Box mods. Short by name and, by nature, simple pieces of vaping kit? Well, like it or not, in these modern times when e-cigarette devices are becoming ever more capable, versatile and differentiated from one another, a lot of the time that’s not necessarily true. Yes, despite crossing over into the mainstream, vaping – thanks to ever improving, ever evolving technology and ever-growing popularity – is an activity that’s also becoming ever more involved and brimming with need-to-know detail the deeper you get into it. And, indeed, one of the aspects of this is the humble box mod.
Less of the humble when referring to box mods, though, Because, as soon as you dip your toe into their world, the complexity is pretty quickly apparent. With terms like personal vaporiser, mech mod, regulated and unregulated mods, pen-style mod and so on and so forth, it has the potential to all get rather bewildering. So, should you be a rookie to the box mod phenomenon, the following most definitely makes up some of what you need to know…
What exactly is a box mod?
As you may have expected, a box mod gains its name from its shape; however, on its own, that far from merely distinguishes such a device from a traditional pen-style cylindrical e-cig. Suffice to say, box mods aren’t straightforward and, in order to purchase one that proves effective for your needs and wants, you really need to understand what they can do – and, to do that, it’s best to learn and understand how they came about in the first place.
In the beginning then, the first e-cigarettes were small, cylindrical and relatively low-powered; generally speaking, they looked like conventional cigarettes. Possessing disposable cartridges that had to be replaced fairly quickly, they weren’t anything as efficient as today’s efforts or, indeed, as the pen-like models that came next. Longer and wider, these featured batteries, resulting in longer ‘life’ between battery charging and, thus, better performance.
Following this, experienced, confident vapers began to experiment and innovate; the modified devices this resulted in inevitably providing more power and better cloud-producing potential – as you may have guessed then, they became known as ‘mods’. Constructed from household items like Altoid cans and, yes, small wooden boxes, they eventually gave rise to today’s commercially manufactured ‘box mods’; the likes of these containing complex technology to enable features like large screens and circuit boards for lots of functionality and an all-round improved vaping experience.
Box mod benefits
More specifically then, why exactly might you opt for a box mod over a more conventional vape-style e-cig device?
- Longer battery life – because of their greater internal space, box mods can contain more batteries, with many of their commercially produced versions taking one or two batteries and larger ones carrying as many as four separate batteries; the more batteries a mod contains the higher its wattage capability, the longer it’ll keep going between charging its batteries and, thus, the better the overall performance
- Bigger and better clouds – More wattage and better performance inevitably results in increased vapour production per hit, which means bigger and bigger clouds; just consider the fact sub ohm box mods are capable of working at as much as 300w and so can generate room-filling clouds within in just two ‘hits’
- More control – thanks to their featuring sophisticated circuit boards, today’s commercial ecig mods are fitted with an array of settings, enabling vapers to tailor them according to specific preferences so each device will provide a perfect hit, every single time.
Regulated vs. unregulated
One significant way in which box mods can be classified is in terms of whether they’re regulated or unregulated. Regulated mods contain regulated circuit boards, which ensure the device can’t be fired (the coil’s wick heating up the e-liquid to create vapour) should it malfunction. Because of this important feature, many rookie vapers prefer to purchase and use a regulated mod owing to this inbuilt control feature, as it means the onus isn’t all the time on the user to monitor the device’s safety.
Alternatively, though, as they become more experienced, many vapers like to experiment and innovate and, to be able to do this, the box mod itself needs to be more flexible and able to allow the user themselves more control over features and settings; such devices then are referred to as unregulated mods.
Capable of much customisation then, such mods tend to be simple in their construction, often featuring just a battery, an atomiser and general housing to contain components. In contrast to their regulated counterparts, there’s no inbuilt safety that guarantees they can’t be fired due to malfunction, but they often enable the loading of an unlimited number of batteries (or, at least, as many as will fit in the housing), which means a user can turn them into a seriously potent vaping machine; capable of much power and superior ‘cloud chasing’ possibilities!