These days, choosing a vapourizer kit has become akin to choosing a car. Yes, you want something that has a ton of standard features, and which also delivers great performance, but you also want something that looks good.
The newer mods all have style and I have to say that the SMOK Alien 220W mod is one of the best looking that I have seen in a while. The biggest question you probably have is whether the performance matches the aesthetics. Let’s look and see.
PACKAGING & DESIGN
Like all SMOK devices, a lot of care and attention is put into the packaging. The box sleeve is in basic black, and features a large image of the Alien on front.
It also gives you a product description, the contents of the box, and the now familiar authenticity codes. Slipping off the sleeve reveals the SMOK logo etched in silver on the black box.
The Alien is really nice to look at with some nice color touches to go with the black box mod. There are 6 different color options to choose from.
The kit includes a tank, which I will talk about later, a USB charger, some O rings, and a 0.4 ohm coil, as well as a few other little goodies.
The MOD measures 85mm x 44 mm x 30mm, making it a nice fit for most hands, and highly portable. The overall look of this unit is fantastic, and it has the feel of a well-built, sturdy device, which is what we have all come to expect from the majority of SMOK devices.
KIT CONTENTS
- 1 x Alien 220 Mod
- 1 x TFV8 Baby Tank
- 1 x V8 Baby-Q2 Core (0.4Ω dual coils) (Pre-installed)
- 1 x V8 Baby-T8 Core (0.15Ω octuple coils)
- 1 x USB Cable for Charging/Upgrading
- 1 x Replacement Glass Tube
- 1 x User Manual
- Spare Parts
ALIEN MOD SPECS
- Size: 85x44x28.4mm
- Power Range: 1W-220W
- Resistance Range: 0.1Ω-3Ω (VW) / 0.06Ω-2Ω (TC)
- Temperature Range: 200℉–600℉/100℃–315℃
TFV8 BABY TANK SPECS
- Material: Stainless Steel
- Size: 22x53mm
- Weight: 47g
- Capacity: 3ml
- Thread: 510
FUNCTIONALITY
The SMOK Alien comes complete with a Baby Beast tank that sits about as flush to the unit as you can get. The connection is excellent, as the spring loaded pin in the 510 connector ensures that the tank is snug. Flavor and vapor quality are both better than average, regardless of the settings I used.
Once the batteries are loaded, 5 clicks of the firing button will power this bad boy up. I will talk a little more about the OLED display in a moment, but what I will say now is that when you turn the Alien on, you are greeted with a host of information, including the current charge on each battery individually.
When running in wattage control, you can move up and down using the buttons on the front of the device. Move up or down in 0.1W with a single click, or move up and down very quickly by holding the buttons down.
I personally never vape anywhere past 80W unelss I’m testing, but the option is there to crank it up to 220W if you want to.
While in use, pushing the fire button 5 times will lock the device, which is handy when you are carrying it around, as the fire bar is a little sensitive. 3 clicks gets you into the menu where you can change mode and the settings of the device.
It’s easy to manage, and not at all complicated. You can also set up 22 different memory settings from within the menu, so lots of opportunity to dabble a little with this device.
DISPLAY
The display on the Alien 220W is one of the best that I’ve seen. It is big, bold, and easy to read.
All the information you could ever hope to see at any given time is on display, and changing the settings becomes that much easier when you don’t have to squint to see what’s going on.
BATTERY DETAILS
The SMOK Alien 220W is powered by a pair of 18650 batteries, which is about standard for many modern mods.
Before you put the batteries in the unit, you’ll find that the battery cover, located on the bottom of the device, feels very loose. That door tightens up nicely once the batteries are in place, removing what may have been a major con for me – I don’t like anything that rattles!
One thing to love about the battery set-up is the addition of large “+” and “-“ symbols inside the battery case. This makes it easy to figure out exactly which way the batteries are loaded. You can charge the batteries using the supplied USB charger if you have to, but I’d recommend you use an external charger instead. It’s faster and safer.
DISLIKES
- The unit will occasionally misfire
- Larger tanks hang over the edge of the unit a little
- The battery cover is very loose when the batteries are not loaded
LIKES
- Attractively priced
- Compact and easy to carry
- Easy to control
- Outstanding OLED display
- Comes with a Baby Beast tank, and a host of other goodies
SHOULD YOU GET THE ALIEN?
To be honest, I had a difficult time coming up with a list of cons for this great little unit. This is one of the few kits that will please newbies and veteran vapers right out of the box.
The amount of info shown on the display may make it seem complicated, but the SMOK Alien is easy to use, and at about £50-£60, it is also very affordable, especially when you consider that you get the box mod and the tank.
This is an excellent device that I highly recommend.