Honest review time: The Kizoku Techmod

One of my favorite form factors for any device is the classic side by side, a layout which stores the battery beside the atomizer as opposed to below it. Just recently I reviewed a side by side released from Aspire in partnership with Sunbox that I thought was pretty impressive. Well over the holidays I received a new one from Heavengifts.com and I have to say it’s quite possibly my favorite side by side to date. It’s called the Kizoku Techmod and here’s a quick look at it!

Package contents:

1 xKizoku Techmod
1 xUSB Type-C cable
1 xUser manual
1 xWarranty card
1 xWarning card

Listed features and specs:

Size:78 x 49 x 24mm
Material:SS304 + Zinc Alloy
Screen:0.91"
Charging:Type-C
Output voltage:3.2-4.2V
Battery:18650
Wattage range:0-80W
Input voltage/current:5V/2A

Packaging and contents:

The kit comes very simply packed in a black and grey cardboard box with an image of the kit on the front and a listing of the specs, features, contents and company info can be found on the back. In the kit you only really get a couple things, the Techmod and a USB Type-C cable. You also get a user manual, warranty card and a warning card but basically this kit expects you to already own a compatible atomizer.

The mod:

In my opinion the Kizoku Techmod is all kinds of sexy but I’ll try and keep this as unbiased as I can. It’s made with a combination of 304 stainless steel and zinc alloy so it feels really solid in hand and has a decent weight to it. The combination of materials also gives it a pretty interesting look and I particularly like how they gave it a slight slant and use an exposed battery tube in their design. At the top the battery compartment is secured using a threaded cap that has large kidney shaped holes running clear through it so the bottom of your battery is essentially exposed. Some may cry safety concerns but it’s not the first time we’ve seen a design like this and so long as you keep it dry I think it should be relatively safe. Working down the back of the device the exposed battery tube has the name Kizoku beautifully engraved in a nice clean and slightly understated way.

Around the front it’s got a solid looking stainless steel 510 connection with a gold plated spring loaded 510 pin. With the side by side design it’ll accommodate atomizers up to 24mm. But depending on the design of your atomizer you might get a bit of overhang if it doesn’t have a taper around the base. I find it looks great with 22mm tanks and pairs perfectly with the Kizoku Limit RTA I reviewed last year around this time. It was a pretty solid MTL RTA and this was the perfect excuse to dust it off and get it back in circulation. They also offer it as a kit with the tank included I believe but I only received the mod.

All of the controls and screen for the device rest on one face of the device with the rounded metallic fire button strategically placed for your thumb to lay over it perfectly, you can also flip it and fire it with your index but using the thumb feels a bit more natural. Towards the bottom is a 0.91″ black and white screen that ‘s surprisingly bright and the two adjustment buttons adjacent. All of the buttons have a nice click and maybe just the slightest rattle if you run your finger over them but nothing that bothers me in anyway. Around the back of the device is a USB Type-C port for charging which it can do at a rate of 5V/2A so it tops up rather quickly depending on the capacity of your battery.

The super bright screen is well laid out and easy to read but unless you are looking at it straight on it can get cut off just a tad. The layout on the screen isn’t just numbers and symbols but also includes a little flair with a white background sort of wrapping the screen. The device fires super fast and up to 80W with all the usual functions and features we expect a modern device to have including POWER, VOLT, BYPASS, Temp-Ni, Temp-Ti and Temp-SS but no TCR or curves that I found. Using it is really straightforward and it operates like most others with five clicks of the fire button to turn it on and off, three clicks will highlight the mode letting you cycle through with the adjustment buttons and using the up/down buttons lets you adjust wattage or temp, while pressing both will lock the adjustment buttons. If you’re in temp mode you can press fire and up and it will let you adjust the wattage but I didn’t see any way to lock the resistance. Pretty standard stuff and they also advertise the usual safety features like overheat, over current and low-voltage so it should keep you safe in most circumstances.

Overall:

I’ll admit, I’m absolutely taken by this mod. It feels really well made, it’s easy to use, looks incredibly sexy and it suits my style perfectly. Sure the menu and functions are standard fare but it does what I need and it does it in style. With it’s USB Type-C and more comfortable placement of the fire button it has cleanly knocked the Aspire Mixx out of contention for best side by side of last year, at least in my books. I think this one will be more for the enthusiasts who appreciate this classic side by side style but really anyone could pick it up and use it just fine. Easily one of my favorite standalone mods to come out of the dumpster fire we called 2020!

How it adds up
Side by side layoutCompactSolid constructionAesthetics and design (dead sexy!)Ease of useBright screenComfortable button placementUSB Type-C 5V/2A charging
Screen view angle
9.2Overall
Presentation9.5
Build Quality9
Performance9