In this review, I will tell you about a very decent kit from the Artery vapor company with the bee name HIVE.
The Chinese company Artery Vapor produces mostly rather controversial and sometimes strange devices, among which, however, there are quite good box mods (see reviews of the Pal Mini Pod, Nugget X Kit, Lady Q Kit, Nugget V2 Kit). I had not previously encountered Artery products and having started my acquaintance with HIVE, I was not disappointed. The branded AERO CHIP showed itself on the good side in operation and pleased with a couple of interesting and useful features. Although it has a few controversial points.
Artery HIVE 200 KIT – packaging
Artery HIVE 200 KIT is sold in a white cardboard box with a very simple design. On the front side there is only the company logo and the name of the mod under a hexagonal window through which the device itself is visible. vape australia online Just below is a sticker with the inscription “Powered by AERO CHIP Flavor Mode Featured”, which hides exactly the same inscription, but with an error. On the back of the package there are warnings about use, a sticker with an authenticity verification code, a scattering of certificates and the inscription “Made in China”.
What’s in the box
Inside, in white foam plastic, there is the mod itself, a complete tank, glass with an inserted spare evaporator and a box with a charging cable.
Artery HIVE 200 KIT – delivery set
Just below you can find two instructions in several languages, including Russian, an advertisement for AERO CHIP, a warranty card, a certificate of internal control and a bag with spare O-rings.
Artery HIVE 200 KIT – spare parts and replacement evaporators
Replacement evaporators from Artery are made on a vertical grid and are made in a unique design, you most likely will not be able to replace them with other models. In defense, I can note that these maintenance-free tanks with a resistance of 0.14 Ohms are both tasty and powerful, especially if you do not go beyond the recommended power limits of 50-90 watts.
Artery HIVE TANK. Design
The appearance of the HIVE tank is practically no different from most maintenance-free tanks on the market. The kit includes two glasses, a regular one and a pot-bellied one, there is a top fill and a blowing adjustment ring at the bottom. Of the design delights, there are only the inscriptions ARTERY and HIVE.
I’ll start with adjusting the airflow, which is done by turning the ring with holes at the bottom of the tank. The seals under the ring are quite tight, it won’t turn accidentally, but there are no limiters inside either, you can rotate it 360 degrees, and for greater convenience, there are small recesses on both sides of each hole that improve grip with your fingers.
Artery HIVE 200 KIT – installing a drip tip
The drip tip in the HIVE tank is made using an O-ring-less scheme in the 810 format, it sits tightly, although it looks slippery. Personally, I am skeptical about Resin materials, their appearance is too garish, but many people like it. If you support a similar desire for minimalism, the drip tip can be easily changed to any other, fortunately, the absolutely flat platform at the top of the tank allows you to do this with almost no restrictions.
Artery HIVE 200 KIT – connector
Around the 510 connector there are two standard signs confirming the possibility of selling the device in the EU countries and prohibiting throwing it away with household waste. Below is the serial number, and above is information about the manufacturer. The positive pin in the connector cannot be adjusted, it is made according to a sliding scheme, but protrudes enough to use the evaporator not only on boards, but also in mechanical mods with a hybrid connector.
Artery HIVE 200 KIT – filling cap and holes
The upper part of the tank is the filling cap and contains from the inside, in addition to the sealing o-rings, also a couple of small grooves for air drainage when tightening. On the side of the tank there are two huge holes for filling the liquid, and they are located below the level of the steam pipe, which means that accidentally “overfilling” the tank will not be so easy.
Artery HIVE 200 MOD. Design
A brief overview of the appearance of the Artery HIVE 200 MOD is a brick. However, it is a brick with beveled edges, which adds convenience during use. Unlike another popular “brick”, in this one the controls and screen are not left on the thin side edge, but in most cases are located on the front surface, on the side there is only the Fire button and a microUSB port for charging and firmware. The front side is covered with a decorative panel (resin or carbon) with a hexagonal transparent plastic insert, behind which there is a color screen, and two control buttons under it. I can’t say anything about the carbon version, I haven’t held it in my hands, and the resin has a soft-touch effect and is very tactilely pleasant. The screen, as it seemed to me, although plastic, is covered with an oleophobic composition, it collects fingerprints, but is easy to clean.
On the battery compartment cover there is another hexagon of the same size as the screen, in which a stylized image of a bee can be guessed, and the rest of the surface is covered with thin diagonal stripes. At first glance, such a design seems gaudy, but in real life the mod feels harmoniously integral.
In addition to its compact size, the mod pleases with its low weight, because its main elements are made of aluminum alloy and plastic. After installing the batteries, the device becomes more “weighty” and is no longer perceived as an “incomprehensible little box”. All three buttons are pressed with a quiet but distinct click of the tact switches under them, they do not rattle at all either when pressed or when vigorously shaken.
On the upper end there is only a 510 steel connector with a spring-loaded brass pin, a metal washer is installed on top of it. A pair of sealing rings, placed both in the connector itself and between it and the outer washer, protect against liquid leaks inside. The maximum diameter of the evaporator that can be installed on the Artery HIVE 200 MOD is 24 millimeters, anything larger will hang over the bevels on the edges of the mod.
Artery HIVE 200 KIT. Personal impressions
What I liked
Tasty tank
Nice and small mod
Hexagonal screen
Preheat settings
What is simply good
Temperature control
Different types of mod locks
Two types of glass for the tank
Convenient tank filling
What is controversial
Choice of flavor profile
Perhaps the board overstates the power indicators
What could have been better
Small choice of mod color solutions
No “stealth” mode
Small play in the battery compartment cover
Replaceable evaporators of a unique format
Total
Artery HIVE 200 MOD turned out to be a surprisingly convenient and pleasant mod in all respects, and the complete tank is tasty and practical to use. Most of all, I was upset by the “own” format of the evaporators in the tank, but there are no special complaints about the mod at all. The price of the kit on the BuyBest website at the time of writing the review was slightly above $70, which in my opinion is quite decent for the declared functionality of the device. If you don’t like Drag, but need a practical and compact mod for two 18650 batteries, HIVE can be a great solution to the problem.
