INTRODUCTION
Hello everyone and welcome to another review. This is Pizza Dave and today I will be going over the Topside Carbon by Dovpo. This review isn’t going to take super long because I already wrote a review on the Topside Dual, and this is essentially that device, with a few changes. This review is late to the game, but hell...it’s here, I tested it, I am reviewing it. I wanted to test one for quite some time, and was on the verge of just buying one a few times. It never happened, but at least it is happening now. Let’s see if all of my expectations will be met, or if Dovpo will let me down!
DISCLAIMER: This device was sent to my by Sourcemore for review.
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WHAT YOU GET
- 1 Topside Carbon mod
- 1 pre-installed 10mL squonk bottle
- 1 spare 10mL squonk bottle
- 1 USB charging/update cable
- 1 spare parts bag (screws and what not)
- 1 Piece of the carbon/resin block from the build of your device (kind of neat)
- Paperwork
Available in several colors, including some new ones. It comes in about every color you can think of including red, yellow, blue, magenta, gray, blue/red, blue/green, and I am sure some others.
STOCK SHOT
PACKAGING
UNBOXED
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Measurements: 88.5mm by 54mm by 42mm
Battery: Dual 18650
Power Range: 5-200w
Capacity: 10mL squonk bottle
Other features: Topside top fill bottle.
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FIRST IMPRESSIONS
As expected...gorgeous. The biggest draw for something like this is obviously how it looks. The combination of the carbon and resin that make up the main body of this device looks excellent and gives this a whole new feel. I love the topside dual, and it is still one of my favorite dual battery squonkers out there, but they really stepped it up with this one. It feels solid, it looks great, and it lives up to what I hoped it would be like in person.
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OPERATION
This is where things get tricky. I wouldn’t even be able to step through this section on my own, without the book. Yihi always does things a little weird and the board on this is no exception. For normal use, this works just fine, but it takes some time to get into how it is done. Let’s try to break it down and make it simple.
5 clicks of the fire button will turn on the device
Once on, 5 clicks of the fire button will get you to a menu where you can turn it off and see the following options:
WHEN IN WATTAGE MODE:
- System - Turns device on and off
- Brightness - Adjusts screen brightness
- Stats - Puff counter and puff counter reset
- Exit - Exits the menu
WHEN IN TC MODE:
- System - Turns device on and off
- TCR Setting - Adjust TCR
- Unit - Change between F and C
- Brightness - Adjusts screen brightness
- Stats - Puff counter and puff counter reset
- Exit - Exits the menu
WHEN ON THE RUNNING SCREEN:
- Pressing the enter button will cycle the modes
- Hitting the fire button 3 times will lock or unlock the entire device (won’t fire either)
- Holding the enter button will read resistance
Like I said, it isn’t too terrible, but it is just a different way of doing things. We are so conditioned to things like 5 clicks to turn a device on and off that it becomes second nature in a way. This works, but it takes a minute to remember what to do. The menu and screen are laid out clearly, so once you are in, it isn’t confusing.
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USAGE
So how does this compare to a regular Topside Dual? In short, it is basically the same, but looks better. The Yihi chipset, to me, isn’t any better than what they had before. However, I am a wattage vapor that doesn’t mess around with TC all that much. I know I tested it on the Dual, and found it was not very good at all. With this, it took a minute of playing, but I found it to have decent temperature control, as expected by Yihi. Other than the chip, this still has that great top fill design. It also has a solid feeling door, which I have no complaints with, and it also fits up to a 30mm atomizer right up to the fill cap (28mm realistically). Functionally sound device in my opinion.
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PHOTO GALLERY
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FINAL THOUGHTS
Like I said at the start, I wanted one of these so so bad. I like the Topside family of devices. I have never had an issue with leaking, or any other failures. I love how they refill, and I also like the look of them, but I will always be real. Did this live up to the hype for me? Yes, but purely based on looks. I LOVE how this looks! However, I think they could have ditched the Yihi chipset and gone for the standard Dovpo chip from the last one and MAYBE shaved some money off the price. Personally, I would have loved to see a DNA250C version a little more, but then the price would have gone up more. Nothing against Yihi, they just aren’t as user friendly as other chips. Beyond the chip thing, I really do love it. This is my favorite dual battery squonk mod of 2019, and think that they did a great job with it. It has very few cons for what it is, and I will use this until it dies.
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OVEN TEST – If this were to accidentally fall into the pizza oven, would I go out and get another? Yes, yes I will.
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PROS
- Looks amazing
- Top fill squonk system
- Dual 18650 offers plenty of power
- Accommodates up to 30mm atomizers without serious overhang (28mm with none)
- Feels great in hand, even if a little big
- No rattles what so ever
- Good power and TC output
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CONS
- Big, not pocket friendly
- Heavy
- Yihi chipset is not great for beginners
- Should have come with matching 810 drip tip (I wish)
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Thank you everyone and thank you to Sourcemore for sending this my way for review. They have these listed for $170 and are currently getting the new colors in stock soon.
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Pizza Dave – delivering real reviews with no extra toppings
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REVIEW CRITERIA: I use each item for about two weeks to ensure I have collected enough data to adequately write a review. I use the same e liquid in tanks or rdas throughout all my reviews to ensure that I am comparing apples to apples between all modern equipment. I do not post reviews until I feel confident that I have used it enough to give an educated review. The reason I started doing reviews was due to poor purchasing decisions in my vaping infancy about two years ago. Back then, I purchased several different pieces of hardware without really enjoying it and I hope my reviews can guide people into spending their hard-earned money more wisely than I did! ****Keep in mind that some items I receive may be pre-release and not in retail packaging. Quality may be less than the finished product and what is in the package may differ from the retail package as well.
