strell
06-12-2009, 07:23 AM
After a couple weeks of use, I’m ready to review the JOYE 306A. The 306A seems to be the generic version of the Janty Mini Fogger and is also known as the Super Mini E-Cigarette; the Janty version and the 306A are both produced by Joye.
Specifications (from the Joye website):
Total length: 89mm
Battery Power: 90mAh
Battery can continuous smoke for puffs: 100puffs
Individual Unit Packages: 13.5X10X4.4cm
Individual Unit Weight: 0.25kg
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3646/3619033688_1f90c553a1.jpg
The 306A is very light, and fairly well-balanced. It’s still heavier than a cigarette, but I can comfortably hold it in my mouth without having to worry about it falling out like most other e-cigs.
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3614/3619003816_1c967f706e.jpg
Battery:
The battery is interchangeable with the 510 battery. It is a female connection and so cannot be mixed with male connection-type batteries like the 901.
The battery is automatic. It’s very sensitive, but not always in a good way. The battery is easily triggered by screwing the pieces together and bumping the device. This is a liability in a device only rated for “100 puffs”. I find this 100 puff rating to put me at one to two hours of use. This is definitely a short battery life, but the upshot is that the batteries only take about 45 minutes to fully charge.
The battery seems to cut off somewhere around five seconds, but this is not predictable. Sometimes the 306A decides you’ve had enough after just one or two seconds.
Cartridges:
The 306A uses an inverted version of the cartridges most other e-cigs use. Rather than the atomizer housing fitting around the cartridge, the cartridge fits around the naked atomizer. Since it has smooth sides and fits around the atomizer pretty tightly, the cartridge can be difficult to remove.
The filling sits deep at the bottom of the cart, which makes refilling a chore. You can use a paperclip to pull the filling to the top and accurately fill it, then push it back down and hope you don’t rip or smash it too much. Or, you can drip down the tunnel into the darkness and hope you’re getting most of the liquid on the filling. Either way is messy. You’re less likely to suck liquid by pulling the filling up, but I’m lazy and settled on dripping blindly. The good news is that the carts actually hold quite a bit of liquid and you will probably only need to top off three or four times for each battery charge.
The cartridge has a round tip and feels slightly smaller than the 510 tip. Because the device is so light and the battery is so responsive, you don’t have to suck hard on the round tip to draw out the vapor.
Atomizer:
The atomizer is a small piece with threads on the back end to connect to the battery. The bridge is exposed and curled underneath is some kind of fiber wick. Occasionally the wick sticks out a little too far and gets smashed by the cartridge, but that doesn’t seem to cause any real damage.
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2428/3618183303_bee5f87e58_m.jpg
The atomizer gets hot quickly, but also moves beyond comfortable heat quickly. The cold atomizer needs two or three primer puffs to start getting decent vapor, but by puff six the housing becomes uncomfortably hot.
Vapor:
Even at peak performance, the 306A produces a very thin vapor. It is capable of producing a lot of vapor for its size, and the vapor is actually very flavorful. The vapor is warm; warmer than a 901 but not as warm as the vapor from a 510.
The linked video is poor quality since I made it holding my phone out at arm’s length, but it does a decent job of illustrating how the first puff or two are not great on the 306A but that it builds nicely.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-AcEFb7995A
Conclusion:
Even though there are plenty of annoying things about the 306A, I find myself drawn back to it over and over. It’s very sturdy construction and is the perfect e-cig for when you’re doing a manual task that you need two hands for. Combine that with the tasty vapor and it makes a great “recreational” or secondary electronic cigarette.
Specifications (from the Joye website):
Total length: 89mm
Battery Power: 90mAh
Battery can continuous smoke for puffs: 100puffs
Individual Unit Packages: 13.5X10X4.4cm
Individual Unit Weight: 0.25kg
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3646/3619033688_1f90c553a1.jpg
The 306A is very light, and fairly well-balanced. It’s still heavier than a cigarette, but I can comfortably hold it in my mouth without having to worry about it falling out like most other e-cigs.
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3614/3619003816_1c967f706e.jpg
Battery:
The battery is interchangeable with the 510 battery. It is a female connection and so cannot be mixed with male connection-type batteries like the 901.
The battery is automatic. It’s very sensitive, but not always in a good way. The battery is easily triggered by screwing the pieces together and bumping the device. This is a liability in a device only rated for “100 puffs”. I find this 100 puff rating to put me at one to two hours of use. This is definitely a short battery life, but the upshot is that the batteries only take about 45 minutes to fully charge.
The battery seems to cut off somewhere around five seconds, but this is not predictable. Sometimes the 306A decides you’ve had enough after just one or two seconds.
Cartridges:
The 306A uses an inverted version of the cartridges most other e-cigs use. Rather than the atomizer housing fitting around the cartridge, the cartridge fits around the naked atomizer. Since it has smooth sides and fits around the atomizer pretty tightly, the cartridge can be difficult to remove.
The filling sits deep at the bottom of the cart, which makes refilling a chore. You can use a paperclip to pull the filling to the top and accurately fill it, then push it back down and hope you don’t rip or smash it too much. Or, you can drip down the tunnel into the darkness and hope you’re getting most of the liquid on the filling. Either way is messy. You’re less likely to suck liquid by pulling the filling up, but I’m lazy and settled on dripping blindly. The good news is that the carts actually hold quite a bit of liquid and you will probably only need to top off three or four times for each battery charge.
The cartridge has a round tip and feels slightly smaller than the 510 tip. Because the device is so light and the battery is so responsive, you don’t have to suck hard on the round tip to draw out the vapor.
Atomizer:
The atomizer is a small piece with threads on the back end to connect to the battery. The bridge is exposed and curled underneath is some kind of fiber wick. Occasionally the wick sticks out a little too far and gets smashed by the cartridge, but that doesn’t seem to cause any real damage.
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2428/3618183303_bee5f87e58_m.jpg
The atomizer gets hot quickly, but also moves beyond comfortable heat quickly. The cold atomizer needs two or three primer puffs to start getting decent vapor, but by puff six the housing becomes uncomfortably hot.
Vapor:
Even at peak performance, the 306A produces a very thin vapor. It is capable of producing a lot of vapor for its size, and the vapor is actually very flavorful. The vapor is warm; warmer than a 901 but not as warm as the vapor from a 510.
The linked video is poor quality since I made it holding my phone out at arm’s length, but it does a decent job of illustrating how the first puff or two are not great on the 306A but that it builds nicely.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-AcEFb7995A
Conclusion:
Even though there are plenty of annoying things about the 306A, I find myself drawn back to it over and over. It’s very sturdy construction and is the perfect e-cig for when you’re doing a manual task that you need two hands for. Combine that with the tasty vapor and it makes a great “recreational” or secondary electronic cigarette.