Should we disregard every review??

[r77r7r]

Nowadays you can find a horrible or glowing review for about every product or supplier out there.

How does a newcomer find his way? What makes for a successful Vet?

Personally, I'm just an ego/boge carto-tank/unflavored eliquid user, so I don't try alot of new things or order often.

I order small, especially from a new vendor, test it, then put in a larger order. If I have a slight problem, I consider user error and do further research.

What makes you successful??

 

[Faylool]

I don't consider myself particularly successful except that I'm having fun and achieving my goals and will break even in. A year and a half or so and have about that much in useable supplies. I boughtad offering brands 3 or 4 brands of Atties and
Cartos and clearos with LR and and Standard Reserve ohms. I have 2 rebuildables getting 2 more then done probably for a year. I read this forum too much. I'm retired, have time. I don't ask enough questions and when I do sometimes I don't like the answers! Ha . So, thinking for yourself is big and sounds like that's what you do. I have 3 all mechanical mods with one a bottom feeder ( I guess mechanicals are my favorite,) cig a like eRoll supplies up the .... ( did a co op), ego batteries and a . I worked with all untill I got it going the way iLife best and learned. I need to work with clearos more but didn't because I don't like plastic. I have 4 Pyrex glass anks I use with cartos. I ordered a Kanger Pro which is a glass clearo or they called it a glassomizer! Pssssht but I'll work with that one and send my plastic clearos on to someone
. Oops forgot my Vamo. It's a good one. And of course DIY

 

[markfm]

I don't chase the latest and greatest. I've found my own personal winners for cartos, tanks, atties, VV PV (I like 8 - 10W), eliquid (my own DIY), stick with them. High performance, durability (my PVs take a beating, keep on working well), consistency.

I do keep an eye on what's coming out, but will only automatically try something from a very small, select, group of vendors. I ask vets questions, like when I first tried atties (I use them on my VV feeder), to see what they think are best of breed in a given area.

 

[Robino1]

Reading tons here on ECF and getting a good idea from both sides of an issue. For example, Vivi Nova's. I read both good and bad 'reviews'. I came to the conclusion that a lot of the bad reviews were on the knock off ones. When you weigh the bad reviews on the genuine Nova with the good.....the Genuine came out on top with more good than bad.

For me it's about watching and waiting until the bugs get worked out of a product.

Juice, on the other hand, is a crap shoot. By trying all different flavors, I figured out what my profile 'type' was. I got lucky and found a good fit for me in a juice vendor early on. I'm all about simplicity. Watching and reading lead me to try Net tobacco's. I got good suggestions on what to try from others that I trusted for their opinion. I'm satisfied with what I have now and really find that I am not chasing flavors.

Read and research, know yourself. If you like to tinker, go with RBA's; if you don't like to tinker, go with something that doesn't require a lot of thought. I shy away from things when I see things like 'drill the hole to make it just a bit bigger'. Uh...that's not how I roll.

 

[sawlight]

I have to really wonder about some of the more popular reviewers myself, it's as if they didn't review it, or didn't like it, it's no good and their ardent followers will trash you for thinking it's good, or if you think it's bad and the reviewer thinks its good you get the same treatment.
So much of this is subjective it's hard for me to say "This, this is what you need and what will work for you, and ONLY this!" I like the Provari, some people don't like the size, others think it's to complicated and others wont use it because it lacks VW. That's fine.
Some people love RBA's and say it's the only way to vape and experience the true flavor of the juice. I've got a few of them but I can't build a coil to save my life and find them a hassle most of the time. And that's fine.
I like carto tanks, I think they are simple, hassle free and they work great for me. Others find them hard to deal with and think it mutes the flavor of some juice. And that's fine.
Some people love to drip, they like the plumes of vapor and great throat hit it offers. I've tried it, and I agree, it's an awesome experience, but too tedious for me. And that's fine.
I think we've come to a point where people are overwhelmed with choices and are trying things to find what works for them the best. I think that's great! I remember all the work we had to do just to get a stupid cartomizer to work and how it was a revelation to find one that worked without us having to do anything to it! Imagine that in today's crowed!
I take all reviews with a grain of salt and I always pay close attention to how they word things, sometimes you can catch them as if they are really trying to sell a certain product as if they gain off the sale. Other times they are genuine. But it's hard to always know.
As for recommendations I try to find out how much effort someone is willing to put into it, what has and hasn't worked for them and try to guide in that direction. No one product is right for everyone and with all the choices out now there's no reason for anyone to have to really need to compromise much, other than maybe battery life in some choices.
I think something we, as a community need to work on is listening to what the OP is saying and read the whole thread, not just skim it and throw out something. Many times I've seen something suggested, the OP explain why they did or didn't like that and have someone else come in with the exact same suggestion because they didn't bother reading. We really need to try and be attentive to the wants and needs of what the OP is expressing and try to help them find the product that fits those needs.

 

[aubergine]

I shy away from things when I see things like 'drill the hole to make it just a bit bigger'. Uh...that's not how I roll. [/QUOTE]

DREMEL! DREMEL!! LOOK OUT!!! DREMEL TALK!!!

(Aubs is tearing ... outta there, too...)

 

[r77r7r]

Well, I wasn't thinking of the professional reviewers, just the personal statements from regular folks here on the forums.

I like to help newcomers, but lately having a hard time findings what to suggest because of the scathing comments of some members.

I find it hard to believe that Ikens cartos and VN's are horrible, altho I've never tried them.

Yeah, we should leave eliquid out of this thread, lol.

So, it's mostly having to do good research, and buy small to start?

 

[mikejm]

Considering that I've seen reviewers break forum rules and then get other users banned on ECF, I don't trust reviewers. Reviewers get special protection and free products.

 

[markfm]

Pretty much, same as it was when we started, just more choices

(And anyone who says Isaac's cartos are horrible I'd discount. His fusions are a firm draw, tightly packed, maybe not great with a super thick eliquid, but stellar consistency.)

 

[tj99959]

We do tend to chase our tails a bit with this stuff, don't we.

Anyone notice that the more things change .. the more they stay the same.

 

[Kemosabe]

its nice to read reviews from folks that have the same preferences as you. for me, TH was my biggest challenge. its the part of vaping that i enjoy the most, but i quickly found out that not all folks (hardly anoyone) values TH as much as i do.

so when i hear that X juice for example is just fantastic, i take that with a grain of salt. sure, it may taste fantastic, but is there a wallop? that is the #1 aspect of vaping that keeps me from smoking. need TH, gotta have TH.

so naturally when i found out about RBAs and that they amplify the TH, well...i was sold. and trust me, rebuilding coils was the last thing i pictured myself doing when i dove into the wide world of ecigs.

so my advice is to read reviews, sure. read away. but pay special attention to the reviewers that value what you value. for example (as a parallel), i happen to be a beer geek. but i dont fully enjoy every style out there. if someone were to tell me "wow i found a spectacular new brew", i might be inclined to check it out but id also consider the source. if this particular reviewer is a big nut brown or siason fan for example, i might skip it because while that brew may be fantastic is its own right, i may not enjoy it as much as him because im more of an IPA guy.

 

[Robino1]

Well, I wasn't thinking of the professional reviewers, just the personal statements from regular folks here on the forums.

I like to help newcomers, but lately having a hard time findings what to suggest because of the scathing comments of some members.

I find it hard to believe that Ikens cartos and VN's are horrible, altho I've never tried them.

Yeah, we should leave eliquid out of this thread, lol.

So, it's mostly having to do good research, and buy small to start?

Yeah, I would say research. Definitely start with simpler to at least get a feel for this new journey. Most newbies have no clue what the terminology is let alone what something looks like. Lord, when I first started researching, I thought what the hell is an atty?!

Until newbies actually get something in hand, it's all words. When you finally have it in your hands, then it's like, ooooooh! Now I see! That's a coil and there's the wick....etc.. Pictures help and so do videos.

I actually like hearing about devices from the general public rather than 'expert reviewers'. Although, I must admit, I got the nova because I saw how easy it was from a vid done by Brusardo. Like I said, I like simplicity and that was sooo incredibly simple. But I did read tons before watching that vid and pretty much had my mind already made up. That just solidified my choice.

@ aubergine!!

 

[Kemosabe]

+1 on pbusardo. very thorough. he helped me out greatly. i havent checked his youtubes out lately, but you can count on him to give a complete review.

 

[Caridwen]

Considering that I've seen reviewers break forum rules and then get other users banned on ECF, I don't trust reviewers. Reviewers get special protection and free products.

What does that even mean?

 

[jimmyh]

I do a lot of reading and reasoning when looking at reviews. They say taste is subjective, well so are reviews. There are many threads about say a certain product, I'll read them, the good ,bad and ugly. In the end it will boil down to what I believe. I may try to contact vendor/maker of product to get more information.

 

[Debi]

I think a personal recommendation is a good thing. I like it when products are rated with stars and written reviews from customers are provided because if you read thru them, you can get a pretty clear indication of what the real story might be with the product in terms of whether it's good or bad. Same goes for posts about products here or anywhere else. If you frequent the forums long enough, you will get to know whose opinions you value. When watching youtube reviews, watch several about the same product. If positives or negatives are repeated, to me that's evidence that there's truth behind what's being said. Doing this, I think, hones the BS meter ... it gets a little easier to tell when a review "stinks" over time.

 

[samazon]

Three things have led me to where I am on my journey to "vapevana" :

1. Excessive spending. Lol, not REALLY, but when I started, I got so annoyed with the clearo/carto/cartotank/etc choice that I went ahead and bought one or two of everything and just tried it all out. Most of it was relatively inexpensive. I've even got RBAs (the AGA-Ts) and supplies, and after buying about seven drip tips, I have one I love. Of course, I'm a dripper now, so I use... none of the things I got to begin with. But I'm one of the "vocal minority" and have several new vapers here in my area who are going to get to try all my rejects (clearo brands, carto tanks, etc.) to see what they think is best for them. Same goes for juice. I have, oh, seventy bottles of juice from eleven different vendors. What I don't like, I PIF to new vapers.

2. Memphis Vape Meets. I go every month, it's a great resource, the people are super. I'd heard about VW devices before my first meet but when I saw exactly what they were, I was like "Gotta get me one of those" and I LOVE my VW device. It's also a good place to try new juices, learn about DIY, and meet vendors. Meets are well worth going to.

3. Finding online reviewers/vapers you trust. I have a group of friends online who vape, they're not reviewers per se, but when they try something tasty and new, they share. Because I talk to them every day, I'm pretty darn sure they're not trying to sell me something, they're just sharing an opinion.

I went from thinking an average vape juice on a mediocre device was right for me. Now, I tinker. I take pleasure in vaping. I learn new things every single day. ^_^ I'm a happy vaper.

 

[sawlight]

Well, I wasn't thinking of the professional reviewers, just the personal statements from regular folks here on the forums.

I like to help newcomers, but lately having a hard time findings what to suggest because of the scathing comments of some members.

I find it hard to believe that Ikens cartos and VN's are horrible, altho I've never tried them.

Yeah, we should leave eliquid out of this thread, lol.

So, it's mostly having to do good research, and buy small to start?

I take exception to this I guess. I tried his VN's, and another vendors, hated both of them! Even talked to him about it and he said he didn't think I'd be happy with them either. So that's neither here nor there, BUT I do LOVE his carto's! The best I've found to date! The 801's are better IMO, but I hate using the adapter, it makes my Provari look like it ate a rat!

 

[tj99959]

I take exception to this I guess. I tried his VN's, and another vendors, hated both of them! Even talked to him about it and he said he didn't think I'd be happy with them either. So that's neither here nor there, BUT I do LOVE his carto's! The best I've found to date! The 801's are better IMO, but I hate using the adapter, it makes my Provari look like it ate a rat!

What makes anyone think that Iken doesn't order his VN's and cartos from China just like everyone else?

 

[markfm]

Cartos are from China, he doesn't claim otherwise, but they're his design, built to his specs.