Vandy Vape Jackaroo Pod Review by Simon

Health Cabin have kindly sent the Vandy Vape Jackaroo Pod Kit to be reviewed. So let’s get started the Vandy Vape Jackaroo Pod Review.

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For some reason I’ve never really considered a pod system from Vandy Vape, so I was keen to see what I was missing out on when Health Cabin offered me the Jackaroo 70W kit to review.

Though I don’t really see anything innovative, I can see Vandy Vape have put a lot of work into refining their design to make the Jackaroo quite the all-rounder from DL to MTL.

As you can see from the list, there are plenty of features packed into this kit and it ticks a lot of boxes for me, the 2000mAh battery, the water/shock/dust-proofing, 4.5ml pod, and a decent 1.5amp charging stood out mostly.

Unboxing

The Jackaroo 70W Pod Kit comes in a two piece box; an outer sleeve with a sturdy and well packed inner box.

The bundle is fairly standard but the inclusion of an extra MTL drip tip is nice. There’s a little spanner to help you change the coil which proved invaluable, the USB-C cable is a little bit short but adequate.

Judging by the two different coils and 510 drip-tips, it became evident that the Jackaroo offered both DL and MTL capabilities. Usually I find a lot of devices that aren’t specifically aimed at one type of vaping rarely excel at both, Jack(aroo) of all trades – master of none as it were. Time would tell if this kit would surprise me.

First impressions

The Jackaroo is deceptively small. Without looking at the size specs, I was expecting something larger and it kind of looks big in the pictures so it was pleasing to see how compact it was in the hand, despite having a large 4.5ml capacity pod and a decent 2000mah battery.

The most striking thing was the rubber coating which is extremely grippy and moulded to be ergonomic, the whole thing feels really sturdy and the various environmental protections should prove popular for anyone that spends a lot of time outdoors or needs a durable vape.

Surprisingly the USB-C port is exposed, so I’m a little dubious how waterproof this kit is. Without stripping it all down I can’t really check on how well it is sealed internally so I’m just going to have to take their word on it for now.

The side panels are nice quality and give the Jackaroo some style though they ever so slightly protrude which feels a little hard in your hand. On the controls side, there is a decent screen. I really like how clear all the information is, the layout is spot on and one of the easiest to read I can recall in a pod. Even with my older eyes, I can make out every detail. The only downside is that the plastic screen cover is darkened which makes it near impossible to read in daylight.

The pod is simply impressive, it’s so well thought out and fits like a glove with strong magnets. The adjustable top airflow is just right, a quality seal to it and easy to dial in your preferred airflow, and in theory it should be less prone to leaking.

With the ominous spanner that was included, it soon became apparent that you will need this to replace the press fit coil. I tried to remove it without the spanner but soon gave in. With the spanner it was easy-peasy, and popping in another coil felt very secure.

The drip-tip is quite tight and I had a bit of a game swapping them over, especially the MTL one, a drop of eliquid helps though. The filling port is just right, top-fill with a rubber bung that swivels out of the way. The slot is wide enough for most bottles, and I had no issues at all with airlocks or visibility as the darkened plastic is just right, dark enough to keep its looks but clear enough to easily see your juice level.

I just can’t fault this pod design, it might not look anything special but it has been done so well. The top airflow is superb for a pod, you can have it fully open with dual airflow for a very decent airy DL draw, close it off for any RDL draw with either dual or single airflow. Most surprising for me was closing it almost fully gave me a proper cheek pulling MTL draw – NICE!

Controls

The Jackaroo won’t win any features awards as it is VERY basic and has limited controls, but it is just a pod system which covers the basics; adjustable wattage and locking.

The fire button is really clicky with little travel, the Up/Down button is a little odd in that it is one button on a rocker, less clicky but very responsive and easy to use. The only thing I’ve missed is the ability to read the ohms of your coil, to do this you need to double click the Up/Down button until the ‘New Coil’ option appears and select either the new or old coil. The mod auto-detects your coils resistance and sets the wattage for you at the lower limit, it won’t let you exceed the maximum wattage for the coil to help you prevent dry hits or burning your coil.

Performance

In my mind I had always perceived the Jackaroo as a DL/RDL pod system so I started off with the VCC-30 coil which is 0.3Ω and rated between 30-45 Watts. Starting at 30 Watts using the default DL drip-tip and the airflow fully open, the vape was very impressive, full of flavour and the draw was very airy. Don’t expect a full on airy vape like you would get with a larger tank with large bore coil and 810 drip-tip, but it was still a proper DL vape. Creeping up the wattage, I was very happy with 40 watts as the flavour boosted and was more of a warmer vape which I prefer.

So I had proved my suspicions that this was more of a DL vape kit, or had I? After road testing the 0.3Ω for a few days, I thought I would see what the MTL VCC-90 coil had to offer. 0.9Ω and rated between 9-16 watts, I swapped over the drip-tip to the narrow bore one and that’s when I noticed the dual airflow also has a single airflow slot which can be closed right down to a single hole.

Turns out this little bugger does MTL very well! Though I did find closing the single hole off a bit gave me a proper MTL cheek pulling draw, even at the lowest 9 watt setting I was proper happy with the flavour and warmth. 11 watts was my sweet spot and by this point I had come to the conclusion that the Jackaroo was a jackaroo of all trades and master of all. I was torn at which style I preferred, to the point where I felt I needed a 2nd pod so I could have both options.

Battery life was decent, I almost had a full day in DL configuration and the best part of 2 days in MTL. Charging was reasonable, it took around an hour and twenty minutes from around 30% which is fine for the 2000mAh capacity. 1.5amp charging is probably a wise and safe option for a kit this size.

One thing had been nagging me of what the Jackaroo reminded me of, the Geekvape Aegis Boost original, so I dug it out to compare. I was surprised how similar they were in size and how they felt in the hand, but the similarities ended there. The Jackaroo was just better in almost every way, better screen, better vape, better battery life, much better pod and airflow, and most importantly it doesn’t piss the bed as the Boost always did. To compare the two wouldn’t be a fair fight and I haven’t tried the newer versions of the Boost, all I know is that my Boost will now be permanently retired.

Conclusion

The Jackaroo isn’t a game-changer by any means but what it is, is a superb and refined all-rounder vape kit and with the promise of an RDA pod coming out for the Jackaroo, I can see me getting a lot of use from this kit.

Vandy Vape’s attention to detail and product testing really stands out on this kit, there’s no area where I felt ‘that’ll do’ was accepted. I might find a couple of niggles but there’s no cons that shout out at me.

Pros

• Compact and comfortable
• Decent 2000mAh battery
• Pod design is spot on
• Effective airflow control from MTL to DL
• Durability

Cons (Niggles perhaps)

• Screen is too dark for bright outdoors light
• Side panels slightly protrude

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This review was written by Vapaneezer Scrooge-Simon from POTV, click to view original review there with more detailed photos.