Smoant Battlestar Review

The first time I saw any Smoant equipment was at Vaper Expo 2016 and I must say I was intrigued by what I saw, although much was pre-release.

The Smoant Battlestar is a dual 18650 temperature control mod, much in the style of the Wismec RX2/3 in its dual cell mode. Like the RX it is capable of 200W with good cells.

The mod is available in ten colours: Black, Yellow, White, Dark Blue, Red, Orange, Bronze Blue, Silver, Copper and Stainless Steel.

I’ve been sent the Yellow for review.

The box is quite striking with bright yellow images on a black background, the front showing images of the mod, company logo and name.

The sides carry a barcode, regulatory marks, colour check boxes and the Battlestar name.

The back shows a description of some of the functions & features, an authenticity scratch panel and more regulatory marks.

Inside the box

Venturing inside the first things we see are:

• QC certificate
• User manual and prompt card.

Beneath these we find:

• Battlestar mod
• Sturdy feeling USB cable.

Unusually we also get a small box containing replacement magnets for the battery cover.

Design and Build Quality

The Battlestar is a nice-looking mod in the style of the RX2/3, constructed from powder coated alloy.

It’s relatively petite for a dual cell device, standing only 83mm high, 40mm wide and 35mm deep. It has a pleasing rounded five-sided shape, fitting nicely in the hand.

Up top we have a sprung stainless steel 510 connector with air slots and to the sides we have vent slots with recesses that look as if they should have some sort of grip material in them.

On the front, we have the now familiar fire button, display, up/down and micro USB quartet.

The USB port supports charging, pass through use and firmware updating.

To the rear, we have the black battery cover with more ventilation holes.

It pulls free, held in place by four strong magnets that provide a very secure grip.

The battery tray holds the cells snugly with no rattling, it’s clearly labelled for polarity and has well sprung contacts at the positive terminals.

On the base, we have another set of ventilation holes, Smoant logo and regulatory marks.

How Does The Smoant Battlestar Perform?

Fitting cells to the Battlestar was a breeze, the contacts are firm but not too hard.

The battery cover doesn’t feel like it’s going to fall off accidentally, I found it easier to rock the cover in one direction rather than trying to pull it clear in one go.

In charging mode, we get a bold charging indicator with flashing blocks to show progress.

The USB connector feels to be of good quality, holding the cable snugly.

During charging the Battlestar got very slightly warm but not to any great level.

Functions

• Pressing the fire button five times turns the device on, and from there things look very familiar.
• A Smoant animated splash screen and we’re into the variable power mode.
• Power is adjustable, using the up/down buttons, from 1W to 200W in 0.1W increments from 10 to 100W, then in 1W increments up to 200.
• Pressing the up/down buttons at the same time flips the display.
• Three presses take you into the mode screen, allowing you to scroll though variable power, Ni200, Ti, SS316 and Ni80 modes as well as three TCR settings.
• Pressing and holding the fire and up buttons reverses the display into black on white
• While pressing fire and both up/down at the same time locks the power/temperature setting.
• In temperature control mode holding fire and up switches the display to the upper power level, releasing the fire button then permits this to be changed.

The mod comes with reverse polarity, over-time, short/low resistance and overheating protection.

Having used the Smoant Battlestar on and off for a few weeks I can honestly say it’s been a pleasure to use.

It’s comfortable to hold either as thumb or finger fire, easy to operate and functions flawlessly.

Temperature control seemed to be spot on, not hunting at all. The device didn’t heat up noticeably during use.

My only bugbears are, as with several other mods using powder coatings, the paint finish isn’t particularly tough and after a few weeks in and out of my pocket it’s picked up some scratches.

Nothing a wrap or sleeve wouldn’t fix but there are better coatings out there that maybe Smoant need to consider.

And again, as with some other mods of this style the fire button is proud of the case which can lead to accidental firing in the pocket, not dangerous but annoying when you ruin a wick or coil.

Final Review Verdict

This is the first Smoant device I’ve seen up close and I must say I’m impressed.

Barring a couple of very minor issues the Battlestar is great, easy to use and has a good range of features.

Yes, it does bear a similarity to the RX2/3 but it has tweaked the look slightly and is no worse for it.

I’d thoroughly recommend the Battlestar to new or seasoned vapers looking for flexibility and the additional life or power of a dual setup.

Nice work Smoant, this is one I would replace if I lost it.

Pros:

• Small size
• Pass through charging
• Strong battery cover
• Comfortable grip
• Good TC performance
• Very well ventilated for chip and cells
• Good protection features

Cons:

• Powder coating a little soft
• Fire button can be accidentally pressed.