iJoy/Limitless Lux 215W Mod Review
The iJoy/Limitless Lux 215W is a large dual-26650 battery box mod that comes with interchangeable sleeves and built-in advanced features like temperature control, customizable draw effects and a very user friendly menu. In this review, we’re going to try to find out of the long battery life and affordable price make the Lux a worthy alternative to more well known devices in its size category, like the the SMOK X Cube 2 or the Reuleaux RX200.
As the name suggests, the iJoy/Limitless Lux 215W is advertised as the result of a collaboration between two of largest manufacturers in the vaping industry right now, iJoy and Limitless. Both have an impressive number of popular products under their belts, so this joint effort was definitely highly anticipated by the vaping community. Unfortunately, the feedback so far has been mixed, to put it mildly. A number of people have been bashing iJoy for releasing a rebranded product that they initially launched in May 2016, with little commercial success. These claims are apparently well-founded, as a simple Google search for “iJoy EXO 200W” reveals an exact replica of the Lux215W, with the only notable differences being the 15W difference in power output (probably increased on the LUX through a simple firmware upgrade) and the logo. While no longer listed on the iJoy website, the EXO 200W is still available for purchase on Chinese sites like Fasttech and Efun. That’s hardly the kind of publicity this device needed, but I guess both iJoy and Limitless just wanted to have another product on the market before the August 8 deadline set by the FDA, so they took the easy way. Anyway, since I hadn’t tried the eJoy EXO 200W, I decided the Lux215W was worth a try, and accepted a request from Heaven Gifts to do a review. Let’s take a look.
The iJoy/Limitless Lux 215W box mod comes in a big, sturdy cardboard box that also includes a USB charging and updating cable, a user manual, and a couple of Indian art stickers for vapers who want to customize the look of their device. Seems like a pretty standard offering for a box mod right? But here’s the cherry on the cake – it actually comes with two iJoy 26650 batteries, which I think is awesome. Considering the mod currently sells for around $90, and the batteries alone are like $20 value, it’s a pretty sweet deal.
Probably the first thing you notice about the Lux is its size. At 102 x 58 x 31 millimeters, it’s definitely one of the largest devices I’ve ever used. It’s also bulky, as I can barely wrap my hand around it (although I have pretty small hands for a dude). The weight right out of the box is 196 grams, which is reasonable for a vaporizer this size, but once you insert the two batteries, the weights shoots up to a whopping 360 grams. That’s a lot, by any standards, so if you have small hands or if you hate heavy mods, this device may not be for you.
On the stainless steel bottom of the Lux, it says “co-designed by iJoy and Limitless”, but considering this is a rebranded EXO, I think the credit for the unique design of this device goes only to iJoy. Anyway, what really sets the Lux 215W apart from other large dual battery box mods is the interchangeable sleeve feature, which allows you to simply pull off the plastic body and replace it with one of several other available designs. Heaven Gifts were kind enough to send me a spare one with a cool-looking wood grain design that goes great with the stainless steel top and bottom of the mod, but the stock black one is not too shabby either.
To be honest, at first, I was a bit worried that the interchangeable sleeves would be a bit problematic. I was afraid they would simply come off when handling the mod, or that they would wobble constantly. That is, thankfully not the case, thanks to a couple of powerful magnets on the bottom of the LUX and the inside of the sleeves that firmly snap together. There’s also a small metal pin on the mod itself that snaps into a slot on the inside of the sleeve, so you can shake the Lux, turn it upside down, and the sleeve will not come off. There is some slight wobbling when shaking the mod really, really hard, but I doubt that will be a problem for anyone. The only real problem I’ve had withe sleeves has been when trying to take the cap off of one of my RDAs. It’s pretty tight, so when pulling on it, the sleeve sometimes came off the mod instead. Again, not a huge deal, but it can happen.
Other mention-worthy features of the iJoy/Limitless Lux design are the top placement of the LED display and wattage/temperature adjustment buttons, the intuitive side placement of the large, metallic fire button and the inspired brushed stainless steel finish of the top and bottom of the device.
Both the shape and placement of the LED display on the Lux are almost identical to that of the SMOK X Cube 2 and H-Priv mods, only in this case it’s a great deal brighter, making it easier to read even in direct sunlight. The screen features the set wattage/temperature, battery level, as well as the voltage and the resistance of the atomizer.
The menu can be accessed by pressing the fire button in rapid succession and allows you to choose between power mode and temperature mode for all three currently supported materials -nickel, titanium and stainless steel. There’s also an option to flip the orientation of the screen – although it goes back to the default setting whenever you take out the batteries – and another one that lets you choose from four different draw effects. Just like on SMOK mods, you have Soft, Normal and Hard, but also a User option, for ultra-customization. This last one allows you to set the wattage for the initial 3 seconds of the draw, in .5 second increments. It’s a pretty interesting feature that I found myself fiddling with more often that I first thought I would. Overall, the menu is super easy to use compared to those of other similar mods, like the X Cube 2 or the Koopor Plus, so I’d definitely count it as a pro.
Battery life, as you can probably imagine, is stellar. This is the first dual-26650 battery mod I’ve ever used, and also the first one I know of that’s made by a well known manufacturer, or two, in this case, I guess. Anyway, I usually get about two full days of regular vaping on a full charge, and I can’t see even the heaviest of vapers getting any less than a day and a half, which in my book is outstanding.
However, the dual-26650 setup does have its drawbacks. First of all, there’s no going around the extra weight. This is one heavy mod to be carrying around, so I mostly found myself either using it at home, or packing it in my work bag and using it at the office (yeah, they let me do that). On the go, I rely on little guys like the Eleaf iStick PICO or the Kimsun TC40W Mini, as carrying the Lux in my pants pocket would probably cause them to constantly fall off. And then there’s the long charging time of the 26650 batteries. They may last a long time, but they also require a half a day on my Nitecore Digi D4 charger to fully charge. So unless you have a backup set of batteries, or an internal battery mod, you’re in for a long wait. Luckily, iJoy did apparently realized this could be a problem, so they also included a couple of adapters, or sleeves, if you will, which make the Lux 215W compatible with 1860 batteries as well. So if you have a couple of those, you can just use them while the 26650s recharge.
In terms of battery life, I would compare the Lux with the Reuleaux RX200. Even though in theory, the triple 18650 battery mod should last a while longer on a full charge, in real-life conditions, I’ve found the difference in battery life to be negligible.
In terms of actual performance, the iJoy/Limitless Lux 215W has left me a bit disappointed. I’ve been using it for almost a week, and during that time, I’ve been dealing with the most annoying bug – an unexplained drop in power output when pressing the fire button. It occurs several times a day, but so far I have been unable to determine the cause. So I would be vaping in front of my computer as I often do, when all of a sudden pressing the fire button doesn’t even cause the saturated wick to sizzle. There is a bit of vapor coming out on the exhale, but not nearly as much as it should be. When pressing the button a second time, everything goes back to normal, but about once every fifty presses, this annoying thing happens again.
At first I thought I wasn’t pressing the button all the way down or something, so I tried gently pressing just one of its corners, or one of its size, in an attempt to replicate the bug, but it works just fine. I don’t know if it’s the board or something else, but I hope it’s something that can be fixed with a firmware update. Otherwise, there are better options out there. Just in case you’re wondering, the micro USB upgrade port is on the side of the mod, but it’s only visible when you remove the sleeve.
In conclusion, the iJoy/Limitless Lux 215W box mod has left me with mixed feelings. I love the long battery life, the included 26650 batteries and the interchangeable sleeves, but I can’t overlook the buggy performance and bulky feel of the device. While the first can probably be fixed, there’s no going around the large size and weight of the LUX. So I’m just going to say that this particular mod is not for everyone.
how chargernya in mode on what off ??
have i got my charger in mod not riding the batteries?