Mod Reviews

Eleaf iStick Pico Plus Mod

There is something reassuringly familiar with Eleaf mods, it's like catching up with an old friend. We get to know a new one, the Eleaf iStick Pico Plus mod

by Si Davies
Jul 12, 2021

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Supplied by Sourcemore for review:
https://www.sourcemore.com/eleaf-istick-pico-plus-mod.html
$20.19 using coupon code: PICOPM

Intro

My first proper mod was an Eleaf Pico Grande and it’s still going strong four years later. Eleaf are one of those no nonsense manufacturers that keep on producing reliable kits, though they don’t appear to push the technology side of things much. How will the new-fangled Pico Plus mod fare?

Supports single 18650 battery
1-75W output wattage
USB Type-C 2A fast charging

Unboxing

The mod comes well packaged in a two piece box with an outer sleeve showing the chosen colour. The box does seem a little large for such a small mod.

Eleaf iStick Pico Plus 75W Mod Contents:

1* iStick Pico Plus
1* USB Type-C Cable
1* Warranty Card
1* User Manual
1* Battery Warning Card

Eleaf iStick Pico Plus Mod unboxing

Obviously as this is just the mod, there’s little in the box. The user manual is a multi-language pamphlet and the instructions were easy enough to read and follow. The USB-C cable is just the right length for me and is very good quality.

Eleaf iStick Pico Plus Mod contents

There is also warranty card and a battery wrap warning card. The full kit will have a fair bit more but the contents are all you need for a mod only package.

Eleaf iStick Pico Plus Mod heads and tails

First Impressions

Holding the mod for the first time is when you appreciate how dinky it is. The other thing was the weight which was surprisingly light for an all metal chassis, obviously adding the battery and a tank adds to this but even fully loaded, it feels reasonably light but not cheap light if that makes sense.

Eleaf iStick Pico Plus Mod with battery

As with most of the Pico range, the battery has a protruding cap which you unscrew to pop an 18650 in. The notches on the top make it easy to grip and unscrew, and the battery orientation is clearly marked on the inside of the mod.

Eleaf iStick Pico Plus Mod all sides

I had a bit of a surprise with the finish as I was expecting glossy white and a shiny silver mod (the same as my old Pico Grande), but it has a satin pearl white finish and brushed stainless steel metal. At first I was disappointed as I wanted it to match my other mod, but I really like how it feels and there was never a hint of it looking smeared or being a fingerprint magnet.

There was one feature in the shape that I was unsure of and that’s the top and bottom which both protrude at the front. This is intentional and the reason why becomes obvious when you hold it in your hand as it naturally guides your trigger finger onto the fire button, which really makes it feel intuitive and grippy at the same time.

The fire button and screen are on the front face with the USB-C port below, the adjustment buttons are hidden on the base of the mod which is quite on trend with SBS (Side By Side) mods recently.

Eleaf iStick Pico Plus Mod screen settings

The screen is small but easy to read in normal light but trickier to see outdoors in bright sunlight. It’s darker than my other Eleaf mods so I’m not sure what they have done there, probably the plastic cover is too dark. All that said, I do like the screen as it’s still brighter than a lot of my other mono screens, and the font is large and easy to read (it is brighter than my photos appear).

The controls are simple with the traditional three clicks of the fire button to change the mode and the Up/Down key to scroll through the options. Press fire to confirm your option. There are plenty of modes to choose from (see photo above) with three handy temp control memory options.

To lock/unlock the adjustment buttons, you press Up/Down (+/-) together. You can also use ‘Stealth Mode’ by pressing fire and down together, this turns off the screen while vaping.

The wattage adjustment is in 0.5 watt increments but it doesn’t round-robin. To adjust the wattage in TC mode, you need to click fire four times then adjust accordingly.

There’s supposed to be “smart chip and all-time stable technology” but I’m not sure if this is supposed to be used with the mod/tank kit with AST coils, I found no mention of it in the manual so I will have to assume that is the case.

Tanks a bunch….

Popping a tank onto the mod finishes the styling off nicely. It can take up to 24mm happily and ‘some’ 25mm tanks, but a couple I tried fouled against the battery cap. 24mm looks perfect, but I’m quite happy with 22mm, anything smaller starts to look lost.

Eleaf iStick Pico Plus Mod trying different tanks

I half expected the protruding top to look wrong but it actually looked good to me. No tank I tried on it looked wrong. I settled for a 24mm Berserker MTL RTA on mine, and I love how these two suit each other.

Performance

It’s difficult to rate the performance of this mod, it all just works as you should expect. I tested TC Mode with SS316L and found my settings a little out but nothing I couldn’t tweak to find the sweet spot. In basic wattage mode, I did find the firing time a little slower than some of the latest firing kits out there, but I’m talking a fraction of a second which is more than good enough. There’s no preheat setting so lower ohm RTAs aren’t the best option for this mod, mesh should be fine though.

Battery Life

Quoting how long a battery life lasts for me is a bit pointless as it depends on the battery capacity and vaping style, I can only comment that the Pico Plus is pretty efficient and lasted longer than I expected. Charging is pretty fast as it offers 2amp charging. I usually charge my batteries in a dedicated charger but I’m quite happy charging it in the mod.

Conclusion

Though I found nothing ground breaking or innovative on the Pico Plus, I still love the little bugger. There’s something timeless with Eleaf designs as they never look out of date, the only thing notably different on this mod compared to my four year old Pico Grande is the USB-C quick charging.

The iStick Pico Plus is one of those mods that does the job well and has a charm to it that will always be welcome in my vape collection, the contemporary styling also makes it easy to match tanks up on it, and if you’re looking for a no-nonsense and capable mod then I can’t see anybody being disappointed with this solid reliable mod.

Pros

Compact and ergonomic
Solid and high quality construction
Ease of use
Timeless design
Satin finish feels great
Base control buttons

Cons

Zero innovation
No clue what “smart chip and all-time stable technology” is?

The lack of innovation really didn’t bother me, I would have been disappointed if the Pico Plus wasn’t as good as the earlier models and it definitely isn’t. I'd say it’s marginally better with the 2amp charging and the base controls with a tweaked look to it.

Score: 8/10
If you like your Eleaf mods, then the Pico Plus won’t disappoint. I love 'em and I love this!

Eleaf iStick Pico Plus Mod with box

Si Davies

Reviewer at POTV

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My background is Engineering and Professional Photography. Mostly from POTV users knowledge I learned so much about pretty much all styles of vaping and equipment, Cloud Chasing, Squonking, Mouth To Lung, Direct To Lung, Pods, Mechs, Rebuild-able tanks and atomisers etc, and have experience with many many devices and atomisers, it's become a hobby and enjoy trying out the latest gear. I like to think my reviews are plain speaking and informative without getting too technical, if I have to resort to reading the manual then I don't consider it user friendly!