Tesla Nano 120W Review: Steampunk Box Mod With Steamier Internals

These days, the steampunk style and aesthetic are in vogue across pop culture. The Teslacigs Nano 120W brings that unique aesthetic to the vaping world with a powerful box mod made from durable Zinc-Alloy and an intricate design reflecting the inner workings of the Victorian era steam machines.

Add to all that, a highly advanced and customizable feature set and unique features like a dedicated on-off switch, custom ramp profiles, and extensive temperature control options, making the Tesla Nano a strong contender in the 120-150W with a steampunk twist.

At A Glance - Tesla Nano 120W Review

At first, the Teslacigs Nano 120W is striking to behold. The 120W vape mod comes in 4 unique finishes – Steel, Gunmetal Black, and Antique Brass and Copper. The highly durable and hefty zinc alloy provides the Nano with substantial heft to it. Definitely not for the light-hearted then. The output on the mod ranges from 0.1-3.0ohm and up to 120W of power from dual-18650 batteries (not included).

The Tesla Nano has an extensive feature set thanks to Teslacigs’ proprietary chip. It features minute temperature control options, including resistance and wattage lock/unlock, different profiles for Titanium, SS and Ni200 coils, four different flavor modes (ramp profiles) including one user profile that can be used to set up custom ramp-up curves over a 10-second window. And 4 memory slots that can store all these custom settings to use with a wide range of atomizers.

The box mod features premium build quality all the way from the 510 connectors at the top, to the tactile and responsive firing and navigation buttons and a durable hinge door mechanism for the battery compartment. The unique chipset and a compact but clear OLED screen also enable a highly efficient navigation system on the Tesla that makes tweaking a breeze. No more clunky menus to deal with. All the customization options are available on one screen at the top with relevant sub-menus just 3 taps away from the user at all times.

The mod also comes with a suite of protective features like Over Puffing Protection, Low Voltage Protection, No Atomizer Protection, Reverse Connection Protection, Atomizer Short Protection, Short-Circuit Protection, and Low Resistance Protection.

All these factors make the Teslacigs Nano a premium contender in the 120-150W range of box mods. The manufacturer has a long history of making premium and stylish products at quite competitive prices and the Nano is no different. Let’s take a closer look at this steampunk inspired high-performance mod.

What Comes In The Box?

The Nano comes in high-quality packaging with elegant embossed patterns mimicking the steampunk look of the mod. The device is well protected inside the foam molding and is wrapped with a protective covering. The box contains:

• Teslacigs Nano 120W x 1 (batteries not included)
• USB Cable x 1
• User Manual x 1

Build Quality and Design

As mentioned earlier, the build quality on the Tesla Nano is quite exceptional. The vape mod chassis is a monocoque construction made from durable zinc-alloy and comes in 4 finishes – Stainless Steel, Antique Copper, Antique Brass, and a Gunmetal style Black finish. The body features ornate and intricately carved design mimicking the gears, pushrods, and other inner workings of a steam machine (aka a steampunk aesthetic).

One side of the device has the Teslacigs branding and the other has the model name engraved on it. All the edges of the Nano have been rounded off and smoothened making it quite ergonomic.
The front of the device features a tactile firing button at the top, a dedicated on-off toggle switch underneath (no need for 5 button presses), a 0.91” OLED screen, and two navigation buttons below the screen. The buttons feel incredibly robust and sturdy to operate. The top of the box mod has a familiar 510 spring connector for the atomizer.

The threading on the connector is of high quality and the top is slightly contoured to ensure a correct fit, every time. The Nano’s dimensions allow the use of up to 25mm diameter atomizers without overhang. The bottom of the device houses a spring-loaded slide door for the dual 18650 batteries (not included).

Tesla Nano 120W Review - The Battery

The battery situation on the Tesla mod is quite straightforward. It supports dual 18650 high drain batteries. The batteries are installed via the bottom door, which simply slides out to reveal the battery compartment. The orientation is clearly marked and the batteries fit securely into the compartment. No noise or rattle is detected from any component in the battery housing.

How To Charge The Nano?

This mod doesn’t have charging circuitry built into it. This also explains the lack of a micro-USB for charging or firmware upgrades. The batteries are to be removed and charged externally with a dedicated 18650 charger. This hot-swap feature is a blessing in disguise though as the recharging the mod is as simple as swapping out for a fresh set of batteries.

A Quick Word About The Coils

As is the case with most mods in this range, the Tesla supports a wide variety of operating modes that cater to specific makes of coils and materials. To use the temperature control features, the coils have to be made from specific materials like Titanium, Nickel or Stainless Steel (all of which create a different vaping experience).

The different profiles on the Nano can match the resistance of these different metals and optimize the experience. The Nano can operate in Variable Wattage mode or in Temperature Control optimizing resistances for any of the coil materials mentioned above.

Using The Tesla Nano 120W

Turning on with the dedicated switch, the mod greets you with the Teslacigs logo on the OLED and it’s ready to vape. Physical confirmation of its operating state is a big plus (no need to double-check if the vape has been left on inside the pocket).

The screen displays all the relevant information, like the current wattage level, voltage and resistance applied, Output mode (Temperature control based on the coil used like Kanthal, SS316 or Ni200), battery level both as an indicator and in percentage, and the current memory slot selected (out of four), on one screen-level in a clear and convenient manner.

The Nano also provides a suite of protective features like over-puffing protection (after a 10-second firing window), low voltage protection, low resistance protection (below 0.1ohm in Kanthal mode, 0.05ohm in TC mode), reverse connection protection and Short-circuit protection. It also prevents itself from firing if no atomizer is detected or if there’s a short.

Navigating the Menus

Due to its proprietary chipset, Teslacigs has optimized the navigation system greatly. 3 quick taps of the firing button engage a cursor on the screen. Then the navigation buttons can be used to select the parameter of choice and tapping the firing button opens the relevant sub-menu. Under each icon, there are settings for Resistance (with a lock/unlock function), Taste Mode, Output Mode, Memory Mode, and firmware Version information.

The Output mode configures the temperature control settings to work with specific types of coils like the Kanthal, SS316, Ni200, Ti, or a dedicated TCR mode that has four memory profiles. There’s also a Taste Mode that provides different ramp profiles – soft, medium and hard, or a customizable curve for a 10-second firing window. The Memory bank can store up to 4 global configurations for quickly switching between different atomizers.

Tesla Nano 120W Review - How Does It Vape?

Having such an extensive feature set and solid internals makes the vaping experience on the TC box mod quite a breeze. It has wide support for a range of atomizers over different wattages and coils. Coils between 0.1ohm to 3.0ohm are supported in VW/Kanthal mode, or TC operation with 200-600°F, the device offers strong performance across the board only throttling a bit when the battery is close to draining out.

The high-performance mod can stand up to any high-end device with its myriad customizations and various use cases. Its hefty weight feels substantial in hand and its custom chipset ensures peak performance, fast ramp-up times, and accurate monitoring of the device’s functions.

Key Competitors

Tesla Nano 120w vs. VooPoo Drag

The Drag by VooPoo features similar functionality to the Nano at a similar price range. Both are dual-18650 mods and while the VooPoo has a minimal carbon fiber design aesthetic.

Both devices feature multiple operating modes such as the KA/SS316/Ni200/TCR, but the Drag mod uses a GENE chip whereas Tesla uses their proprietary chipset. While the VooPoo features a slightly higher power output the Tesla mod offers more functionality like improved navigation, multiple memory modes, and variable custom ramp-up settings.

Tesla Nano 120w vs. Smoant Charon

The Charon dual-18650 mod by Smoant has a higher power output at 225W and a 2-inch TFT LCD screen instead of the OLED screen on the Tesla Nano. Both otherwise provide a similar feature set. In terms of real-world performance however, the Nano edges out the Charon. Switching out the batteries on the Nano is definitely less finicky due to the sliding hinge-door mechanism at the bottom, compared to the slide door compartment on the Charon.

The LCD screen on the Smoant may have a detrimental effect on battery life and for vapers who are looking for a stylish and streamlined solution to their vaping needs the Nano comes out on top, even if just by a little bit.

Final Verdict

The 120W Nano by Teslacigs is definitely quite the looker and a performer in this price range. Its intricate design will appeal to aficionados of the Steampunk movement and to vapers who appreciate finer details in craftsmanship. The strong feature set courtesy of the proprietary Tesla chip only enhances the vape experience. Compatible with almost any 25mm 510-atomizer, the compatibility and vape performance of this mod is considered to be one of the strongest in this segment and a premium experience.

The dedicated on-off switch will put vapers’ minds at ease and the switchable batteries make life that much easier. The availability of performance curve adjustments, various TC and TCR operating modes, different flavor profiles, and a high degree of customizable memory slots make this mod a strong contender in this segment. Vapers looking for a stylish, understated but strong performing mod will not be disappointed with the Tesla Nano 120W.