Chris 'majorvapes' SissonHere’s a look at the latest kit to drop from Aspire. It comes packed with a brand new version of perhaps their most popular tank of all time. The kit is called the Zelos 3 kit but the tank it comes with is called the Nautilus 3. If you’re not familiar with the Nautilus tank and it’s predecessors you probably haven’t been vaping for long. It’s one of the most hailed mouth to lung tanks in the industry and it’s held on to that title for as many years as I’ve been vaping. Here are my honest thoughts on the new Zelos 3 kit from Aspire.
Package contents:
| 1 x | Zelos 3 Mod (3200 mAh) |
|---|---|
| 1 x | Nautilus 3 Tank (4.0 ml) |
| 1 x | Nautilus BVC Coil 1.8Ω |
| 1 x | Nautilus 2S Mesh Coil 0.7Ω |
| 1 x | Spare Glass Tube (4.0 ml) |
| 1 x | Type-C Cable |
| 1 x | Spare Drip Tip |
| 1 x | User Manual |
| 1 x | O-rings Pack |
Listed features and specs:
| Tank capacity: | 4 ml / 2 ml (TPD) |
|---|---|
| Coils: | 1.8Ω (10-14W) / 0.7Ω (20-25W) Compatible with all of the Nautilus series coils |
| Mod Capacity: | 3200 mAh |
| Output modes: | WATT/ VOLTAGE/ BYPASS/ TC/ TCR/ CPS |
| Output wattage range: | 1-80W |
| Output voltage range: | 0.5-8.4V |
| Adjustable temperature range: | 200-600℉/ 100-315℃ |
| Screen: | 0.96” TFT color screen |
| Charging: | Type-C 2A charging port |
| Dimensions: | Mod: 38*28*81 mm Tank: 24*48.5 mm |
Packaging and contents:
I got the standard kit which comes packed in their usual white and orange packaging, an image of the kit on the front and plenty of details on the back. In the kit you get the Zelos 3 equipped with the new Nautilus 3 tank. You also get two different Nautilus style coils, one is a BVC 1.80hm coil while the other is one of their newer 2S Mesh coils rated 0.7ohm. You also get a spare 4ml glass tube, a USB Type-C cable for charging, a spare drip tip, user manual and a small pack of o-rings. Standard stuff but there is also a TPD and CRC version available with TPD being limited to 2ml and the CRC coming with a childproof version of the tank.
The mod:
The Zelos 3 looks nothing like it’s predecessor the original Zelos 50W or the slightly revised Zelos 50W 2.0, instead it has a brand new look that’s almost reminiscent of a Double Barrel mod or something similar with the grip bulging out to accommodate and internal 3200mAh battery. It appears to be mostly made of aluminum and has a decent heft to it but it also has a bit of that hollow tinny sound when tapped. At the top it’s got an embedded stainless steel 510 connection and the mod should accept up to 28mm tanks without overhang. One interesting feature which is located on the very bottom next to some vent holes is a physical on/off switch, a somewhat rare but often appreciated feature. However I will note that it doesn’t just abruptly shut the device on and off as there is a bootup and shutdown sequence which is triggered by the switch.
Down the working face of the device is a square plastic fire button, a 0.96″ colour TFT screen, two hourglass shaped adjustment buttons and a USB Type-C port which can charge the Zelos 3 at a rate of 5V/2A. The buttons are all firm with a nice solid click and no rattle while the screen is bright and easy to read but can also be adjusted in the settings. When it comes to modes it’s also pretty well equipped and comes with Wattage(1-80W), Voltage(0.5-8.4V), Bypass, TC(Temp Control), TCR(Temperature Coefficient of Resistance) and CPS(custom power curves) and to access them you simply press the fire button and the up button. Pressing fire and down clears the puff count while three clicks of the fire button locks the device. In the settings you’ve got options for Mode, Colour and Brightness so as feature packed as it is, it’s also fairly simple to navigate and use.
The tank:
Now for me the more exciting bit of this kit is the new tank, the Nautilus 3. It’s the evolution of one of the all time best selling mouth to lung tanks and it’s still lauded today roughly 7 years later. The new Nautilus is a bit bigger with a 24.5mm diameter but is still made with the same incredible quality and dare I say it, ground breaking design. At it’s core it’s a pretty standard 4ml mouth to lung tank with graduated airflow holes from 0.8mm up to 3mm with 7 options overall to chose from but where this tank really stands out is the coil system. It takes the old original Nautilus format coils and makes them plug and play. Not only that but it incorporates some sliding shutters to close off the juice flow when swapping coils making it one of the most convenient tanks I’ve used to date. With the standard version it comes with a slide to open top fill port but the CRC version uses the drip tip as a sneaky childproof lock. The kit includes two different drip tips with one being taller and thinner for MTL while the other is shorter wider and better suited to direct lung.
I’m not going to get to in depth with the coils it comes with as neither of them are new and plenty of reviews already exist but I will say that the 2s mesh coil is a bit better suited to a tight direct lung on the widest setting where the BVC coil works really well with high nic liquids like salts with the tighter MTL settings. Coil life is pretty standard and I was able to go about 5 days on the 2S coils with approximately 8 refills where the BVC coil was about 6 days with roughly the same number of refills.
Overall:
I couldn’t find a single bad thing to say about the Zelos 3 kit, I will however reluctantly say, I’m not a huge fan of the look of the mod but that is entirely subjective. It’s still packed with handy features, easy to use and overall just works great. I particularly liked the innovative new coil system, the graduated airflow options, the convenient top fill and the full featured high capacity mod. I tend to get two full days of vaping before needing a charge and the coils last pretty much a full week. This mod is easy enough to manage that any new user could easily get into it and feature packed enough that even seasoned users could appreciate it. All in all a solid kit from Aspire and one that I could easily recommend to just about anyone.
