In for review is the cute Vaporesso Luxe Q2 pod kit.
This is the latest addition to the popular Luxe Q range which consists of the Luxe Q followed by the Luxe QS.
This is not to be confused with the separate model – the Luxe Q2 SE (Special Edition) – which is not covered in this review.
Thank you to Vape Club for sending this over for review! I will report back honestly on my findings of the product in my possession.
What To Expect From The Vaporesso Luxe Q2 Kit …
The Luxe Q and QS kits were very popular and the Q2 has a couple of additional features.
The exterior has had a makeover with an upgraded Leather material compared to the fully metal bodied earlier versions.
The battery capacity is 1000mAh which is the same as the earlier editions, but this time the USB Type C charge rate has been increased to 2A – so it should charge in 30 minutes!
Also there are lots of options when it comes to compatible pods!
It is compatible with the original top filling Luxe Q pods which come in 0.6ohm, 0.8ohm, 1ohm and 1.2ohm mesh variants. For those in TPD regulated areas you will get the 2ml top fill 0.6ohm and 1ohm pods included in the kit.
A new range of side fill pods has been introduced – however these pods are 3ml capacity so will only be included in the standard (Non TPD Compliant) kit. There are 0.6ohm, 0.8ohm and 1ohm mesh versions.
The AXON Chipset will set the applicable output automatically depending on the pod installed and the pods are full of “COREX Technology” which is basically a combination of a mesh element and fancy wicking material to provide a longer coil life.
The mod has adjustable airflow which is a great upgrade from the fixed airflow on the Luxe Q and the 2 setting airflow on the QS. This means you can tailor the airflow to suit the pod installed and your own restriction preferences. It promises to satisfy MTL (Mouth To Lung) and RDL (Restricted Direct Lung) vaping styles.
There are 5 colours to choose from: Orange, Black, Blue, Grey and Green.
Kit Includes
- Vaporesso Luxe Q2 device
- 0.6ohm Mesh Luxe Q Pod
- 1ohm Mesh Luxe Q Pod
- USB Type C cable
- User manuals
Vaporesso Luxe X Q2 Specs
- Size: 96.8x26x18.6mm
- Battery: 1000mAh (internal)
- Display: LED indicator
- Output: Not specified
- Type C USB charging – 2A charge rate – 30 minute charge time
- Resistance range: Not specified
- Capacity: 3ml (standard)Â / 2ml (TPD)
- Compatible with: Luxe Q pods
- Adjustable airflow
- Side and top fill pods available
- Axon chipset
- Corex Heating technology
Vaporesso Luxe Q2 Design and Build Quality
I received the Green version in the 2ml TPD friendly specification. This means I get the top fill pods, sadly I do not have any of the side fill pods to review.
Packaging wise, this is pretty standard with a cardboard printed overlay. You pull the main tray out like a drawer and the mod is safely tucked in one side and a lift up cover on the opposite side houses the USB Cable, spare pod and instructions.
The instructions are great with plenty of diagrams and they contained all the info needed to get up and running easily.
Also there was a card included which discussed the pods which were compatible with this mod which was helpful.
Sadly the USB cable is not long enough to be practical!
Vaporesso Luxe Q2 Mod
On first glance the quality looks excellent, but when you look a bit closer there are some flaws.
This has a mainly metal construction – which is very light so I assume Zinc Alloy or similar.
2/3 of the front and the majority of the rear is covered in Leather.
However the edges of the Leather in multiple places looks badly trimmed with gaps.
The metal areas have a nice metallic finish.
On the front is the Luxe Q2 logo in a rectangle shaped inset area which continues onto the Leather area where the LED indicator lives.
The LED is nice and bright and a good size. It has a breathing style pattern where the light grows in length. It also lights up when vaping and slightly after to show the battery capacity remaining.
On the rear of the device the “Vaporesso” text is embossed into the leather and the rest is plain.
One side features the airflow adjustment which has a nice chunky slider made from metal. It is slightly reluctant to move so you do have to push it, but it is not too stiff. Also it feels like it would not accidentally move in a bag or pocket.
On the base you will find the USB Type C Port, the battery capacity and legal logos.
I do have a niggle about how hard it is to pull the pod out of the device. This could be a bonus as it is very unlikely to fall out, but sadly there is very little to grip when removing the pod. You may notice teeth marks on my mouthpiece in some of the photos, I had to resort to pulling the pod out with my teeth it was that difficult to remove. I do have grip issues so that might make it worse for me.
Sadly you need to remove the pod a lot on the 2ml version as the e-liquid viewing area is pretty small. On the 3ml version the mouthpiece area is clear so you should not have this issue.
Inside the pod compartment you will find 2 spring loaded contacts and 2 magnets to hold the pod in place. There also appears to be a Grey gasket type seal which hopefully means no e-liquid will get into the guts of the mod.
Apart from the Leather edges this looks great quality.
Vaporesso Luxe Q2 Pod
As mentioned above I have the 2ml top fill pods.
One massive complaint is the fact you cannot see easily what resistance the pod is! The only thing I can say to help is that the 0.6ohm has a Red base.
I only knew the resistance as the box said which pod was installed and which was spare. There is some writing on the base of the pod which I could only see after photographing and zooming in. This is bad!
The sides of the pod are clear but the bottom third is frosted slightly.
Using a rounded “Duck Bill” style shape the mouthpiece is super comfortable in use.
It is one of the better top fill pod methods as the mouthpiece does push off quite easily and does click firmly back into place after filling.
With the mouthpiece removed you will see 3 holes. The first is the air vent – so when filling you do not get an airlock or excessive pressure in the pod. The central port is where the vapour comes out from the coil – do not add e-liquid in here as it will spit and pop! Finally you will see the fill port which has a Red valve. When filling you need to push the bottle nozzle into the port to open the flap valve. The round fill port is around 3mm in diameter.
On the base of the pod you will see two electrical contact areas, 2 magnets and two airflow inlets. This means you can install the pod either way around and it will still work.
Quick Start Guide
Before use you need to fill the pod, charge up the battery and remove the isolator sticker from the base of the pod.
Basic Operation
- Power On/Off = There is no On/Off function
- Vaping = This is draw activated so simply inhale on the mouthpiece to fire
- Battery indicator = The LED will breathe (Slowly pulse) when vaping. The colour of the LED indicates the battery charge remaining. Green = 70-100% charged, Blue = 30-70% charged and Red = 0-30% charged.
- Battery indicator when charging = The LED will cycle through the colours stated above and will stay on solid in Green when fully charged.
- Airflow = Move the airflow slider up to reduce the incoming airflow and down to increase.
Protections
- Low Battery: The LED will flash Red 3 times and the device will stop working until it is charged.
- Short circuit: The Red LED will flash 5 times and the device will stop working. Clean all contacts. Replace pod. If not rectified the device may be faulty.
- Over time protection: If you vape for longer than 8 seconds the fire will cut out. Simply inhale again to vape.
How To Charge The Battery
The charging rate is specified as 2A.
- Using a USB type C cable, connect the small end into the USB port on the mod.
- Connect the large end of the cable into a suitable USB outlet.
- The LED will cycle through the colours. When it is fully charged the LED will stay on green.
I found it took bang on 30 minutes to charge – every single time, so Vaporesso are correct in their claim of a 30 min charge time!
How To Fill the Pod
If a new pod leave to stand for 5-10 minutes after first fill to allow the coil to saturate with e-liquid.
- With the pod still in the mod push on the side of the mouthpiece until it pops off.
- Push the e-liquid bottle nozzle into the Red port and add e-liquid. Do not add e-liquid to the central port.
- Replace the mouthpiece firmly
How Does the Vaporesso Luxe Q2 Perform?
As there are different styles of pod included in the kit, I will choose different types of e-liquid to suit.
If any of these terms are over your head – have a read of our handy guides below!
- MTL V DTL V RDL – A Guide To Vape Styles
- VG and PG in E-liquid – all you need to know
- Beginners guide to E-liquid
- Nic Salt E-liquid
0.6ohm Luxe Q Pod
I tried this with 2 different types of e-liquid.
50/50 E-liquid
I used my home made e-liquid with 50/50 VG/PG with the IVG Bubblegum concentrate. This has 6mg nic salt added.
This vape is very warm even with the airflow fully open!
In fact I would say so far the power is a bit too high for this pod?
You do get rucks of flavour but the vapour is only average, not much to speak of.
I have so far filled this 10 times and it feels exactly the same as the first vape so the coil life is pretty decent and the flavour has been consistent.
I am sort of enjoying this pod, but it is a bit fierce and feels like dropping a Watt or two in power would be beneficial. In use I found I am taking shorter inhales due to the heat.
70/30 E-liquid
I used the Ruthless Energy Drank Shortfill E-liquid which has a 70%VG / 30%PG ratio. I have not added any nicotine to this.
Now this e-liquid suits this pod so well! The fierceness is a lot calmer with higher VG e-liquid and it is absolutely delicious!
I can taste every flavour nuance this e-liquid provides and it is sweet and succulent. Plus of course the extra VG means there is more vapour.
So I would probably recommend around 70%VG e-liquid for this pod to get the best performance. It is compatible with lower VG ratios but it doesn’t perform quite as well.
1ohm Luxe Q Pod
For this pod I used my usual 50/50 e-liquid made with IVG Bubblegum concentrate. The Nic Salt level is 6mg.
Initially I was not really blown away by the flavour, but after the 6th refill it really kicked in.
The flavour is great, there is a good amount of vapour too!
However I just wish there was a bit more warmth to the vape. It just feels slightly under-powered for me. I am having to take very long inhales to feel any satisfaction.
I would recommend this pod for higher nicotine strengths – over 15mg. With high nic strengths the throat hit can sometimes be a bit harsh, whereas this pod will deliver the stronger stuff in a smooth and calm fashion.
After 10 refills the flavour is still the same so no deterioration in performance as yet!
Airflow
To help rate how restricted the airflow is, I use a scale – where 0 = fully closed, no airflow up to 10 = breathing fresh air.
With the 1ohm pod fully closed airflow is around 1.5 – you can still vape this and the auto draw sensor will kick in. Fully open I would class this around 4 – it is still quite tight. It is unlikely you will want to use a Restricted Direct Lung vaping style with this pod – which is a good job as it wouldn’t really suit that style!
With the 0.6ohm pod fully closed airflow is around 1.5, you can still vape and the auto draw works fine. With the airflow fully open I would say this is around 5. So still not quite perfect for RDL, but you can just about manage it.
Mod Performance
The auto draw was super reliable and kicked in quickly.
As for operation everything worked exactly how it should!
There was not a noticeable drop in power output when the LED was Red – so the power regulation is very good!
Leaks
I did get quite a lot of condensation on the pod base and around the sides of the pod.
But there were no leaks.
Battery Life
This is always a variable depending on the pod resistance and your own vaping habits.
As a guide I got…
- 0.6ohm pod – around 5 hours of vaping.
- 1ohm pod – between 5.5 and 7 hours of vaping.
It is worth noting that I am quite a heavy vaper, so if you are using higher nicotine strengths or vape less frequently you will get a longer time between charges.
Pros
- An elegant looking device
- Good size LED indicator in a great position
- Compatible with other Luxe Q pods
- 30 min charging time – is accurate too!
- Good tight airflow
- You can purchase 4 different pod resistances
- Both pods performed well
Cons
- Leather edges are quite rough and badly trimmed
- Extremely difficult to remove the pod, nothing to grip
- Pod resistance ID markings are way too small
- E-liquid viewing area is small so you have to remove pod to see remaining e-liquid (this may be better with the 3ml side fill pods?)
- USB cable is a bit too short to be practical
- Airflow is more tailored to an MTL vape – RDL is possible with the 0.6ohm but it might still be a bit too restricted?
Vaporesso Luxe Q2 Final Review Verdict
This kit would shine with a 0.8ohm pod instead of the 1ohm for me. The 1ohm is OK and would be ideal for those using high nic e-liquids. There is a decent flavour but I found it to be a bit too gentle.
On the opposite side of this is the 0.6ohm pod which is a bit fierce, it just feels a bit too warm. But combine this with 70%VG e-liquid and it really comes to life and is very impressive. So I would recommend sticking to the 70%VG ratio for e-liquids with this pod.
Sadly the scores have been impacted by some issues.
My first issue was the poor trimming of the Leather, which did make the build quality look suspect. This is a shame as otherwise it is robust and very well built.
The ease of use and design score was dropped because it is so difficult to remove the pod from the mod. I resorted to using my teeth to pull the pod out.
There is nothing wrong with a good strong retention of the pod, but my issue was that there was nowhere at all to grip to remove it. As the e-liquid viewing area is small, you do need to pull the pod out to check the level when you think it is getting low. This issue may not occur with the 3ml side fill pods as they are fully clear, but the 2ml pods have a large area obscured by the Black mouthpiece.
Finally the pod resistance markings are way too tiny to see! I could only see by looking through my phone camera and zooming in? This does impact the design score.
Although to many people these would not be deal breakers, I did find they spoilt my appreciation of an otherwise good kit.
A little more attention to detail is required from Vaporesso – which is unusual as they produce high quality gear in general?
The performance is OK, but I would only pick up the Vaporesso Luxe Q2 if all my Oxva Xlim’s and Uwell Caliburn’s were broken. It is a decent kit, but does not match in performance or ease of use with my usual kits.
However if you have purchased this kit you will not be unhappy and think it was a mistake. It performs OK, the battery life and charging are great and you do get a decent flavour. It is not a total write off, but there are better kits out there for a similar price.
