The VLaddin Pod system is a closed pod, portable and easy to use little vaping device.
(UPDATED 16/6/18 – Empty Pods and E-liquid Now Available!)
However I have now seen empty pods for sale for this which you can refill with your own e-liquid making this also an “open” pod system!
A pod vape mod is generally a small device, which uses lower power, high nicotine or nic salt e-liquid and can get away with a smaller capacity battery.
A closed pod system is one where the tank (pod) is removable and disposable. When the pod is empty you simply throw it away and buy another. It is ideal for people who want zero fuss, no messy topping up or changing coil heads to deal with.
The VLaddin pods use Nicotine Salts, which I have written a guide about. In layman’s terms these are like normal nicotine e-liquids but the nicotine is stronger without being harsh on the throat. Therefore these do not require heating to high temperatures and can be run on lower power devices yet still give a good nic hit to people with nicotine cravings.
I find Nic salts really do work, in fact I am nearly 3 months being a non smoker due to nicotine salts – I would urge some caution though – chain vaping them can make you feel a bit nauseous after a few hours so do go steady!
There are 4 flavours of pod to choose from and I got a selection pack of all 4 in the package with my device:
- Northern Tobacco
- VCT Tobacco
- Ice Tobacco
- Mint Tobacco
To aid with the vaporisation of the nicotine salts the pods have ceramic heating materials too. Having recently tried the CCELL ceramic coils in the Vaporesso Revenger Mini I am looking forward to seeing how well these perform.
This was sent free of charge for the purposes of the review, as always my views are my own. It’s a totally new brand and device for me – I haven’t even written a preview for this so I am excited to get stuck in!
What’s In The Box
- VLaddin battery
- 1.5ml 1.8% nicotine Northern Tobacco flavour pod
- USB cable
- User manual
Features
- Size: 19x11x90.3mm
- Output voltage: 3.5V
- Battery capacity: 350mAh
- Pod capacity: 1.5ml
- Maximum output: 12W
- Magnetic pod connection
- 4 flavours to choose from: Northern Tobacco, VCT Tobacco, Ice Tobacco and Mint Tobacco
Build Quality & Design
My first impression taking this out of the box was how thin and light this was – almost like an oddly shaped plastic pen it’s that light!
You unpack the pod, remove the coloured plastic protective cover and insert into battery.
Even with the pod inserted wow this is super light – I would have to keep checking my pockets to make sure it is there!
Design wise it is a black stick, VLaddin text on one side and an indicator light and that is it!
The LED lights up white when you take a vape – it doesn’t say on the website or instructions if you get any indicator of battery life…
The profile of this is a kind of teardrop/leaf shape – I tried to show it below.
Very very plain, the pod has an angle and a window which makes this look slightly more interesting.
It is a dull looking device – but not offensive in any way.
Instructions are brief but ok have seen worse!
In The Hand
How Does the VLaddin Pod Mod Perform?
Basic operation
- This is an automatic device. All you need to do is charge, install the pod and vape away! No buttons, switches or adjustments! Easy peasy!
How To Charge The Battery
- Plug the included USB cable into the small port on the end of the battery.
- Plug the other end of the USB cable into a suitable USB outlet.
- The LED indicator on the battery will be lit whilst charging and will go out when charging complete.
How To Change The Pod
When the e-liquid in the pod is empty – you will no longer see it in the viewing window – it is time to change the pod.
- Pull the existing pod out of the battery.
- Open a new pod and remove the coloured plastic protector.
- The pod will only fit in one way – so match the angle on the battery housing to the angle on the pod.
- Slide the pod into the mod.
Flavour & Cloud Production
This is obviously a low power kit, designed for MTL (Mouth to lung) vapers – so will also have a restricted airflow and be focused on throat hit and not CLOUDZ! So I will be comparing the performance to similar pod devices I have reviewed.
I received a multi pack of pods of each flavour – these do not come with the standard kit and are an extra purchase.
I found this has a good restricted airflow and a lovely throat hit. The vape isn’t hot but warm and I really enjoy the sensation.
Its taking about 6 seconds to get what I feel is a good inhale – slightly longer than some pod mods but still extremely satisfying to vape on!
When the level in the pod is low I was getting a slight misfire – i.e. having to take another draw with the pod vertical to get a vape. So when the level is low you will have to keep it upright for it to wick.
The “Leak Free” system – is generally pretty true but when removing the pods from the battery I did sometimes get a drop of liquid on the outside of the pod from somewhere.
One other slight disadvantage is I have not seen a UK distributor for the VLaddin – so buying pods might take a while in shipping?
Northern Tobacco Flavour Pod (Included in Kit)
This is a very chocolatey tobacco flavour almost a nutty taste in there too. It is really warm and smooth! Reminds me of a lovely hot chocolate on a cold day.
I am enjoying this, not as musty or synthetic tasting as some tobacco liquids and being nic salts this is not harsh in the slightest!
A good starting point for a smoker I would say – hence why this pod comes in the kit!
The flavour of this pod keeps making me pick this kit up – I love this and I rarely like tobacco flavour liquids!!
UPDATE 16/6/18 – the Northern Tobacco liquid is made by the company Salt Nix and is available to buy – I have bought some myself! Add to this that Vladdin now has empty pods for sale you can buy your own e-liquid and refill the pods yourself!
Ice Tobacco Flavour Pod
This is not as nice as the Northern flavour.
This has a slightly musty aftertaste. Not as warm and chocolatey as the Northern.
There is an icy blast – not freezing more of a cool sensation. Not a minty menthol style taste either – tobacco is the prominent flavour.
Not really my cup of tea but is as described. I wouldn’t personally buy this flavour.
VCT Tobacco Flavour Pod
As soon as you remove the yellow protective cap you get a big whiff of vanilla.
Thankfully not the synthetic air freshener vanilla which makes me heave more of a custardy creamy smell – phew!
Having a vape on this there is a strong vanilla flavour and a hint of cool menthol – not minty just cool.
There is a background of tobacco but the creamy vanilla – more of an ice cream style is the predominant flavour.
Again I wouldn’t buy this flavour for myself – not a patch on the beautiful Northern Tobacco!
Mint Tobacco Flavour Pod
This doesn’t smell very minty – has a very tobacco smell.
However when you vape this the mint kicks in – wow lovely. Not too strong or sickly and has a muted tobacco after taste but not strong.
This is a nice sensation – but still pales compared to the Northern Tobacco pod!
The Mint Tobacco was my second favourite though!
Battery Life
I did find I was taking quite long draws on this which may impact the battery life and it does only have a weeny 350mAh battery capacity – which is a bit of a shame.
As this is a Nic Salt pod mod I couldn’t vape this as heavily as I would usually do in battery life tests. However regularly vaping this sat at a desk I got 1.5-2 hours.
Pros
- So simple to use
- Ultimate fuss free vaping
- Great taste and no harshness from the nic salts
- Lightweight and really thin
- Northern Tobacco pod taste was beautiful!
- Empty pods now available to refill yourself!
Cons
- A bit dull looking – be nice in some pretty colours?
- Closed pod system – pods are wasteful and more expensive than refillable pods you can change the coil in – however this is really “fuss free”. (There are some empty pods available now – 16/6/18 which you can refill!)
- No battery life indicator
- Would benefit from a bigger battery capacity
- Perhaps a larger range of flavours would be nice?
- Bigger capacity pods would be good too.
- No UK retailers as of yet
Final Review Verdict
The Vladdin pod mod isn’t quite as powerful or as strong throat hit as the Turbo Vape Pod Mod I just reviewed.
I started with the Northern Tobacco pod which I didn’t expect to enjoy and in fact I love it! Just go careful as this is so lovely to vape on you can find yourself chain vaping – and too much nic salts can make you feel a bit sickly later on – so go steady!
The ceramic coils really chuck out the flavour too! Not masses of vapour but this device is designed for taste and throat hit as a priority so the vapour production is as expected.
The Northern Tobacco pod for me really shone, the flavour was beautiful. The others were good but not a patch on that one! The 4 flavours are all tobacco based be nice to see a fruity flavour – a blackcurrant or cherry perhaps?
I was getting through the pods quite quickly too as they are only 1.5ml. The maximum pod size allowed in the EU due to the TPD Regulations is only 2ml – which again is small but would make these last a third longer than they do now.
Looks wise this is pretty simple and a bit dull, but vaping wise this is way more beautiful!
When the level of e-liquid is low you will have to vape this upright so it will fire. Keep an eye on that, whilst I didn’t get dry hits it just didn’t fire when inhaling. This is a good sign that some kind of temperature control system is working though!
A really satisfying MTL vape, great airflow, slightly longer inhale than I am used to but the Vladdin Pod is a lovely kit!
UPDATE 16/6/18 – now you can buy empty pods and even the same E-liquid this is much cheaper to run and you can have more freedom over the e-liquid flavour, strength and brand you use! Well done Vladdin!
