What up vapefam!
SirRisc here with another mod review courtesy of Gearbest.com!
I’ve been carrying (or dragging rather) around the SMY50TC mod over the passed couple of weeks, here are my impressions.
Premise.
SMY has always been a bit controversial in terms of build quality, especially with mods like the GOD180 which was known to have its issues.
The current generation of SMY devices have been a fair bit better though, and this one is no different from the current range.
The build quality is very good, the body is well machined and clean, the glass across the door and front is shiny as the sun and the buttons feel nice and tactile.
The chip inside is another matter though. While it does have all the basic functionality you’d expect from a mod, it does things a little different from the rest.
In terms of looks the mod is a beauty to behold.
Specifications.
- Variable Wattage / Temperature Control
- Single 18650 battery
- USB Charging with LED notification
- 510 connection with a silverplated and springloaded pin
- 50W maximum power output
- 0.1ohm to 3.0ohm in VW mode, 0.1ohm to 1.0ohm in TC mode
- Over temperature, anti-reverse protection, short circuit protection and low voltage protection
- Sliding battery door, ballbearing locked
- OLED screen
- Metal and glass body
Packaging.
The packaging of the SMY is pretty basic though very sturdy.
The entire thing is wrapped in a cardboard sleeve with a photo of the mod, the companys logo and their slogan “Live long and vape on”.
Catchy phrase. 
On the back are the specifications of the mod, and a bit of text thanking you for buying an SMY product.
When you slide it out of the sleeve, you’re greeted with an orange SMY logo on a matte black box which opens to the top.
Inside of the box you’ll find a QC card, and the mod itself in a plastic bag.
Underneath the foam insert where the mod sits you’ll find the USB charging cord, the usermanual, and a SMY branded piece of microfiber cloth to keep the glass clean.
The usermanual is quite pleasing to the eye with the leather texture on the cover, and it’s easy to read.
The mod itself has two glass plates on the front and back which are both protected by a plastic film you’ll need to peel off. (which is the best part of unpacking it, right?!)
Aesthetics.
The mod looks and feels heavy, weighing in at a solid 0.45kg without the battery or atomizer it isn’t exactly portable.
Despite the fact that the glass front and batterydoor are fingerprint magnets they do look very nice, the display isn’t hindered by any mirrorfinish or tinted finish.
The display is big and very bright making it easy to read, though I did notice some mild flickering when changing settings or browsing through the menu.
The menu buttons are a bit of a negative to me, they’re small plastic buttons and feel rather cheap in comparison with the rest of the mod.
The firebutton on the side however is big and feels incredibly solid. The tactile feedback is perfect and it doesn’t seem to mind if your finger is on the side of the button when pressing it.
On top, just next to the 510 connector you’ll find a LED notification for the charging status.
The 510 connection is slightly raised from the body to prevent scratching, but this also means you’ll have a gap with anything you screw onto the mod.
While it isn’t a big gap, it does show and can be a bit annoying.
The glossy gunmetal finish is clean and feels rather thick, it’s not prone to scratching but it is a fingerprint magnet just like the glass.
Bonus photo showing just how reflective the glass is.
Performance.
- The menu
To turn the mod on you have to click the powerbutton 5 times, and then you’re greeted with the SMY logo and slogan on the screen.
When the mod starts up it will detect the atomizer and its resistance.
To get into the menu you need to push the menu button 3 times.
The structure of the menu is compareable with the old Nokia phones, and can be navigated with the up and down button and the menu button.
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Operator Mode serves to switch between Normal Mode (wattage mode) and Temp Ctr Mode.
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Time Setting has a few options:
Overtime which is the time limit of your toots, ranging from 1 second to 15 seconds.
Auto Lock which can be set from 1 minute to 255 minutes locks your device automatically.
Shutdown which can be set from 1 minute to 255 minutes will shut down the mod completely. -
Lock which locks your mod (duh).
-
Power Off will shut down the mod (also duh).
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Puff Info will show you the amount of puffs, the total time of your puffs and a switch to reset the puffcounter.
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Exit will exit the menu… It’s all fairly obvious and easy to navigate.
- Wattage mode
In wattage mode the mod can fire down to 0.1ohm and up to 3.0ohm coils, all with a poweroutput of 50W.
The mod functions as any other; set wattage, and vape on.
To set your wattage you’ll have to use the up and down buttons on the front of the mod.
When the battery runs low the mod will automatically adjust itself to a lower power output to protect the battery.
Other than that it seems to fire fairly accurate though a little higher than it says on the screen.
I measured a deviation of +0.15V when firing a 0.2ohm coil. Not a major problem in itself but it may surprise you if your wicks are running dry.
- Temperature Control mode
The temperature control mode will take some getting used to if you’ve used other TC devices before.
Wattage can’t be set in TC mode, it will just fire as much power as it can to reach the set temperature and then start throttling the power to maintain temperature.
The temperature can be set from 200°F to 600°F much like the DNA40 or Yihi boards, it doesn’t measure in Celsius though.
Again I found it fires a bit higher than it’s supposed to, I measured a deviation of +0.25V at most in TC mode though this could be because the mod switches voltages very quickly while throttling.
It doesn’t lock the resistance but detects it constantly, which is why you’ll hear a constant beep from the mod. A heartbeat if you will.
The beeping is rather loud and can get annoying, but it does stop after a minute of letting the mod rest.
Something to keep in mind too is that the mod won’t detect whether or not it is firing a nickel coil, you’ll have to switch into TC mode yourself.
Another thing I discovered is that you can make the mod fire a lot more than 50W for some reason, which could be a huge safety issue!
If you use a regular Kanthal coil and set the mod to temperature control, it will fire the mod and try to detect temperature on it.
Don’t do this if you value your batteries, your hands and your face!
- Battery door
The batterydoor is a sliding mechanism which is held in place with a ballbearing.
There’s no rattling and the door sits very snug onto the mod.
Putting in a battery is rather tedious, the contacts are exposed completely and it takes a bit of effort to have the battery sits correctly above them both to slide it in.
Photo featuring Kate Upton blowing bubbles.
In itself this isn’t much of a problem, it doesn’t eat batterywraps but it’s tedious.
Batterylife isn’t terrible, but it isn’t good either. In TC mode the battery will be empty in about half a day of moderate use, in wattage mode it tends to last a bit longer.
I reckon this is because of the heartbeat in TC mode.
Pros and Cons.
Pro.
- 50W across the entire range of resistances
- Looks very pretty
- Excellent 510 connection
- Big and crispy clear display
- Very tactile firebutton
- Feels excellent in the palm of your hand
- Build quality is great
- USB charging
Con.
- Heavy, a bit too heavy actually.
- Glass is a fingerprint magnet
- Fires Kanthal coils in TC mode at very high wattages
- Beeping in TC mode
- Batterylife isn’t all that good
- Gap with anything you put on it due to the raised 510
- Menu tends to flicker when changing settings
- Plastic menu buttons feel cheap
In conclusion.
SMY have definitely upped their game in terms of build quality, the mod is built like a brick.
I’m still not sure about having glass on my mods, it could crack or shatter when dropped but it does look very nice.
Aesthetically speaking the mod is a thing of beauty, the only thing I would love to see changed is the menu buttons which now feel a bit cheap.
And maybe drop the raised 510 to sit flush with the mod, as I don’t like this kind of gap.
All in all I quite like the mod as a desktop vape!
You can grab the mod from Gearbest with a nice discount if you use the coupon SMY50W
DISCLAIMER: for those that think I’ve been bought by Gearbest (fuck you kindly by the way, I can’t be bought or rented!), you can choose to buy from any other vendor that is stocking the mod.
In closing I would like to thank Anita from Gearbest for her continued trust and support!
And of course all of you reading my reviews! I hope my reviews help you find that perfect vape.
Join me next time as I take a closer look at the Wotofo Troll RDA and Wotofo Freakshow Mini RDA!
I’m always looking for more opportunities to review, so get in touch if you want me to review something from you!
I can be reached on my website (which is currently on a temporary domain) via DM on Instagram, via DM on Reddit, or via DM on ELR.
Juice, RTA, RDA, mods… it’s all welcome and I’m sure we can work something out!
#staycloudy !
SirRisc disappears in a cloud of cereal scented vapor
(Stealthy shoutout to CloudHouseVapor
