There's a fair selection available from a variety of vendors. ProVari, Darwin, Sabre Touch, Silver Bullet, Alpha, Omega, Knight Rider/Lava Tube, GGTS, Precise, and a bunch more. Check my mod/hardware vendor's list, the first section is all about mods.
Depends on what it is you're going for. Performance-wise, simpler 3.7V mods don't really offer much over things like the eGo and such other than typically using bigger batteries for longer life between charges. That's really the starting point for the reason mods exist. However, there are other mods that each have certain advangages:
- Mechanical mods like the Alpha and Omega. These are all mechanical -- no electrical switches and such to wear out or fry, and so are made to last a very, very long time and be easily repairable as well.
- High and variable voltage mods. HV mods are fairly limited in their variability and require battery stacking to achieve higher voltages, while variables are usually single-battery mods that let you adjust the voltage with more fine grains. Either way they give you the opportunity to experience a warmer, more flavourful (or at least varied), harder-hitting vape with bigger clouds of vapor. VV mods in particular let you finely select what experience you want based on your juice and the atomizer, clearomizer or cartomizer you have attached.
- Bottom feeders are for those that don't mind a more boxy form factor and at the same time want longer battery life and a discrete juice reservoir so they can just take it wherever and know they've got enough battery life and enough juice to last all day and possibly well beyond, depending on vape pace.
So yes, there are reasons for their existence beyond being fodder for a hobbyist's collection. Sure, there some that are really aimed at the boutique, collector crowd, like the Precise or GG, and have price tags to match, but everything has its place.
Depends on how attached you are to that form factor. Generally speaking, mods are bigger at the very least (can't have bigger batteries otherwise), and sometimes they don't conform to the round form factor (box mods, bottom feeders, Darwin), so it depends on how big your comfort zone is and how averse you are to stepping outside of it.
Well, you're pretty much either going to go with a fixed-voltage mod (Silver Bullet, Omega, Alpha, Sabre, Precise, etc.), a high voltage mod (via stacking smaller batteries) or a variable voltage (Lava Tube, ProVari, Darwin). There is a certain learning curve to high or variable voltage devices though because you have to start concerning yourself a bit more with the resistance of the atties/cartos you're attaching and what combination of resistance and voltage is right for the kind of vape you want to attain.
If you just want something sturdy and that will last forever on a charge, get yourself a Silver Bullet or Omega. If you want to be able to explore what higher voltage and different resistances can do for you, get a variable voltage mod.
I'd say go for it. At the very least you'll have a good device that can function as a backup to the smaller PVs that are closer to your comfort zone.
