timwis Posted October 7, 2020 Posted October 7, 2020 Hi Vapor Talk members, In this review i take a look at the Scar P5 from Smok. The Smok Scar P5 was supplied for the purpose of this review by Ella from Sourcemore. Introduction The Scar P5 Is one of the new Scar range of devices from Smok which consists of the Scar P3 & P5 which are in-built and 18650 versions of essentially the same device and in direct competition to the Voopoo Drag S & X and the Scar 18 a double battery version in direct competition with the Argus GT. The Scar P5 Is a Waterproof, Dustproof and Shockproof IP67 device and has a neat top-fill solution. Although being one of a new range of devices it both utilises the existing RPM coils while introducing the new RPM2 coil for use in their independent pods. Powered by the IQ-80 Chip the Scar P5 is an 80W power only device, let's give it a look! ___________________________________________________________________ In The Box Contents: 1x Scar-P5 Device 1x Scar-P5 RPM 2 Pod (RPM 2 Mesh 0.16ohm coil pre-installed) 1x Scar-P5 RPM Pod (RPM Mesh 0.4ohm coil pre-installed) Micro USB Cable User Manual ___________________________________________________________________ Aesthetics and Ergonomics The Scar P5 came in cardboard packaging with everything neatly packed within one layer and a picture of the device in the colour of choice on the lid. I received the Red Stabilizing Wood version which relates to the pattern on the padded leather central spine and side accents. The options are Black, Fluid Black White, Red Stabilizing Wood, Fluid Blue, Green Stabilizing Wood, Fluid Red, Fluid 7-Colour and Fluid Gold. The device has a Zinc Alloy main chassis and is given a busy look with the padded leather spine and side sections, the only thing i'm not big on is the branding either side but in all fairness it's not bright but quite dull as if Smok have dumbed it down reluctantly. The front has a protruding Zinc Alloy square fire button towards the top and below the following colour screen protruding rectangular navigational buttons also made from Zinc Alloy. Finally at the bottom of the front of the device we have a silicone bung labelled USB which when removed reveals a micro USB port. Moving to the spine we have the already mentioned curved padded leather central section which makes the device very comfortable in the hand and below a large area with "PUSH" on it which is to release the sealed bottom hatch door which has safety marks and membrane sealed venting holes. Finally the pod is one complete moulding including drip tip so you can't fit your own, we have a silicone bung labelled either "RPM" or "RPM2" depending which pod you are using which seals the fill port. The pod is quite darkly tinted but i didn't have any issues seeing my juice level so not of any great concern. The build quality of the Scar P5 is as good as i have ever known from Smok and that IP67 rating always gives piece of mind! ___________________________________________________________________ Scar P5 Specs and Features: Size: 117.6 x 35.8 x 28mm Weight: 101.5grams Display: 0.96” TFT Screen Pod Capacity: 5ml (2ml TPD) IP67 Waterproof, Dustproof Shockproof properties Battery: Interchangeable 18650 Charger: Micro-USB Charging Current: 1.3A Power Output: 5-80w Resistance range: 0.15- 2.5ohm Material: Leather, Zinc Alloy, PCTG Chipset: IQ-80 chipset Colours: Black, Fluid Black White, Red Stabilizing Wood, Fluid Blue, Green Stabilizing Wood, Fluid Red, Fluid 7-Colour, Fluid Gold ___________________________________________________________________ The Pod You receive 2 pods and although on first glance they look identical one is for RPM coil heads and the other for the new RPM2 Coil head which is just slightly bigger and has larger airflow inlets, both have a 5ml capacity with the standard pods and 2ml with the TPD pods. The pods can be told apart by the fill port as the RPM pod has "RPM" embossed into the silicone seal while "RPM2" is embossed into the seal of the RPM2 pod. The pods are one moulding with incorporated drip tip so you can't fit your own and looking at the base we have a magnet to each corner and round opening for the coil to be press fitted into place (all very standard). The fill port is situated on the front area of the top of the pod and has an already mentioned silicone seal which can be easily lifted up while remaining fixed to the pod to reveal a generous fill port which will allow air to escape while filling. The pod is quite darkly tinted but i had no issues seeing the juice level at all times and i found the fill method to be quick and mess free with the added benefit of not needing to remove the pod to fill! ___________________________________________________________________ The Coil Heads Both pods have a coil head pre-installed which in the RPM2 pod is the RPM2 0.16ohm mesh coil rated between 25w and 50w with a best at 40w. The RPM pod comes pre-installed with the RPM Mesh coil which Smok rate as a MTL coil head and has a resistance of 0.4ohm and rated at 25W. Of course the vast family of RPM coil heads are also compatible. ___________________________________________________________________ Fitting The Pod Looking into the pod bay we can see the central Gold plated, spring loaded contacts with silicone surround seal. We also have a raised magnet to each corner to match the ones on the pod and the side airflow slots are fully visible. The pod snaps into place very securely and has no play whatsoever, in fact it takes quite a strong tug to remove the pod, very good job! ___________________________________________________________________ The Airflow The Scar P5 has a large slot towards the top both sides that allows plenty of air to get to the base of the coil head installed. The airflow in not adjustable so relies on the inner bore of the coil head to give any restriction. These coil heads have quite large air inlets at their base especially the RPM2 which has larger inlets than the RPM coil heads but even the RPM coil heads have fair sized inlets allowing plenty of air through the coil so i could of told you even before testing that the so called MTL coil head gives a very loose MTL at best but really is much more suited to a restricted direct lung vape while the RPM2 coil head is much more open offering very little in the way of restriction. ___________________________________________________________________ Waterproof, Dustproof, Shockproof The Scar-P5 is IP67 waterproof which means it can withstand water immersion between 15cm and 1 meter for 30 minutes. It is also dustproof as classified by the first number of the IP67 rating and shockproof so the device is protected from dust ingress and accidental drops. ___________________________________________________________________ Fitting The Battery The Scar P5 accommodates a single 18650 battery which gets fitted via the bottom hatch door. The hatch door is sealed to meet the IP67 requirements and has a spring with release mechanism which is operated by pressing where it says "PUSH" on the lower part of the spine, it's a spring loaded lever operated release catch system and the door springs open! Orientation is labelled in White on the underside of the door and to secure just push downwards and it clicks securely in place. I like this door and how it is operated, when released it feels very sturdy with a strong spring and the lever section on the lower part of the spine needs to be pressed with quite a bit of pressure for the door to release so i can't see it opening by accident. Whether it holds up over time or loosens i really couldn't say but from using it and judging from the overall build quality of the device i will give it the benefit of any doubt! ___________________________________________________________________ The Display The display is a typical colour Smok display, sharp, bright and with plenty of information given. Top left we have the battery status bar and then top right the battery status given as a percentage, excellent! Next we have the wattage with the unit "w" and when one of the device locks is in operation a closed padlock icon appears above the "w". Below the wattage to the left we have voltage and to the right the resistance. The lower portion of the display is puff information, first we have your vape duration followed by a vape duration progress bar and finally at the bottom the puff count. Yes you heard correct a Smok display without the word "Smok" anywhere to be seen, on this device their does seem to be an effort made to dumb down branding. ___________________________________________________________________ Operating The Scar P5 This is such a simple device to operate so instead of my usual waffle explaining how the device works i can do it in very simple fashion: Power On /Off = Quick Press fire button 5 times (within 2 seconds) Vape / Fire = Press and hold fire button Vape Lock (disable buttons) = Quick Press fire button 3 times Change power setting = Press ‘+’ or ‘-’ Lock Navigational buttons = Press ‘+’ and ‘-’ simultaneously Clear Puff Counter = Press Fire and ‘-’ simultaneously. Then use ‘-’ or ‘+’ to move between yes and no. then hold fire to select yes. Change Theme Colour = Press Fire and ‘+’ simultaneously. ___________________________________________________________________ Protections: Intelligent Atomiser Recognition Puff Monitoring System 8 Second cut off protection Short Circuit Protection Over-Heat Protection Low Battery Warning ___________________________________________________________________ Charging The Scar P5 has a silicone sealed micro USB port although as usual i don't recommend charging in the device unless it's your only option. The P3 version has Type C which unfortunately the Scar P5 doesn't which i sort of get as the port is needed with the in-built version rather than some people will never use the port on the P5 but still feel all devices should have Type C as standard. Bizarrely the charge rate is actually faster on the P5 being 1.3A while only 1.1A on the P3 but as these are maximum charge rates really you are looking at a sluggish 1A so another good reason not to charge in the device! ___________________________________________________________________ How It Vapes? And Thoughts! Unlike the RPM160 which was my last review of a Smok product which just didn't suit me i actually really like this device and it's build quality is every bit as good as any pod mod out there including the Drag S/X but with the added benefit of the "Aegisesk" IP67 rating! The only thing that really lets it down is not having adjustable airflow which limits the device to various direct lung draws that are determined by the inner bore of the coil head. The MTL 0.4ohm RPM coil just isn't without having some form of adjusting the airflow at it's base and although the 0.16ohm coil head is the better of the two for flavour it is just too open for my personal vaping style. I actually like the 0.4ohm coil head as it gives the sort of restriction i like for a DL vape and i like it at just 20w below it's 25w rating but if you like a much warmer vape just dial it up. Flavour is good but not quite on par with the Voopoo PnP coils although as mentioned the RPM2 coil head gives cracking flavour it's just the airflow isn't my bag, i tested this for a short period finding the flavour and warmth sweet spot at 37w! I have come to the conclusion that any leaking with this type of device is more down to the individuals vaping habits with particular coil heads as so many times i have had leaking with certain coil heads many say they have no issues but when i don't get leaking issues there will be some that do, for the record though although i only tested the RPM 0.4ohm coil head for a reasonable amount of time i had no issues regarding leaking at all even when leaving a full pod overnight! I really like not having to remove the pod to fill and found filling both quick and mess free and will put the pod being dark as a con because i am struggling in that regard but i had no issues seeing the juice inside! I also really like the battery door which springs open when pressing down on the lower section of the spine and seems durable although only time will tell. The device is very simple to operate and performs great firing without delay and hitting set wattage instantly. I am disappointed the USB isn't Type C and it has a sluggish charge rate for those that charge in the device but as most won't use the port it's not a deal breaker. Finally when a 510 adaptor (if it hasn't already) becomes available the Scar P5 will make a good IP67 standard single 18650 device for out and about! ___________________________________________________________________ Likes Build quality as good as with any pod mod IP67 rated Excellent battery hatch door 8 Colour/Design options Very easy to navigate Performed great firing without delay and with instant ramp up Can lock just navigational buttons or whole device Accommodates 18650 battery Excellent top fill method (can fill without removing pod) Comfortable integrated drip tip Pod fits very securely During testing experienced no leaking even when leaving full pod overnight (that was the RPM pod) RPM2 0.16ohm coil head gave very good flavour (only tested for short time too much airflow for me but seems very good coil head) RPM 0.4ohm coil head good flavour, nice smooth RDL draw Compatible with vast range of RPM coil heads Sharp, bright, well laid out display Battery status given as both a bar and percentage Cons Non adjustable airflow Can't fit alternative drip tip Pod darkly tinted (although i had no issues seeing juice level) MTL 0.4ohm coil head does not give satisfactory MTL vape (but is a nice restricted DL draw) Not Type C USB Slow charge rate (only issue if you charge in the device) I would once again like to thank Ella from Sourcemore for supplying the Smok Scar P5 for the purpose of this review, thanks for reading and stay safe! ___________________________________________________________________
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