E-Cigarette Reviews and Rankings

4_5stars

SMOK R80 TC Micro One Review

After a very successful 2015, which saw the release of popular devices like the X Cube 2 and X Cube Mini mods and the TFV4 sub-ohm tank, Chinese manufacturer SMOK seems determined not to rest on its laurels, but instead keep the momentum going with even more impressive products. Their latest offering, the R80 TC Micro One starter kit, is a complete package designed to make advanced vaping accessible to even the most inexperienced users.

The R80 TC Micro One comes in the usual black cardboard box with the SMOK logo on top, and includes a powerful 80 W temperature control mod, the micro version of the tried-and-true TFV4 tank, a couple of coil heads, a USB cable that can be used for charging and updating the device, a replacement XL glass tube for the tank, an extension adapter, a SMOK vape band, user manual and a bunch of spare parts. This is definitely one of the most generous starter kits I have ever reviewed, but this is something I’ve come to expect from SMOK. The Chinese company has been upping its game with each new release, and judging by the positive feedback from the vaping community, they are reaping their just rewards.

SMOK-R80-TC

With other advanced mods, like the X Cube 2 or Koopor Plus, you not only need to buy and charge batteries separately, but you need to have a tank or RBA in order to start vaping. With the R80 starter kit, all you need is some e-liquid and you’re good to go. This is just like the eGo-style starter kits of old that we all transitioned to from cigalikes, only infinitely more powerful. Frankly, apart from the Vaporesso Target 75 VTC, I can’t think of a simpler, more streamlined way to experience stellar vaping performance.

If you think the R80 looks very familiar – I know I did – that’s because its designed is very similar to the SMOK M80, a previous generation device from the same manufacturer. They made a few minor changes on the new unit, but they still look very similar. The way I see it, the R80 is a refined, updated version of the M80 with a temperature control feature that actually works the way it’s supposed to.

SMOK-R80-TC-mod

At 85 x 55 x 22 mm, the SMOK R80 is considerably smaller than the gigantic X Cube 2, but similar in size to the X Cube Mini. It’s a little bit shorter, but wider than its not-so-distant cousin and feels just as sturdy in your hand, despite the softer rubberized paint finish. It’s just the right size, if you ask me, making it easy to carry both in hand or in an average-size pocket.

On the top and bottom of the device we have some nice stainless steel plates that go very well with the stainless steel micro TFV4, and on one of the sides we have the exact same buttons of the old M80 – a large fire button and two ‘+’ and ‘-‘ buttons, as well as a small OLED display and a ‘Reset’ button. On the bottom, we have some vent holes and a micro-USB port that can be used both for charging the 4000 mAh internal battery and to update the device.

SMOK-R80-TC-side

The internal battery is actually one of the most useful features of the R80 mod, especially for beginners. You no longer need to buy look for and purchase external high-drain batteries separately, as the mod comes with a pretty big one built in. Charging is also easier, since it doesn’t require an external charger, and from my experience, it’s considerably faster. The unit I used most during the two week testing period leading to this review went from completely empty to fully charged in about one hour, which is about six hours less than it takes me to recharge my LG HG2 INR 3000 mAh batteries on a Nitecore D4 charger. Yes, those have a higher mAh rating, but still, the time difference is ridiculous.

Battery life varies according to wattage settings and how much you vape, but I reckon it should last the average vaper at least a day. And even if it doesn’t, an hour of charging really isn’t long at all.

SMOK-R80-X-Cube-Mini

There are a few things SMOK could have done better, like take button rattling seriously, as a lot of users find that very annoying, and add a slightly larger display, but all in all, the R80 is a great looking device with a quality feel. To be honest, of the four R80 units I received for this review, three of them had rattling buttons, while the fourth made no annoying sounds, but these are all samples, so maybe the Chinese company will pay more attention to this problem on the units they ship to retailers. And as for the OLED display, I have to mention that while it resembles the ones on the Koopor Mini and Koopor Plus, it is considerably brighter, so they are making improvements.

I’m not going to get into too much detail about the menu and button combinations of the R80 as these are the same or very similar to other SMOK mods, such as the X Cube Mini or Koopor Plus. They do take a bit of getting used to if you haven’t used SMOK products before, but otherwise they should look very familiar. If you’re looking for more in depth information on this particular topic, check out any of my previous SMOK reviews and you’ll probably find what you’re looking for.

SMOK-R80-X-Cube-size

Suffice it to say that the SMOK R80 comes with most of the features the Chinese company has built into its other recently released advanced devices. You have the various vaping modes, ranging from ‘Min’ to ‘Max’, which allow you to customize your vaping experience, coil type selection, coil resistance lock, temperature coefficient resistance settings, as well as various other goodies. The menu is feature rich for sure, but the great part is that you don’t need to mess with all the settings if you don’t want to. You can just screw on the tank, set the right wattage or temperature and you’re good to go.

While the R80 may not be SMOK’s most powerful mod to date, it packs enough of a punch to satisfy all but the most extreme cloud-chasers. It has a maximum wattage output of 80 watts, while in temperature mode it can be set between 200°F-600°F/100°C-315°C. Supported coil resistances range from 0.01-3.0 ohms in wattage mode and 0.06-3.0 ohms in temperature mode.

SMOK-R80-colors

I’ve never really been a big fan of temperature control, to be honest, though I recognize that that appear to be the way vaping is going these days. But if you’re into TC, you’ll be glad to hear that the SMOK R80 supports nickel titanium and stainless steel coils, with the option to add support for any other materials in the future, via the upgrade port on the bottom.

As I mentioned before, unlike the old M80, the SMOK R80 actually works very well in temperature control mode. All the right coefficients for the various supported materials are preset, but you have the option to alter those settings should you be using different material grades.

SMOK-R80-display

Lastly, the thing I really liked about this mod, compared to other SMOK devices I reviewed in the past was that there was no firing delay. The X Cube Mini had a horrendous delay that had to be fixed through a firmware update, but the R80 fires almost instantly right out of the box. SMOK appears to be learning from its previous mistakes, and that’s a big plus in my book.

The R80 TC mod is an important of the SMOK Micro One starter kit, but the other essential component is not too shabby either. The tank included in this package may be a micro version of the TFV4 sub-ohm tank, but it performs almost as well as it big brother.

SMOK-micro-TFV4

But first let’s talk a bit about the size and design of this little beast. At just 22 mm in diameter/ 51 mm in length and weighing 69 g, the micro TFV4 is considerably smaller than SMOK’s original TFV4 tank (24.5mm x 73.5 mm, 92 g) and even the TFV4 Mini (22 mm x 73.5 mm, 85 g). The coils for the micro version are also significantly smaller, as you can see in the photos, but I can tell you that that has very little impact on performance.

Design-wise, the micro TFV4 is just a slightly more compact version of the TFV4 Mini tank. It has the same four adjustable airflow holes on the base, the exact same top filling system that I fell in love with on the original TFV4, and the proprietary double-layered airflow control drip tip. It’s basically a radically scaled-down version of the SMOK TFV4 tank with a barely noticeable compromise on performance.

SMOK-micro-TFV4-top

Out of the box, the micro TFV4 can hold a maximum of 2.5 ml of e-liquid, which may be ok for most other tanks, but not for a thirsty monster like this. Unfortunately, the micro TFV4 tank shares the appetite for juice of its two bigger brothers. While the juice doesn’t vaporize as fast with these smaller size coil heads, the level still drops unusually fast after just a few hits, especially at over 60 watts. The original TFV4 can hold 5 ml of e-liquid, while the Mini has a capacity of 3.5 ml. The 2.5 ml of the micro is really pushing it. Luckily SMOK has us covered.

For those vapers who find the TFV4 and TFV4 Mini too big – and there are a quite a few – the 2.5 ml micro version may be just the right size, but if you’re willing to deal with a bigger tank for an extra milliliter of e-liquid, you can use the tank extension adapter included in the Micro One kit. All you have to do is take the tank apart, swap the stock glass tube with the XL replacement (also included in the kit) and attach the extension to the top part of the tank before putting it all back together. Now you basically have a TFV4 Mini, which is awesome.

SMOK-micro-TFv4-drip-tip

Refilling this bad boy is quick and easy thanks to the innovative top-filling system. Just push the top of the tank to the left to loosen the hinge and reveal the large silicone gasket sealing up the e-liquid. Then take a dropper or a syringe and add juice through the large hole in the gasket (not the air duct in the center!). Then slide back the top of the tank until it snaps into place and you’re done.

You’ll have a tough time finding a tank with more airflow options than the TFV4 family. Just like the two previous releases, the micro TFV4 features four large adjustable holes on the base, and four adjustable airflow holes on the drip tip. These last ones actually serve a purpose on powerful mods like the 160 W X Cube 2 or 200 W Koopor Plus, but not on the 80 W R80. Vapor tends to get really hot at over 100 watts, so sliding open these drip tip holes lets in air that cools the mouthpiece, but at lower wattages they just make the vape airier, something I don’t particularly care for. I prefer to keep these closed, but it’s nice to know they’re there to fiddle with, I guess.

SMOK-micro-TFV4-tank

The Micro One starter kit also comes with two different coil heads – one 0.30Ω kanthal clapton coil head (preinstalled in the tank) for wattage mode, and an 0.25Ω stainless steel dual coil head that can be used both in wattage and temperature mode. Both perform exceptionally well, producing clouds of warm vapor as well as clear flavor, but in case you prefer a cooler vape that’s all about the flavor, SMOK actually offers two different sets of coil heads to choose from with the Micro One kit. The two mentioned above are the sub-ohm set, but you can opt for the flavor edition – a 1.8Ω MTL (Mouth to Lung) coil head and a 1.2Ω MTL coil head. I didn’t get a chance to try these, and I much prefer sub-ohm coils, but if you’re into cooler vapes or mouth to lung vaping,  you should definitely try them.

If you’re familiar with TFV4 tanks, you already know about the RBA tanks they usually come with. These are great if you like to do you’re own coil builds, or if you want to take advantage of the tanks without spending a fortune on the expensive SMOK coil heads. The micro version also has an RBA deck available, but it’s not included in the Micro One kit, so you have to spend a little extra to buy it separately. SMOK were kind enough to send it to me for this review, and I personally love it. It’s really small, but if you’ve used RDA’s before, changing the coils should be a breeze. It really should save you a lot of money in the long run, but if you don’t like getting your hands dirty and money’s no object, the coils work great as well. The thing to take away from all this is that you have a lot of options, and knowing SMOK, new ones should be available very soon.

SMOK-coil-heads

The coils for the micro TFV4 are much, much smaller than those for the regular and mini TFV4, but as I said before, they are very similar in terms of performance. The vapor production is not as insane as on the other two tanks, but then again, the coils don’t consume as much juice either. Don’t get me wrong, the micro TFV4 is still a thirsty beast, compared to other tanks, it’s just not as bad as its larger brothers. So if you’re looking for TFV4 level vapor production, but looking to save some juice, the Micro One kit is a great alternative.

All in all, I was very impressed with the SMOK Micro One starter kit. Both the R80 TC mod and the micro TFV4 sub-ohm tank are great additions to the fast-growing SMOK family, and the fact that they come as a complete package really should make it very appealing to casual vapers looking to get a taste of advanced vaping. And if the build-quality and performance of the Micro One starter kit aren’t enough to impress you, the price surely will. You can get now buy the kit for as little as 59.99, which is basically a steal. I, for one, can’t think of a better alternative for this kind of starter kit, if you can, please let me know.

SMOK-TFV4-RDA-base

SMOK vaping gear was already much cheaper than the competition, but they’re really pushing the envelope with the Micro One starter kit. If they keep this up, they’ll probably be giving stuff away for free soon. In all seriousness though, if you’re in the market for an advanced vaping setup that includes everything you need minus the liquid, I highly recommend you consider the SMOK Micro One.

ConclusionRating
Build Quality
4 stars

Performance
5 stars

Ease of Use
4 stars

Price
5 stars

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70 Comments/Reviews

  • Ash gilmour says:
    5 stars

    Best mod I’ve brought can not fault it at all

  • Heather says:

    Can I use a micro tank on my X Cube 2 160 w with update 180w? Or is this Tank strictly for the R80 mod in review

  • Luke says:
    5 stars

    The charge time on this is awesome an amazing piece of kit

    • Patrick says:

      I loved this mod at 1st now after a month (and I took great care of it!) It won’t charge past 54% and worse of all it dies out after 30 mins or so… maybe I got a bunk one but it is a pissed off

  • Keith says:

    Do they make the 80 watt coil yet for the smok t 80 yet

  • George says:

    Hi, how do you stop these from spitting e juice please? Are there certain settings I should set it too_?

  • Mantula says:

    Just got mine but it keeps making a popping sound when I vape… What’s the problem?

    • Waytham says:

      Don’t worry about the popping to much. A lot of tanks do that. It is just the sound of the juice hitting the coil and if the popping is louder than usual then it means you have flooded the coil and it should go away after a few hits.

  • ammar says:

    ,hi ,how it’s work

  • scott says:
    5 stars

    got my kit last week can not complain doing every thing that its big brother does

  • Shaun says:

    Can only the TFV4 coil fit on the Smok R80

  • TwistedNonsense says:
    5 stars

    Just got this today and so far it’s awesome. I’m still tweaking the wattage settings and air flow to find the perfect hit for me, but that’s not a bad thing. I love that there are so many ways to customize it.

  • Heather says:

    Hey guys I am thinking about getting this set up. I am wondering if you can charge the batteries while in the device and use it while it’s charging? Thanks for any help because I am so torn on what new mode to get. Thanks TTFN

  • pseudo says:

    THIS IS PERFECT for all those who want to get into sub ohm vaping and aren’t sure what to get. A nice compact 80w mod with a good battery and an amazing tank on it. Taste is great, clouds are huge, easy to use and set up. Switching the glass in the tank for the 3.5mg version was super simple. Only downside is how fast the tank drains.

  • Chris says:
    5 stars

    I like my R80 however, whenever I hit the fire button it just displays the date and time. I tried resetting it and emailing smok, neither have worked. If anyone can help me with this I would greatly appreciate it.

    • Vranks says:

      The device is just locked. Press the fire button five times in rapid succession and it will unlock. It’s a safety feature that prevents accidental battery activation when storing the device.

    • lilmsgs says:

      THANK YOU
      Am new to the device, somehow became locked, this info was just in time

  • chris says:

    my devise has high input showing and wont let me vape none of the button work and pressing the reset button does nothing please help

  • Kelly says:

    I got this a week ago and I’m still familiarizing myself with it. But I’m not getting the taste of flavor I want…am I doing something wrong? Like when I use other people’s mods I can but not on mine. I was thinking to just change the coil but I can’t get the bottom apart.

  • Josh says:

    When i use mine i get like a burnt taste and it burns the throat what am i doing wrong

  • Cockneyscouser says:

    Was a good mod working fine last night but not working today
    Slightly p***ed off

  • diaa says:
    3 stars

    I had this 2 month ago and now it give me when I’m firing a shorthed! !!! Dose any one know what shall I do !!

    • milb says:

      i got the r80 a week ago and its pucker I also got the micro r2 duel coil which is rebuildable .and I love it. just one thing when you get the kit make sure you prime the coil with juice first so you don’t burn the cotton .

    • milb says:
      3 stars

      if you get shorted don’t panic it fine all you need is to replace the coil in the tank with a new one job done . they don’t last forever 2-3 weeks max depending on how much you vape . start with the watts low and work you way up tell you hit the sweet spot ,o ye baby all good

  • John Mitchell says:

    Works AWESOME; Mod gets little warm; just got it.Still learning about it.Trying to fix the date and time but no biggy.Best vapor yet!

  • Dave ryal says:
    4 stars

    Great little mod just brought it a few days ago . Due to breaking my eleaf . Huge difference in performance only downside is drip tip heats up really quick even with 3.5ml tank set at 30w and really emptys the tank quick . Anyway I can sort this drip tip problem out ?

  • Gio says:

    I have the smok R80 and recently it started to say shorted as i try to vape , idk why it keeps saying that. Anybody can tell me how can i fix that problem???!

    • Vranks says:

      The problem is with the atomizer, the R80 mod is just protecting you by not firing. You have a short in your atomizer, are you using your own coils or a standard SMOK coil head? Anyway, either change the coil head, or, if you built them yourself, make sure the screws are tightened and that the wires are not touching anything but the positive and negative posts.

  • Alex says:

    I love this mod but I don’t know how to change the coil?

  • Liam says:
    4 stars

    Im new to vaping and this is the starter kit I chose, so far so good. I would just like to know if I have to regularly replace any particular parts on the mod?

  • Daniel says:
    1 stars

    I just bought this from Amazon thinking that it is a better one. I am disappointed

  • Patrick Olausson says:

    Well i took over 1000 puffs but now it want go higher it just displays the omega symbol and 00 whats wrong?

  • mitch says:

    HOW DO I UPDATE MY SMOKE R80 ???

  • Sam says:
    5 stars

    Hi I was just wondering why my coil seems to burn out so fast and why my tank heats up quickly when I only vape 4-5 times, is there any of tank I could get or have I get a setting majorly wrong?

    All in all a great mod though

    • Ben says:

      To anyone who is having trouble with the coils either burning out quick, too much popping and spitting from the tank, and issues with the vape being too harsh on the throat. The main problem seems to be that smok has designed the tanks to be to air tight. Sometimes even after priming a coil for ages it can fuck up. I the best way to deal with this problem is to open the tank every few bases to make sure air gets to the atomiser, and after an hour or so it should be fine. I I learned this the hard way

  • amy says:

    That is my question to how do u update the smok r80????

  • Alberto Vega says:

    Just got my Smok R80 kit. Plugged it in to charge 2 hrs ago. But it’s still not charged and won’t turn on. Does anyone know what the problem is?

  • Darius says:
    2 stars

    Bought this two days ago, and battery has been really poor. 10 medium inhales has seen the battery go from 100% to 71%. It cannot last a day. Only vaping at 35watts. Also the size of tank doesn’t match the thirst, i put the 3.5ml tank on and again going by 10 medium vapes the tank is now down to half way, so if taking out anywhere i’ll need to carry spare juice. No complaints about the vape itself, full of flavor and great clouds.

  • Fred says:
    4 stars

    I really like the charge time,and it works well with subtanks, RDA’s and RDTA’s. Does anyone know anything about a software update, or firmware upgrade for it, or where one could get custom software done?

  • Kyla says:

    I’m in love with this set up. As someone who doesn’t know a lot about vaping, I’ve found this set up a breeze to use. My only question is I have the Clapton coil installed at the moment, and I’d prefer to smoke it from about 65w-70w. The suggested usage for both coils are 30w-60w. Is it bad if I’m smoking it at that wattage? Would I get better clouds and flavor if I switched to the stainless steel coil, on wattage mode? I like it at 65-70w cause of the flavor and cloud it produces.

  • Marty says:

    Could someone tell me how to change time and date? I’ve Googled but can’t find anything

    • Iamchaos says:

      Tanner. Click the fire button 3 times to go to setting. Click the plus button twice then click the fire bottom. That’s the time setting.

  • Tanner says:

    Hey i have a problem setting the ohms for this mod it wont go any higher then .387 and wont go lower then .268 i cant find anything online :/

    • Marcin says:
      5 stars

      @Tanner
      this mod read your coil resistance. You can only tweak initial resistance on it. Why would you change this anyway?
      I just switch from Nautilis mini to this with 1.8ohm coil and It’s super!!!

  • Combatdoc says:
    5 stars

    I think most of the negative comments are from people not taking the time to set their unit up properly. I now have 3 of the R 80’s and getting ready to upgrade with a TFV8 Cloud Beast.

  • Andrew says:
    1 stars

    Just bought a micro one 150 and it’s won’t hold a charge. It lights up when plugged in then it just stays at00%….does anyone know how to fix this?

  • Jacques says:

    Wanting too know why my vape says it needs a new atomizer, what exactly is that, been told it’s a coil but idk for sure

  • Michael says:

    For the two coils that it comes with. Would you set the mod for a single coil or dual. I don’t understand if the Micro Clp2 has two coils or just one big one.

  • Andry says:
    5 stars

    Kind time of day! I have a problem. Has by mistake stitched the standard utility of updating electronic fashion of R80TC. Now fashion doesn’t work. I can’t find a standard insertion in the Internet for it anywhere. You could help? Send number of the version of an insertion and a file of an insertion with permission of .hex Many thanks in advance!

  • Andry says:

    Hello! Please, who has a mod contact me at e-mail. I need a little help. Thanks guys!

  • Matt says:
    5 stars

    Great bit of kit, I changed out the smaller tank to the 5ml, wound the drip box air hole ring closed but left the bottom one partialy open, great flavor & good clouds, not bad for the money

  • Gangl Wolfgang says:

    My device does mot work – either With 0,3 nor With the 0,25 coil
    ….display shows: “ohms too low” and “no atomicer” …Please help !

    • Vranks says:

      Ok, well, what resistance does the mod show on the display? If it says ohms too low, or no atomizer, it shouldn’t show 0.3 or 0.25 ohms on the display, regardless of what is says on the coil head. You either have a short circuit somewhere, or the atomizer (tank, RDA, whatever) doesn’t make contact with the mod properly. I don’t think your device is broken.

      • Gangl Wolfgang says:

        Display shows either 0,25 nor 0,3 ohm …also not volt.
        It shows accu capazity / 000V /
        000 ohm /40,00W ? locked

        • Vranks says:

          yes, well, that’s what I’m saying, there is something wrong with the atomizer, either a short or an imperfect connection with the mod. Do you have an ohm tester to test the atomizer on, or another atomizer to try on the mod? Good luck!

  • Rick says:

    For the pre installed Clapton coils what setting do I put them on? Stainless steel, nickel, or titanium?

    • Vranks says:

      As far as I can remember, the pre-installed coil-head is made with Kanthal wire, so you shouldn’t be using it in temperature control mode. The kit also comes with a spare stainless steel coil-head (marked SS) and you should obviously use the stainless steel setting for it.

  • Jordan says:
    5 stars

    the only thing that annoys me about the micro one is that when you get to 1000 puffs you have to reset or you will be left with an ohm sign

  • James says:
    5 stars

    Hellllllpppppppp
    I have an r80 smok vape but it has a little tank what bigger tank can I use on it ??

  • mal says:
    4 stars

    when I leave it plugged in, it only charges to about 56% and then doesn’t charge anymore unless I countinousy click the screen on..how do I fix this?

  • Ben says:
    5 stars

    hello i own this mod i i really enjoy it i was looking at new tanks i was wondering if the TFV12 tank would work with this mod?

  • Ashle says:
    5 stars

    Hey, would smok r80 work with geekvape ammit rta tank?

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