Vaporesso Luxe PM40 Pod Reviewed

Welcome back, today I’ve got another POD device for you all to check out. Yes I know, another POD, but this is a little step up, and puts out some fantastic flavour for such a small beast!

We’ve all heard of Vaporesso, they’re a pretty big name in the vaping industry, and have successfully brought product after product out to the joy of vapers everywhere. They’re the guys responsible for the Gen, the Swag, the XROS, the Zero, the Revenger, and many more.

We’ve seen a POD device just like this, actually you may have seen similar from a few different brands, but let’s see what Vaporesso have done differently, and how they’ve improved on what others have brought to market!

Let’s take a look at the Vaporesso Luxe PM40 Pod!!

Big thanks goes to Vaporesso for sending this directly through to me for review!

Photos

General Info

Vaporesso’s new Luxe PM40 Pod takes on a familiar form factor and basic shape. We’ve seen it before in the Smok Nord as well as several other ‘thicker’ POD vapes from various companies, but Vaporesso have stepped things up a notch with their latest offering, with not only variable wattage and large screen, but also adjustable airflow, and leak-proof design.

The Luxe PM40, just as the name eludes to is good for a maximum of 40 Watts, and boasts an 1800mah internal battery, with adjustable airflow, USB Type-C Charge port with a 2Amp charge rate, a 0.69″ OLED screen, and of course adjustable wattage.

The Vaporesso Luxe PM40 comes in 4 fancy colours. Black, Silver, Carbon Fibre, Lava and Jade, all with quite the gloss finish, with a really nice build quality and form factor.

The Body

The Luxe PM80 falls in at approximately 96x30x21mm, which is quite small, with a lovely ergonomic to it, so it feels really nice in the hand. It has some nicely rounded edges, with the front and back plastic panels purely for design, while the frame around the edge, made from a zinc alloy I suspect, is the main structural part of the device.

It’s of a 2 piece design with clip in PODs that sit inside of a recess on the main body.

As you can see I received the Black and Silver versions, both with a rainbow reflection type of finish to them that gives them a really stylish and expensive look.

Let’s run through the main body from top to bottom. Obviously you’ll have the POD recess at the top of the device, with your typical 2 plated spring loaded pins. From inside this recess you’ll be able to see the adjustable airflow mechanism that takes on the form of push/pull plastic ribbon that opens and closes the airflow holes on either side of the body.

The airflow adjustment slider is on the back face of the body, giving left to right movement of the ‘sliding switch’.

On the front, Vaporesso have given us quite a big oval shaped chamfered fire button.

On one of the edges, you’ll see the TFT display, with USB Type-C Charge port further down toward the bottom of the body.

The PODs & Coils

You’ll get 2 pods included in the kit, which is a nice touch (always great to have an additional POD). They are of push in design and clip into place with a small ‘snap’. They are easily removed by levering in a sideway’s motion. The PODs are made of clear plastic, which is nice to see, this helps you see your eliquid level at all times (no need to put it in front of a light to see through any tint)

Up top they have a black duck bill mouth piece that unclips by levering it from front to back, just like the Uwell Caliburn, and in a similar vein, also has a similar silicone covered fill port with pressure release hole on the other side for filling.

Underneath, Vaporesso GTX coils are pushed home, where they sit cleanly, with the airflow chamber separated from the outside of the POD making for a leak proof (well as close as can be) design.
If you look closely at the sides, you can actually see the 2 airflow holes on either side of the pod that line up with the airflow holes in the body of the device. This lets air into a chamber, rather than from simply underneath the coil like many others do. A very interesting way of doing it, and it actually works quite well.

The Luxe PM40 takes Vaporesso GTX coils and you’ll get two different coils in the kit. To be honest, the only real difference between these coils is the Wattage limits and a little bit more airflow on the 0.6ohm coil, otherwise they’re very similar. Obviously the 0.8ohm is going to be better at a lower wattage and higher nicotine eliquid, so is perfect for salts, where the 0.6ohm more suited for an open MTL through to DTL vaping with lower nicotine salts or freebase nicotine.

Both coils pack a lot of flavour, and last for quite a long time. They’re still going strong after 2 weeks with me!

• GTX 0.6ohm Mesh Coil (20-30W)
• GTX 0.8ohm Mesh Coil (12-20W)

Airflow

The adjustable airflow on the Luxe PM40 puts it firmly in front of many other PODs as far as features go, and it’s a rather interesting implementation too.

Adjusting the airflow slider, left or right, opens and closes the airflow via a plastic ribbon that wraps around the inside of the POD recess. You don’t actually see it but it’s there. Because this ‘ribbon’ for lack of a better turn, seems to need to turn a corner as it slides, this airflow control can be a little difficult to adjust, and you’ll need to put a little muscle into it.

Curiously, also only one side has 2 airflow slots, with the other side only having the one. Perhaps this was done to further restrict the airflow so that it wasn’t too airy, but just quietly, I would have liked to see that opened up giving the user the option rather than restricting them.

The air comes through these slots into a dedicated air chamber in the inserted POD, and then up through the coil. If you get a chance, have a good look at it, it’s quite interesting, and a really good design for limiting leaking.

This airflow might be a little unusual, but it does work and works well, offering you anywhere between, a tight MTL style vape right through to a restricted direct to lung inhale.

Battery

As I mentioned earlier, the PM40 comes with an inbuilt 1800mah battery, not the largest in the world, but it works well for this sized device, without adding too much weight to it.

Vaporesso have put a fast charge USB Type-C port near the bottom of the device for quick charging so, you’ll be good to go again in a short period of time if you run out of battery. It does feature pass-through charging, so you can vape while the device is charging too, which is always nice.

Filling

Filling is simple, but getting to the fill port, not so much (well, until you get the hang of it of course) The top duckbill drip tip is removable and hidden underneath is your fill port.
Some will have some trouble removing this drip tip, but to be honest once you know how it’s done it’s never an issue. A quick and easy way to remove the black drip tip is, while the POD is still in the device, hold your thumb against the black drip tip and push toward the back, like you’re trying to snap the black section off. It will come off pretty easily doing it that way. No real effort required.

Once you’ve removed the cap, fill your POD from the side that has the small black silicone cap, by pushing your eliquid nozzle into it and start filling. Air pressure will release from the other small hole in the top of the POD as you go, so that you don’t make a mess everywhere.

When you’re done click the black drip tip back into place and you’re good to go.

Any Leaks?

None, the no leak design of the PM40 Pods works really well, I haven’t even noticed any condensation at all.

Usage

Using the PM40 for vaping is simple. Hit the fire button and you’re vaping away! That’s right, you actually have to use the button to fire the device. The PM40 does look likely something that might come with an autodraw function, and I’m not sure why they didn’t think of it. I won’t take any marks off for this though, since that feature is something that’s more or less a nicety rather than required. Something to think about for future devices though. An autodraw that can be turned off via the menu for Pod devices would definitely be a great option!

The interface for the PM40 is quite simple, and really only has one feature, and that’s the variable wattage.

One thing of note is the “Turbo Boost Tech” on the Luxe PM40.
This tech says that it maintains wattage without any ups or downs, until you get to about 30% of the battery. Sort of a battery sag limiter.
It seems to work, and I’ve had no noticeable drop off in power until I get to the lower ranges of the battery life. In short it provides a more consistant power output. I think we’re all on board for that right!

As I mentioned, the PM40’s interface is pretty straight forward, you’ve only got the one button, so there’s not much to it.

• Power On/Off = Press Fire button 5 times within 2 seconds
• Unlock = Press Fire Button 3 times in quick succession.
• Lock = Device locks automatically after 5 seconds of inactivity
• Adjust Wattage = Unlock the device, the screen will start to flash, press fire button to move up in wattage (hold to move fast), wattage circles round from 40w to 5w
• Start Vaping = press fire button
  
  

Pros:

• Small form factor
• Comfortable to hold and use
• Great adjustable airflow
• Excellent flavour
• Zero leaking
• Battery lasts a decent amount of time
• Stylish design
• Easy to see eliquid level
  

Cons:

• I can see some having difficulties getting to the fill port
• Battery could last longer
  
  

Where to Buy:

You can pick up the Luxe PM40 directly through Vaporesso’s online store for around about $42 USD, which is on the expensive side, but the prices on that store are always a bit higher, you’ll likely pick this up cheaper from other online stores that stock Vaporesso products, or try your local, they’ll likely be getting them in.

Conclusion

All in all the Luxe PM40 is a little impressive unit. I love that it’s comfortable to use, and has excellent flavour for a lower wattage pod device. I love the fact that it is leak-proof, and find it quite interesting how they’ve done it too, separating out the pod with it’s own little air chamber, so that e-liquid cannot find it’s way out through the bottom of the coil.

Adjustable airflow, consistant power output, USB Type C charging, all get a big tick of approval.

I think Vaporesso have done a great job on this and definitely stepped up from what other manufacturers have fallen a little short on with the Luxe PM40. Excellent work Vaporesso!

Shane Presser

Shane Presser has been vaping since 2013, and has extensive experience with advanced equipment, coil builds and DIY mixing. He is the man behind VapersGarage, and also more recently Aussie Vape Stores, a resource to help vapers find their nearest Vape Shops, and eLiquid Vendors.