I decided to put this here to make it easier to find for those thinking about ordering the new Darwin.
First impression:
The Darwin was well packaged and arrived amazingly fast considering it went all the way across the country. I have been vaping for over 19 months and have tried almost every e-cig and mod along the way. I have settled on 5V for my sweet spot and 510 Cartomizers at 3.2 ohm for my best vape combo. I don't do many reviews so please forgive the sloppy format.
My unit arrived with about a 9/10 charge already on it, so of course I had to try it immediately. It took me a couple of minutes to dial in the wattage I wanted to get the best vape possible. I use the 510 Mega Cartomizers from Nhaler (3.2 ohm) and I wanted roughly 5v, so I set the Darwin to 8.6 watts. The dial is very sensitive, so this took a little bit of finesse.
My juice of choice tends to be Malty at 18mg from BWB. As many of you already know it doesn't take much for this juice to taste burnt. Using my old V3 at 6v tended to do just that if I tried to refill a cartomizer even once. Having to switch which mod I use for whichever juice I planned on vaping at the moment was a real PITA. At 5v the Darwin gives this juice everything it needs. Flavor is right on (even 4 refills later on same carto) and vapor production is just as robust as it was on my V3 at 6v. My Darwin is automatically adjusting to the changing resistance in my used carto on the fly so I no longer have to worry about burnt juice as my carto ages. WooHoo! If this was the only upside to owning a Darwin I would be perfectly happy.
Weight: The weight of the Darwin is not bad at all. I have been using a VV Tekk mod for some time now and the Darwin is just about the same weight. It is heavy enough to feel sturdy and well built but not so heavy as to feel like I am carrying a dumbbell in my purse.
Size: The unit is a bit longer than any other that I have used, but it has proven to be no problem at all. Being as thin and narrow as it is makes it very easy to handle.
Button: Ok, this was my first gripe. The button is well placed and a nice size, but it does have a pretty hard push for activation. Having small hands and a bit of nerve damage that affects my strength in my fingers made this a little harder than it will be for most users. After a few hundred button pushes it is a bit softer and I think it will get even better over time. On the plus side, no chance of it going off in a pocket or purse.
Adjustment Dial: This dial has a VERY easy touch. It moves quite smooth but also very fast. I very light touch is needed to move in .1 increments. If you fold the swing arm down regularly it is also rather easy to bump the dial in the process changing your wattage. Be sure to check your screen after moving the arm to be sure you haven't accidentally changed your wattage.
Charging: The supplied charger worked just fine. I had planned on charging it with a usb adapter in the car, but since these batteries are Li-Po and NOT Li-ion I am not exactly sure if this is a good idea. I had to ask Drew how to tell if the unit was charging since there appears to be no charging indicator of any kind. After using it for a couple of hours I plugged in the supplied charger and turned the Darwin off. After an hour I checked and the battery once again read full. I did notice that when I plugged in the charger to the Darwin that the light on the charger dimmed slightly. So I guess I will simply use that as my guide to be sure it is charging.
Battery Life: Every vaper is different so it is almost impossible to tell you how long this battery will last you. A few heavy vapers have said they are getting 24-30 hours from the Darwin. I have not yet reached that point, so I am hoping that is true. So far on a full charge I have about 5 hours of heavy vaping (been through 2 mils of juice in that time), and the battery meter has hardly budged, and no vapor drop off at all. I go through an average of 5 mils of juice a day, so it won't take me long to see how long this battery lasts. At this point I would say the estimates are most likely true. I will update when I finally manage to kill it.
510 Connector: This was my 2nd almost gripe. The connector is made from brass which is soft. It would be very easy to cross-thread if you are not careful. So far I have not had a problem. I just set my carto on the top and turn gently until it grabs. Pushing while turning your carto or atty could be a problem. These threads are very exact and need to be treated gently. Brass is by far the best connector for conductivity, so just being gentle with this should be all that is required.
Pros:
Battery life (excellent so far)
Smart unit with the ability to keep you at your desired wattage on the fly
Stiff well placed button with no worries of accidental firing in purse or pocket
Very rugged design with little chance of breakage if treated well
Neutral:
Soft Brass fitting easy to cross-thread (solution to this is to use adapters or a 510 extender) Keep in mind that for conductivity purposes the brass fitting really is the best choice. Just be gentle with it.
Cons:
Button is a bit stiff (this seems to soften with use so not really a flaw)
Battery is not intended to be user changeable (also not really a big deal as long as you own 2)
No visible battery charging indicator (Not a real problem for me but might be for others)
Did not come with a hard case for storage (not that I plan on ever putting it down)
Conclusion: I absolutely recommend this unit to any vaper. Newbies and veterans alike will find the ease of use and many features to be unsurpassed. I personally will be ordering a second one very soon. I change flavors all day long and want the option of not having to change cartos out so often. I also want a spare so that when (even though it is likely to be at least a year from now) I have to send mine in for battery replacement I am not left without my beloved Darwin. The logo on the back is both tasteful and attractive. I also love having Darwin's signature on the front. Nice touch. Many people have complained about their unit arriving with scratches. Mine also had a few very light marks that you have to hold at just the right angle to even see. I do not see this as an issue at all. The first time I drop it in my purse or it gets slid across a table this is likely to happen anyway. "She is currently admiring her Darwin wondering how hard it would be to have it painted in pink camo without losing the logo and signature" I absolutely love my Darwin and I will part with it when someone manages to pry it from my cold dead hands! I have added pictures below of the whole unit as well as one that took me 3 tries to show the very minor scratches in the finish. To anyone thinking about purchasing a Darwin, go for it! You won't be disappointed. It is well worth the money.
Battery Life Update:
I knew it wouldn't take me long. It took me exactly 5 mils of juice and 18 hours at 8.4 watts, 3.2 ohm 510 cartomizer (Running at 5V with this set up) For the battery indicator to plummet. It took what seemed like forever for it to even move, but once it hit half way it dropped fast. Word to the wise, DO NOT leave the house in the morning with it reading 1/2 full and expect it to last all day. Once I hit the half way point I only got about 3 more hours. That was with very heavy vaping so this may not be a concern for most users. I love my Darwin!!!!!
First impression:
The Darwin was well packaged and arrived amazingly fast considering it went all the way across the country. I have been vaping for over 19 months and have tried almost every e-cig and mod along the way. I have settled on 5V for my sweet spot and 510 Cartomizers at 3.2 ohm for my best vape combo. I don't do many reviews so please forgive the sloppy format.
My unit arrived with about a 9/10 charge already on it, so of course I had to try it immediately. It took me a couple of minutes to dial in the wattage I wanted to get the best vape possible. I use the 510 Mega Cartomizers from Nhaler (3.2 ohm) and I wanted roughly 5v, so I set the Darwin to 8.6 watts. The dial is very sensitive, so this took a little bit of finesse.
My juice of choice tends to be Malty at 18mg from BWB. As many of you already know it doesn't take much for this juice to taste burnt. Using my old V3 at 6v tended to do just that if I tried to refill a cartomizer even once. Having to switch which mod I use for whichever juice I planned on vaping at the moment was a real PITA. At 5v the Darwin gives this juice everything it needs. Flavor is right on (even 4 refills later on same carto) and vapor production is just as robust as it was on my V3 at 6v. My Darwin is automatically adjusting to the changing resistance in my used carto on the fly so I no longer have to worry about burnt juice as my carto ages. WooHoo! If this was the only upside to owning a Darwin I would be perfectly happy.
Weight: The weight of the Darwin is not bad at all. I have been using a VV Tekk mod for some time now and the Darwin is just about the same weight. It is heavy enough to feel sturdy and well built but not so heavy as to feel like I am carrying a dumbbell in my purse.
Size: The unit is a bit longer than any other that I have used, but it has proven to be no problem at all. Being as thin and narrow as it is makes it very easy to handle.
Button: Ok, this was my first gripe. The button is well placed and a nice size, but it does have a pretty hard push for activation. Having small hands and a bit of nerve damage that affects my strength in my fingers made this a little harder than it will be for most users. After a few hundred button pushes it is a bit softer and I think it will get even better over time. On the plus side, no chance of it going off in a pocket or purse.
Adjustment Dial: This dial has a VERY easy touch. It moves quite smooth but also very fast. I very light touch is needed to move in .1 increments. If you fold the swing arm down regularly it is also rather easy to bump the dial in the process changing your wattage. Be sure to check your screen after moving the arm to be sure you haven't accidentally changed your wattage.
Charging: The supplied charger worked just fine. I had planned on charging it with a usb adapter in the car, but since these batteries are Li-Po and NOT Li-ion I am not exactly sure if this is a good idea. I had to ask Drew how to tell if the unit was charging since there appears to be no charging indicator of any kind. After using it for a couple of hours I plugged in the supplied charger and turned the Darwin off. After an hour I checked and the battery once again read full. I did notice that when I plugged in the charger to the Darwin that the light on the charger dimmed slightly. So I guess I will simply use that as my guide to be sure it is charging.
Battery Life: Every vaper is different so it is almost impossible to tell you how long this battery will last you. A few heavy vapers have said they are getting 24-30 hours from the Darwin. I have not yet reached that point, so I am hoping that is true. So far on a full charge I have about 5 hours of heavy vaping (been through 2 mils of juice in that time), and the battery meter has hardly budged, and no vapor drop off at all. I go through an average of 5 mils of juice a day, so it won't take me long to see how long this battery lasts. At this point I would say the estimates are most likely true. I will update when I finally manage to kill it.
510 Connector: This was my 2nd almost gripe. The connector is made from brass which is soft. It would be very easy to cross-thread if you are not careful. So far I have not had a problem. I just set my carto on the top and turn gently until it grabs. Pushing while turning your carto or atty could be a problem. These threads are very exact and need to be treated gently. Brass is by far the best connector for conductivity, so just being gentle with this should be all that is required.
Pros:
Battery life (excellent so far)
Smart unit with the ability to keep you at your desired wattage on the fly
Stiff well placed button with no worries of accidental firing in purse or pocket
Very rugged design with little chance of breakage if treated well
Neutral:
Soft Brass fitting easy to cross-thread (solution to this is to use adapters or a 510 extender) Keep in mind that for conductivity purposes the brass fitting really is the best choice. Just be gentle with it.
Cons:
Button is a bit stiff (this seems to soften with use so not really a flaw)
Battery is not intended to be user changeable (also not really a big deal as long as you own 2)
No visible battery charging indicator (Not a real problem for me but might be for others)
Did not come with a hard case for storage (not that I plan on ever putting it down)
Conclusion: I absolutely recommend this unit to any vaper. Newbies and veterans alike will find the ease of use and many features to be unsurpassed. I personally will be ordering a second one very soon. I change flavors all day long and want the option of not having to change cartos out so often. I also want a spare so that when (even though it is likely to be at least a year from now) I have to send mine in for battery replacement I am not left without my beloved Darwin. The logo on the back is both tasteful and attractive. I also love having Darwin's signature on the front. Nice touch. Many people have complained about their unit arriving with scratches. Mine also had a few very light marks that you have to hold at just the right angle to even see. I do not see this as an issue at all. The first time I drop it in my purse or it gets slid across a table this is likely to happen anyway. "She is currently admiring her Darwin wondering how hard it would be to have it painted in pink camo without losing the logo and signature" I absolutely love my Darwin and I will part with it when someone manages to pry it from my cold dead hands! I have added pictures below of the whole unit as well as one that took me 3 tries to show the very minor scratches in the finish. To anyone thinking about purchasing a Darwin, go for it! You won't be disappointed. It is well worth the money.
Battery Life Update:
I knew it wouldn't take me long. It took me exactly 5 mils of juice and 18 hours at 8.4 watts, 3.2 ohm 510 cartomizer (Running at 5V with this set up) For the battery indicator to plummet. It took what seemed like forever for it to even move, but once it hit half way it dropped fast. Word to the wise, DO NOT leave the house in the morning with it reading 1/2 full and expect it to last all day. Once I hit the half way point I only got about 3 more hours. That was with very heavy vaping so this may not be a concern for most users. I love my Darwin!!!!!
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