Eleaf iStick 50 Watt Review
Eleaf iStick 50 Watt
$59.99
Pros
- Long lasting 4400 mAh battery
- Complete info display
- Variable volts & watts
Cons
- 50 Watts max is subjective
Eleaf continues to add to and upgrade their line of popular iStick mods. First there was the original iStick, capable of 20 watts of output. Then the iStick 30 Watt and the iStick mini with a max output of 10 watts. Now comes the Eleaf iStick 50 Watt, which, as the name suggests, has a maximum output of 50 watts.
The Eleaf iStick 50W is a variable voltage, variable wattage, 4400 mAh box mod. While it’s the biggest of the iStick models, it’s still rather small, especially for a mod with a 4400 mAh battery. It’s solid, sleek, and dependable with exceptional battery life.
Eleaf offers the iStick 50W in its four basic colors; black, blue, pink and silver (though as of this writing American eLiquid Store doesn’t offer the pimk model). It maintains the same basic look and functions as the rest of the iStick line, though there have been some design modifications to accommodate that beefy 4400 mAh rechargeable battery.
It’s 510 threaded and comes with an eGo thread adapter. It’s variable voltage (VV), with a range of 2 – 10 volts, and variable wattage (VW), with a range of 5 – 50 watts, and it’ll fire atomizers from 0.2 – 5 ohms. The bright OLED screen displays all the information you need, battery level, ohms of the connected atomizer, watts and volts. When the fire button is pressed the display shows a puff timer and also tells you which mode you’re in, VV or VW, and the voltage or wattage at which you’re vaping. Safety warnings and low battery indication are also displayed on the screen as needed. The iStick 50W has a micro USB port on the side of the unit for pass through charging.
The iStick 50W has three buttons. The first is the fire button, located on the side of the mod. The fire button is curved and a little bigger than the one on the original iStick. Press the fire button five times to turn the unit on or off. Hold it in to vape. Switch between VV and VW modes by pushing the fire button three times. If you hold the fire button in for 10 seconds or longer the display will read “Over 10s” and stop sending power to the atomizer. Press the fire button without a tank attached and the display reads “No Atomizer.”
The other two buttons are located on the front of the iStick 50W above the OLED display (another difference between the 50W and the original iStick). These buttons are triangle shaped and serve to increase or decrease wattage and voltage. Click one of them and the wattage or voltage changes in .1 increments. Hold one of them in and the change happens much more quickly until you reach the upper or lower limit.
The up and down buttons are also used to lock the device. Hold both of them in at the same time for two seconds, the display will show “Lock.” This keeps the device from changing the power setting accidentally, like when you carry it in a pocket. Hold both buttons in again for two seconds and the OLED display reads “Unlock” and you can adjust power settings. With the iStick 50W turned off, press of the triangle buttons in for two seconds and the display on OLED screen will rotate 180 degrees.
What’s In The Box
- 1 X iStick 50W base unit
- 1 X micro USB cable
- 1 X 1A Wall adapter
- 1 X eGo Thread connector
- 1 X User manual
Performance: The iStick 50W is a solid performer. The built in, rechargeable 4400 mAh battery lasts and lasts. I’ve regularly been getting three days or so of use between charges, and that’s firing it at 25 -30 watts. Its VV/VW capability and ability to fire coils down to 0.2 ohms allows you to customize your vape to the sweetest of sweet spots on just about tank you choose to attach to it.
Keep in mind that the power output will be slightly limited based on resistance of your attached atomizer. That means that if you’re using a coil with 0.7 ohms of resistance, the lowest wattage you’ll get is 5.7 watts, based on the lowest voltage setting available of 2.0 volts. And at the upper end, the maximum voltage is 10 volts, so that won’t translate to 50 watts of output on a coil with 5.0 ohms of resistance. It’s a math thing.
Features: This little unit is packed with features. The OLED display gives you all of the information you need at a glance; ohms meter, battery level, current watts and volts and it lets you know which mode you’re in. On the main display screen the power level of your selected mode is displayed in larger font and to the far right of the screen. When you’re firing the iStick 50W the current mode and setting are displayed to the right of the puff timer. Another nice feature of the OLED display is the ability to rotate it 180 degrees, making it easy to read no matter how you hold it.
The variable voltage/wattage capability, with output ranges of 2 – 10 volts and 5 – 50 watts, and the iStick 50W’s ability to fire coils from 0.2 to 5.0 ohms, means you’re able to use most any tank and find that sweet spot for whatever ejuice you’re vaping. And the inclusion of the eGo thread connector gives you even options for the tanks you may want to attach.
The iStick 50W does include a number of safety features. You can lock the unit to prevent accidental adjustments to power. There’s a temperature alarm which will shut the unit down for five seconds if internal temperature exceeds 70 degrees Celsius. If you hold the fire button in for 10 seconds the unit will display “Over 10s” and stop firing. And if there’s short in your atomizer the iStick 50W won’t fire and the display will read “Atomizer Short.”
Quality: The Eleaf iStick 50W is solid mod, dependable, firing every time you hit the button. The 4400 mAh battery provides days of vaping, even if you vape in the upper range of its available power. Eleaf moved the charging port from the bottom (on the original iStick) to the side of the iStick 50W, which means you don’t have to lay the unit on its side while charging, which can cause some leakage issues if you charge it with a full tank attached. And the length of the included micro USB cable is long enough to use that pass through, vape while you charge feature without sitting on the floor next to an outlet.
I have experienced one little quality issue with the iStick 50W, and it actually is probably a good thing. I had a little leakage problem with one of the tanks I was using and some of the ejuice must have gotten into the charging port or behind the fire button of the iStick 50W. This caused the unit to fire on its own, just sitting there on my desk, and then it shut off. It wouldn’t come back on, no matter how many times I mashed the buttons. But when I attached the charging cable and plugged it in the unit began functioning properly and I haven’t had any problems since.
Looks: The Eleaf iStick 50W is a good looking little box mod. It’s small enough to nearly disappear in my hand. It’s certainly smaller than most other mods with similar battery power. The colors are rich and the chrome plating on the top and bottom really pop, especially on the black model. The sides of the unit are curved, giving it a sleek look and making it very comfortable to hold for extended periods. And that OLED display is bright and easy to read.
Price/Value: American eLiquid Store provided the iStick 50W I sampled for the purpose of this review. They list it on their website at $59.99. That’s only $20 more than the original iStick model with a 2200 mAh battery and max output of 20 watts. And it’s only $10 more than what I paid for my original iStick at my local vape shop.
One of the major competitors of the iStick 50W, the Innokin MVP3, carries a similar price tag at most outlets where I’ve seen it, and has a maximum output of only 30 watts and a less powerful 3800 mAh battery.
That $59.99 price point, its 50 watt max output, pass through capability and informative OLED display all combine to make the Eleaf iStick a true value.
I fully recommend the Eleaf iStick 50W to vapers of any experience level. It will handle the new sub ohm tanks from Kangertech, Aspire, Eleaf and others as well as more traditional tanks packing coils up to 5 ohms. This is a mod that should meet the needs of most vapers, and with its middle of the road price point, it’s a can’t miss addition to any vapers collection.
AmericaneLiquidStore.com provided the Eleaf iStick 50W for this review.
Purchase it from online.
(For details on Seven Report review methodology click here.)
