I have the Innokin Endura S1 kit to review! It is a hybrid of a disposable vape and a reusable.
Innokin have been a huge brand in the Vape market for years and their Endura badged range have brought us some of the best vape starter kits you can buy!
In fact I have reviewed a few of them – the T20S, T18-II and T22 Pro!
What To Expect From The Innokin Endura S1…
As mentioned above this is a kind of hybrid design.
One of the issues with Disposable vapes is the amount of waste they create. Most of them are scrap when either the battery or e-liquid run out.
To try and replicate the simplicity of a disposable whilst adding a bit more sustainability, more companies are moving towards RRD devices.
RRD stands for Refillable, Rechargeable Disposable – which as the name suggests means you can get a bit more life out the device.
Sadly this will not have an infinite lifespan, as the coil and pod are not removable. When the coil dies (performance is poor or tastes burnt) then the whole device needs to be disposed of – responsibly please!
Most disposables in the UK offer 600 puffs, whereas Innokin claim you can get up to 7000 puffs (20ml) from this.
Sadly it isn’t just a case of increasing e-liquid capacity to increase puffs and device lifespan with disposable vapes in the UK, as the TPD regulations limit the e-liquid capacity to 2ml.
For the Endura S1 this is refillable via the side fill port with up to 2ml of your own e-liquid.
Inside the tank is a 1.1ohm Mesh Kanthal coil – which should provide a decent coil life.
The battery is 650mAh and using the USB Type C port you can charge it at a slow 0.5A charge rate.
The output is regulated at a constant 3.6V / 13.5W which should mean no drops in power when the battery charge is low.
An LED indicator is provided, it sort of displays the battery status but not in a massively useful way – more about that later!
There are 8 colours to choose from: Charcoal, Graphite, Silver, Pearl, Celadon, Cerulean, Iris and Blush.
Kit Includes
- Innokin Endura S1 Device
- Quick start guide
Innokin Endura S1 Specs
- Size: 18.5mm diameter x 101mm height
- Battery: 650mAh (internal)
- Display: LED indicator
- Output: 3.6V / 13.5W constant
- Type C USB charging – 0.5A charge rate
- Pod capacity: 2ml
- Draw activated
- Fixed coil specification: 1.1ohm Kanthal Mesh
- Up to 7000 puffs / 20ml of e-liquid
- Side fill port
Thank you to Innokin for sending this over for review! I will report back honestly on my experience with the device supplied.
Innokin Endura S1 Design and Build Quality
I received this in the Cerulean and Celadon colours – thank you Innokin – two of my favourites in the range!
It is worth bearing in mind how inexpensive this kit is. Hence why the kit is pretty basic, it has to compete with the cheap Disposable Vapes whilst still being up to Innokin quality standards.
I struggled to both open the box and get the device out! I do have manky hands so it might just be me that struggles. You may notice the box looks a bit beaten up in my photos!
Inside the sealed box you will find the device sat in a cardboard tray and behind that a brief “quick start guide”.
The instructions are basic but do the job well, with diagrams showing the main components and another showing how to fill. There is an online version here if you struggle to read the text.
The packaging appears to be made from Card so should be easily recycled.
Device
This takes the form of a Vape Pen style. But there is no separate tank or battery section as it is an “all one device”.
You cannot remove the tank or coil – meaning the whole device is to be disposed of when the coil has passed its usefulness.
Starting at the top you have a clear tank area with a small but comfortable “Duck Bill” mouthpiece. This is fully transparent so it is easy to see the e-liquid level at a quick glance.
On the side of the tank area is a White Silicone fill port cover. An arrow shows you where to lift this to get access to the fill port.
The oval fill port measures around 4mm x 5mm.
You can also swing the fill port cover out of the way to ease access.
Due to the position of the port I found I had to tilt the kit horizontally to get the most e-liquid into the tank as possible. I got the odd air lock where the air pockets inside the tank stop e-liquid distributing itself fully but these generally were easy to clear.
Below the clear tank department is the main body of the device. Depending on the colour variant you will get either a solid Matte, Metallic or Gradient finish.
Both my devices had a gradient finish with the colour starting at the base and then fading to White towards the top.
Although the design is Tubular there is one flat edge on the front – I assume to help prevent this rolling around on a desk.
The front houses the “Endura S1” logo printed on in Silver. On the rear you will find the “Innokin” logo also in the same print.
The base is like a White plastic cap and it houses the USB Type C port. Also down here is the LED indicator light, the airflow inlet and various Legal logos. It reminds me of a very startled face!
I am not very convinced about the positioning of the LED indicator as it is hard to see when vaping, but it is bright enough that you can put your hand near it and it will glow onto your hand.
The whole device has a quality comfortable feel and the price does not reflect how well made it is!
Innokin Endura S1 Quick Start Guide
This is pretty much ready to go – remove the sticker from the USB port, charge and fill up! There was some charge when I opened the packet but it did need about 10 minutes more charging.
Basic Operation
- Power On/Off = This does not have an on/off switch.
- Vaping = Just inhale on the mouthpiece to trigger the auto fire system.
- Battery indicator = This illuminates in Green whilst vaping, when the battery charge is getting low it turns to Red. When the battery needs charging it will flash Red 10 times and will not operate until charged.
- Battery indicator when charging = Pulses Red, then goes to a solid Green light when fully charged.
Protections
- Low battery – LED will flash Red 10 times.
There are no mentions of any other protections?
How To Charge The Battery
The charging rate is specified as 0.5A.
- Using a USB type C cable, connect the small end into the USB port on the mod.
- Connect the large end of the cable into a suitable USB outlet.
- The LED will Pulse Red when charging and when the light turns Green and stays on it is fully charged.
The charging time for me was around 1 hour 35 mins – super slow!
How To Fill the Pod
- Lift up the fill port cover.
- Fill the pod through the fill port.
- Push the fill port cover closed firmly.
- If first time use or a new pod leave this to stand for 10 minutes for the e-liquid to soak into the wicking. Failure to do this will result in the vape from hell (Dry Hit).
Innokin suggest to keep the pod at least 1/3 full at all times, this should help prolong device life.
How Does the Innokin Endura S1 Perform?
I mix my own e-liquid using the IVG Bubblegum Concentrate to 20%. I add this to 50% VG and 50% PG base liquid.
The flavour ratio I use is quite high, which can sometimes be a coil killer, but I love a lot of flavour!
I add nic salt to approx 6mg strength.
Innokin actually recommend 50/50 VG PG e-liquid!
If any of these terms are over your head – have a read of our handy guides below!
- MTL V DTL – A Guide To Vape Styles
- VG and PG in E-liquid – all you need to know
- Beginners guide to E-liquid
- Nic Salt E-liquid
From the first vape this was really impressive!
Innokin nearly always impress me with the clarity of flavour you get at such a low output and the Endura S1 delivers the same.
On a longer inhale there is plenty of warmth and throat hit, even with just 6mg nic strength e-liquid like I use!
It is also surprisingly efficient on e-liquid use, I am barely having to fill it!
There is the expected amount of vapour – which for a MTL device is similar to the exhale of cigarette smoke.
I am happy with the performance so far, tasty, warm and great vapour! I have had much more expensive kits struggle to give such a satisfying vape!
Airflow
This is a pretty tight airflow.
On a scale of 0=fully closed and 10=breathing fresh air – I would class this as around a 2.
There is enough airflow to get a good vape but you do need a good suck to get it to fire.
This would be a natural sensation to those who are used to smoking cigarettes as it takes the same amount of effort to vape as it would to get a drag of a ciggie.
Mod Performance
In general this performed perfectly – as expected.
I did notice a minor drop in output once the Red LED illuminated when vaping. But as it won’t be long before you need to charge this won’t bother you for long!
The auto draw airflow system is spot on, no issues at all. I found it consistently quick and didn’t stutter at all.
Leaks
As this is a fully sealed device the only possibility of leakage is from the filling port.
I had no problems there, but if you didn’t fully push the fill port cover closed you might get a bit of a dribble.
Battery / Coil Life
I am a very heavy vaper so take that into consideration and everyone’s habits will vary.
When the LED indicator starts to turn Red when vaping you will only have around 25 puffs left before you will need to recharge.
But I found I got around 3-4 tank fulls and 6.5 to 7 hours between each battery charge.
I was getting around 85 puffs per tank refill and Innokin state the coil should last for around 20ml of e-liquid or 7000 puffs. However the puffs estimation is pretty meaningless as this will vary depending on how long you inhale and the strength of nicotine you use.
Now if we say each refill is 1.3ml (I refilled when the tank was 1/3rd full as recommended), I have so far refilled 20 times (around 26ml), roughly 1700 puffs and the flavour is just starting to turn a bit dry.
I will update with the amount of puffs and fills I reached when the coil finally died.
Pros
- More sustainable and cheaper to run than a disposable vape
- Simple auto draw
- The flavour, warmth and vapour is excellent
- Economical on e-liquid usage
- Exceeded the estimated e-liquid life
Cons
- The LED indicator lights up Green for the majority of time when vaping. When the battery charge is low it turns Red and you have around 25 puffs before it conks out. I prefer the Green, Blue, Red system you usually find on vapes.
- Slow charge rate at 0.5A – it takes 1 hour 35 mins. Bearing in mind lots of pod kits have 2A charging.
- Whole device is scrap when the coil is knackered. Only a small component of the kit, yet you dispose of it all.
- Is slightly more complicated than a disposable as it has to be filled and charged. This makes me think why not just buy a pod kit?
- Indicator light is on the base which is hard to see when vaping.
Final Review Verdict
It is worth noting that some retailers are selling this in a kit with a 10ml bottle of Kingston PodBar salt e-liquid in a choice of 12 flavours. Which for me is preferable to buying a standard 600 puffs then in the bin (or on a footpath) disposable – yet just as handy.
I have knocked points off for design – due to the not very informative LED indicator and the position of it.
Also when it comes to ease of use I found it hard to decide…
It is definitely simple for those used to basic vape devices, but it has more complication than a single use disposable? As this kind of straddles both categories which do I compare it to in terms of simplicity?
My main issue is who needs this device?
It is not as simple as a disposable and to be honest if you want to charge and fill a device why not just buy a pod kit? With some of the most simple pod kits like the Uwell Caliburn A3S, Voopoo Argus G or the OXVA Xlim SE, you can simply just dispose of the pod component when the coil has gone – no messy coil replacing and far less waste.
So this sort of sits in a weird juxtaposition.
I love the performance, design and the flavour is excellent. But I still feel wrong about chucking this away when all that needs replacing is the coil or pod?
So is it a guilt free disposable? Nope, but it will give you less guilt than a standard disposable.
I found the estimated puff count of 7000 to be too high but this is always a Grey area, it totally depends on how long someone inhales for – which is going to vary wildly so I would ignore that.
But the amount of e-liquid used was higher than the estimated 20 refills so you are getting a better device life than expected.
Viewing the device alone on price and performance it is worth every penny, but again my conscience makes me reluctant to recommend it over a reusable kit.
