Style of Mojo’s Chi You is a beautiful and hard-hitting mechanical mod. Its popularity is completely deserved. Its also no surprise that the Chi You has been cloned by several Chinese manufacturers. Recently, there has been some Facebook drama surrounding Chi You clones. While I believe that Style of Mojo has every right to be upset about the situation, I also believe that the company is handling things poorly. Before I get to that, let’s talk about clones in a general sense.
“China clones” are a double-edged sword. On one hand, many clones mimic every element of the original, right down to the logos, engravings, and fonts. Many mod makers feel that these clones rip off the considerable work that went into designing the originals and many also believe that clones devalue the original’s worth. Clones have also been used to fool customers; some dishonest vape-shop owners try to pass off clones as the real deal. Buyers that think they’re buying an authentic item and unwittingly purchase a clone can unfairly get a negative impression of the originator. Lastly, most clones are inferior to the original in terms of workmanship and performance.
On the other hand, clones are more accessible, both in terms of price and availability. High-end mechanical mods can cost upwards of $200, while many clones cost $15 to $50. Many high-end mods are released with limited availability, making them difficult to purchase. Chinese manufacturers have immense capacity and can crank out clones at a far greater pace than the original mod makers can. In rare cases, like the EHPro EA Mod, a clone can outperform the original. While it’s fantastic that vaping has created financial opportunities for many mod makers, at the end of the day it’s all about staying off of cigarettes; because of their lower price and superior availability, clones potentially help more people stay with vaping and away from smoking.
Personally, I don’t mind basic clones. After all, there’s only so much you can do with a metal cylinder. That said, copying logos, engravings, and fonts is just garbage. I’m particularly amused by the Chinese clones of Filipino mods that use the sun from the Filipino flag; depending on your point of view, it’s either funny or sad that Chinese companies are copying that too. Whether it’s videogames, comics, or movies, I’m almost always biased for the creator. It’s one reason I’m a big fan of Janty, the creator of the original eGo e-cigarette and RY4 e-liquid. For the most part, I feel that Chinese manufacturers are unfairly exploiting the creations of mod makers and they should absolutely be pissed off about it. Having said that, I believe that Style of Mojo has taken things too far.
In a Facebook post dated August 20, 2013, Style of Mojo’s CEO posted a list of people that have purchased Chi You clones through a group buy. While I understand his (completely justifiable) frustration with cloners, taking it out on consumers is simply misguided. In most cases, the people on the list have used their real names. They are now open to ridicule from Mojo’s 299 followers and anyone else that reads the post. Why do that? In some cases, these people were never going to buy a real Chi You because of cost. In other cases, Style of Mojo has lost potential customers because of the public outing. If anything the company should be going after the companies that clone its products, like EHPro, Hcigar, and Tobeco. It would have been far more meaningful if the company went through each clone and posted the aspects that are inferior to the original. Antagonizing consumers is…not the smartest thing do.
While many proud Chi You owners are backing Style of Mojo, there are many people that are not. Some believe that the CEO is being a bully, a brat, or a whiner. Some people that were interested in buying a Chi You no longer want one because of the CEO’s actions. The worst part is that some people only know about the Chi You and Style of Mojo because of an ill-advised Facebook post. While there’s no denying that the Chi You is a fantastic vaping device, Style of Mojo is now, to some people, “the company that’s run by that guy that made that dickish Facebook post.” That’s an unfortunate thing.
I am all for innovation and completion. But when knock offs are sold as real; it crosses the line for me to.
You are out of your mind if you think the EHPRO EA MOD clone is better than the original. I support public shaming, legal action, or whatever it takes to get people to stop selling/buying clones. Why can’t people just buy a cheap mod and not a copy of someone else’s work when they can’t afford the original? No shame in a cheap mod. My first one was a smoktech bolt and a carto tank.
If you can’t afford $200 for a mod or atty then you can’t afford it. Get over it. Don’t support people who rip off others designs and buy clones.
Compare the voltage drop of the original and that of the clone. Performance-wise, the clone is better. In terms of build quality and craftsmanship, the original is better.
As for supporting clones, I personally try not to. The majority of my paid collection are original products. I do have one clone that I use for when I go out drinking; I am not bringing a $200 mod with me if I’m going to get hammered. As for the products that I’m sent for review, if people want to know about them then I’ll review them.
I wonder if the EH Pro Nzonic clone hits harder than the Oni.
It depends on which positive contact you use. The Oni comes with silver-plated and gold-plated pins. The results can be very different, depending on setup.
The clone wars… I own some clones and some legit devices. I admit by purchasing clones I’ve contributed to the problem. And I do see this as a problem, I want to support innovation by mod designers – I want the bar for voltage drop, assembly and materials to be set higher. This industry is still in its infancy and we need to support quality so that it can afford to continue to innovate.
Truthfully something “in the style of” in my eyes would be acceptable to be made by the Hcigars/Tobecco style companies. As it is many “Legit” mods are just slight re-stylings of designs that have come before. While I’ve spent an exorbitant amount on my vaping habit this last year, the three clones I do have perform incredibly well. So when I compare my nemi clone to my legit nemi… I tend to ask where is the 200$ difference. And while I’ll continue to support and pay out the nose for nice devices, I think there is a lesson for the high end manufacturers to learn. And if they don’t learn it soon, the cloners may put some of them out of business.