Koopor Mini Review
The Koopor Mini is a compact dual mode -variable wattage and temperature control – mod from a new Shenzen-based company called Koopor. This device may be little compared to other advanced TC vaporizers like the SMOK XCube 2 or IPV4 but it can output up to 60 watts of power and is packed with an impressive number of interesting features. After fiddling with it for a few weeks I already found a nickname for it – The Little Engine That Could.
Before we dive into the actual review, I feel I should give you some basic inf about Koopor, as it’s so young a company, most of you have probably never heard of it. It’s a Chinese company based in Shenzen, and it’s a part of IVPS Technology Co Limited. If that sounds somewhat familiar, it’s because that’s the parent company of SMOK, one of the biggest players in the vaping business today. Even though it is an independent outfit, you can spot the similarities between the Koopor Mini, and SMOK mods, like the X Cube 2, for example. They are both made of stainless steel and zinc alloy, they have the same command input system and even share some of the menu icons. If you’re a fan of SMOK products, you should definitely give the Koopor Mini a try. If you’re not, you should check it out anyway because it’s a cool little device.
Anyway, let’s talk about the design and build quality of the Koopor Mini. At just 83.8 x 41 x 24.5 mm in size, it’s one of the smallest, if not the smallest dual mode vaporizer (TC & VW) on the market right now. It is made of stainless steel though so it feels pretty heavy in your hand for its size, but I personally liked that as is made it seem sturdy, like it could withstand a drop and still work. My 1-year-old daughter actually put it to the test after I left it unattended on the dining room table for just a moment, and even though the magnetic cover came off on impact, it was still in perfect working condition. I recommend you be careful with the Koopor Mini though as there are lots of sensitive electronics in it that could get damaged when the device is dropped.
One thing you should know is that the Koopor Mini is coated in a layer of clear lacquer that starts to come off if you carry it in your pocket, like I have been doing. The tiny mod looks like it’s been through a war, with half of the coating already gone, but the good news is, once it comes off completely, the Koopor will look as good as new. I rubbed it off completely on one side just to see how it looks, and you can hardly tell the difference from the rest of the mod. The even better news is Koopor also includes a bright orange silicon sleeve that protects the mod from wear and tear. Sadly, I didn’t use mine from the beginning, but I strongly suggest you do.
The Koopor Mini works with a single 18650 battery which can easily be inserted by removing what is one of the best magnetic battery covers I’ve ever seen on a mod. Simply slide down the cover as indicated by an arrow pointing downwards and then lift it off. It’s a simple yet effective system that ensures the cover doesn’t wobble or accidentally come off during use. After you’ve inserted the battery, simply put the cover back on and it snaps into place perfectly.
This is also one of the airiest mods I’ve seen, with plenty of small vent holes both on the bottom of the device and on the magnetic cover. They prevent the device from overheating and allow the battery to vent in case of a malfunction. But if you plan on putting the Koopor Mini to the test with extreme builds that involve high wattage or temperature settings and low resistance coils, you’ll be happy to know that it also comes with a series of built-in safety features, including short-circuit protection, low battery warning and over-heat protection.
The buttons and digital display are positioned on the side of the Koopor Mini and are super easy to use. The large firing button activates the battery, and the two smaller buttons (‘Up’ and ‘Down’) are used to adjust the wattage and temperature settings as well as to navigate through the menu. The small OLED screen displays the wattage/temperature settings, battery life, real-time voltage and atomizer resistance.
The menu of the Koopor Menu can be accessed by pressing the firing button three times in rapid succession, just like on the SMOK X Cube 2 and other SMOK mods. You can change or activate different settings by navigating to them using the buttons and simply waiting for the changes to input, after which the display returns to the home screen. Some of the sub-menus can be accessed directly through various button combinations. For example, the wattage and temperature modes can be switched by pressing the firing button and the ‘Up’ button simultaneously.
Speaking of button combinations, I was left a bit confused by the Koopor Mini’s locking systems. There are two of them – press the firing button five times in rapid succession and the device locks to prevent accidental activation when the device is stored in your pocket or other tight carrying spaces, like a purse. Press the ‘Up’ and ‘Down’ buttons simultaneously, and that only locks those two buttons, while keeping the firing button active to prevent accidental changes to the wattage or temperature settings. Using two locking systems seems like a cool idea, but only if they work.
The strange thing I noticed was that after locking the Koopor Mini and not using it for at least five minutes, it automatically powered off (probably to conserve battery) and powered back on at the press of any of its three buttons. Only the lock on the firing button wasn’t active anymore. So if I were to put in my pocket locked and accidentally press one of the buttons after a while, the device would become active and so would the firing button. It kind of defeats the purpose of the lock.
In the menu, you can change the operation mode of the Koopor Mini (wattage or temperature control mode), set the temperature control to ‘Soft’, ‘Normal’ and ‘Hard’ – the mod will fire at a lower or higher temperature than the one it is set on for two seconds, after which it will drop to its current setting – adjust the time the OLED display remains lit to save battery life, check the puff counter, rotate the direction of the display, set the temperature coefficient for various coil building materials like nickel or titanium, adjust the initial resistance of the coil and power off the device. It’s a fairly straightforward menu that doesn’t take long getting used to.
Perhaps the most impressive feature of the Koopor Mini is the temperature control option. In temp. mode, the mod actively monitors the resistance of the atomizer coil and adjusts power output to ensure that the set maximum temperature isn’t exceeded. According to the included presentation leaflet, the Koopor Mini is equipped with the new HFDMR-Ni200 (High Frequency Dynamic Monitoring Resistance of Ni200) technology “which can detect atomizer resistance once every 250 microseconds, with a precision of approximately 4000 times per second, thus regulating the temperature of heating coil more effectively.” Temperature can be adjusted between 100 and 315 degrees Celsius, in 5-degree increments, or 200 and 600 degrees Fahrenheit, in 10-degree increments.
To ensure you are using the temperature control feature effectively, there a few things you have to know. First of all, adjusting the temperature coefficient for the particular coil material you are using is key. Nickel has a different coefficient than titanium, so if you don’t change the coefficient when changing from one material to the other, the Koopor Mini will not be able to properly monitor the resistance, which could result in unpleasant dry hits. And second, temperature control only works with nickel and titanium right now, because they have a more linear relationship between resistance and temperature, compared to kanthal and NiChrome. But, as vaping technology advances, we might see new materials supported soon. I suspect that’s one of the things that micro-USB port on the bottom of the Koopor Mini is for. It reads “not for charging, only upgrade”.
I did dry burn to check if the temperature control really works on the Koopor Mini, and it does, but only with the right temperature coefficient input beforehand. There are also a few YouTube videos that show the device doesn’t burn the wick even at 600 degrees Fahrenheit, so you can trust the TC on this thing is actually the real deal.
In wattage mode, the Koopor ranges from 1 W all the way to 60 W, which should be enough for all but the most extreme vapers. The wattage is adjusted in 0.1 W increments, using the ‘Up’ and ‘Down’ keys, and it can go from 1 to 60 in less than 10 seconds if you keep the ‘Up’ key pressed, so no long waiting times like on other mods I’ve used. In wattage mode, the Koopor Mini supports resistances as low as 0.1 ohms, all the way to 3 ohms, while in temp mode, supported resistance ranges from 0.06 ohms to 2 ohms.
The Koopor Mini might be small, as the name clearly suggests, but make no mistake, this is a beast of a vaporizer. It’s a dual mode mod that supports both nickel and titanium coils, it comes with new resistance monitoring technology, and the build quality is just crazy. Not to mention its small size actually makes it a lot more comfortable to carry around for inconspicuous vaping on the go. What more can you ask for $55? That’s an insanely low price for the Koopor Mini offers, so it’s no wonder it’s already sold out at most online vape shops. And the best part is the price will probably drop even more in a few weeks.
I have been using the Koopor Mini for about three weeks now, and I couldn’t be more pleased with it. If you’re looking for an advanced temperature control mod that’s actually small enough to fit in your pocket, this is it.
Works okay for vaping. Good battery compartment. Good OSD. Menu is not problematic. A little slagged in firing, but not terrible.
The Koopor Mini comes with flawed firmware that has very serious consequences rather than a bug that may be slightly irritating. To fix this, even though the box has a usb port, you are required to ship, in my case, having to pay postage for both trips, and wait about a week process outside the shipping time.
I feel this is a poor product.