change batteries about every 1.5 to 2 hours. The batteries charge up in ~2 hours. So I'm never without a charged battery. While I'm using one, I'm charging the other. In the beginning I had no problem whatsoever with changing the batteries that often, but after a month, I saw the value in a big battery mod (as most here do), especially since I vape all day long.
--The PCC is really a great accessory. I just could not imagine living without one to be honest. Once fully charged the PCC can charge up 5-6 batteries for you. So, as long as you leave the house with the PCC charged up, you are perfectly fine for the day. The black matte of the PCC looks and feels great. The fact that it can hold an atty, 5 carts (if you count the one on the atty) and two batts, makes it such an awesome component to the Sidesho kit.

Cartridge
--I feel like the Sidesho cartridge should be mentioned here. Mainly because I am able to fit so much juice inside the inner cart. Especially after performing the blue foam dart mod. I get at least 13 drops inside that cart and it lasts me a looong time. It's great for cart users. The drawback here is that the inner cart is down a ~1cm. So you can't simply pop off the cart, top off and continue vaping (w/o a mess). You have to get a safety pin/paper clip and push the inner cart out through the small mouth hole. I only realized how time consuming/annoying this was after receiving my mini copper, which takes a 510 atty. On my copper's carts, I can just pop em off and the filler is right there; drip drip, stick it back on, and I'm vaping away. It's definitely not a deal breaker for the sidesho, but a small draw back. If you plan on direct dripping or dipping, then this poses no problem for you.

Atomizer
As far as my experience goes, the Sidesho atomizers are workhorses. They create great vapor, awesome flavor and they look sharp to boot! They can take a beating too! I have only just begun to treat my Sidesho like a e-cig. For the first 2 weeks I was using the thing exactly like I would a cigarette. I was taking 20-25 hits in the matter of 5-10 minutes to get my fix. The atty would get hot as hell, but it wouldn't quit! It just kept right on vaping. I've yet to lose a single one! I did have some carbon build up on one of my atties, so I did what some would call stupid and other call necessary, I washed it. After letting it dry, I fired it up. It worked fine, but the build up was still there and it tasted bad. I had just purchased 5 back up atties, so I figured I could 'experiment' with this one. I did 8 consecutive dry burns (until the cut-off point at 7 seconds). Not only did the atty survive, but now it's producing like new again. It burnt the black guk right off.

Miscellaneous Things Worth Mentioning
--The Sidesho manual battery is not sealed. It has a hole in the atty contact point. This means that this battery can be flooded and anyone dripping should use caution when doing so. I have dripped many times on my Sidesho and have yet to have any problems. I have only flooded my atty once, blew it out and it was fine.

--The auto batteries are sensitive, they will activate due to heavy winds, heavy bass, or roughly placing them on the table. I have driven with my windows down as well as with the AC blasting, and I haven't had a problem there.

--The batteries will discharge themselves along with the PCC if you overcharge the battery. This mean you have to keep an eye on your battery when charging and can sometimes be a nuisance. I might be wrong, but I think I remember Tony stating that he was going to get new PCC's with a 'cut-off' feature to prevent this from happening.

--The manual batteries are a tad skinnier & longer than the auto batteries.

--The Sidesho atty will fit (and activate) in the mini copper, which has a 510 atty port. The 510 atty will fit (& activate) in the Sidesho battery; this does leave a bigger gap than the normal 1mm, but it works nonetheless.


I have been a smoker for 10 years now. I was always a pack a day smoker, until the last 3 years, where I became a 1.5-2 pack a day smoker. I bought my Sidesho so I would be able to smoke more. I wanted to smoke (vape) in my house, as well as many public places where smoking is not permitted. The very first day I vaped my Sidesho I had 1 analog cigarette. The next day I had 1 analog. I went two days w/o any analogs. Then I ran out of juice. I smoked analogs for 2 days. Since my juice has arrived I haven't had a single analog, nor a craving the Sidesho can't quickly and effectively take care of. I don't consider myself someone who has "quit" smoking. I just found something better

So, overall, I couldn't love my Sidesho more. Since I've gotten it, my girlfriend has bought a hybrid kit, my friends mother has purchased a hybrid kit, and my fathers co-worker is currently looking at ModernVapor for a purchase. I believe the Sidesho is truly a great e-cig model. I recommend it to any who has an interest in vaping. More accurately, vaping in style.

I hope this review can help someone. I know when I was searching for my first e-cig I needed all the help I could get. And I just couldn't seem to read enough about them. Hopefully this review can help someone the way others here have helped me. Thank you to everyone on ECF. Thanks to Tony for the best customer service I have every experienced. And thanks to my Sidesho for possibly saving my life.

Happy Vaping Everyone

 

[Garnoch]

Great review and you nailed it. The only thing I didn't notice with mine was that although the manual batteries are a tad longer, I can't notice them being skinnier. Although I too am still loving the Sidesho, I've also bought a second model, but I got the 902. Good luck.

 

[jbird]

I started vaping with a kit I can buy at lacal smoke shop. It is called pure smoke not puresmoker. I used it for 6 weeks as I searched for the best cig like e-cig for me (Stylish but same size and feel of reel cig). I settled on the Moder Vapor Sidesho. The manual and auto batteries are far better than the pure smoke. The PCC is well lets just say once you have it you cant go without it, It is awsome. And even tho both orders I recieved from Modern Vapor had minor mistakes, they fixed them and took very good care of me(very good). I used only one atty the first 2 weeks. at first it was ok, But soon became a very big problem. It was very picky, It was eather flooded or dry (no vapor or burnt taste). I tried the blue foam mod and tried coke cleaning but nothing worked. Then I used the other atty that came in the kit. The new one produced a huge amount of vapor or so I thought. But it was a liquid hog I went from useing 1ml a day to 4ml a day. Now I can only take one drag every few minutes if I take a 2nd one it has burnt taste. I started 6 freinds on the pure smoke and 3 of them bought Sidesho's after seeing mine. But all have returned to the pure smoke as have I. After returning to the pure smoke I now see it has far more vapor. But the batteries are all different and no one likes them. I have looked online for an addaptor to use the Sidesho bat with pure smoke atty. But cant find one that say's it fits these 2 together. If anyone knows of one that fits please let me know. they have the same threads but are opposites female to female. I used a bent staple in the center and held the 2 together and wow!!!!!. crazy vapor and great taste. Please please please someone help.

 

[Garnoch]

Wow, that's a shame you had those issues, jbird. If the Sidesho wasn't working for you but you still have its batteries and chargers, consider buying just one 902 atomizer and some carts. Its a little thicker but will fit. I think you'd be surprised.

 

[jbird]

So what is the differance with the 902 I still have the batteries but want to use the atties from the pure smoke becuase with 7 people here using them no one has killed one yet and we dont clean them. and they put out more vapor than anolog puts out smoke.

 

[Garnoch]

I don't want to hijack a great review of the Sidesho, so I sent you a PM, check your mailbox here.

 

[TimBurns]

First off, my apologize for piggy backing onto your topic, but there seems to be a post count before can start a topic, even though I have been here for some time on a regular basis. Just read more then I have to say. Again sorry, just thought I would share my experience with the sidesho since October 2009.

Sitting here Vaping away on 24 mg B&h with a cup of earl grey, I decided I would share my story. All of it, the good and the Bad I have experienced with the sidesho.
When I first got my sidesho I was amazed, it tasted horrible. I had such high hopes, but then I learned about the primer fluid. After smoking for a bit, and a cleaning with a q-tip. Everything was as I had expected. Perfect.

Right off the bat I and my new E-cigarette (my first one) were good friends. I proudly walked around with the blue Led glowing in the night showing my friends who told me "No Timothy, don't order one of those, there crap. E-cigarettes are just a scam" But they were wrong, I loved it. That Night I must of vaped 5ml. I made myself sick with joy.

Everything was fine, for awhile. I ended up ordering much more juice, and a new battery. One of my first ones died just shortly after I got it. But with my auto in hand I set out to change my friend’s views. And after showing them how it worked and a few vaps, they were hooked. They wanted one, and their girlfriends just like mine, loved the lack of cigarette smoke.

When I first started vaping away in the smoking sections of my university, I was looked at strangely. Then it came to be that every 10 minutes I had to explain how it worked, why it worked. I ended up having to ask Tony for more business cards.

When Christmas came around, I had personally spent almost 300 on juice and my e-cig. I had a full set up, and my father was Eyeing my gear.

One of his friends loved my electric cigarette so much, she ordered a kit, and I would go over to her house and show her how it worked, let her try my flavors. She’s an elderly lady who was very confused but in love. And she was happy as a bird and so was I, until it seemed every day I was getting a call for me to come over and help her fill her carts.
Now puffing away on Modern vapor there was Me, lu, Rory, Brandon, (this guy I can’t remembers name) Hollywood, my father, and My father’s friend. And this was only the beginning. I was happy I wasn’t the only one that people jokingly called the “Fake Smoker” anymore. That’s when things really kicked off.
I mean literally, my battery died. Both of them were dead. I mentioned it on this forum and BAM, Tony sent me a replacement battery. His customer service is amazing. He helped me immensely.
Since then my love for modern vapor has spread amazingly. I have ordered 4 Kits myself, two for me, my father, and one of my father’s friends. I have ordered over 200 dollars in juice, and always been happy with everything.
Now there’s even more of my friends switching, when we all hang out it looks like a Christmas tree from all the different colored LEDs around. And I got to hear my favorite thing yet “Hey man, can I bum some juice from you”, Next week I have to give a 6 minuet long presentation on why I love electric Cigarettes. Be sure that I will spread the word of how nice the Sidesho is to me.
That gets me to this evening. Sitting here with my ember Led glowing on my computer monitor I now have to dive into the bad things, I don’t like talking about the bad things. So I’ll try and make it quick.
The batteries die at amazing rate. I don’t mean the battery is dead from lack of a charge. But the battery is dead and won’t ever charge again. The old cases were amazing, they held the batteries and everything like a glove, the new holders rip off the buttons, and you can’t store a manual in the second slot, so if you are like me and use up your auto and want to charge it when your out and about, you are going to have to put your manual battery in your pocket.
I just received this kit two days ago and about 20 minutes ago I went to switch to my manual battery, and sure enough it’s a dead battery. It happens, just be forewarned that you are going to have to order extra parts and juice, allot. On my table I have a few dead batteries, 4 dead atomizers, enough empty juice bottles to fill a drawer. But it’s worth it. It’s nice not smelling like smoke, my girl friend has even deemed me “Kissable” since I switched to e-cigs.
Thanks for the read, and again I’m sorry I had to piggyback on to your topic.
-[FONT="] [/FONT]Timothy.

 

[lightinup]

A very great read Tim! I have been going back and forth on whether or not to purchase the Sidesho. The battery issue which has been brought up before is the one thing that keeps me from diving in. Thank you and Happy Vaping!

 

[Garnoch]

Yes, another great read. As far as batteries go, I don't have a problem with them being I charge one while the other is charging. I'd say I go through maybe three a day. Its as easy as pulling out a pack of smokes and sliding an analog out - but I have to do it less, so I'm actually saving time.

 

[Grandma Marcia]

I love my Sidesho. Yes the bateries are sensitive,but I think they all are. I bought a starter kit for my husband as well, and now my grandson has purchased one. I don't think any one would be disappointed with the Sidesho and Tony's customer service is the best.