The Lost Vape Orion transcends above all other pod mods on the market, not just by the fact it contains a DNA chipset inside, but also by its superb design format.

The Orion resembles an eighties walkie-talkie with it’s protruding mouthpiece and fill cap, rectangular form, and side buttons. This is especially evident with the Carbon Fiber versions.

The Orion currently comes in 4 Carbon Fiber variants of Black, Silver Gold and Blue. There are also Ocean Scallop/Abalone versions available like the silver one we have in for review, and all of them look fantastic.

It’s interesting to see it’s not just the intricate design of the device, but also the pods which make the Orion unique. The 2ml capacity pods contain the mouthpiece, fill port and airflow control, which we have seen before on other pod mods. However, it’s the secure way that the pods attach to the device which is novel.

The pod’s slot into the top left-hand side of the device, and are locked into place by the sliding latch on the mod. It makes for an extremely sturdy connection, with virtual no excess play. The pods feel more like a part of the device than with any other pod mod I’ve used.

There’s a lot to talk about with the pods, so we’ll go into detail on them later in the review.

The Orion mod has two other buttons on the side of the mod. One is a slightly protruding circular fire button, which is located lower than you’d expect sitting centrally on the device. Then there is a smaller rectangular button which protrudes less towards the base of the device; this is the ‘Replay’ button. Both buttons are of excellent quality and are perfectly clicky.

Just above the Replay button is a small LED light, which indicates more than just the battery status (more on this later).

Finally, on the base of the device you have 8 small battery vent holes, and on the corner curve, there is a little cover anchored to the device which can be pulled open to reveal the micro USB charge port. I love the way it keeps the Orion looking clean, but it can a bit of a pain sometimes to use.

I absolutely love the look and style of the Lost Vape Orion.

It’s unconventional, slightly funky and unlike other pod systems on the market.

It also looks as premium as it feels, and that’s not always the case with expensive mods.

I think they’ve done such a good design with the pods and the way they integrate entirely into the design.

The one reservation I initially had was the position of the fire button, but you soon get used to it.

There’s a reason why Lost Vape products are not the cheapest on the market, and that’s down to their outstanding build quality.

The Orion keeps up this tradition and is without a doubt the most premium feeling pod mod on the market, with exceptional build quality.

The Orion measures in at a very slender and pocket-friendly 93mm high, by 37mm wide and 13.5mm deep, and even though it has solid construction only weighs 87g.

It’s far smaller and slimmer than I anticipated it would be and is barely noticeable sliding it into your jean pockets.

This is where the Lost Vape Orion blows all over pod mods out of the water.

It’s the first device to come with Evolv’s new DNA Go chip, which is designed specifically for smaller devices and also features their excellent ‘Replay’ mode.

Out of the box, the Orion has 3 power settings. The output of each setting is automatically determined by the resistance of the pod you attach. You simply press the replay button once to rotate through the low, medium and high power.

Once you’ve had a few puffs and got a hit that you like, you can hold down the ‘Replay’ button, which the board will record to memory and use the appropriate power (through TC) to replicate that vape every time. It works seamlessly and helps to prevent dry firing the coil when you run low on juice.

It doesn’t stop there as the DNA Go, much like any other DNA chip has the ability to be connected to Escribe, where you can configure all of your own settings from the wattage output of each level and the initial boost power to the LED color of each.

The Orion has a 950mAh battery and the ability to output 40W if you really want to go that high, which is insane for such a small device.

It also features 1amp charging and pass-thru if you want to vape while it’s charging. The Orion will take 45 minutes to charge from flat.

The LED indicator is used to show both the power setting of the device, whether it is in ‘Replay’ mode and the battery status.

The default color settings are as follows:

Power Level:

• White = Low
• Blue = Medium
• Red = High

When in Replay mode the led will always light up green.

Pressing the fire button twice in quick succession shows the battery level with the following colors:

Battery Status:

• Blue = 95-100%
• Green = 70-95%
• Yellow = 30-70%
• Red = 15-30%
• Flashing Red = <15%

Pressing the fire button 5 times will switch on the key-lock (to prevent accidental fires), and the LED light will flash ‘purple.’

The Lost Vape Orion comes in a kit with 3 pods. Two of which are 0.25ohm (DTL) and the other 0.5ohm (MTL)

The DNA Go board autodetects the resistance of the pod you attach and changes to the appropriate settings. This makes the Orion one of the very few devices where you can switch between DTL and MTL effortlessly just by changing the pod.

Each pod has a Delrin 510 style drip tip and an airflow control ring on the base of the mouthpiece. There’s no knurling on the control ring, so it’s not the easiest to grab. I find it’s easier just to nudge it along in the slot with a fingernail.

The pods also have a brilliant juice viewing window, even though they are slightly tinted, it’s extremely easy to see your juice level and the wick.

Also on the top of each pod is the refill cap, which does have knurling to it and is super easy to unscrew.

The cap is not anchored to the pod in any way, so make sure you don’t misplace it while refilling. However, that’s such a small negative which is far outweighed by the fact that the Orion is so damn easy to refill.

You don’t have to remove the pod, and you can easy squirt your juice down the large fill hole.

Lost Vape claim a lifespan of 14 days from each pod, and I’ve seen some reviewers claim they’ve had them last up to 4 weeks.

It’s obviously dependant on how much you use the device, but I honestly couldn’t disagree with Lost Vape’s claim. I’ve been using the same 0.5ohm pod for about 12 days, using it all day every day and it’s still going strong.

I’m sure if you’re partial to very sweet juices then you’re not going to get as much life out of them. I’m also not 100% percent sold on the quality control Lost Vape are doing with the pods.

Unfortunately, my first 0.25ohm pods died within a couple of days, which was unexpected and a little worrying as they are not the cheapest pods to replace.

However, it’s not happened since and the impressive lifespan goes someway to balancing things out.

Firstly let’s talk about the performance of the device itself, which in my opinion is unparalleled by any other device of this size and style.

The Orion and DNA Go board ‘go’ together like a horse and carriage. The intelligence of the chipset and ‘Replay’ mode, with the impressive design of the device and the 950mAh battery, is perfect.

It fires instantly, and you know you are getting accurate power.

It’s great that you can flick between 3 power settings and customize them with Escribe. You could say it would be nice to have full control of power on the device, but that would defeat the object of such a simple device and would require a screen, more buttons etc. making it a far larger mod.

The performance of the pods was also great, except for the hiccup with quality control I mentioned above.

I’ll go into the detailed performance on both below, which was good.

Whether you are using the DTL pod wide open or the MTL pod with the airflow shut down, the Orion produces a very quiet and smooth draw.

The DTL pod wide open is still more of a restrictive lung hit, it’s not going to be like a sub-ohm tank, and that’s understandable for such a small device.

As for MTL, I like it best when the airflow is almost completely closed off, which creates a tight draw. It’s not the tightest and most defined throat hit from the MTL pod, but it’s certainly far better far better than most and sufficient for my MTL style.

I think most vapers will be happy with the draw from the Orion, whether it’s in DTL or MTL mode.

The Orion pods do a very good job at producing decent flavor in either DTL or MTL modes.

I don’t think it’s the most amazing flavor I’ve had from a pod, in fact, I think the Innokin EQ beats it for flavor.

Still, I have no complaints because it’s still a pronounced flavor and the overall experience just feels so much smoother than with other pod systems.

The battery life of the Orion has been great. I’m impressed they managed to fit a 950mAh battery in such a small body, and I’m more impressed by how efficient the DNA Go board seems to be.

I’ve managed a full day of using the Orion as my only device. Admittedly that was with the 0.5ohm MTL coil, but even with the 0.25ohm DTL it does a good job.

It’s also quick to charge and supports pass-thru, so it’s easy to top up. The most important thing for me is it’s the perfect device to take out without worrying that the battery is not going to last.

Yes, the Lost Vape Orion uses a pod, but I think it does it a disservice to call it a pod mod…It’s far more than that.

The Orion is the most compact device available that has the ability to switch seamlessly between DTL and MTL vaping. You can even carry two pods with you, and change on the fly.

The DNA Go board is on point, from its performance with power and efficiency. Some might see it as a slight pain that you still need Escribe to change settings, but honestly, the chip works fine with the Lost Vape pods straight out of the box.

I’ve used many pod mods this year, and they usually get retired to the shelf as I stick with my other more powerful devices.

That’s not been the case with the Orion. I can quite happily use this as my one and only device by just switching between modes.

It is without question the best refillable pod mod on the market, but it does come with an understandably hefty price tag. Whether that price tag is worth it for you, only you can answer. All I will say is if you are sitting on the fence, trust me and go for it….you won’t be disappointed.