VOOPOO DRAG M100S Kit Review: Test Results Are In

VOOPOO DRAG M100S

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Product intro and specs

The DRAG M100S kit is the latest kit from VOOPOO. The company burst onto the vape scene with the original DRAG mod which was widely popular and loved due to being an affordable well-built mod that worked well. The DRAG 2 follow-up was a disappointment so they lost some goodwill over time, but still have a large fan base. The DRAG M100S kit is now the latest in the line so we’ll see if it lives up to the original.

The DRAG M100S is a fully-fledged box mod and sub ohm tank kit. It’s nice to see a more advanced device come out, even though they aren’t as popular as they once were. The mod is rated for 100 watts and takes a single 21700 or 20700 battery (or an 18650 with the included adapter). The tank in the kit is the UFORCE-L which I already reviewed in my DRAG 4 kit review about 6 months ago, so I won’t be going into much detail about it in this review. 

Price: $60.99 (at Element Vape)
Colors: Antique brass and padauk, black and darkwood, cyan and blue, silver and black, red and black, pearl white

First impressions

I've had an up-and-down relationship with VOOPOO mods, so I never really know what to expect when reviewing one. With the M100S, I checked for the quality issues I found in the past and this time, thankfully, I found none. I was sent the antique brass and padauk one and I will say that it’s one of the prettiest mods I’ve come across in a while. The brushed bronze look is amazing and reminded me of some older mods I loved, like the Tesla Nano 120 and the bronze SMOANT Battlestar. I wish more companies went with this look. The wood grain panels add a classy touch as well.

Overall, this mod is a looker. Unfortunately, even though it feels solid and well-built, it does suffer from some button rattle. The battery door is easy to use with a small switch on the bottom to open it. Also worth noting is that I was never a fan of the giant “DRAG” logo on the older versions. I found it tacky. Thankfully they have switched to smaller logos in recent editions, and branding is kept minimal in the M100S—at least for VOOPOO’s standards. Overall, I was pretty impressed with the mod itself.

Build quality and design

Holding the DRAG M100S, it really feels like a well-built mod. it is not a super small mod, but it is pretty compact. Barely larger than the battery itself. It’s pretty light but still feels solid. It definitely feels like it could take some accidental damage and keep ticking.

The fire button is a simple circle on the top front of the mod. Below the fire button is the screen and below that the up and down buttons as well as a programmable lock slider which is a feature I love. The mod features a large color screen that’s clear and bright. They don’t list a size, but it appears to be around one inch.

It doesn't look like a typical DRAG mod at all. It’s much more rounded and comfy to hold. I’ve seen this style before in single-21700 battery mods and it’s a great design. The 510 pin is somewhat centered but a little more towards the back than the front. The UFORCE-L tank, which is 25.5 mm in diameter, fits great on it and looks like it’s made for the mod. Likely a 26 mm tank is the max you can go without overhang. The battery door is a hinge door style on the bottom. There is a button release to open it on the bottom that works well.

There are five color options in total. Three that don’t have panels and are just a solid color design, and two with wood panels that look classy. The one I got for review in my opinion is the best looking one of all.

Overall, it’s a great-looking and well-built mod, but there is some button rattle so I’ll have to ding them for that.

Features and functions

The DRAG M100S comes with quite a few modes: three power modes and four temp control modes. The industry has seemed to shift away from temp control and more complicated mods in favor of simpler mods, pods, and AIOs, so it is nice to still see some companies including temp control on mods for the vapers that still use it.

For the power modes, you have RBA, Eco, and Smart. RBA is your standard power mode. Eco is supposed to save battery life but the only way to do that is to vape less or lower power output, so it doesn't make much sense. And Smart just locks in a watt range based on resistance so you can’t overpower or underpower the coils by too much. Honestly, none of that is needed. They should have just gone with the RBA mode and added preheat options and a watt curve mode instead.

For temp control mode they have Ni, Ti, SS316, and SS430. Nickel and titanium have died down in vaping usage these days, so really just SS316, SS430 and a custom TCR would have been fine. Still, it does have power mode and TC mode for SS so it has the basics needed.

One of my favorite features is the lock slider right below the screen. You can slide it left and right. Right locks it and left unlocks it. Via the menu, you can choose what it locks with the options. There are three in total: you can lock just the adjustment buttons but can still fire, completely lock the mod so it can't fire or be adjusted, or make it an on-off switch without having to do the five clicks. I like using it as a full lock to pocket the device without worries about it firing or having to turn it off. Lock sliders are great and really should become a standard on mods but for now. It’s a great feature that not many mods have.

Using the DRAG M100S

The DRAG M100S is a pretty typical mod as far as usage goes. Basic operations are as follows:

In the menu you can adjust the mode, program the lock slider, reset your puffs, and change the screen color. There are five options: classic, green, yellow, purple, and pink. The screen displays the wattage, a puff counter, a battery meter with percentage, a puff timer, resistance, and voltage output.

Power mode performance

Testing on this mod was done with Samsung 30T batteries. They only list two max outputs; watts at 100 and volts at 8.5. Amps aren’t listed on their site or in the manual, unfortunately.

During my testing, the max achieved wattage was 94, so solid rating at 100 watts. It’s close enough. The amp limit I got was 25 with a 0.15-ohm coil. It could be higher, but I can’t confirm that and will explain why shortly. Still, 25 is decent for a single-battery mod.

The volt limit I got was 7.465 with a 0.6-ohm coil but I also hit the watt limit so could be a little higher. It does prove that there is a boost circuit, so voltage shouldn’t be an issue and I'm good with the 8.5V rating. Overall, in power (RBA) mode, it does an ok job at a 0.15-ohm resistance or higher. It does output a little high though, about 10-20%, probably to cater to the “hit harder” feel some vapers like to talk about. I prefer accuracy, and it’s still accurate enough to pass, but in usage, you should start at a lower wattage with a new coil and then dial it up based on feel.

Now the issue with the amps. I can only review what I’m physically sent so what I will mention here is based on the specific device they sent me. My mod won’t read any build below 0.15-ohm build correctly. It just reads it at 0.15 ohm instead of what it is. I tried several test builds between 0.1 and 0.12 ohm and they all read 0.15 ohm. To verify, I checked with my meter, my custom DNA250c mod, and my SX mini V2, so two premium mods and a meter. All three read the test builds the same and correctly, but the DRAG M100S read them at 0.15 ohm, so I couldn’t do a lower watt testing.

VOOPOO lists the resistance range of the mod down to 0.05 ohm so that wasn’t accurate for me. So due to the resistance reading issue, I’m going to have to fail this mod in the performance section. You can see the full test results above.

There is no passthrough vaping, which is odd. As far as the charge rate goes, they list it at 5V/2.5A. Most chargers people use are 2A, so anything at or above 2A is good for me. I didn’t run a test on this though because of the time I spent doing the performance test and the issues I had with that. Of course, the actual charge time will depend on your batteries and it’s always just better to use an external charger and swap out batteries and not worry about charging in mod or waiting.

Temperature control performance

In TC mode, I tested with SS316 wire and didn’t have much luck. I don’t know if it’s tied to the resistance issue I spoke of earlier, but the performance is quite pulse-y and doesn't give a good vape. Using a 60-watt coil, the device never managed to power it properly to produce any meaningful vapor. You are limited to 80 watts, but it’s not a true 80. With the 60-watt test coil for example, I got a 58-watt max, but it was pulse-y up and down. So, overall, I need to fail this mod for temp performance as well.

Pros / Cons

Gallery

Verdict

Overall, the DRAG M100S is a beautiful mod. But like in life, looks can only get you so far. Due to the issues I had with the resistance reading and the performance for power and temp mode, it’s not a mod I can personally recommend.

It could be an isolated issue with the device they sent me—which is why companies should always send at least two devices for testing—or it could be a chipset limitation. If it is the latter, I guess most people won’t notice since most sub ohm coils come with a resistance higher than 0.15 ohm. But still, I need to give it an "F" in my performance testing.

Let me know how you feel in the comments below!

VOOPOO DRAG M100S