Smok RPM 25W Kit – A Smok MTL?
To my surprise, I actually haven’t written a lot of reviews of Smok devices despite their ubiquity worldwide. Indeed, I got stuck without a DL device halfway around the world, and so I picked up a Smok RPM 80 Pro on sale at a local shop; I mean talk about a global footprint!
In the UK, you would be hard-pressed to find physical vape shops that do not sell Smok devices. That’s perhaps a testament to how long they’ve been around, how famous/infamous they are, or even their aggressive marketing campaigns. Find a map, close your eyes, randomly point to a piece of land and I’ll bet their local vape shop will carry a Smok starter kit from years ago!
So, the RPM 25W Kit is a more recent release that appears to aim toward MTL vapers. This is really what got me interested in reviewing this kit as Smok’s recent pod releases seem to be either pure DL or “bit of DL and not really MTL”. With the RPM 25W Kit, Smok is perhaps staking a claim in the MTL market.
As always, I will be reviewing this kit as an average vaper, as most in our community are.
Packaging and Contents
I was sent what looked to be retail packaging for the Smok RPM 25W Kit that included:
§The RPM 25W device.
§The RPM 25W Pod; has a 2mL capacity.
§2 x LP1 Meshed 0.9 ohm MTL coils, one of which is preinstalled into the pod. Hmm now already, I did wish that Smok included other LP1 coil types in the pack to let the vaper try something different. Per the interweb, there’s at least a 0.8-ohm LP1 coil out there…
§USB-C cable
§Paperwork including a user manual, warranty card, and safety card.
Salient Features include:
§The device with a 900 mAh battery.
§Dimensions at 110 x 21 x 23 mm.
§Super lightweight at 56g.
§Kicks out 5-25W in power, 1.5-4.0 in volts.
§Reads 0.6-2.5 ohms of resistance.
§0.9A charging, and the battery percentage and estimated time to full charge are displayed when charging.
§Has only auto-draw firing.
§Airflow control on the device.
§0.69” OLED screen.
§Single multifunctional button on the device.
§Side-fill pod with coil installation/replacement via its base.
§And of course, has the standard protections we are familiar with.
Impressions and Experience
Minimalism is the overriding theme of the Smok RPM 25W Kit, and the same applies to its packaging. The outer sleeve has a photo of the device on it, as well as its features, manufacturer information, warnings and kit contents. An inner box slides out to reveal the kit and its accessories which are neatly placed in a slotted foam tray. The packaging is already quite compact, but I think Smok could have consolidated this even more as the foam tray was quite generous.
I must say that this is probably the most “un-Smok” device I’ve ever used, which in my eyes is a good thing as it introduces something different to their seemingly never-ending Nord or Novo series of kits. The pod is no longer flat or duckbill-shaped, no resin or fluid designs, and the main branding on it is the “RPM 25W” embossed on the leather. There’s not even any brand on the screen! It almost feels like a “mature” Smok pod kit, if I can put it that way.
This is one sleek-looking device, especially as a whole with the pod! For a 900 mAh device, I am quite impressed with how Smok has managed to really minimise the footprint of this kit. I would even venture to say that it’s not that much taller or wider (in circumference) than the average disposable vape we will find everywhere now.
A. RPM 25W Device
The device itself is made with a metal frame (probably aluminium alloy because it’s so light?) that is finished smoothly, complemented by a piece of leather that wraps around either side of this frame. The Smok RPM 25W Kit comes in 4 colours, and the black one I received is actually quite pleasing to the eye. It has white contrast stitching, and overall, the leather and how it’s shaped just feels so good in the hand.
Up top is quite a deep pod cradle/catch that has coil contacts and an auto-draw microphone. Right at its base is the USB-C port – so you won’t be able to charge this upright. And in front are the screen, multi-function button, and airflow control wheel.
The airflow control wheel is somewhat similar to what we’ve seen before in the Smok Nord 4. It has no stops, and airflow control will be dictated by the size of the airflow hole you leave exposed as you turn the wheel. It has a nice tension to it and doesn’t spin freely, and most importantly, it is actually effective in controlling airflow. I found that I can get anywhere between a loose MTL or tight RDL, to a tight MTL with this airflow in combination with the pod and coil. This will be awesome for MTL vapers!
Five clicks of the sole button on the device will turn it on or off. To adjust the wattage, simply click the button 3 times to get the wattage value flashing, then click again to adjust to the desired wattage. Once reached, just wait until the flashing stops to lock the wattage. Since there is only one button, the wattage selection is pretty much in a cycle. This means, it goes up until it reaches 25W, and clicking the button further will take it back down to 5W (the start) to restart the cycle. Simple and effective.
And that’s right, the button on the device isn’t exactly your classic fire button. Clicking it when vaping does nothing. Might be a little weird to some, but I think that this is actually a good thing as it avoids any misfires when the kit is pocketed.
At first glance, the screen appears to be big but there’s only really less than an inch of it that displays information. Even so, there is an ample amount of information displayed like battery life (in bar and percentage), wattage level, ohm load, and a puff counter. The font size used isn’t too small either.
Performance-wise, the auto-draw engages really quickly and with no discernible lag. Battery life easily lasted all day in MTL vaping. Quite frankly, I have no real complaints about the Smok RPM 25W device!
B. RPM 25W Pod and Coils
The pod is made with quite heavily tinted plastic which unfortunately does make e-liquid levels challenging to see, especially in low light. It installs into the device with a push (and therefore you’ll pull it out to remove it) which secures it in place.
The round drip tip is fixed to the pod and narrows towards the top. It’s tall which makes it perfect for MTL vaping. It was comfortable enough for me to use, although making the pod 510 drip tip compatible would have been a nice feature.
The side-fill port is sealed by a rubber bung. The refilling hole underneath this bung is big enough for most small e-liquid bottles. The one thing I will comment on is the placement of this side fill hole: if Smok had raised this fill hole nearer to the top (or even better: made it a top-fill instead), then it would make refilling so much easier and faster. As it stands, it’s positioned in such a way that your bottle nozzle will be touching the coil as there’s not a lot of space between the coil and the fill hole. This isn’t really a con though, just something to keep in mind when refilling.
The coils press fit from the bottom of the pod, and impressively, I’ve had no leaking issues with either coil! All in all, I was quite satisfied with the pod and its performance, with no leaks or even condensation and truly adjustable airflow, it does the job and does it well!
The 0.9 ohm LP1 meshed coil (best 17W) gave a really nice and smooth vape. Flavour was quite impressive (7.5/10) and the draw was the kind of warm I liked at 17W. Although, I will say that vaping this coil at 15W gave me a similar experience, so I pretty much stuck to this wattage level to help save on battery life. The taste was clear, crisp, and somehow a little on the sweet side, so your sweet e-liquids will be quite pronounced with this coil. I recommend using 50/50 VG/PG e-liquids with this coil to get the best out of it.
Overall: Yay or Nay?
The Smok RPM 25W Kit gets a Yay from me being a solid MTL pod kit. It’s a great starter kit for beginners and even experienced MTL vapers will enjoy the vape experience this kit offers.
It’s simple to use, easy on the eye, very portable and kicks out great flavour. I can’t really pinpoint any dealbreakers with this kit!