Uwell Crown 4 200W Mod Kit Review

Normally, I start off every mod kit review with a quip or statement that summarizes my feelings on a product. But I’m not going to do that here, because it doesn’t need it. Instead, I’ll just say the Uwell Crown 4 200-watt mod kit would have been an instant favorite of mine, if not for one major problem – the thing doesn’t stand upright well at all!

By now you’re probably wondering what the hell I’m talking about. In the pictures, the Crown 4 mod is standing on its own. It seems to be rectangular with a flat bottom. And of course, Uwell doesn’t usually make things with glaring errors. But that’s exactly what happened here.

Thanks to a pair of narrowly spaced silicone “runners” on the bottom of the Crown 4 device, the slightest tip, knock, breeze, errant radio signal or angry thought will send your mod plummeting to a horizontal state. I know, because it happened to me at least 12 (12!) times during my week-long testing period.

Not only does it suck to watch this otherwise beautiful mod fall constantly, potentially damaging the finish. But it REALLY sucks to watch it fall with the awesome Crown 4 tank (recently reviewed here) attached… especially when the 6mL bubble glass is the widest point of the setup.

(Yes, I broke TWO of them already.)

Let’s reel it back in for a minute, to talk about the things that weren’t related to the silicone runners/feet/death strips.

Standout Feature of the Well Crown IV

At first glance, the Crown 4 mod is a sight to behold. Not because it’s the “most/greatest/biggest” anything, but rather because of how elegant it is in its simplicity. The anodized aluminum exterior is smooth, well-machined and comfortable to hold, thanks to the moderate, palm-friendly dimensions.

But, despite the small footprint, the Crown 4 mod is rock solid, with a sizable 169-gram weight, which makes this otherwise diminutive device a lot more confident-feeling in the hand. In other words, it feels like a quality product – one that will survive a lot of abuse. (I just didn’t know the mod’s abuse would be self-inflicted!)

One slight negative was the flimsy feeling fire key, which didn’t quite seem like plastic, but it was definitely not metallic, either. While the button was pretty responsive, the Crown 4 isn’t a fast-ramping device, and the lack of immediate “oomph” only furthered this slight sense of weakness.

But there IS a ton of power within this small form factor, with the Crown’s proprietary (but unbranded) chipset offering 200 watts of true power. That said, like most devices in this category, the mod does its best work in the 60-100-watt range, where there’s a nice balance of power and longevity. In fact, I’d probably put the Crown 4’s battery performance among the top 10, or even five mods in my collection.

On a pair of fresh (and freshly charged) 18650s, I pushed, prodded and vaped the hell out of the Crown 4 for a VERY respectable six hours before performance really dropped. And mind you, that was under heavy testing. Within more normal parameters, the Crown 4 mod could easily contend for “all day” honors. It’s the vape unicorn, especially for devices with this much power potential… but I think Uwell is really on to something here and should be marketing the hell out of this chipset.

I DO wish the antiquated menu navigation and display was as forward-thinking as the efficiency. There’s nothing here that doesn’t work just fine. It’s clean, legible and gets the job done. But am I wrong for wanting to control my vape device without having to enter an increasingly annoying series of clicks and holds? Touchscreens aren’t necessary, nor are voice controls and other gimmicks. But maybe a more-unique display (suited to the mod itself) that lays things in a better fashion?

I know I waffle on these pages, but it’s 2019 and the world deserves better than 0.96 inches of monochrome OLED screen. And I don’t think many would argue.

It’s no secret that most of us at Spinfuel VAPE have pretty much abandoned temperature control vaping. We have our reasons, but always make sure to test these features on all capable mods, to ensure the buyer gets everything a company offers.

The Uwell Crown 4 mod is one of the best, most shining reasons WHY we put ourselves through the rigors of TC adjustments and annoyances. Because Uwell has created one of the most precise and stable TC setups to date. My usual few hours dabbling in TC became days, because I never had to make adjustments as long as I was using the same dripper or RTA. It was about as effortless as TC can be in modern vaping – not a small statement.

But don’t worry, wattage mode is just as smooth and effortless. The Crown 4 may not ramp up in milliseconds – and this power loss was noticeable after using mods that do – but in exchange, the user is rewarded with smoothly escalating, uninterrupted power performance that never spikes, stops or wavers. While I don’t think the Crown 4 is designed for heavy high-wattage use, the large overhead is beneficial to mid-wattage vapers who don’t feel the need to push their devices to the stratosphere (but like knowing we could).

The sad reality of it all is that Uwell made a really good vape mod in the Uwell Crown 4 kit. And it pairs really well with the awesome Crown 4 tank (again, reviewed here). But none of it matters after picking up shattered glass and runaway batteries from a device that was standing on a level table.

No matter how careful I was – no bumping, tipping or anything – the Crown 4 mod’s narrow silicone strips created an odd point of imbalance, causing it to rock and sway on even the flattest surfaces. Once, I got up off the couch – six feet away from the mod – and apparently my assprint created a disturbance in the Force. Within seconds, the Crown 4 wobbled and ended up horizontal, bathed in pyrex and lost potential.

And in case you’re wondering, NO, they don’t come off easily, nor should I have to do that to my device.

I’m not sure how to score this one. On one hand, the Uwell Crown 4 mod kit is an awesome vape mod, with performance and flavor to spare. On the other, what good is a fantastic vape device if it’s regularly falling or already broken? I don’t know if there IS a proper answer.

Because I enjoyed using the Crown 4 mod (and companion tank) I’m going to lean toward forgiveness and generosity. But I also need to remind everyone that this would have been an easy “A” without the silicone problem. I implore Uwell to release an updated version of this attractive, compact, high-performing device, so more users can enjoy it before it becomes another victim of gravity.