The ROK ROKstar £53.99
| Overall |
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| Value for Money |
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| Ease of Use |
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| Satisfaction |
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| Build Quality |
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| Customer Service |
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| Included | 2 Batteries, 2 attomisers, 2 tanks |
| Aesthetic Appeal |
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Text Review (Video Review at bottom of page)
This is the new ‘ROKStar’ from ROK. OK, let’s start with the packaging:
As you can see, it comes in a very slick presentation box, and I reckon this would make an ideal Christmas or birthday gift for someone who wants to switch from revolting smoking to lovely vaping. In the top layer, there is a fully-assembled ROKStar with the smaller 650 MaH battery, and the larger 900 MaH battery too – I’ll be talking about these batteries later.
On the second layer, we have the instruction booklet, 6 mouthpieces, a USB charger, a second pen lid so you can make up a second ROKStar, and two spare ‘airflow adjuster rings’ – again, I’ll come on to those in a minute.
OK – so that’s the kit. Let’s have a closer look at it all.
The Mouthpiece. I think it is a great idea to provide spare mouthpieces - you will inevitably be quizzed by interested smokers – well, you can just give them a spare mouthpiece and they can have a go! They are of a sturdy plastic construction, that feels pleasant to the lip,
The Tank and Atomiser
The ‘tank’ holds the e-liquid. Then there is the atomiser, which, with the help of the battery turns the e-liquid (flavoured nicotine) into vapour. ROK have opted here for a separate tank/atomiser set-up, which has disadvantages. The new vision clearomisers, for example, combine the tank and atomiser into one unit, making it very easy to refill. This tank has to be takn off the atomiser, then filled (although this is a nce, easy process), and then you have to put the atomiser back on, remembering of course to keep the tank inverted, as you filled it (see below). I have had more than one accident spilling e-liquid because I forget this! The unit is very well made though, and unlike some of the older EGOs, does not leak!
Here is a more detailed picture of the tank and atomiser, with the ‘condensation ring’ as I call it:
The condensation ring goes in the top end of the tank ( i.e. the mouthpiece end).
As a result of the atomisation process (ie when you draw), this ring gets wet, with atomised nicotine. So it is necessary, occasionally, to take this out and squeeze it in a tissue, to force the liquid out of the ring. Failure to do this will result in a ‘gurgly’ vape, and, if you are changing the flavour of the liquid you are vaping, you may get a hint of the previous flavour in the new flavour. This process is very simple and causes no real hassle, although is not required on the more recent performance e-cigs like the eXhale CE5 kit, which, incidentally comes in at under half the price of the ROKstar, at an AMAZING £21.60.
Re-filling the ROKStar
As will be seen from the picture, the e-liquid is dripped into the space between the side wall and the central shaft. It is important to avoid getting any in the central shaft, as you will end up with e-liquid on your tongue – not pleasant. ROK’s own liquid bottles include a fine nozzle that fits neatly into this space and facilitate easier re-filling, although I have tried plenty of other e-liquids in there, and there is no problem.
Incidentally, the liquids are good too and are included in my e-liquid review.
Now, keeping the tank the same way up (obviously – otherwise the liquid will come out!), take the battery (having attached the atomiser – there is never really any need to remove the atomiser from the battery), turn it upside down and screw it down into the tank.
The Airflow Adjuster. This fits neatly onto the battery and there is never any need to remove it. Two spares are provided, although I can’t really see the need – I guess you might lose one..
Now, one of my gripes with e-cigs in the past is that you often get too airy a draw, but sometimes too tight a draw. The ROKStar gets round this problem by this neat little device that allows you to decide how tight or airy the draw will be – great! They have thought about this product. The only downside to it is that you can knock it, and it moves around, one way or the other, so sometimes the next draw that you take is not the kind you were expecting. Given that you are always going to want the same kind of draw (tight or airy), it may be an idea to be able to lock this in place, in the same way that the electric seats on expensive cars can memorise your ideal seating position. Another way, of course, of varying your 'draw' experience is with variable volt batteries, which may be a better solution (if there is a problem in the first place...), like with the Variable Volt Battery and Vision Clearomiser kit from Juicy Cigs, which wins my award for performance e-cig, and retails at £54.99.
The Batteries – both covered in this deliciously tactile rubbery silky stuff – as I say, there are two – one a 650 milliamp hour battery and there is a 900. Both batteries work with the normal ROK cartomisers (indeed, any 510 cartomiser), so if you are upgrading or just want an alternative to vape at home whilst perhaps you take your normal ‘lookey likey’ ROK to the office, you can use the cartomisers interchangeably, which is useful. It is also useful for me personally, as I am a big fan of the ROK cartomisers, and it’s nice to be able to use them with a heftier battery. Now, my experience with these batteries is that you will get about 12 hours from the 650 and up to about 18 hours from the bigger battery. Both batteries have very thin LEDS at the end that change from blue (when charged) to orange and then red when it needs a recharge – these are a bit hard to see when vaping, but this is overcome by just taking it out of your mouth, and looking, whilst pressing the activation button. Don’t make a habit of this though, as the atomiser might get a bit hot. Finally, the batteries can be put into standby mode – locked down, by pressing this button three times in quick succession – this just means that the battery won’t activate unexpectedly if you bump into something and the button is depressed. It can be re-activated by pressing the button again, 3 times in a row. Personally, I think this unnecessary as I’ve never knocked a button on a manual battery, but each to their own I guess, and it does no harm to have this facility. Additionally, they take only a couple of hours to charge up.
The USB Charger
Not much to say here – it works fine. There is no USB-to-wall charger supplied though so you might like to buy one, otherwise you will need to use your computer or games console exclusively. Finally, there is the pen-motif – I think it looks smart and transforms the ROK into something you can take anywhere with you, looks good, and just hooks onto the inside pocket of a suit jacket or whatever.
The ‘Vape’
The ROKStar produces a good amount of vapour and there is a good ‘throat hit’ that very closely emulates a normal smoking experience – except this is better; although you get your nicotine addiction fully satisfied the vaping here is much, much nicer than the harshness you can get with a normal cigarette, so it’s more of a ‘throat-stroke’ really. This is a ‘premium’ vape, I reckon, especially with the very delicious absinthe flavour e-liquid (which is my favourite ROK e-liquid).
Ultimate Control.
As we have seen, the tank tells you when you need liquid, the batteries tell you when they need recharging, and the airflow adjuster allows you to control the vape.
In conclusion, this is a very good product. You get a very high degree of functionality whilst retaining a certain aesthetic quality – beauty and brains!
