Smoke 51 Scam
Two years ago, I walked into my local tobacco store with a big smile and bursting with excitement to buy my first electronic cigarette starter kit. I had done minimal research of e-cigarettes and decided to make this purchase on a stupid impulse. The owner of the store pointed me toward the only two brands he had; Smoke 51 and some other brand. He was the nicest man, explaining things to me and strongly advising me to go with Smoke 51. Being a naive 20 year old, I believe his advice was honest and unbiased. Of course he only wanted the best starter kit for me to switch from tobacco to electronic cigarette smoking, right?
I tried: Smoke Fifty One Trio Standard Starter Kit — $129.95
They also have some higher end options like the Smoke Fifty One Duo Standard Starter Kit ($149.95)
The Smoke 51 Standard Electronic Cigarette Starter Kit was easily the worst starter kit I’ve ever reviewed. Beyond the insulting attempt to make you feel exclusive with their “Smoke 51 Membership Card”, this starter kit had no redeeming aspects to distinguish it from the most basic starter kits on the market.
The battery doesn’t ever last more than an hour or 200 puffs and I felt like a fish out of water trying to draw any vapor from the cartomizer. The connection on the larger of the two batteries in the kit had a jacked up connection and couldn’t even connect with the cartomizers or produce vapor. I didn’t even bother cashing in my warranty.
Contents of the Smoke 51 E-Cig Starter Kit
I ripped open my new starter kit to find all of these fascinating new tools and devices! Unfortunately, I would soon discover that this starter kit was not only as basic as they come, but grossly overprices. I had paid almost $130 for the kit and to this day I regret that purchase more than any other.
The kits came with two batteries (one standard and one long), 5 4-mg strength cartomizers and a wall charger. Not even a basic carrying case or a USB charger. Now that I know my way around an e Cig Starter Kit, I can’t believe I was stupid enough to purchase this product.
Overview
The Smoke 51 scam e-cigarette is a basic 2-piece style miniature model, standard kr808d-1 makeup. But unlike Smokeless Image and V2, who have improved upon the stock products shipped from overseas to make actually quality e-cigs, Smoke 51 scam strategy is to simply repackages the drop-shipped Chinese-made products into a chintzy black box and pawns them off as a good, cheap e cig starter kit.
Vapor Production
To get even a small cloud of vapor from this 2-piece e-cigarette, I had to pull on it like a drowning scuba-diver on his partner’s oxygen tank. The one time I tried to use this in public, I was sitting in class during a break and excited to show off my new goodie. I went to inhale and found myself looking like some sort of drug addict sucking on little container that hid my drugs in it. I puffed and puffed away and then out came this tiny little wisp of vapor. I went out and bought a pack of tobacco cigarettes right after the lecture ended.
Battery Life
Well, since one of the batteries in the kit was broken from the start, I learned a lot about the battery life of Smoke 51′s standard e-cigarette. It’s very short. It would last me no more than 200 puffs before I had to plug it into the charger and wait. There is no way this battery is more than one of the original 180mAH batteries. The good e-cigarettes these days are measuring in above 250mAH to give you a reference.
Cartomizers and Add-Ons
After I exhausted the 5-pack of 4mg cartomizers that came with the starter kit, I went back to the store and bought another 5-pack; this time it was 12mg strength, their “highest strength”. Now that I have seen 24mg and even 36mg cartomizers, I can’t believe I believed the guy working at the counter when he told me that. The store didn’t have any flavors besides basic tobacco, though on their website they have more flavor selection.
The cartomizers were the reason the vapor production was so low, they were the ancient type of cartomizer with the single-coil heating rod that has long been extinct.
Appearance
Not only was the performance just completely lacking, but the design and appearance of Smoke 51′s e-cigarrete was just plain uninspired. The battery was straight white with orange cartomizers and a red LED tip. In short, it was an electronic version of tobacco cigarettes, complete with imitation fire-safety rings and everything. No options like a cool black battery or a blue LED tip like you find in almost every other brand.
Price
This is the worst aspect of all. I paid $129.95 for a kit that I could have gotten from Smokeless Image for $29.99, and I would have gotten a ton more vapor too.
I was ripped off by the tobacco store owner who receives 51% commissions on these starter kits. I am so angry at this brand that I don’t even want to comment on how they named their brand based on their offer to sketchy retailers for huge commissions.
From the 51% commision outrage to the god-awful lifespan of their cartridges and batteries; claims of the Smoke 51 scam are certainly true.
If you haven’t gleaned this from anything I’ve said so far…please do not buy this brand. Go back to the homepage and find a much better and cooler option!
