Page 1|2
Using the Joyetech eVic
Most of the interesting things with the eVic (available at Panda eCigs) start with the menu system. The menu is controlled via the ring under the display. Small arrows appear indicating which way the menu (or power) will scroll when it’s turned. Turn left to move down the menu and right to go up.
To be honest, I find that counterintuitive. For some reason, the muscle memory in my brain is wired to think that turning a ring left (clockwise) should move a menu up instead of down. I have to make a concentrated effort to turn the thing the right way.
Now that I got that off my chest, let’s talk about the display and menus. First off is the main display. To access this display, just turn the wheel in either direction. A screen comes up showing the current puff count, the number of estimated puffs remaining on the battery charge. Battery life is also displayed via a graph and a percentage, so you shouldn’t have an excuse for not realizing you should plug it in for a charge.
Don’t think you can just ignore the battery life and just plug it in and still vape like a pass-through. Once the eVic is plugged into USB, you can no longer actually use it until the connector is removed.
Underneath the battery and puff displays is the current voltage or wattage setting. The power can be adjusted simply by turning the dial in the desired direction. Each turn is one increment.
Not to keep hitting on the not-quite-what-I-expected thing, but you’d think holding the wheel in one direction would allow it to scroll through the settings. Nope. Fortunately firmware version 1.1 introduced a new feature where if you move the wheel quickly 3 times in a row, it will keep scrolling until you move the wheel in the other direction. It’s not perfect, but it’s better than moving from 7 to 9 watts .1 watt at a time.
The range at which you can adjust the wattage will be limited based on what resistance cartomizer you have installed. The Joye added a feature where the eVic will calculate the minimum and maximum power it can deliver and limit your settings to that. Voltage seems to take a back seat as the eVic will make the whole voltage range available and simply deliver a lower voltage if it can’t handle the amp load.
Another nice thing is there’s no need to wait for the display to time out after changing the wattage. You can hit the fire button at any time and it will activate the power. Once you let go of the button, the display shows how long you pressed it. Kind of an unnecessary feature, but fun. I average around 4 seconds per puff.
Because the button is used to select menu items, you can’t do the same thing while in the menu system. To access the menu system, press the fire button 5 times rapidly. From there you’ll have access to the settings and information on the device. The enhanced display and wheel design means that submenus are all over the place. Sometimes finding what you’re looking for isn’t the easiest thing in the world.
For example, switching from voltage to wattage operation requires going into the “vapor set” menu then selecting “switch” from there you can pick your mode of operation. Fortunately, the only other menu with a big submenu is the “device” menu which mostly displays information about the device.
You can also adjust other settings that aren’t all that common. The length of time the main screen stays on can be adjusted. More importantly, the standby can be adjusted. This is the amount of time that passes without use before the eVic shuts off. The default is 15 minutes, and you can set it up to an hour. There’s no way to disable the feature. When it does shut off on you, click the fire button 5 times to turn it back on.
Additional settings can also be adjusted using the MVR software.
I think I make using the menus and settings sound harder than it seems. It becomes pretty simple after using the eVic for a while. Plus, many of the menu items aren’t accessed all that much.
Before I wrap up this now epically long eVic review, it’s time to talk about performance. The eVic is a stable but moderate device. Power output is correct when using variable voltage, generally within .1v of the set voltage. Variable wattage, however, seems to be a little low. I found the output voltage to be low by about .5v in some cases, a fairly significant drop.
The other performance problem I ran into is pretty much standard for single battery devices these days. Amperage appears to be limited to around 2.5a. A 1.5 ohm dual coil maxes out a hair short of 4v. This is an incremental improvement over some variable voltage devices which step dual coils down to 3.5 or 3.7v.
One thing to keep in mind is that the eVic can be updated via software. That means some of the issues I talked about could be fixed in the future. I’m not sure that the amperage can be adjusted since that very well could be a limitation of the physical hardware.
What I’d really be interested in seeing in the future is for someone to crack the firmware allowing for community built firmware. Now that would be interesting.
Too Long; Didn’t Read
The Joytech eVic is a significant change in e-cigarette technology. If you’ve ever bought a device only to have version 2 come out a week later, you can see where a software upgradable vaporizer is a really good idea. There are a few shortcomings to the eVic, but they are fairly minor and some may be fixed in software at some point. Despite some of the negatives, the eVic remains a very compelling choice and a solid device. Grab one at Panda eCigs at a great price.
Pros
| Software upgradable |
| USB charging |
| Decent performance |
| Excellent display |
| Fully compatible atomizer connection |
Cons
| USB cover difficult to remove |
| Some power loss in wattage mode |
| Can’t disable auto shutoff |
| Button and ring rattle |
| Somewhat confusing navigation |
| 2.5A current limitation |
Disclosure: This review contains affiliate links
18 Comments
Brandan
(02/03/13 - 1:04 am)I've been having issues with the evic not working with certain cartomizers. I Use dual coil 1.5ohm with the DCT tanks, and the evic doesn't always seem to trigger (produce vape) with them. My guess is something with the threads or airflow. Wondering if anyone else is having trouble with carts with these things. What would be the best cart to use with them?
moz4r
(06/02/13 - 6:31 pm)Hi same problem… Only 1 coil up to 2.8 works.
Ed
(06/03/13 - 4:39 am)I’ve had many issues and like you, some atomizers not working. When using a CE4 or 5 duel atomizer clearamizer I realized sometimes the center pin doesn’t always reach the power pin. With the CE I just moved the pin down 1-2mm or 0.125″. The easiest work around is using an extender aka 510 female to male adapter. If you have the metal charger extensions sold with the 5 battery charger you can use that too. I heard of spacers that fit in the battery but haven’t found these little disks………hope that helps….A NEW EVIC they have placed two metal screws under the removable sleeve, both on the same side of center pin. AWESOME I broke 2 each by dropping once. The new one is much tuffer..l.ltxt. C. U. L8r
Tyy
Ed
(06/03/13 - 4:44 am)Ty
Ed
(06/12/13 - 2:10 am)Yes I had a problem where the atomizer, cartimizer,tank…..just doesn’t work. However if it works on the 510 tread or riviera thread( bottom battery with a light ring) try pulling the center pin just 1mm at a time and see if that helps. All of my 510 stuff works on the eVic with that fix. Or buy an extender for 1$ then I guaranty it will work
Viktoria
(02/04/13 - 10:33 pm)I bought my evic at the beginning of January 2013 and it’s not left my hand since. Unlike your’s, I don’t have any rattle on the button or dial. The USB tab on mine opens easily; you press down the bottom of it and the top lifts up making it easy to open. Also, I can plug mine in via USB and vape whilst it charges. I’ve never tried this with my laptop but it works with the plug that was included with the set. In all honesty, having tried other peoples’ mods as well as accumulating a handful of my own, I don’t think I can better what I have unless I go for a Provari.
Ed
(03/26/13 - 11:48 pm)I have it and love it. The twist is to the eVic like blu is to twist. I love and now have two, why? The only fault is the wires to the atomizer located under the top screw off came lose after dropping it ONE time I loved it enough to by a second one for eighty bucks used it then pow broke again. Drops not covered by Warenty but email if you have any ideas trkmker@verizon I have some idars too drop a line
Ed
Mark
(04/22/13 - 7:31 pm)Hi I had the top come of my one and got it replaced, but if it is just a broken wire then just solder a new one in.
If you have problem with the soldering I would gladly look at it for you but I am in uk.
Ed
(06/03/13 - 4:42 am)Tyy
Ed
(04/23/13 - 1:39 am)Thanks 4 ur help I did as you said it works thanks for hollering across the pond
Steve K
(04/23/13 - 5:49 am)It’s great to see how helpful vapers are :) I had my head pop off a bit and I superglued it, but I forgot to take the cone off fist, so now it’s kind of a permanent fature.
Pvuser
(05/15/13 - 9:24 pm)My top thread gone loose so unable to screw in d catomizer, what I did was cut out a piece of d tin foil from d aluminum can and shape to it. Roll in and place on the ring. Screw in the catomizer. It works fine, just need to replace a new ones once in awhile. This extra piece just kinda fill d gaps.
Steve K
(05/15/13 - 9:30 pm)Now that’s an impressive piece of “field engineering” I dropped mine and popped the head off of the atomizer connector. So I superglued the head back together. Worked great, except I forgot to take the cone off so now it’s a permanent fixture on mine :)
Ed
(05/15/13 - 9:56 pm)I mentioned how you great at fixing the eVic and of course other ecigs. Not wanting to take away from your self earned Master of eCig engineering as impressed as I am, the eVic is a 100$usd cigarette. IMHO We should not have to repair this poorly made. The ecab, eVic, designs were stolen mabe the inventor could do better!!
Steve K
(05/15/13 - 10:59 pm)Thank you, although I don’t have anything on some of the people out there who do amazing stuff with ecigs. But I agree, it’s unfortunate that an expensive device like this has a couple of really fragile parts.
Amanda
(05/27/13 - 9:55 pm)As I’m sure you’ve figured out by now thru use, there is a quicker way to switch modes. If you hold the ring in either direction too long… it toggles between VV & VW. =) A huge thumbs up goes out to Mark, btw.. for jumping in (all the way from England) & offering to help Ed! Had to giggle while reading about the fix for your EVIC, Steve… couldn’t help but picture super-glue dribbling down your ears =( (you’ll hafta go back & re-read to understand. LOL) Yet another great review– thanks for all you do!!
Chris Carver
(06/11/13 - 10:54 pm)my EVic is cool but seems like i get better rips off my ego twist? im using kanger pro tanks ..at first it ripped good then not so good?
john doe
(06/13/13 - 3:38 pm)adjust your voltage and wattage bro…..i have an ego twist also as well as the eVic (V1.3) and my eVic kicks the twists ass 8 days a week. i have to take three pulls from the twist at one time to equal one single draw on the eVic. d remeber no matter what battery your using, if your using the protank to remove one of the wicks ( there are 3). youll see your vape production increase by 50%.
Comments are closed.