The Voopoo Brand
Voopoo is a well known brand that has been around since 2010. Based in Shenzhen, Voopoo has an extensive line up of high quality and affordable devices consisting of their DRAG Series, VINCI Series, ARGUS Series and V Series. For this article, we take a look at the latest from the DRAG Series which is the Drag 3.
What's in the Box?
Voopoo Drag 3 Mod
TPP Pod Tank
- TPP-DM2 0.2ohm coil (new coil type)
- TPP-DM1 0.15ohm coil (new coil type)
- Type C USB cable
- User manual
Product Specifications:
- Size: 138 x 25 x 52mm (including tank)
- Output: 5-177W
- User modes: VW, RBA, Smart, Super (over 80W in RBA mode), TC (when upgrade is downloaded and applied to mod)
- Battery: 2 x 18650 (not included)
- Display: 1.08in Colour TFT screen
Resistance limits: 0.1 - 3 ohm
- Material: Leather and Zinc Alloy
- Balance charging – USB Type C with 2A charge rate
- Compatible with TPP pod, PnP pod range and also 510 connector atomisers.
- Gene Fan 2.0 upgraded chipset
- Tank Capacity: 5.5ml (Standard) / 2ml (TPD)
- Coils: TPP coil range
- Bottom fill port
- 510 base includes adjustable airflow control
Design
Beefy with a good size and weight, the Drag 3 has a familiar feel in the hand as the Drag 2. With batteries included it weighs 255 grams versus 299 grams using the same TPP Pod tank. The lighter weight is likely due to the usage of the zinc alloy which is not as heavy and dense as the alloy used in the Drag 2. Is the 15% weight savings welcome? I think so because it makes travelling with the device less burdensome. Putting it in my everyday sling bag on the way to work does weigh it down a little less which is great in my opinion.
The Smoke Grey unit that we own is super clean looking with a nice grey leather that's embossed with the Drag 3 name. The zinc allow and leather on the device barely picks-up any fingerprints which is nice. Overall, it looks clean without unnecessary design elements that make it look cheap.
Functions
The Drag 3 now comes with the following 3 modes:
Smart Variable Wattage
- This makes the device super easy to use if you pair it with Voopoo's in-house tank and coil sets, whether its the new TPP Coils or the previous PNP Coils. As the name suggests, it will automatically detect the recommended wattage so no guess work involved. The wattage is still adjustable but it does not allow you to go above the recommended wattage for a given coil (a max power warning will appear).
RBA Mode
- The RBA mode is perfect when you're using your own tank and want more control. The wattage is not capped and it won't detect the resistance of your coil.
Super Mode
- This mode is activated when you go above 80 Watts in RBA mode and allows you to go up to 177 Watts.
New TPP tank and Airflow Adjustment
The Drag 3 mod comes with the new TPP (Tank Push Pod) tank that has a huge 5.5ml capacity (non-tpd version) that can fit the new TPP coils (0.15 ohm and 0.2 ohm). Voopoo sticks to their same style of magnetic connection that has zero play and a solid connection each time. The new TPP tanks look very similar to the PNP tanks - just bigger.
The drip tip is a 810 with a wide bore and removable. You can change it out if you don't like it and have your own 810 drip tip. As usual, the coils just push in to the bottom of the tank. For DTL vaping, the 5.5ml capacity and wide bore will give u lots of clouds without having to refill too often.
The airflow adjustment has some nice etched dual bands around it and makes it easy to grip and twist open and close. I find that the airflow adjustment sits in place well after you set it and is not easily moved or changed accidentally. Definitely a plus point.
Performance of the New TPP Coils
Seeing the size of the TPP Tank, you can guess that the new TPP coils are also quite a big bigger. If you look closely you can also see that the inside coils use a similar mesh design. Voopoo mentions that the new coils use a patented system that ensures fast heating speed. In my experience, i would say that they perform very similarly to the PnP coils and heat up nice and fast with no problems. I used some good old jam monster, nasty juice and ripe vapes on the both the 0.15 DM1 and 0.20 DM2 and I find that the cloud production is massive. Good, clean flavours and also warmer. Using my favourite dessert ejuices gives stellar flavours with a beautiful warm vape.
Firing is never a problem and the Gene chip ignites consistently, quickly and is as reliable as ever. No issues here. Most of the time, i switched between RBA mode and Smart mode and went up to the recommended 80w depending on the coils i was using.
The large capacity 5.5ml TPP tanks are great and refilling it is not a concern even during a long vaping session. In my usage (after around 55,000 puffs according to the puff counter) there has been some minor leaking with these coils (i would say 1 out of 10 coils will leak on you). The juice tends to collect in the 510 adapter but luckily its not the type of leaking where the juice will be spilling out like crazy from the airflow holes. After a little wiping and clean up, its good to go. I suspect that it has to do with the quality control of the coils and not necessarily the design of it, but that's just my guess.
Another issue to highlight is that after 55,000 puffs, i'm finding that the Smart Mode can have some problems in detecting the coils. After inserting the tank in to the 510 adapter, the device is unable to detect anything and a 'check atomizer' error message pops up upon pressing the fire button. This happens intermittently. Wiping and cleaning the contact points does help to alleviate this issue and after reinserting (it can take 2-3 reinsertions), it seems to solve the problem.
Battery Life
On my usage the dual 18650 batteries (batteries are not included in the kit), will give many hours of vaping. Using the new TPP tanks and coils were really nice to vape at 65-80w and battery life was satisfactory. A point to note is that the battery doors of the Drag 3 feels flimsy and could be broken quite easily if you are not careful. The entire mod is probably doomed if you do accidentally break it so some care and caution is definitely needed when you are removing or inserting the batteries.
Final Impressions
Overall, the Drag 3 feels like a solidly built device that is (hopefully) long lasting. The design and materials used in the construction of this mod is holding up well and I barely have a scratch on it after 4 months.
The Smart Mode feature is so easy to use and a welcome feature for me that just makes high quality vaping and flavour chasing a simple and painless process. I also really the like the new coil options provided by the TPP series and its great that i can revert back to using my PnP tanks and coils as well.
The Voopoo Drag 3 is a mod that gives you options and is worth picking up if you're looking for a fairly priced device that performs. It is by no means a collectors item but for the price, its reliable, performs well and gives you some good options if you don't mind spending money on coils.