The Advken Artha RDA is the product of a little known vaping brand with a dozen or so items behind their name, most of which look pretty darn decent.
Their designs are simplistic and attractive and the brand seems to specialise entirely in mechanical box and tube mods, like the Mad Hatter 24 and also RDAs and RTAs, like the beautiful Manta, which was recently reviewed by one of my reviewing partners in crime, Kevin.
This week I’ve been enjoying the company of the Artha RDA, a cute and compact, PEI strong flavour-factory that keeps things very simple and definitely ticks most of my necessary RDA boxes. It now has a permanent home on the top of my Aleader X-Drip Squonker, where it looks very comfortable indeed. Read on to learn more about this little guy.
What’s In The Box
- 1 x Artha RDA
- 1 x Doctor Coil Screwdriver
- BF Pin
- Extra screws and o-rings
Features
- 24 mm stainless steel construction, the black has an SS barrel and the yellow version is has a PEI barrel
- Quality steel 810 drip tip
- 24 K gold plated deck
- Dual posts, each with a single screw and dual terminals for easy dual builds
- Great, deep juice well
- Ideal for set up with a squonk mod when you use the BF pin
Build Quality & Design
Having eagerly opened the neat little black box package, I instantly loved the look of this compact little 24mm, my yellow version features a full PEI barrel/top-cap and a good quality criss-cross textured, black stainless steel 810 drip tip.
The semi-transparent, yellow PEI shows the deep base of the RDA, with its ample juice well and beefy double o-rings which add to the rather groovy aesthetic of the thing. I also love the branding, which is basically an ‘A’ for Artha thats styled like a rather cool looking maze.
Either side the barrel there is a small 3ml airflow slot, positioned to lie perfectly alongside each of your two coils.
Below the PEI barrel you’ll see a thin, 1mm go ld band, with the rest of the base beneath the barrel. The barrel top tapers just before the 810 drip tip and when I go to lift off the barrel/cap I’m pleased with the ease of it, on account of those perfect o-rings and good machining all round.
The 24k gold plated deck features the easy to use, dual post design with which most builders will be familiar. One top screw in each post secures a lead-in either side so that this deck accommodates a dual build only. Airflow won’t allow for a single coil build so options are very limited.
Nevertheless, simplicity, I think, is what it’s all about here and that’s what I see.
I’m pleased with the inclusion of a very deep juice well which I, lazy as I am, enjoy, especially on a 24mm like this.
Accessories
While I didn’t find cotton included, I have been enjoying the quality of the included fused claptons, with their 0.2 ohm resistance they’ve been providing a good vape with awesome flavour for the last couple of weeks. Also, the necessary screwdriver, along with extra screws has been included, to add, of course, to one’s ever expanding collection of miniature screwdrivers.
How Does The ADVKEN Artha RDA Perform?
With its super deep juice well and compact dimensions, I’ve found the Artha to be a nifty little squonking RDA and, like I said before, it’s now a permanent fixture on the top of my Aleader X-Drip Squonker. I love the way the bottom feeder is completely unobstructed in its position right between those big posts.
Now, airflow isn’t actually adjustable, which I would have preferred but still, I’m getting a decent, medium restricted lung draw with flavour somewhere well above average.
The compact size of this RDA lends itself to a lot of spluttering right after a squeeze or a drip but the rest of the time its not that much of a problem.
One thing’s for sure, the PEI barrel/cap definitely does a good job of keeping the RDA cool, even when you’re giving it a run for its money.
Let’s face it, there’s nothing revolutionary here, just tried and tested design and components that have become standard vaping fare, all in a compact and cute little RDA.
It doesn’t blow me away with exceptional airflow design or build versatility but its not bad either.
Other than the inability to adjust my airflow, there’s no performance aspect that really disappointed me here, however…I was left with the word ‘mediocre’ floating around in my skull.
How To Fill
Simply drip through the 810 drip tip or squeeze your squonk bottle to bottom feed.
Ease of build
While coil space is limited and you wont be able to put single builds or massive coils on this little guy…the build process is made very easy by the single screw per post system and deep threading for easy screwdriver work.
The deep juice well makes tucking in an extended wick really easy and the airflow is positioned so that not a great deal of manoeuvring is required to get your coils just right.
What I Liked
I like the aesthetic and functionality of the heat resistant PEI design, along with the ease of build on the 24K gold plated deck. I also enjoyed the layout and deep juice well for use with a bottom feeder.
What I Dislike
This design has a drawback, in that the airflow slots cannot be adjusted, I would have preferred a slightly more restricted airflow at times and this is a bit of an issue with this RDA but the simplicity of only 3 parts also has its merits.
Also, the deck doesn’t allow for single builds or builds that require a little more space, it’s a tight squeeze. If compact and basic is what ADVKEN were aiming for here, that they have achieved.
Final Review Verdict
It’s a mixed review on this one, half good and half not! There are a great many things I like here but far too many of them are purely aesthetic. This isn’t an RDA I could write home about-performance wise, it’s simple, it’s small, it’s cool, that’s it.
If you love the look of it and you’re after a tiny RDA that stays cool then the yellow version will do you fine but I couldn’t recommend it on the basis of capacity, versatility or flavour…I’ve had less spluttery RDA’s, I’ve had more spacious decks on a 24mm RDA, Bob’s your uncle.
Pros
- Heat resistant PEI construction
- Good quality 810 drip tip
- Easy to use build deck with good threading on screws
- Deep juice well is great for squonking
Cons
- Airflow is not adjustable
- Only one coil arrangement possible
- Not much available space on deck
