What’s up vapers!
SirRisc here with another gear review!
The Smok G-Priv was sourced from Smoktech!
Premise.
Do I even need to say how much I like Smok products lately? I don’t, don’t I?
Smok has been releasing mods almost on a biweekly basis and despite the rate of their releases, the quality has improved consistantly.
Despite minor issues with some of their mods, most have been well designed and good looking mods that have a ton of functionality.
But innovation is key and sometimes a trend pops up, and the touchscreen is one of those trends.
The G-Priv follows that trend and does a pretty good job in a rather small formfactor.
But is it worth it? Let’s find out!
Specifications.
- Dual 18650 battery powered
- 220W maximum power output
- 2.4" touchscreen
- Big integrated firebutton
- Screen lock button
- Temperature control for Ni, Ti, SS316
Packaging.
Note: the G-Priv arrived over a month before the actual market release and as such came in prototype packaging.
The G-Priv is normally sold with a Baby Beast tank included, and has updated firmware loaded.
Mine however came without the tank (though I did put a myriad of Smok tanks on it for testing), and with earlier firmware.
The updated firmware with which the retail version comes changes very little except a few small bugs.
With the prototype firmware I ran into 2 problems, a faulty boot-up which was immediately resolved by taking out the batteries and a stability issue which caused the mod to shut down once.
Before the actual review, I upgraded the firmware to the retail version. The hardware is exactly the same.
Performance.
Most, if not all, high powered Smok mods have been using similar boards lately.
The H-Priv and the XCube Ultra have similar performance and similar functionality, they just look different from each other.
The XCube Ultra boasts an impressive firing button with LED lights and the mod has a bit more bells and whistles to it, the H-Priv remained sober and a bit more down to earth but also boasted a big firing button.
Now we get a new mod by the name of G-Priv, and in terms of functionality it’s practically the same mod bar a few minor differences.
It does temperature control for Ni, Ti, and SS316L, it has a maximum power output of 220W, it’s powered by 2 18650 batteries and it has a large red firing button that takes up most of the spine of the mod.
However the G-Priv looks very different from the other two, because it has a massive touchscreen on the side of the mod.
The touchscreen has been introduced in several mods since late last year with mods like the SMY Touch Box (what’s in a name, right?), the Sigelei T150, or more recently the Laisimo L3.
So far most of these mods have been successful in what they offer, but users have had their complaints about the quality of the touchscreens.
Some of the screens were too limited in resolution, causing it to be pixelated and hard to read. Others were too fragile and cracked like an iPhone falling from an endtable.
The G-Priv is Smoks first foray into touchscreens and it does look like it might be a good one.
That doesn’t mean it’s without issues… it lacks customisation options and the resolution still isn’t great.
The writing is crisp and easily readable, with a big round meter that holds your set power and the usual soft/normal/hard/max setting we’re used to seeing from Smok.
The meter also functions as a pufftimer, rolling off as long as the puff lasts (upto 12 seconds before it cuts off).
Underneath the big meter are three smaller circles that show your amperage, voltage and resistance in power mode.
In temperature control mode, which can be reached by pressing the little arrow in the top left corner of the screen, the big circle will show you the set temperature, setting and wattage.
On the side of the mod is a big red firing button, similar to the one of the H-Priv but better integrated into the design of the mod.
The button is fairly smooth and has very little resistance to push, but it does retain a good amount of tactile feedback.
Just above the big button is a small silver colored button that will turn off the screen when pressed, or lock the screen if held for a second.
I’d highly suggest locking the screen at all times because the touchscreen is extremely sensitive to touch and will screw your settings up if you vape it without it being locked.
In terms of power output, the G-Priv is practically the same mod as the H-Priv.
This means you will get to 220W without issues, and the temperature control is fairly accurate.
Though of course, getting to the maximum power output will depend greatly on the quality of your batteries and the resistance of your coils.
That’s where the G-Priv does run into problems, the resistance readout is not accurate enough and consistantly reads too high.
The difference is usually around 0.05ohm which despite the small difference can severely affect the power output, not to mention the actual vape.
There is a fix however, you can go into the TC settings and adjust the initial resistance downwards by 0.05ohm.
If you’re willing to use the mod at its maximum power output, I would definitely advise on using freshly charged, high quality batteries with a continuous amp rating of at least 20A.
Samsung 25R, Sony VTC5 or VTC5A would be excellent choices and will most likely give you a decent batterylife even at that kind of output.
That brings me to the big question, will the large touchscreen kill your batterylife?
In short, no. The screen is large and it does require a little bit more power than the usual smaller LCD or OLED screens, but it won’t draw enough power from the mod to actually make the batterylife shorter.
Of course if you set the screen to a timeout of 10 minutes (I have no clue why you would want to do that) it will drain a bit more and it will start affecting the batterylife, albeit a very small difference.
One thing the touchscreen lacks is customisation. You get this big, beautiful screen that could have an awesome dickbutt or your favorite picture of Margot Robbie as Harlequin, but there’s no way to put those on there.
You’re stuck with the standard interface Smok has preloaded on the screen, which in my opinion is a hugely missed opportunity in comparison with some other touchscreen mods.
The shiny logo when booting up the mod is nice and all, but I’d like to have at least some customisation options when the mod is working.
All in all though, that’s one of the very few things that I didn’t like about the G-Priv. The rest is pretty fucking great.
Aesthetics.
Pros and Cons.
Pro.
- Big screen is clear and crisp
- Batterylife is NOT affected by the big screen
- Smooth and very comfortable firing button
- TC is fairly accurate, power output is effectively 220W
- Smaller than most dual 18650 mods
- Ability to lock the screen is a necessary function
Con.
- Touchscreen can’t be customised
- 510 connection is rather shallow and can be troublesome with longer 510 pins
- Touchscreen is a fingerprint magnet
- Resistance readout is inaccurate (~0.05ohm deviation upwards, can be adjusted in TC settings)
In conclusion.
The G-Priv has proven to be a great mod to use, despite the lack of customisation options.
The power output is, just like the H-Priv and the XCube Ultra, set at 220W maximum and the temperature control responds quickly.
Unfortunately multiple people, including myself, seem to be having trouble with the resistance readout which does hinder functionality.
This is most likely an issue with the 510 connection and should probably be revised by Smok before shipping out new batches.
Being a fair bit smaller than most dual 18650 mods makes the G-Priv an easy carry, not to mention it looks quite nice too.
The batterylife isn’t spectacular but the screen doesn’t really affect the batterylife, at lower wattages the mod lasts the entire day.
Smoks standard interface is clear and easy enough to read, but I would have liked at least a static wallpaper option.
Overall I quite like the G-Priv and would definitely replace it if it broke.
In closing I would like to thank Smoktech for sending out the G-Priv!
Thanks for reading, join me next time as I take a look at the Vaporesso Estoc tank! Smaller coils==less waste!
Need to reach me? Head over to my website.
Interested in what I vape daily? Check out my Instagram.
Want to know more about DIY? Head over to ELR.
#staycloudy !
SirRisc disappears in a cloud of apple crumble scented vapor
DISCLAIMER: This review is based on personal opinions and is not intended as a promotion, endorsement or advertisement.
The publisher is not sponsored, affiliated or compensated in any way.
lol