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Joyetech eGrip At VCCTN – Star of the Show
Joyetech eGrip At VCCTN – Star of the ShowWhen the newest preproduction electronic cigarette from Joyetech arrived a few weeks back I was, to be honest, slightly disappointed. After a series of hits like the eVic Supreme, the various eCom kits, including the eCom-BT and eCom-Mega, I expected something with just a bit more polish. The Joyetech eGrip just didn’t grab me.
The Unboxing
This preproduction device (out today as a matter of fact) came in a tall, but short white box without any markings on it. Lifting the top of the box off revealed the eGrip in a white cutout, and underneath was a second coil head and a USB cable, along with a wall adapter for, I believe, the Asian market. My box did not contain a manual, though Julia was sent one via email. An updated manual is now available at the Joyetech website.
As I picked it up I noticed right away that the eGrip was heavier than it looked. This is a device that fits in the palm of most people’s hands yet it seemed heavier than my eVic Supreme with an 18650 battery inside. I also noticed it didn’t have any sort of connector, 510-thread or otherwise, and instead the long-ish metal drip tip was poking out of the top.
At this point I was wondering how far along this particular eGrip was in development and how it might be so radically different by the time it ships. (It hasn’t changed) It didn’t feel like a Joyetech, it didn’t have the expected refinements, and most of all, it felt like a complete ‘rethink’ of the box mod.
On the sides of the eGrip Joyetech has ‘stamped’ the word eGrip on one side and the Joyetech logo on the other.
Yes, the first day with the Joyetech eGrip was less exciting than I hoped, and perhaps a little disappointing. Nevertheless, I attached the included USB cable to the JoyeTech eGrip and my computer and began the process of fully charging the battery. I sat down to read through the digital user manual attached to an email we had received.
I had hoped the user manual would help me understand what Joyetech planned to accomplish with this radically different device. Looking back it’s easy to see that I was close-minded about the device, unfairly so.
Before I go on and tell you the specs and my real world experience with the JoyeTech eGrip, it’s time to let you know that despite my unusual pessimism about the eGrip it has become one of my favorite devices, and my wife’s constant companion. More on that below.
After understanding it, using it, and ultimately embracing it, I can now say with confidence that the Joyetech eGrip is about to take the vape community by storm. Well, that and having several dozen people at the vaping convention in Chattanooga vying for a few minutes with it also tells me that Joyetech has struck a cord with vapers.
My initial complaints about the eGrip had nothing to do with the actual device and more to do with my own expectations.
I did not expect to see a device like the Joyetech eGrip from this company that didn’t have any sort of 510 or eGo threading, that didn’t require changing the batteries, and, lastly, had just an imprint on the metal that read “eGrip”. Oh, and I certainly didn’t expect to see a longer-than-usual metal drip tip unceremoniously sticking out of the top.
Digging Deeper
Also in the beginning I wasn’t all that concerned with the specs, I was much more concerned with its actual operation and how the owner of an Joyetech eGrip would charge the unit, fill the unit with eLiquid, and change the coils. I set about dismantling the Joyetech eGrip as much as it could be dismantled, which isn’t all that much actually, and learned that there are just a few moving parts.
The easiest thing to understand is the coil head, the most difficult was where and how to fill the eGrip’s tank with ejuice.
The rest was pretty evident just by looking. It doesn’t take a genius to recognize a micro-USB port, or a wheel to dial in the wattage, or a button in the middle of the wheel as a firing button.
On the bottom of the eGrip is a fairly large circular cap with a slotted indention for the edge of a coin, or a large flat head screwdriver (a coin is much easier). Unscrewing this cover reveals the coil head properly seated in the metal cap, and the inside of the actual tank.
The way its designed makes replacing the coil about as easy as can be, even if your tank is full of eliquid it’s a snap to lift out the coil and replace it. Unscrew, lift off, replace coil, screw back on, allow coil to saturate…. vape. Easy.
Filling the Joyetech eGrip is just a matter of lifting the lid on the side of the device and choosing the larger of the two holes that lie underneath the flap. The process of filling the tank was not immediately apparent. The capacity is a large 3.6-3.7ML, more than you would expect.
Once you’re done filling the tank close the lid, making sure it catches and snaps into place. You could also fill the tank by removing the bottom cap with coil head in place, but somehow that doesn’t seem as clean and neat as using the small hole on the side.
If your choice of eLiquid comes with a glass eyedropper you’re going to have a problem with you try to fill the tank through the small hole using that eyedropper. A blunt needle would work much better. However, if your chosen eliquid has a plastic needle nose tip on the bottle you won’t have any problem inserting the tip into the hole and squeeze.
Charging the internal battery is a simple matter of attaching the USB cable that comes with the eGrip and plugging it into a Joyetech wall adapter or the USB port of your computer.
The drip tip has a thick, tight fitting O-ring that snaps into place and is so secure that if you wanted to you could carry it around by gripping the tip. I wouldn’t recommend that however.
It’s a standard 510-Drip tip and if you want to replace it with something different you can, just make sure it’s long enough. To test mine I grabbed a short, wide-mouth drip tip and it fit fine, but because it was so short my lips touched the eGrip.
I’m not a fan of metal drip tips so I am on the lookout for a longer ceramic, Delphic plastic, or Pyrex drip tip to take its place.
TIP: Before filling your eGrip unscrew the atomizer cover and lift out the coil head. Regardless of how tight the coil head is screwed into the cap unscrew it, lift it off, and then screw it back on. Don’t over tighten it, but don’t leave it loose. The very first time I used the eGrip it wouldn’t fire.
My buddy Joe had the same problem and he told me about removing the coil head and screwing it back in, and it worked like a charm. These are preproduction units and that issue probably resolved itself before shipping out to vendors.
Real World Usage
Joe DiSalvatore, aka The Smokenjoey, took to his eGrip right away. Both Joe and I received the Joyetech eGrip a few weeks back, and as close as we are we agreed a long time ago not to break any NDA’s we might find ourselves under, so seeing him with his eGrip as he picked me up at the airport in Chattanooga last weekend was a little surprising. During the drive to the hotel we finally discussed the eGrip and Joe explained to me how much loved it.
Sitting in the passenger seat I kept noticing out of the corner of my eye these huge clouds of vapor coming from Joey and his eGrip. After several minutes I had to ask him if he was vaping some High-VG ejuice in the thing because it was pumping out the clouds.
His reply was “No buddy, this is just the way this thing hits. It’s amazing!”. All weekend long Joe would always return to the JoyeTech eGrip when not demonstrating some other piece of hardware, including the 150w IPV3.
For myself, I didn’t start using it regularly until I returned last Sunday night.
The performance is terrific, and the new coil head developed by Joyetech does an excellent job.
The battery life is extraordinary as well. But, it wasn’t enough to draw me away from my other mods and APV’s, most particularly the eVic Supreme with a black Delta tank (also Joyetech). And besides, it’s usually Julia that does the Joyetech hardware reviews but because she was neck deep in other matters I agreed to be the one to review it.
Just to clear, I did use it off and on since it arrived, but never long periods of time. This week the eGrip was in constant use between my wife and myself.
Enter My Wife
If you knew my wife you would know that she doesn’t get excited over much of anything. As a vaper she’s pretty much happy with a Spinner battery and an Aspire CE5-S clearomizer. She never complains, and she never seeks out anything new in the world of vaping. So what I’m going to tell you next is a very big deal.
When the eGrip arrived a few weeks ago it remained in the office for a couple of days and then made the rounds to other staffers, eventually winding up in my hands as the person that would conduct the review. Eventually I took it home with me and when I did my wife took notice, if only for a minute, and then forgot about it.
Although I used it off and on for a couple of weeks around the house she never commented on it.
Then, while I was in Chattanooga she tuned into the live broadcast on Saturday when Joe and I did the on-air review. For some reason that caught her interest and when I returned home on Sunday night she told me the eGrip looked “pretty nice” and that she wanted to try it.
This week we both used it, until Thursday morning when she finally told me that she wanted to keep it full time. This is exactly what she said to me after telling me she wanted to keep it to herself: “I haven’t had a good vape in months, and every time I use the eGrip it gets better and better. I love it. I have to have it.”
Real World Performance
The CS Head
The JoyeTech eGrip coil head is the new CS Head. It was made for the eGrip and it’s rated at 1.5ohms. The best performance, based on the eliquid you use, is somewhere between 3.5v and 5.5v, or up to 20w of power.
You can talk all you want about the eGrip, it’s size, it’s battery life, it’s design, whatever, but the heart of the device, the thing that gives the eGrip its life is the CS Coil Head. I haven’t done any testing with the CS to see if it works in the Delta or eCom-Mega, but if it does I’m sure we’ll hear about it.
Being as honest as I can be, I have never seen a device this small perform this well.
My wife and I were not using some High-VG juice all week, and we weren’t practicing ‘lung hits’, and despite all that the amount of flavor, the amount of thick vapor, and even the throat hits was out of this world.
Okay, so now you know that Joe, myself, and my wife, all love the performance of the eGrip. Time to fill you in on the specs.
The Joyetech eGrip Specs:
- Size: 46.4mmX20.4mmX99.5mm(including mouthpiece)
- Capacity: 1500mAh
- Output mode: VW Mode up to 20W
- E-juice Capacity: 3.6ml
- eGrip CS Atomizer Head: 1.5Ω resistance
Standard Configuration – $69
- 1× eGrip Mouthpiece
- 1× eGrip Body
- 2× eGrip CS Atomizer Head
- 1× eGrip Atomizer Base
- 1× 1A Wall Adaptor
- 1× USB Cable
- 1× Manual & Warranty Card
In the US you can expect to pay $69.99, maybe a little less once it becomes widely available.
What it is – What you need to know
The eGrip is the first built-in atomizer e-cigarette made by Joyetech. It features a transparent window to track your eLiquid, and you adjust the wattage with a 360-degree ring on the upper ‘side’ of the device. The small indicator light is also the wattage marker. It’s a 5-click on/off device.
My wife and I have not bothered to adjust the airflow, but turning a tiny slot at the base of the device you can customize it, tightening the draw or making it easier to draw from. The default setting is fine.
The unit we received for review purposes is the ‘silver’ one, but its also offered in Black, Wood, Chrome, and Camo.
We plan on picking up another one when it becomes available and we’ve discussed the color choice. The silver color isn’t bad, though it is a bit dull, so my choice would be either black or chrome.
Kinda wish they made a white one though. Just as I suspected, my wife doesn’t really care about the color, as long as it’s not Camo. Go figure.
Conclusion
Joyetech has been knocking it out of the park this year, and each new product has been not only a success in sales but has also been top quality devices. Each of products we’ve reviewed from Joyetech during the past several months are still being used everyday by one of the staff, and now my wife.
While my cornerstone device will probably remain the eVic Supreme and Delta Tank, all the eCom’s, and now the eGrip, are devices that have put Joyetech at the top of their game, and the top of the electronic cigarette marketplace. They have earned the respect of tens of thousands of vapers by delivering quality products are good prices.
Lastly, I can’t remember a single person at the VCCTN that had come into contact with the JoyeTech eGrip utter a single criticism about it. The vendors, and there were many, were very interested in it and I have no doubt they’ve have been in contact with Joyetech this week in order to bring the device into their stores, online and brick and mortar.
If you look at the photos in this review, if you watch the video Joe and I did at the VCCTN, and the eGrip appeals to you, then I promise you that you’re going to love it. What I tell you, and what you see in the video, is nothing compared to actually using the eGrip.
John Manzione
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