Charon TC 218 Mod by Smoant

Commercial characteristics

• Sponsor having loaned the product for the magazine: Smoant 
• Price of the tested product: 67.90 Euros
• Product category according to its selling price: Mid-range (from 41 to 80 euros)
• Mod type: Variable power electronics and temperature control
• Is the mod telescopic? No
• Maximum power: 218W
• Maximum voltage: 8.4V
• Minimum value in Ohms resistance for a start: 0.1

Reviewer comments on business characteristics

The Chinese manufacturer Smoant will have occupied part of the conversations on the vape this year 2017 by offering a fairly wide range of boxes and atomizers and for suitable prices. We remember the Battlestar box and especially the Rabox which explored particular aesthetics that have seduced the most geeks among us. 

But it is with the Charon that the brand has struck its biggest blow by offering a mod with a refined aesthetic but more consensual, probably more ergonomic too. A Charon which is already available in three distinct products: the TS218 with a touch screen to make all the adjustments with a devilishly attractive man-machine interface; the Charon Adjustable 218, operating in variable voltage like a Hexohm and our reference of the day, the TC 218, a dual-battery mod with all the technologies in vogue and presenting itself, my faith, as a very beautiful object .

In Greek mythology, Charon was the ferryman of souls who carried the river from the Underworld to the dead. I reassure you, nothing to do with our object of the day which will rather do the opposite since it should allow some to leave the hell of tobacco to reach the more hospitable and hazy lands of the vape ... And there or the illustrated model took from one to three obols (one blind at the time!) to ensure the cruise, it is 67.90 € that the shops will ask to do the opposite, which remains a more consistent price. 😉

It remains to be seen whether the waters will be calm and the fog abundant, which we will hasten to check immediately.

Physical characteristics and felt quality

• Width or Diameter of the product in mm: 25
• Product Length or Height in mm: 91
• Product weight in grams: 285.2
• Materials composing the product: Zinc alloy, Leather
• Form Factor Type: Classic Box - VaporShark type
• Decorative style: Classic
• Quality of decoration: Good
• Is the coating of the mod sensitive to fingerprints? No
• All components of this mod seem well assembled? Yes
• Fire button position: Lateral near the top cap
• Fire button type: Mechanical plastic on contact rubber
• Number of buttons making up the interface, including touch zones if they are present: 2
• Type of user interface buttons: Mechanical plastic on contact rubber
• Quality of the interface button (s): Very good, the button is responsive and does not make any noise
• Number of parts in the product: 2
• Number of threads: 1
• Quality of the threads: Very good
• Overall, do you appreciate the quality of manufacture of this product with regard to its price? Yes

Rating of the vapelier as to feelings quality: 4.4 / 5

Reviewer's comments on physical characteristics and perceived quality

We therefore have in hand a fairly classic intermediate size box in terms of its dimensions but whose weight betrays a certain assurance and a perceived solidity of good quality. Nothing really incomprehensible since this is a box equipped with two 18650 batteries and that despite the efforts of miniaturization of the manufacturers, there are insurmountable limits. It doesn't matter because the grip is very pleasant and stable and the Charon quickly finds its place and its marks in your palm.

Aesthetically, we feel that Smoant has undergone the beneficial influence of Lost Vape, in particular Therion and it is clear that the mix between the majority zinc alloy and the presence of leather works admirably once again, both in level of strict appearance than palm comfort. The matte black finish affixed to my copy is far from being the most “glitter” but it has the advantage of an elegant sobriety and the paint seems insensitive to any fingerprints. With a fairly conventional rectangular shape rounded at the edges, the box is fitted with a fairly large set of vents serving in turn to cool the chipset or to negotiate a degassing in order if you are not wise enough! These vents contribute to the general aesthetics of the box which uses the alternation of fairly tense lines for a rather “sport” form factor and more sensual curves for optimal comfort. 

The finish of the whole is quite convincing, the adjustments are good, the 510 spring connection does not present any problem and the plate serving as receptacle for your atomizers is of good quality even if the absence of air intakes to this level will take away the desire to use cartomizers or other antique atomizers taking their airflow by the connection. You can't have everything and the Charon 218 TC is in tune with the times. The interior of the box, in ABS, is also well finished. The battery cradle is equipped with spring-loaded poles which facilitate the insertion of the batteries and a fabric tape will facilitate their extraction. The colors are numerous but their availability in France is quite doubtful. If you want one of the superb possibilities offered by the manufacturer, you will have to go through the “research” box and be patient.

The only really round element of the box, the switch does not change however and brings a certain subtlety to the fittings. Sensitive and “clicky”, it does not suffer from any defect and will fire at the slightest pressure, which is a minimum, but with excellent user comfort. The [+] and [-] buttons are trapezoidal and fall easily to your fingertips when making adjustments. The contact of the leather on the palm is quite successful and greatly contributes to the general comfort of the grip.

The OLED screen is of good quality and indicates routine information, with good contrast which allows, in addition to not pulling on the eyes, to see the information even in direct sunlight. 

The quality feeling is therefore in the high average and contributes to the justification of a fairly well targeted price, given the power and the level of service offered.

Functional features

• Type of chipset used: Owner
• Connection type: 510, Ego - via adapter
• Adjustable positive stud? Yes, through a spring.
• Lock system ? Electronic
• Quality of the locking system: Excellent, the chosen approach is very practical
• Features offered by the mod: Display of the battery charge, Display of the resistance value, Protection against short circuits from the atomizer, Protection against reverse polarity of batteries, Display of the current vape voltage , Display of the power of the current vape, Display of the vape time of each puff, Temperature control of the atomizer coils, Support the update of its firmware, Clear diagnostic messages
• Accusability: 18650
• Does the mod support stacking? No
• Number of batteries supported: 2
• Does the mod retain its configuration without batteries? Yes
• Does the mod offer a recharge feature? Charging function possible via Micro-USB
• Is the recharge function pass-through? Yes
• Does the mode offer a Power Bank function? No power bank function offered by the mod
• Does the mode offer other functions? No other function offered by the mod
• Presence of air flow regulation? No, nothing is planned to feed an atomizer from the bottom
• Maximum diameter in mm of compatibility with an atomizer: 25
• Accuracy of the output power at full charge of the battery: Good, there is a tiny difference between the requested power and the real power
• Accuracy of the output voltage at full charge of the battery: Good, there is a tiny difference between the requested voltage and the actual voltage

Vapelier's note regarding functional characteristics: 3.5 / 5

Reviewer's comments on functional features

The Charon series is entirely built around the house chipset, the ANT 218 Chip, which offers us a digest of all the technologies currently in fashion. 

In variable power mode, we go from 1W to 218W in increments of 0.1W on an acceptable resistance scale which goes from 0.1Ω to 5Ω. I remain circumspect about the concrete interest of vaping at 1W or being able to mount coils at 5Ω but hey, don't we say “who can more can do less”? In any case, this scale will be able to exploit all the atomizers available on the market, including old genesis with high resistance for amateurs.

The temperature control mode is complete and operates between 100 and 300 ° C and on a resistance scale between 0.1Ω and 2Ω, which is rather “luxury”. It includes, beyond the traditional resistive wires implemented natively (SS316, Ni200 and Ti), a direct implementation of Nichrome which will please a lot of vapers in love with this very reactive wire as well as a TCR mode which will allow you to implement all the resistive wires for which you know the heating coefficient such as Silver, NiFe or even Gold! 

The two modes are coupled with two additional modules. The first, the DVW will allow you to “tune” your power curve in order to adjust the signal as close as possible to your desires. The second, the DTC will perform the same function for temperature control. Unfortunately, these two modules will only be available after a firmware upgrade which is not yet listed on the manufacturer's site which announces it to us very soon. To be checked over time. 

The rest is pretty conventional. The ergonomics are pretty good since a triple click on the switch brings you to the menu prompt, quickly and without fuss. The famous five clicks for the On / Off positions is part of the game, you don't change a system that works very well just for the simple pleasure of changing. 

The protection system is complete and effective: detection of the atomizer, short-circuits, too low resistance, blocking of the device when all of the two batteries send less than 6.6V, checking the temperature of ten second chipset operation and cut-off. Nothing but classic but always appreciable to avoid problems. 

In summary, we therefore have a set of tested and effective functionalities, easy to implement. The only downside will therefore concern the current absence of the two signal refinement modules that the next upgrade should make efficient.

Evaluation of the packaging

• Presence of a box accompanying the product: Yes
• Would you say that the packaging is up to the price of the product? Yes
• Presence of a user manual? Yes
• Is the manual understandable for a non-English speaker? No
• Does the manual explain ALL features? Yes

Vapelier's note on packaging: 4 / 5

Reviewer's comments on conditioning

The packaging is up to the situation. It offers us, in addition to the box, a standard USB / Micro USB cable to ensure the firmware upgrade and the recharging of the batteries in nomadic mode (we can never insist enough on daily recharging using a real charger to give long life to your batteries!), the usual paperwork and a Sino-English notice which therefore ignores Hugo's language, to the chagrin of those allergic to foreign languages ​​that all French people are more or less. Too bad but still too usual to stop there for good.

We console ourselves with a pretty nice cardboard and protection of internal elements well assured.

Appreciations in use

• Transport facilities with the test atomizer: Ok for a Jean side pocket (no discomfort)
• Disassembly and cleaning facilities: Super simple, even blind in the dark!
• Easy to change the batteries: Super simple, even blind in the dark!
• Did the mod heat up? No
• Has there been any erratic behavior after a day of use? No
• Description of situations in which the product has experienced erratic behavior

Vapelier's rating in terms of ease of use: 5/5

Reviewer's comments on the use of the product

All the features of a chipset are only promises in the wind if the mod is not performing optimally. And Smoant understood it well. Its chipset therefore works very well in use and manages to give an excellent compromise between signal precision and smoothness of the vape.

The rendering is therefore very efficient, whatever the atomizer concerned and the power is triggered quickly, with a fairly low latency. The aromatic precision is very present and, even if there are even more surgical chipsets (and in particular more expensive!), It is completed with great generosity in the compactness of the taste and the generation of vapor. Even if we agree that atomizers are playing their part, sometimes we end up with precise but very “dry” signals or generous but rather “foggy” signals. Here, none of that, the chipset is calibrated in a beautiful way and makes a precise and generous vape all at the same time. The compromise is well found and balanced.

Pure performance is what you would expect to find in this category of material. The Charon will be able to drive a classic RBA in 0.5Ω at 40W like a cloud-chaser dripper in double-coil at 100W without showing a drop in speed. The results are therefore positive and the Charon imposes its sense of balance and fairness with very full and tasty clouds. 

In temperature control mode, everything works fine even if the current absence of the DTC signal refining module is probably more problematic. Personally, I haven't had any weird reactions in this mode using SS316 and the control is efficient and kicks in when it needs to. But some user reviews tend to point out some problems in this mode and are waiting firmly for the upgrade promised for this summer in order to be able to better manage their settings. 

Otherwise, no erratic behavior has come to mar my long days of use and the Charon behaves to perfection, with a stable and generous signal, a power largely sufficient to open the door to your wildest delusions and simple ergonomics. to understand.

Recommendations for use

• Type of batteries used during the tests: 18650
• Number of batteries used during the tests: 2
• With what type of atomizer is it advisable to use this product? Dripper, Classic fiber, Sub-ohm assembly, Genesis-type rebuildable
• With which model of atomizer is it advisable to use this product? The one that suits you
• Description of the test configuration used: The Flave, Vapor Giant mini V3, Kayfun V5
• Description of the ideal configuration with this product: All in general and none in particular

was the product liked by the reviewer: Yes

Overall average of the Vapelier for this product: 4.5 / 5

Link to a video review or blog maintained by the reviewer author of the review

The mood ticket of the reviewer

Double battery, VW and CT mode, € 67.90. These three facts are enough to suggest that the Charon is a great deal that adds nice plastic to above-suspicion operation. From the seed of Top Mod, which I grant him without batting an eyelid, even if I will return if the expected upgrade is missing. 

As it stands, we therefore have a very good box, solid, pleasant to use and with an optimal rendering. I would add that autonomy, at medium power, is rather at the top of the table and allows you to leave home without asking logistical questions, which is also what one can expect from a box of this category. .

A good surprise finally, which I can not wait to test the Siamese sisters to tell you more about it.

Until then, happy vaping everyone! 

(c) Copyright Le Vapelier SAS 2014 - Only full reproduction of this article is authorized - Any modification of any kind is totally prohibited and infringes the rights of this copyright.