VOOPOO ARGUS A Review: Two Screens and Great Pods!

Product intro and specs

The ARGUS A is the latest entry in VOOPOO's popular pod line. It is marketed as a more advanced pod with lots of features, and comes with what they call "dual-zone display"—which means that it has two screens. VOOPOO has really made some excellent pod systems, especially on their ARGUS line of pods which has something for everyone's needs and budgets. As a bonus, all ARGUS devices use the same pod line, which has proven to be really good.

The ARGUS A is made for MTL to RDL vaping. Its internal battery is listed at 1100 mAh and includes the new 0.7-ohm and 0.4-ohm top-fill pods, which have a 3 mL capacity. The ARGUS line of pods currently comprises six options (including the 2 mL versions) and a pod that takes four replaceable coils. 

ARGUS pod systems are typically a safe bet to buy, so let's see if the A keeps that streak going. 

Price: $28.88 (at Eight Vape)
Colors: Phantom black, storm silver, pearl white, crystal pink, azure blue, phantom red, phantom purple, racing green

Build quality and design

The ARGUS A is not a tiny device, but it's small enough to easily fit in your pocket. It also comes with a lanyard to wear around your neck. It features two color screens and has adjustable wattage as well as two preset modes. The side of the pod features an air slider, allowing adjustments from a tight MTL to a restricted DL. The device also has an on/off slider, which is a very practical feature. It looks very futuristic compared to more basic pods and it feels really well-built and solid in the hand.

They offer eight colors in total: six solid colors and two that fade from one color to another (azure blue and phantom purple). The ARGUS logo is etched into the body, so it blends in nicely with the device. The finish is great, but it showed some signs of wear from the drops it suffered while testing. I will deduct a couple of points for that, but the design is top-notch.

Getting started

The ARGUS A is an advanced pod system that can also be used by beginners. It’s an inhale-to-fire vape, but also has a fire button, modes, and settings. My favorite addition is the on/off switch, which is just a slider. Makes it really easy to use. It also has haptic feedback (vibration). 

There are two screens on the front of the device. The upper screen shows the mode you are in, resistance, and a puff counter, while the lower screen is mostly for the animations built into the device and the battery percentage. 

Above the top screen, there are two LEDs. One is the VOOPOO logo, and the other is six pips around the top like a speedometer design that goes up the longer you vape.

Click the fire button two times to turn the screens on/off, and click five times to go into the menu. In the menu, you can lock the device (which turns off the fire button so it’s only inhale-to-fire,) check usage history, reset the puff counter, or change modes. You click the button to cycle through the menu and hold it to accept.

Under "Modes," you have three options. Eco, which is a low-wattage preset based on the coil, Super, which is a higher-wattage preset based on the coil, and Power, which lets you adjust manually from 5-30 watts in one-watt increments. 

To adjust the power while in power mode, tap the fire button three times. Then, you can click or hold to scroll and wait a couple of seconds to lock it in. Also, anytime you insert a coil, the screen tells you the recommended wattage, which is a great feature.

On the opposite side of the power button, there is an air slider that lets you adjust from a tight MTL to a restricted DL. The A is made for MTL vaping with most pods, but it can be used with the 0.4-ohm pods to do a restricted DL vape.

The included pods are labeled as “top fill,” but they are actually side-fill pods. Filling can be done while the pod is still in the device. The pods are magnetic and just pop in and out with little effort. They are pretty much fully visible (about 95%,) but they are slightly tinted, so you do need some light to check juice levels.

Performance

The ARGUS A uses the same pods as the rest of the ARGUS line, so there really aren’t any surprises here. It’s more of a continuity test. I’ve used these pods a lot and they’ve always been good. Thankfully, unlike the G2 Mini, the A comes with two pods (both top-fill), one of which is the 3 mL version of 0.7-ohm pod, and the other is the 3 mL version of the 0.4-ohm pod.

I really liked both pods it comes with. I used it as a loose MTL vape (about halfway on the slider) with the 0.7-ohm pod and an RDL vape (fully open) with the 0.4-ohm pod. I would say that the 0.7-ohm pod is my favorite of the line. I get good flavor and good coil life and it works like you’d expect from a pod system. The 0.4-ohm can be used under 20 watts but shines when used a little higher. However, that could be a bit harsh for high-nicotine users. Either way, you get to try both and decide for yourself. Overall I am very happy with the performance of this device and the included pods.

Battery life and charging

The ARGUS A is advertised as lasting three days, but that’s probably more accurate for light vapers; I’ll never get three days on any device because I vape too much. That’s one of the reasons battery life shouldn’t be measured in days, but using objective measurements. 

The internal battery is listed at 1100 mAh, so the battery is a little smaller than the G2 Mini but it’s a good capacity for a device its size. They list the charge rate at 5V/2A and claim a 0-100% charge in 40 minutes. The port is USB-C and it’s located on the side, below the on/off slider. 

When I see specs like this, I expect at least 880 mAh and a charge rate of 1.75A or higher as most companies round up by around 20% for various reasons. So I'll only ding companies for being worse than expectations.

I tested all this, and for the max charge rate I got 1.80A, which is a pass. Charging time was about 35 minutes, which is excellent since most pods charge in 30-60 minutes. For battery capacity, I got around 904 mAh usable. That fits into my expectations, so no complaint there either. It does have passthrough vaping, and I'm glad they added it to their recent devices after not having it in a few of their older ones. Overall, very happy with battery capacity, charge rate, and listed specs.

Pros / Cons

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