The Smoant RABOX was released in early 2017, but a few weeks ago, I was given the opportunity to review one. After seeing the hype surrounding this piece of hardware, how could I refuse?!?
Smoant are a company based in China and have released products such as the Battlestar 200w, Charon and the Knight series of devices. They also have atomisers in the form of the Battlestar RDA, RTA and RDTA and the Talos tank.
As always my opinions are honest and my own.
Keep Scrolling For To See The Rabox In Action With My Video Review
What’s In The Box
- Smoant RABOX mod
- USB charge cable
- User Manual
Features
- Size: 70mm(L) *31mm(W) *90mm(H)
- Weight: 288g
- Unique looking unregulated mod
- Purely Handmade Welding Stainless Steel 304 Frame
- Minimum Resistance: 0.10 Ohm
- Max output power: 100W
- Adjustable HIGH/SOFT Mode
- Built-in 3300mAh battery
- USB charging
- Nano waterproof coated over PCB to greatly prevent water damage.
- Low battery protection/ Resistance protection/ over-heating protection/ Over-use protection
- Black, Red, White colour Available
See The Rabox In Action With My Video Review
Build Quality & Design
The buttons, switches & 510 connector:
The fire button is located on one side of the device and is like a ball bearing switch. It has a great mechanical, click feel to it. Below that is the SOFT/HIGH toggle switch. This also has a good clicky action to it as well.
So no complaints about the functionality or feel of the switches on this device at all.
The 510 connector on top of the RABOX is made of stainless steel, and surrounds what looks like a gold plated positive 510 pin. There is very minimal throw in the in this pin, so atomisers with a larger protruding 510 positive pin may struggle to fit flush on this device.
Asthetics:
There’s no doubt about it. This thing is a stunner of a mod. A beautiful tubular frame, see through side panels, exposed electronics and it flashes and beeps! This thing is a tech fanatics wet dream! It reminds me of a gaming PC tower (as with Neils recent review of the Stentorian AT-7)with all the bits and bobs and pieces exposed to the eye.
So, according to Smoant, this thing is “purely hand made”. A GTA Welded frame (also known as TIG “Tungsten Inert Gas” Welding) and then coated in a choice of three different high temperature ceramic paints; black, white and red.
Enclosed in this impressive framework and sandwiched between two PMMA panels is a waterproof PCB which uses nano waterproof technology to protect the PCB from any sort of shorting caused by e-liquid.
I believe this coating is mainly there to protect the board from any potential corrosion rather than any electrical shorts.
Functions:
It is powered by an impressive 3300mAh internal battery that is chargeable via Micro USB only!
The RABOX offers two different power modes;
- HIGH – which outputs a constant 5v to your atomiser.
- SOFT – which outputs whatever the remaining voltage of the battery is.
These two modes are printed faintly on the PCB, so get out your magnifying glass to see them! Switching between them causes the RABOX to wake up, and everyone else in the vicinity with a show of beeps and lights… Oh those beeps and lights…
Along with those functions, Smoant has also thrown in some safety features such as low battery protection, low resistance protection, over-heating protection and over-use protection.
When any of these are activated you will get a series of beeps and flashes to let you know that something isn’t working the way it should.
Feel in the Hand:
Now… This is a beast of a mod. It’s HUGE! And all that comes at a price. It really doesn’t feel great in the hand. Or in the pocket. It is just bulky and cumbersome. 
Even though it has rounded tubular edges. It still manages to dig and feel awkward in the hand. It’s just not comfortable whatsoever. And in the pocket, it weighs too much.
So I would suggest to wear a belt when you’re out and about with this thing in your pocket.
Different Atomisers on the RABOX:
The RABOX accepts 25mm atomisers rather comfortably. Here it is with the Wotofo Freak Show RDA on top.
It also looks great teamed up with sub ohm tanks. Here it is teamed up with the Aspire Cleito EXO.
How Does the Smoant RABOX Perform?
So, on the RABOX, I will be using a 0.36Ω dual flapton coil build on the Wotofo Vaporous RDA.
I will then put it in the HIGH and SOFT modes and compare how they feel to me. Before I get into this test, I would recommend building between 0.3-0.4Ω for best performance. But this is just my personal preference.
Soft Mode:
A bit of a mediocre ramp up. It only feels like it’s outputting around 40w comparing to what I would usually get from setting it at 70w on a regulated device. It’s alright, nothing special, but I would probably recommend using this when you’re using sub ohm atomisers.
Hard Mode:
Yep, it hits hard. I personally couldn’t imagine what wattage it is outputting, but I’m getting a good ramp up time and comfortable, constant power from this unit. This is what I would recommend to be used when using low ohm builds on an RDA. Something where you can juice up them wicks regularly before they go dry and not have to worry about a tank or RTA having to keep up with the wicking process.
Battery Life:
Now, as we all know, I’m not the heaviest of vapers. And a 2500mAh single 18650 device usually lasts me around three quarters of a day.
When using this 3300mAh device, I was getting around 4 hours regular used from a full charge before I felt that it needed to be charged again.
I personally would say this is about average for me, so no complaints there. The only downside is that you cannot swap out the battery and wack in a fresh one.
So you will have to charge it via USB before using it again, or take advantage of the pass-through function on the RABOX. When charging you will have a constant blue flashing light. Then when it is fully charged, you will get a green flashing light to let you know that it’s ready to go!
What I Like
- The looks
- The fire button
What I Dislike
- It’s heavy
- It’s cumbersome
- The lights
- The beeps
- Doesn’t feel nice in the hand
- Rattly side panels
- USB charge only
Final Review Verdict
Well, what can I say? I was really excited about the Smoant RABOX, but unfortunately the cons far outweigh the pros on it.
Don’t get me wrong, it’s a nice showpiece but that is all it is. Something nice on the shelf or to show off your friends.
Functionality wise, it doesn’t do it for me. The lights are entertaining for the first five minutes, and the beeps. OH THE BLOODY BEEPS! No one wants a beeper inside their mod. Especially something that’s this loud!
If I Lost or Broke the Smoant RABOX, would I replace it?
No. Not at all. Personally, I’m a person who looks for function over form and the Smoant RABOX doesn’t do it for me. The two functions aren’t practical enough for me for every day use, teamed up with the chunkyness of it, it isn’t a nice thing to carry around all day.
I have absolutely loved Smoant’s previous devices such as the Battlestar 200w and the Knight v2 Kit, but unfortunately this one isn’t for me as an every day mod.
Have you used, or would you buy the Smoant RABOX? Let us know in the comments below!
