Mini iStick 2 Kit with Eleaf GS Air 4 Atomizer
Awe look how cute this is! We take a look at the new Eleaf Mini iStick 2 Kit with Eleaf GS Air 4 Atomizer
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by Si Davies
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Supplied by Eleafworld.FR for review
£36.57
This little cracker almost slipped the net for me. After reviewing the superb Pico LE, I had to choose whether this less interesting looking kit was worth a gamble? Should ‘istick’ or twist? Thankfully I took a punt and I’m glad I did.
At a Glance
- Size: 32.8mm x 21.5mm x 97mm (2.5ml kit)
- Battery Capacity: 1050mah
- Output Mode: VW/VV
- Output Wattage: 1-25W
- Charging Current: 5V/2A(USB-C)
- Filling Method: Top Filling
- Thread: 510
- Manual & Auto in one mod
- High Compatibility: Supports All GS Air coils
- Smart Coil Protection
- Innovative AST-steel for boosting flavour
- Perfectly paired with GS Air 4 tank
I didn’t really look at the specs and features prior to testing this kit but that led me to a few nice surprises; the auto-draw properly took me aback, fast charging was very welcome but it turned out the coils were the cherry on the icing, more on these later though.
Unboxing
The iStick Mini 2 kit comes nicely packaged and is postie proof, with the traditional Eleaf black and green outer sleeve and sturdy two piece box. The top layer holds the mod and tank.
The kit holds no surprises, just the no-nonsense bundle that you need to get started, other than e-liquid obviously. The included coils are 0.8ohms and 1.4ohms. The USB-C cable is good quality and a decent length.
You get a manual for both the mod and the GS Air 4 tank. The instructions are clear to follow should you need them, and there is also a warranty card in the box.
Overview
Eleaf are one of the longest running e-cig manufacturers with years of experience, traditionally their designs are quite contemporary and the iStick Mini 2 is no exception, although there’s not a whole lot going on style wise.
But when you look at the size of it, then you appreciate the simple design more. This thing is proper tiny; 32.8mm x 21.5mm x 97mm including the tank which makes it one of the smallest proper mod and tank kits I have seen. Eleaf aren’t new to making ‘mini’ kits:
My favourite was the Pico Baby (far right) but the tank was nasty and I never did find an alternative for it. Their most recent pod/mod was much better, but the new Mini 2 brings back the mod and tank style but with a more up to date chipset, coils and tank.
To give you an idea of the scale, here it is next to a Geek Vape L200 which is quite compact for a dual 18650 kit. Eleaf have basically shrunk down every dimension they could proportionally, and thankfully they haven’t shrunk down the tank too much at 19mm diameter and 44mm high with the drip-tip.
The weight is reasonably light at 111g with a full tank, which isn’t bad for a metal chassis kit. Overall, the size and the weight is very impressive and holds a large part of its charm.
The iStick Mini 2 mod is 54mm tall, 34mm long (inc fire button), and 21.4mm wide, small enough to hide in a clenched fist. The 510 pin isn’t spring loaded but that’s for a reason that becomes apparent later. It will take up to a 20mm tank without overhang but the fixed 510 connection will become an issue for most tanks due to the gap it creates.
The construction is a c-frame style and is all metal. The main body is satin silver and the wrap is a matt finish and will be down to your colour choice. The branding is subtly etched and helps maintain the clean look. The most interesting face is the control panel which has crammed a fire button, screen, adjustment buttons and a USB C port into just 40mm height. The buttons are naturally small but surprisingly tactile, the adjustment button can be fiddly though and you have to exaggerate the direction of your finger or thumb tip to be accurate, but I soon got used to this.
GS Air 4 tank
This 19mm tank looks very familiar and on the face of it, there doesn’t appear to be anything we haven’t seen before, but dig a little deeper and the base has a small hole similar to a squonk pin. This is for the auto-draw to work.
It all strips down by unscrewing everything counter clockwise, I didn’t manage to strip the glass section though. I may have found a way but it felt risky and I would have been stuffed if I broke the glass as there’s no spare.
The design is quite old-school with a screw in coil into the base, the glass section screws on top of that and the fill-cap screws onto that. The drip-tip is 510 size but the top-cap mating part is thin walled so only a similar style drip tip will suit it.
The coils are GS Air and are cross-compatible with the old one, but to get the most from this kit, the new type are recommended. They are just better, and the larger wicking ports have made quite a difference.
Filling the tank is quite easy; the top-cap simply unscrews to expose the generous fill ports. The only niggle is that this part has no knurling or anywhere to grip it as it’s smoothly machined. With dry hand, it unscrewed easily enough but it was trickier if your hands are moist (I think that’s the first time I have used that word in a review?).
Before I move on to performance, it’s worth mentioning the fixed 510 threaded connection. The included GS Air 4 tank fits exactly, but any other tank I tried bottomed out on the pin creating an unsightly gap between the tank and mod. It will still work but looks pretty bad, something to consider if you are looking to buy the mod only.
Operation and Performance
The chipset is pretty basic and is very easy to navigate. You only get two power options: Variable Wattage or Variable Voltage. The kit is clearly intended for use with the GS Air 4 tank, so you are likely never to need anything else power wise.
- 5 x Fire = Turns Device On/Off
- 3 x Fire = Menu (-/+ key to navigate and Fire to confirm)
- MODE: Power = Variable Wattage
- MODE: Volt = Variable Voltage
- SET: SCRN = Turn screen On/Off (Y/N)
- SET: Auto = Turns Auto Draw On/Off (Y/N)
- Press & Hold -/+ together = Lock/Unlock Adjustments
- Press Fire & + = Turns AST Dry Hit Protection On/Off
- Press Fire & - = Rotates Screen 180 Degrees
The ability to turn the screen off was welcome as it helps to prolong the battery life. Once I had the wattage set and the adjustments locked in, then there’s no point looking at the screen other than for the battery status. You can still have a sneak peek at that with a quick press of the Fire button.
AUTO
I really should have at least looked at the basics for this kit prior to reviewing it, I honestly had no idea it was auto-draw and I thought ‘AUTO’ was an smart auto wattage feature and couldn’t understand why it didn’t work. It was only when I went to adjust the airflow that the mod fired and surprised me! Since it was a surprise, I was very much impressed by this feature, a proper mod and tank with auto-draw packed into such a dinky kit is a nice touch and was more useful than I expected.
AST
Eleaf utilise their AST feature in this mini mod. I don’t know the exact tech behind this, but AST appears to be a crude form of TC (Temperature Control) which detects if there’s not enough e-liquid flowing to the coil and cuts/limits the power accordingly.
Essentially it is a dry hit protection which can be handy if you haven’t noticed you have run out of juice (or are pushing your luck with the last few drops), this is not to be confused with the burning taste you eventually get when the coil needs replacing as that is simply burnt cotton taste as the coil and cotton eventually gunk up.
So it was time to see if this little bugger vaped as good as it felt. I started off with the 0.8ohm coil which measured 0.9ohms, no biggie, and I set the wattage at the lowest 8 watts to break the coil in. Even at that wattage, I could tell that this GS Air tank was going to be different, the flavour was good already. I eventually settled at 11 watts which gave a good balance of warmth and flavour, the airflow was a touch on the loose MTL side even when fully closed, but it is still an MTL draw none the less. Habitually I kept button firing, but eventually I found the auto-draw far more convenient and I love that this kit has it.
I was really enjoying everything about this kit by now. I tried to provoke the AST dry hit protection into kicking in by chain vaping, but I can’t say I noticed it much. I didn’t want to push my luck by testing it when I ran out of e-liquid as I only had these two coils and they were too enjoyable to risk wasting them. I pushed it to the visual limit a few times, but since the wicking ports are low on the coil, you can vape it until almost empty anyway.
Onto the 1.4ohm coil, the power range was interesting; 6-12 watts. I did start off at 6 watts, but it wasn’t enough for my tastes. I hardly got any flavour. On the plus side, I hardly got much vapour either so this would be superb for stealth vaping or having a cheeky vape in places you shouldn’t. My sweet spot was 9 watts, 12 watts was pushing it a bit and would shorten the coil lifespan. The draw was slightly tighter. I was expecting to prefer this coil with the lower wattage range, but for 1 watt difference I found the 0.8ohm gave me more flavour.
MTL/RDL?
The GS Air 4 tank's airflow range is pretty good, it is dual sided and has incremental holes eventually opening up to full slots. Fully closed off is a slightly loose MTL, full open I was able to get an RDL draw easily. I really like this flexibility, a couple of RDL draws of my 20mg nic salts gives me that nic high first thing in the morning, and the auto-draw works throughout the range too.
The battery life was reasonable and lasted me around 6-7 hours of regular use. Charging was quick due to 2 Amp charging and it took 30-40 minutes on average from low. Top up charging made it convenient for a full day and nights use.
Personally this is the first GS Air tank and coil combo that I have properly enjoyed for both flavour and, more importantly, coil lifespan. Going against my over 1.0ohm habit, I will be opting for the 0.8ohm over the 1.4ohm due to that extra flavour and longevity as I’m quite happy sticking at 10 watts. You can squeeze more flavour from it at say 12 watts, but from experience, I know this will shorten the lifespan a little.
The rather plain looks actually suit it due to its size. Had this been a large mod and tank, it would have looked fugly, but as it is I really like the clean look and is my favourite mini mod which goes against my norm of quirky looking kits. As you can see, it looks lost next to a couple of my Smoks:
This kit was just a joy to use, the charm of the Mini 2s size didn’t fade. It’s one of those kits I have in my hand most of the time as it is small enough to fit while doing other things if that makes sense? For example, it’s in my hand as I am typing this.
Conclusion
Eleaf have done a great job overall with this tiny MTL mod and tank kit. It’s main appeal is the diddy size and the much improved coils. The auto-draw felt like a bonus in a mod/tank combo. My only personal niggle is the airflow which could have been tighter.
The mod on its own isn’t really a viable option due to the fixed 510 pin being too shallow for 3rd party tanks and it leaves a big gap, this kit is clearly designed to go together with the GS Air 4 tank. Fortunately this is a good tank, and I’m happy to leave it permanently attached.
Pros
- A very small proper tank/mod combo
- Much improved GS Air 4 tank and coils
- Convenient auto-draw
- Quick controls and simple for beginners
- 2 Amp charging
- Pocket friendly
- RDL is possible on this MTL kit
- Dry hit protection
Cons
- Fixed 510 connection (unsuitable for ‘other’ tanks)
- MTL airflow isn’t tight (but still an MTL draw)
Neither con was a deal-breaker for myself. The tank compatibility is a shame but the GS Air 4 is worthy of staying on this mod anyway. I got used to the MTL draw but I wished it could go tighter.
I decided that the lack of TC etc. isn’t really a con when you consider that this is the only tank you will use on it, and the VW & VV will be all that’s used as a kit.
Final Thoughts
The iStick Mini 2 kit is a cracking little kit if you want a shrunk down setup. I do like mini setups and this is one of my favourites, if not the favourite. The new coils and auto-draw made all the difference, and I have enjoyed this kit more than most pods overall. Many thanks to Eleafworld.FR for sending this over to us for review.
Score: 8/10 – Aww bless! Ain’t it cute.
Si Davies
Reviewer at POTVMy 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!
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