This sub-ohm battle might have seemed bit unrealistic  a couple of years ago, when the only way you could go below the 1-Ohm limit was by using a mechanical mod paired with an expensive RDA, but nowadays the game is on between two of the most renowned manufacturers in the e-cigarette community– Aspire the company behind the Nautilus and Kangertech, the company behind the Aerotanks and the Protanks.
Each one of these companies managed to release on the market in the last quarter of 2014 products that would revolutionize the way we are vaping today. Aspire released it’s 0.5 Ohm flagship called the Atlantis while Kanger was extremely successful with its Subtank series that also matched the 0.5Ohm limit. Therefore, at 22mm each, the direct competitors in today’s duel are the Atlantis and the Subtank Mini, so let’s examine them up close.
The Aspire Atlantis comes in a lovely hard transparent plastic box with a fully assembled tank, a spare Pyrex tube and an extra 0.5 Ohm atomizer head. It features a wide, removable stainless steel drip tip that looks amazing on the tank and the overall build quality and materials are top notch. To refill the tank you need to unscrew the base and pour in the e-liquid. If you want to replace the Pyrex glass tube it easily comes out if you twist and pull it from the top cap.
The newly designed sub ohm atomizer heads feature USA made wire and a big airflow hole at the bottom. The chimney is insulated with O-rings just to create a perfect seal with the atomizer head. The tank has a total capacity of 2ml of e-liquid, which might seem small compared to today’s standards but that’s probably the only drawback with the Atlantis.
The airflow adjustment system is located on the base, and comparing it with the one on the Nautilus it’s freakishly huge. It consists of a slot located on the outer rotating dial that can go around a series of holes and slots each bigger than the previous one. This enables a massive vapor production and very good lung hits with the Atlantis.
The Subtank Mini on the other hand is roughly the same size as the Atlantis, with its 22mm base but in our opinion it is the much better looking. The good quality stainless steel and glass work so well with those red O-rings and give it that lovely sports-car appearance. It comes packed with the new OCC atomizer heads from Kanger that are rated at 0.5 Ohms but this tank can also be used in RBA mode with the included RBA base and chimney.
The Subtank Mini comes in a nice black and red cardboard box and it includes a fully assembled tank (stainless steel drip tip included), a spare Pyrex tube, a spare OCC head rated at 1.2 Ohms, the RBA deck and chimney, some organic cotton and a bag of spares. You really need to be careful and soak the OCC heads really good before vaping on the Subtank because otherwise you are going to burn them right from the start.
The airflow adjustment mechanism is quite similar to the one on the Atlantis and it will ensure a proper a proper lung hit and plenty of 
vapor. However, the Subtank comes with a bigger e-liquid capacity and it can hold up to 4.5ml.
In terms of vapor production, both the Atlantis and the Subtank Mini have about the same performance, regardless if you are using the second one in RBA or OCC mode. When it comes to flavor, the Subtank has the upper advantage but you will only notice it if you vape on both devices simultaneously. So which one is best for you?
Well, as always it depends – the Atlantis is great for people that want a good vape right out of the box and don’t like building their own coils. It does have a capacity of 2ml so you will be refilling it quite often but that’s ok if we look at the performance and overall quality. The Subtank Mini is great for all of those that want to get more for the buck and for all those vape heads out there that want to experiment with building their own coils. It has a greater autonomy but it only comes with the 0.5 OCC heads, as opposed to the Aspire that also features a 1.2 Ohm replacement.
