When I first started vaping about 6 years ago, I basically started with an eGo/clearo like just about everyone else at the time, and was instantly, and equally, disappointed and excited by the potential - not to knock it too much, I got past the first three weeks successfully with it.
I got lucky with the shop I went to and got exposed to mechs on day one, along with a thorough explanation of what they (and rebuildables) were. I went home and studied up for a few weeks before getting my first mech (some cheap Kamry tube) and never looked back.
...Until this summer when I decided to retire my parallel box and see how far electronics have come.
Temperature control is a joke and offers no value to me, so we'll get that out of the way.
In a short amount of time, I used a Minikin V2 (almost immediately retired), a Reuleaux mini (soon to be retired/emergency use), and a Therion 75 BF (best vape of the three, serious, unforgivable flaws). They all vaped just fine. Really just fine. Performed however the heck I wanted them to. Just... lesser.
My L'Octopus arrived tonight and my first pull on it was like heaven. Not because of the mod, but because it's a mech. This post has already gone on long enough, but suffice it to say that the natural, delicate interplay of your element and battery, when you really dial it in (and believe me, I've spent hundreds of hours discovering just how nuanced achieving a "perfect build" can be), cannot be achieved to the same level of precision on a regulated device.
In my opinion, for my tastes, of course. And no question my experience with mechs only highlights my inexperience with regulated devices. But still, three months on regulated and I felt almost withdrawal for an unregulated vape. That first draw and since on my new mod feels like a homecoming.
Mechs forever.