Hi Vaping Community, In this review i take a look at the VX217 21700 VW Box MOD from Augvape. The AUGVAPE VX217 VW Box Mod was supplied free of charge for the purpose of this review by Ella from Sourcemore.
Introduction
Formed in 2014 Augvape started releasing products in 2015, originally they were known for some well received RDA’s and RTA’s before at the end of 2017 releasing what is still one of my favourite power only devices, the car engine inspired V200! Now they are a mainstay releasing product regularly including atomizers, mods and AIO devices and here we have their latest mod, the VX217.
The VX217 is a dual 21700 power only device which is just 80mm in height and offers both variable wattage and voltage as well as Bypass Mode. The VX217 utilises a dial rather than navigational buttons, has a top wattage of 217W and can output a whopping 12V in power. With an LCD RGB user defined feature allowing customisation of the display colour as well as other useful settings, let’s check out the VX217!
In The Box
Contents:
1 x Augvape VX217 Mod
1 x Type-C Cable
1 x Double 18650 Adaptor
1 x User Manual
1 x Warranty Card
Aesthetics and Ergonomics
The VX217 came in cardboard box packaging with outer sleeve and on opening it’s short height was so noticeable i immediately double checked the device actually can accommodate dual 21700 batteries. The form factor is very rounded so as long as you have a reasonable sized hand to wrap round it’s very ergonomic with a huge protruding fire button you just can’t miss. There is a trade off for it’s short height though and that’s an increase of it’s other dimensions and being made from Zinc Alloy it’s quite a weight so for me more suitable as a desktop device because with dual 21700’s inside it weighs the pocket down.
I received the Green version which is a nice Olive Green, the options are Gray, Black or Green. The face recesses in from both top and bottom sections that protrude out, the top protruding out helps with being able to fit reasonable sized atomizers despite the 510 being brought forward beyond the batteries to keep the height down. The face plate is plastic and semi-transparent in nature, as already mentioned up top we have a huge protruding fire button that both curves inwards from top and bottom and has grooves! Next is a large colour display followed by a large Black dial that rotates instead of the usual up and down buttons, finally at the bottom is a Type C USB port.
On the base we have the hatch door with safety stamps, branding and venting. Moving up top we have an outer 24mm circular ridge and inner circular ridge surrounding the 510 threading rather than a 510 plate, the 510 is both Gold plated and spring loaded. The best way of describing the overall build quality is by the word “solid” and for it’s price point no complaints!
VX217 Specs and Features:
Battery: 2 x 21700/20700/18650 batteries
Size: 80 x 49 x 42mm
Material: Zinc Alloy
Weight: 192.3g
Wattage: 5 - 217W
Resistance Range: 0.05 – 3ohm
Voltage Range: 0.5-12V
Charge: Type-C
Charging Current: 1.2A
VW/VV/BYPASS function
1.3-inch colour display
Rotatable fire button design
Various battery protections
Thread: 510
Colours: Gray, Black, Green
Why The VX217?
Most mods these days all perform pretty much the same with no noticeable delay when firing and with good ramp up and if it takes data from a computer to spot any short comings of a device compared to another is it important as computers don’t vape, people do. By the way i don’t know what data readouts say about the VX217 i was just generalising and thinking out loud!
So what are the standout selling points of the VX217? First is it’s height being only 80mm tall which is tiny for a 21700 compatible device and slightly shorter than most of my 18650 devices. Then we have the fact in Variable Voltage the device is capable of outputting 12V although personally i am never going to be at 12V ever, but still technically very impressive.
Next we have a dial instead of up and down buttons, not unique but still much rarer than the more usual buttons option and i must admit i do like turning the dial rather than pressing buttons! The downside is you no longer have the holding down option to speed things up like adjusting wattage.
Also worth mentioning is the PCB uses as little wiring as possible making the device very efficient which along with dual 21700 batteries gives plenty of battery life and high performance.
Finally for a power only device that has no TC or curve options the device still has plenty of features including a User defined LCD RGB for customising the display colour and a statistics screen which gives all kinds of information including puffs, average puff time, average wattage and total joules (work) the device has done!
Fitting The Batteries
The batteries get fitted via the bottom hatch door which has a protruding metal tab on the door and metal loop on the base for the tab to get inserted into to lock the door in place. Included and coming already fitted in the battery tubes there is a double 18650 adaptor to allow dual 18650’s to be used.
With adaptor removed the device accommodates either dual 21700 or dual 20700 batteries. On the underside of the hatch door orientation is labelled and also the slots are labelled A and B, it is Black on Black so doesn’t stand out well but orientation is also marked vibrantly at the bottom of the tubes and plenty of light gets into the battery tubes giving good visibility.
With batteries fitted the door is very secure, i could detect slight sidewards movement from 20700 batteries but no movement or rattle whatsoever using either 21700’s or 18650’s with supplied adaptor!
The Display
The Display is not the brightest even when set to 100% in the menu, well to be honest if you set the colour in the menu to White on Black i don’t really think there is anything wrong with the brightness it’s actually the dark translucent panel which makes some colours appear dim. Some of the font is also small but indoors i had no issues and have known worse dimmed displays but when outdoors in sunlight it’s a struggle to see. The colours of the font and accents can be custom set in the menu by picking different pre-set colours or define your own altering the RGB percentages. With a colour chosen which allows you to clearly see the display it’s set out very well with plenty of information. The centre of the screen has a speedometer style design with the pre-heat at the bottom breaking up the circular design.
On the speedometer there is a large dot that moves around the circular line as you alter wattage or voltage. In the centre of the circle we have the wattage or voltage depending which mode you are in which can be altered by turning the dial clockwise to increase or anti clockwise to decrease. On the outside of the circular line we have small circles which have a second in them, these circles start to the left and move all the way around to the right, 11 in total which go from 0 seconds to 10 seconds. These circles are barely visible but as you vape they start lighting up corresponding to your vape duration. Bottom left of the display we have the resistance, central are the 2 battery status bars and finally bottom right is voltage, this changes to watts when in voltage or bypass modes.
Navigating The VX217
The VX217 is the usual 5 clicks of the fire button to turn on and 5 clicks to turn off and it both powers up and down instantly. Everything on this device apart from the adjustment of wattage or voltage is done using the menu system as their are no combination button press features but unlike the VX200 which couldn’t be locked the adjustment dial can be locked on the VX217 but to do so means first entering the menu and then selecting Spin button lock, likewise to unlock it when locked again you need to enter the menu and now the option has changed to Spin button unlock which you again need to select.
To enter the menu system is 3 clicks of the fire button and once in the menu system you scroll between options using the navigational dial and fire is select. The main screen of the menu system gives the following options, Variable Wattage, Variable Voltage, Bypass, Spin Button Lock, Settings and information, all screens in the menu system have a final option of Back to take you to the main screen and all menus round robin.
When choosing Variable Wattage it gives you the options of Normal, Soft or Hard, Variable Voltage is just that and Bypass operates with the batteries in series. When choosing Settings you get another list of options which are, Auto Mode (smartly gives suitable wattage dependant on resistance), Cut off time, Standby, LCD Colour Set (choose between Orange Red, Olive Green, Sky Blue, White & Black, User Defined and LCD brightness), when choosing user defined you alter RGB percentages to get the colour you want, the final options in the list are Language and Factory Default.
Going back to the main menu screen the final option is Information, when choosing this you can get hardware and firmware information and also this is where you choose the option for firmware updates, also in the information list we have Statistics which gives all sorts of information including puffs, average vape time, average wattage and an option to reset all statistics. So the VX217 despite being Power only and having no curves mode has plenty of features and endless colour options for the display.
When in Variable Wattage the dial adjusts wattage in 1W increments from 5W right up to 217W and round robins. When in Variable Voltage mode it adjusts in 0.05V increments from 0.5V right up to 12V. I really do like the use of a dial rather than buttons but the only drawback is when adjusting wattage or voltage the speed can’t be increased by holding a button down so depending by how much you need to alter it can take some time!
Protections (taken from manual):
Low Voltage Protection
Over-heat Protection
Short Circuit Protection
High Resistance Protection
Over-current Protection
Reverse Battery Protection
Over-vape Protection
Over-charge Protection
Charging
As usual i only recommend charging in the device if it’s your only option but if you do the VX217 has a Type C USB port for charging and data transfer supporting a 1.2A max charge rate (not the quickest) and pass-through. While charging the display shows battery status bars for each battery and a single charging progress bar, also wish it gave estimated time left but overall, happy!
Final Thoughts!
Just to mention there is a kit version available which includes the In-Take Sub-ohm Tank which i have not used but it has top to bottom airflow and the coil heads included in the kit are Clapton Mesh. The only other Clapton Mesh coil heads i have used are the Lost Vape Ultra Boost Clapton Mesh coil head which give both great flavour and excellent longevity!
I love the satisfying stiff click the fire button gives not minding the stiffness at all as this will ensure it doesn’t fire accidentally, it’s so easy to find and when pressing the device fires without delay with impressive ramp up! I also like the dial that works great but the downside is unlike with a button that you can hold down to increase the speed when scrolling or adjusting wattage etc it does mean everything is done at one speed. Also the dial does give a click when pressed but doesn’t seem to do anything, it would be so much better if 3 clicks of the dial locked it rather than needing to go into the menu to do this.
Part because of the one speed of the dial and part because it’s multi tiered navigating the menu is quite a slow process but it is very user friendly and for a power only device it offers plenty of features including a stats screen that gives a wealth of operational information and also display customisation allowing the RGB for the display to be user defined by altering the percentages essentially allowing an endless array of colour and shade options!
Being able to output 12V some will absolutely love but it’s not for me and the device can also be used in Bypass for a more mech like experience but with the piece of mind you still have all the protections a regulated device offers. The device is also very efficient and with the accommodation of 21700 batteries it makes the battery life excellent while also giving great performance!
Although the 510 has been brought forward to allow for the device’s short height it will still comfortably accommodate a 30mm atomizer as shown in the second photo below. The final pro and con is that it has Type C USB yet the charge rate is a sluggish 1.2A, overall a very good power only dual 21700 option!!!
Likes
Solid built device
Very short device
Can accommodate dual 2*700 batteries or dual 18650’s with supplied adaptor
Very large fire button with stiff click
Spin Dial for navigation
Wattage, Voltage and Bypass modes
High wattage
12V maximum output
User friendly interface
Customisable colour display
LCD RGB % User defined feature (endless shades of colour)
Statistics screen
Solid battery door
Battery status bar of each battery
Type C USB
Fires without delay and performed great
Efficient
Cons
Quite heavy
Slight sidewards movement from 20700 batteries (but really don’t understand why anyone would use 20700 rather than 21700)
Click of Spin dial not made use of
Can’t speed up scrolling with dial like you can holding a button down
Wish display could be seen easier outdoors!
Menu system is user friendly but multi tiered making it long winded
Sluggish 1.2A charge rate
I would once again like to thank Ella from Sourcemore for supplying the AUGVAPE VX217 21700 VW Box MOD for the purpose of this review, thanks for reading and stay safe!
$31.39 Augvape VX217 Mod
Code: VX217M
Disclaimer: I am not affiliated with Sourcemore or benefit in any way from the use of the above code but was asked if i would include it in my content!
