The Smoant Cylon 218 is almost tank-like in its construction; it feels extremely solid in the hand and is made from sturdy, robust materials.

At first glance, the Cylon does bear a striking resemblance to a YiHi SXmini G Class with it’s centered screen and 510 connection

However, it’s not the most compact dual 18650 device, measuring in at 90 mm x 47 mm x 32 mm. This may not be an issue for some who like a larger solid device, but in comparison to something like the Eleaf Invoke (which is also a dual 18650 device), it’s a far heftier mod and a little too big for my liking. The larger frame wouldn’t be an issue if it could accommodate 20700 batteries like some of its peers, but sadly, no, the Cylon is solely an 18650 device. Why Smoant didn’t opt for larger battery compatibility I do not know; it seems like a strange move.

Size and battery compatibility aside, the Cylon 218 does feel like Smoant’s best-constructed device to date. It has a zinc alloy body, with faux-leather inserts on both sides, with crocodile skin like texture to them which really helps to improve grip. It also offers up a stylish premium look which wouldn’t look out of place on the inside of a high-end car.

The 1.3-inch TFT color display is located right in the center of the mod, and it sits recessed by a few millimeters which should offer it some extra protection against knocks and scrapes. The screen is certainly one of the best features of this mod, with vibrant colors and a high-resolution display everything is crisp and clear.

Smoant definitely made an excellent choice here, and they have tried to back up the display with the inclusion of different screen layouts and some funky wallpapers. That being said none are really to my liking to display on my mod (not even the happy Labrador, unfortunately) but with the latest firmware release version 3.08 it seems you can actually customize your own – not something I tried.

The Cylon mod has one of the best spring-loaded 510 connections I’ve come across recently. The 510 plate sites in the middle of the mod (a popular and more welcome position) and it can accommodate atomizers up to 30-mm with no overhang whatsoever. Being such a substantial device, I actually think that larger atomizers look far better on top, dinky 22mm attys look a little lost.

The rectangular fire button on the Cylon did spark some early negative comments from some reviewers. This was due to quite a bit of play and rattle, but I think that may only have been present in pre-production models as the device that we have has absolutely no issues whatsoever. The only one thing to note is while you can press anywhere on the button to fire, it tends to work best when pressing towards the top.

The function or up & down buttons site just beneath the screen, and again these work perfectly fine, but they are a little small and require a good solid press to click. They are not bad buttons; I would just have liked them a little larger.

You can normally gauge the build quality of a dual 18650 device by the design and implementation of the battery door. Smoant has gone down the route seen before of a hinged bottom door, and it is done well. There is a little wobble to it when it’s open, but as soon as you lock it in place, everything feels solid and fits seamlessly.

There are a couple more design choices and accents on the Cylon that help to finish off the premium look. On the front and back, you can find small curved hollows with tiny silver hex screws that hold the main body in place. Then on the rear of the device, there’s a round blue and white acrylic logo, which thankfully is not a pointless LED light. My initial thought was it looked a little out of place, but now it’s kind of grown on me, and I think it adds a little more originality to the design.

Even though I’m not a huge fan of the size of the Cylon 218 for a dual 18650 device, I have to say it is extremely well designed and built. The screen is great, the leather accents are a nice touch, and it is without a doubt the best-looking device I’ve seen from Smoant to date.

The Cylon 218 comes with the new and improved version 2 of their Ant board. Smoant makes some bold claims of instant firing of 0.15 seconds, and I have to say my experience seems to back this up. I have no tools to measure, but it is certainly no slouch and definitely on par my VooPoo Drag (another quick firing device).

The Ant 218 board comes with a full temperature control suite as well as TCR functions and Curve Modes for both Power and TC mode. You get the usual present for TC with Ni, Ti, and SS. I only tested (as usual) in SS mode, and do think there have been some improvements here – more on that later.

When it comes to power, the Ant 218 V2 chipset is capable of a maximum output of 218 watts (hence the name). Again not something I can give you an exact figure on, but I’m fairly confident it is reaching near that level – as this thing hits hard and hits quick.

The board also has three preheat settings that include minimum, normal, and maximum. Be careful when you first get the device, mine was set to maximum, and it took me a little while to figure why I wasn’t enjoyed the harsh instant hit. I know it’s common ground nowadays to have preheat settings, but Smoant has done a good job of it here, and I definitely notice the difference between each setting.

Main features of Cylon Mod:

• Compact size: 47mm(L) X 32mm(W) X90mm(H)
• Takes 2X 18650 battery
• Display: 1.35 inch TFT color screen
• Output range: 1 – 218 W
• Output modes: VW / VW Curves / Temp (Ni, Ti, SS) / TCR / TC Curves
• Resistance range: 0.05 – 2.0 Ohm for Temp / TCR mode / TC Curves
  • 0.1-5.0 Ohm for VW / VW Curves
• Temperature control: 100 – 315°C / 200 – 600°F
• Two different UI available to choose
• Firmware upgradeable (download files available here: cylon-update)
• 1Reverse protection/ Over-heating protection/ Low voltage protection/ Overload/Short-circuit protection/ Over-time protection
• Color: Black, Tarnish

Smoant Cylon Mod Package includes:

• 1X Smoant Cylon Mod
• 1X USB charge & Update cable
• 1X User manual
• 1X Warning card

The long and short of it is this thing is an all-round performer. You get an excellent vape in either power or TC mode.

In power mode, it hits hard and fast, ramping up even the beefiest of coils in next to no time. Power curve mode also seems to work exactly as advertised, with simple on-screen adjustment so you can quite easily tailor your vape experience. Not something I tend to play around with much, but again it is well implemented.

What surprised me the most was the TC mode on the Cylon. Not because Smoant’s past devices were notoriously bad at Temp Control, they weren’t. But I wasn’t expecting it to be this good. I tried several different builds and resistances on simple round wire to dual fused Clapton, and the Cylon handled them all excellently. It seems to be almost on par with the Gene chip which I have raved about recently. I also tried vaping my wick dry, and the protection was on point.

However, there is one slight issue. It does seem to run a little overpowered in both watts and TC modes. Not drastically, but I would say in comparison to my DNA board it was definitely running hotter. So don’t just dial in your usual settings, do play around to find your right sweet spot.

It seems Smoant didn’t just take time in releasing a new device to improve the externals, but the internals as well. A smart move which seems to have paid off with an excellent performing board in the Cylon.

The Smoant Cylon 218 was worth the wait. I’m glad Smoant didn’t just follow other manufacturers by releasing devices just for the sake of it.

The Cylon has been well planned, both inside and out. It has an excellent new board, that is impressive in both power and TC modes and comes with a ton of new features. Add a gorgeous TFT display a centered 510, premium looks and build quality, and you have the perfect device – well not quite.

There is one reason, and one alone that I probably won’t gravitate to using this device over others. It’s just too large for a dual 18650 device.

Now we are seeing most other manufacturers jumping on the bandwagon of dual 2×700 devices, some which even come in smaller packages than this. I think Smoant may have missed a trick here.

I credit them for being patient and building an excellent product before releasing it, but it would’ve been even better if it could take larger batteries.

However, if you’re in the market for a dual 18650 box mod, this is a fantastic choice. And who knows maybe Smoant have a 20700 version up their sleeve?