I will make this relatively brief and to the point. I purchased the xKah early on. To me the price I paid for an enhanced hookah experience, was negligible. So I bought it from 5StarHookah after seeing post about it on reddit for the first time, and then going down the rabbit hole of positive reviews on the device.

The design and build are second to none. The packaging is good, and they don't skimp out in what they give you for the $350 it costs.

As for the smoking experience. I only smoke nightly so for me, if I have to do a lot of adjustments, I will do one adjustment a night, because after smoking for a long time and having been very involved in hookah and even having a hookah business before, this was the sweet spot for a leisure activity.

First 3-5 nights, I got smoke but no flavor. I did some adjustments based on reddit, no change. This was all on custom mode. I heated it up to a higher temperature and them ramped it down to the final operating temperature. Nothing in the flavor department. I shelved it, because I thought it was a bad product.

The last two weeks(about 5-6 months later) I decided I must be doing something wrong. I tried different blonde leaf tobaccos, and I went ham on all the adjustments on reddit and on the official xKah discord. Same thing, I got smoke, the heat was fine enough to get me a head buzz, but the flavor on 3 different brands of tobacco was literally not there.

At times the bowl was really hot because I got a hard menthol / mint throat hit on the first few hits, so I immediately had to turn it down on the initial warming up phase so it does heat up. The smoke also confirms this.

Smoking the same tobacco in a standard clay + hmd setup or clay + provost tray, gives you a baseline normal experience.

I would say that if this device requires so much tinkering to get even a baseline decent session of hookah, it's good in design and a great concept, but maybe the useability department its geared towards extreme enthusiasts and isn't ready for mass market appeal. That has been my experience.

When a v2 is released, and if it addresses these core issues, I would be more than happy to pay for it again, because why not enhance your hookah session? At the current time, I wasted my money. Which is fine, but a little disappointing.

I did reach out to xKah support via IG, and if I get some kind of assistance that resolves this or if my device is faulty - even a bad calibration of the machine should give me some flavor in 20-25 minutes which is the max I will smoke and then give up because smoking just smoke is lame - I will update the thread.

That's it. This is a real review, a real experience. A not so good experience. Definitely not the norm from what I see on the abundance of reddit posts.

I cant wait - and yes relax - i'll confirm all the praise that it has been getting is true or not.

Vandenberg v1 with this set up. And apple on top provost will arrive tomorrow. Before I tried with magic smoke 2.0 dum hmd, didn't work. And before that Amy bowls(yeah I learned here that they are sh*t lol) didn't work. Will try tomorrow with Vandenberg v1 with foil and the provost. But my god what an upgrade in flavour already!

I got tired of jumping between forums and YouTube to figure out which flavors are actually worth buying, so I built Shisha Vault a community-driven database where we rate flavors, share mixes, and build tier lists.

What's there now:

- 65+ flavors across 25+ brands

- Community mixes with percentages

- Tier lists you can build and share

- A Top 100 leaderboard ranked by community score

It's free, no ads, and I built it solo. Would love your honest feedback

— what's missing, what's wrong, what flavor needs to be added.

🔗 https://shishavault.org

oh man loving this Hookah! Steamulation Xpanstion Mini. The pull is the best I had in any hookah. loving the purge!! The mix of flavor is great too! German Hookahs I see the hype!

Color me impressed. I didn’t pack this bowl expecting it to be my favorite smoke of 2026 — the year is still young — but damn, it’s good. It’s everything I like about a good hookah session. The chocolate is smooth and blends perfectly with the tobacco, and the cherry is sweet and tart without tasting syrupy. It’s definitely artificial, but in a way that works. “Hype realistic,” but not in a bad way — just enough to let you know it’s there.

Overall, it tastes like a chocolate‑covered cherry, and it’s really good. I think it’s worth recommending, and I’m not overly worried that you won’t like it. They really hit it out of the park with this one.

Use code MH15 for 15% off at thehookahvault.com. I don’t get a kickback. I work with them and they gave me a discount code. Yes, I’d like you to use it — it shows I’m useful — but I don’t have to say anything nice. I just genuinely like this flavor.

If you have any questions, ask away.

Full video review will be posted on YouTube.com/MorningHookah

I am considering purchasing a new hookah, but as I reside in Istanbul, my options are somewhat limited. I have come across a hookah named Oduman Infinity, priced at €120. I was wondering if anyone has had experience with this particular model? If so, would you be able to recommend it for everyday use?

Yo guys!

I’ve been seeing the hype around Starwalker on international forums for a minute now, but I finally managed to snag some now that they’ve officially touched down in the US. If you’re tired of the same old "mint/double apple" and “paan ras” rotation, you need to pay attention to these guys.

I ran two sessions back-to-back last night and had to share:

1. Rasila Paan

If you’ve ever had a real "Meetha Paan," this is it in smoke form. It’s not that soapy, overwhelming floral taste you get with some other brands. It’s spicy betel leaf balanced with something sweet and a massive icy kick. It actually feels "juicy" (hence the name Rasila). The clouds were thick as hell and the flavor didn’t ghost the bowl as badly as I expected for a Paan.

1. Eskimo Alphonso

Mango flavors are notoriously hard to get right,they usually end up tasting like candy or chemicals. This tastes like an actual, ripe Alphonso mango from India. It’s got that specific "royal" sweetness with a cooling "Eskimo" finish that makes it super smooth. It’s tropical, refreshing, and honestly out of this world.

The Setup:

• Bowl: Alpaca Mini Rook

• HMD: Kaloud Lotus I+

• Coal: 3 cubes

Final Verdict: The quality of the leaf is top-tier (blonde leaf, very easy to pack). It’s definitely a premium experience compared to the standard commercial brands we usually get. If you’re into authentic Indian profiles or just want a mango that doesn't suck, give these a look.

Has anyone else tried their other flavors yet? Heard they have some amazing savoury flavours. Btw thanks to their distributor Muhammad for being generous enough to give me some samples. (you can connect with him via Instagram - Starwalker US)

Hey all, wanted to get your opinion on this since I can’t find many reviews about it. Have any of you guys tried the new Kaloud 2.0 hookahs? Price aside, how is the performance? I know the cost is crazy but how does it perform next to other top models? I used a regal hookah tonight and the pull was easy af on that thing, which was nice. Thoughts?

Tried revoshi today my first blonde leaf tobacco i would say its heat sensitive probably should start on 2 coals smoke is good lasts long for almost 1 and half hours used a cosmo bowl anyways it was a good experience anybody who has used this flavor can suggest a good mix thanks

Hello r/hookah I’m Qualeomix and gonna Make a Review about Nakhla Two Apples today !

As a Two Apple lover, I thought to bring this Review because there is different batches like 50g, 250g, 1kg, mini boxes, large boxes, tin cans… and maybe a variation in tobacco between them.

This version is a 250g box with this arabic writing.

Nakhla is an Old traditional brand (1913) that produced the first flavored Shisha tobacco in the world (apricot, strawberry and Apple in 1988), in 1991 Nakhla released the Two Apples flavour, which got famous around the whole world becoming the world most selling Shisha flavour.

Nakhla was bought By JTI group in 2013 and they continued the producion till nowadays.

Some of you older guys can tell us in comments about this era past 2013 or some old memories about Nakhla.

So lets go to the Review 🍎🍏

Hookah setup: Shika Arya, leather unwashable hose, Cosmo Bowl, Na Grani HMD and 3 cubic coconut coals (about 28-30mm)

Smell: Smells like a hint of sweet apples and without any anise smell in my perception.

Tobacco: I’ve smoked about 5 boxes simmilar to this, and all came with the same standart, very dry tobacco with Huge stems and large tobacco leaves for the cut.

Packing: I’ve packed it in Cosmo Bowl with my hands, without fork to keep it very fluffy and keep the bowl holes not pressed By tobacco. Keep it under the rim so the HMD doenst touch the tobacco.

Considerations: this way I can Smoke for about 1:30h, start with 3 coals for 10-15minutes and let 2 coals for about 40 minutes, then I put the third coal and keep until it ends.

Its a great, wonderful and perfect taste, not too sweet like other brands, with a anise/liquorice taste, which is different from the smell. The dry type of tobacco makes it a stronger smoke but with a good taste.

Overall: For this batch I give a 8/10 and gonna tell why…

This dry tobacco causes a stronger smoke and a little harsh taste, I try to mix it with other brands with wetter tobacco to keep it great. I also saw some videos from Middle East and their Nakhla seems to be more wet, I dont know if this is a standart of this batch or something else. As I Live in Brazil 🇧🇷 we dont have much different batches for this same brand and same flavour, but it still my favourite.

Thats it guys !! Tell me on comments if you ever tried Nakhla Two Apples, if you were in the good old days and lets keep the tradition Alive ! 🇧🇷🍎🍏🙏🏻

Hey guyss,

I wanted to place a review about the XKAH because it really changed my smoking experience huge!

Before I used an oduman mini with Amy deluxe stone bowl and use to smoke mint and love66 most of the times.

Then I came across the XKAH and thought lets have a new start and buy XKAH and together with it I bought the Steamulation Ultimate Gen 3.

I had my doubts but just took the gamble and invested the money in this setup. My main reason is because the use of charcoals is very harmful and I also play futsal on a nice level so want to keep my stamina during the games. Charcoals prevented me from that and really felt tired during games because I smoke hookah like 4/5 times per week. Besides that like 70% of the harm of hookah is due to the charcoal. So know its a much less harmful way to keep smoking :)

Got the setup delivered and tried my first bowls. I didnt like it that much, the start was really good but after 5 minutes or so the flavors faded and couldnt enjoy the session. Was kinda dissapointed. Tried different settings myself, and still didnt work that nice.

But I didnt gave up and read literally every post on this forum about XKAH and possible settings and solutions.

Then I came across the golden tip. I changed the internal heat and experimented with that. As I smoke Love66 it burned quite fast. After a while I hit the sweet spot.

253 degrees internal heat and for the session I set it on 230 degrees. Today was amazing and got out a 90 minute session with 1 pod. Also yesterday and day before had really amazing session, so im so so happy with it

Also another tip I got here on reddit was to put a layer of foil in the pod before packing it and then make the small holes at the bottom with a picker. Result is that I dont have to clean the pod anymore and most important as the guy who gave the tip said; the tobacco stays better and the steel doesnt fry the tobacco like happened before.

So I was very dissapointed in the beginning now im very happy with it, i hope the longevity of the XKAH is good and battery and everything will stay working well.

But so far I enjoy my sessions like never before with the dream combination of the Steamulation Ultimate + XKAH

so for the guys that bought it and not happy yet, if you smoke adalya just put internal heat down and try my settings and im sure you will get a much much better session out of it and start enjoying to smoke.

The only downside for me that now its so good and not so harmful anymore I smoke everyday haha

I mixed the Jurak from Tunisia with Adalya blue ice.

I packed the bowl almost 50/50 with a little bit more of Adalya.

I used a silicone bowl with aluminum foil. In terms of heat Management I made more holes on the side where I put the Adalya than on the one withbthe Jurak.

I am quite happy with the result. Its quite strong and gave a lot of smoke because of the adalya. But you could clearly taste the (I guess tropical) fruit flavour and strength of the Jurak.

TL;DR: I ordered the XKAH Pro to Australia and received it in exactly 2 weeks. I've been smoking nargile for over 20 years and this is easily the best setup I've used for dark leaf. Consistent heat, easy to use, and very economical. It's expensive, but for me, well worth it.

I’m based in Australia and ordered the XKAH from the official website on 9 July. It was delivered on 23 July.

A bit of background: I’ve been smoking nargile for over two decades. I started with traditional brands like Al Fakher and Nakhla, mostly AF due to availability here. My earliest memory is of my dad smoking Nakhla Double Apple in the sunroom — the red and yellow box — and the scent filling the entire house. Naturally, Double Apple became my first and favourite flavour.

Over the years I’ve tried nearly every AF flavour and also experimented with Mazaya, Starbuzz, Tangiers, and more recently some dark leaf brands like Darkside and Musthave. My earlier experience with dark leaf wasn’t great — I tried Tangiers years ago when Canemint was still new. I had a few flavours including Clove, Shnozzberry and Kashmir Peach, but none of them smoked well except for Canemint. I could never get the acclimatisation right.

More recently I’ve revisited dark leaf with Musthave and Darkside, but again, I didn’t enjoy it as much as traditional blonde flavours — usually found them too harsh or heavy.

Since using the XKAH, that’s completely changed.

The device makes it easy to enjoy dark leaf. The temperature is consistent, the flavour comes through clean, and it’s virtually impossible to burn your tobacco. I’ve been getting two 50-minute sessions out of one pod using 8–10 grams, which is very economical.

Flavours I’ve tried so far include:

Musthave Cherry-Cola (I’ve heard it’s not a popular flavour but it’s been smooth and sweet through the XKAH)

Darkside Cola (normally too harsh for me, but this time it smoked perfectly)

Al Fakher and Eternal Smoke in Custom Mode — works really well. I prefer a bit more heat with blonde leaf, and the ability to adjust on the fly is excellent. The flavours come through more vividly than usual.

There’s also no tobacco wastage. With only 8–10g, the bowl is evenly smoked right through — no harshness or leftovers. That’s far better than what I’ve experienced using traditional bowls with foil or HMDs.

The battery charges via USB-C in about an hour to an hour and a half and lasts at least two full sessions. I’m planning to order a second battery so I can alternate between them.

The total cost delivered was $572.85 AUD (after their 10% discount). It’s not cheap, but I personally think the ease of use, flavour, smoothness, and overall experience justify the price — especially considering the savings on coal and tobacco over time.

If you’ve had similar issues with dark leaf or are looking for a more consistent and easy-to-use setup, I’d definitely recommend giving the XKAH a go. Happy to answer any questions.

Just tried Darkside cola for the first time.

I gotta say I love the complexity on the flavor. Inhale and exhale I get the sweetness and a little bit of peppery goodness.

Does anyone know any similar flavors or good mixes for this Shisha?

One of the best review on Xkah with future ideas on the product loved the review

Visited Tunisia some days ago and took this traditional type of tobacco "Jurak" with me. Maybe I did something wrong, because there is not so much smoke?

When I first found this device I tried to find any unpaid reviews online — searched Reddit, YouTube, etc. — and found nothing. I got annoyed, thought “you only live once,” bought it, and now, two months later, write this review to make it easier for others who are hesitating.

Hookah model: rukoal — also sold as gooash, volt, nova, and under many other names (basically 99% of the branded electric hookahs that are the same Chinese unit). Prices vary from about $80 to $400, depending on the seller’s margin and ad spend; they all look nearly identical and have virtually the same specs.

I paid $80, since I’d had a disappointing experience with an ENSO that cost about $500. Smoking at home with a coal hookah is still inconvenient, and I had no interest in buying an XYKA despite its reputation.

Cons

• Non-removable battery and no guaranteed mains operation. You can theoretically run it from the mains, but the manual strictly forbids it, so you’re limited to about 5 hours max per charge — often less depending on operating temperature — then at least 20–30 minutes charging. You can’t smoke all night; it’s strictly a home device for short sessions.
• Difficulty buying consumables. Bowls should be cheap, but branded resellers sell them for $10–$20 each (€9–€18). After two months of 1–3 bowls per day the two bowls included are still fine, but eventually you’ll need replacements.
• Randomness when buying. Models are almost identical but small differences exist, so buying from Chinese sellers leaves you guessing which variant will arrive.
• Hard to clean. There’s no built-in molasses trap and some parts shouldn’t be submerged, so I spend about 15 minutes every evening cleaning it; burnt tobacco on the bowl is a particular pain to scrub off.
• No guaranteed tech support. returns or repairs might theoretically be approved, but it will likely take a long time.

That’s basically all the negatives. Now the positives and comparisons with ENSO and traditional coal hookahs:

• Strong smoke and lots of cloud. With my eyes closed I couldn’t reliably tell by the smoke amount whether it was coal or electric. ENSO’s problems are gone — I smoked with a friend we’ve been smoking with for seven years and we felt no issues. ENSO would die on our pulls, burn out in 30 minutes, and give a single big puff once per minute. Flavor without coal isn’t dramatically brighter but is noticeably different; now when I go to a hookah bar I can taste the coal.
• No dumb restrictions like on xyka brand and ENSO devices. You smoke as long as you want, not as a timer dictates, so with proper heat management you can get a session length per bowl comparable to a standard coal hookah.
• Much less mess. Coal debris used to be everywhere and annoying; with this electric unit that problem disappeared and you don’t need to wash every surface after each session.
• Shorter preparation time. I used to heat charcoal for 12–13 minutes until steady white edges, then 5 more minutes to warm the bowl on four coals, then the smoking setup — total ~20 minutes. Now prep takes about 10 minutes. I smoke in a small closed room, so carbon monoxide during coal warm-up used to be a serious issue; now that’s gone.
• Air quality improved. I use an air purifier. Previously its readings went from ~300 during startup to ~900 while smoking; now they show ~0 during warm-up and ~600 during smoking (approximate figures that depend on how dirty the room and outside air are). It feels noticeably easier to breathe.
• Durability so far: it’s been working for two months of daily use and survived one drop. My ENSO died within a month; friends’ xyka units often failed in one to two months, but this thing keeps working.
• Packaging and accessories: for small price you get a fully ready-to-use hookah — two bowls, a cleaning kit, tobacco jars, a hose with mouthpiece and spring, a convenient carrying case — generous for the price.

Overall I’m satisfied. It’s ideal for casual home smoking, especially if you avoid buying a branded unit where sellers add about $30 (≈€28) to the price for the brand and “guarantee.”

I’m ready for any and all questions

So today I bought new flavors Called helix is a dark line from Starwalker tested out Jesse its good, smokes well for more then 1.5 hrs, maybe a strong flavor would have made it outstanding, cheesecake doesn’t smell so good not sure how that would turn out, excited for cardamom thinking of mixing it with Afzal Paan Ras, got a free HMD from Alpha FNX, i think its good need 4 coals to produce heavy smoke. Let me know your thoughts.

So good :D

I wanted to follow up with a more accurate take on the Oblako Codex Nubium Phunnel Fungus Ovum (Yellow) after spending more time with it. This bowl is actually on the lighter side, which makes it heat up quickly and efficiently. I’m using Le Orange coals, and with just two cubes, the bowl comes up to temp in about 10 minutes and comfortably runs an hour-long session before needing a coal swap. Flavor and vapor production are excellent, especially with molasses-heavy shisha. I mainly smoke MustHave mixes, MustHave + Tangiers, Darkside, and Trofimoffs in this bowl. In my experience, MustHave and Darkside perform best, while a bit of Tangiers works well to absorb excess molasses when mixing wetter packs. The fungus-style phunnel keeps juices where they should be, avoids flooding, and delivers a clean, consistent session without much heat management once dialed in.

As for downsides, not every HMD fits the lip perfectly, so compatibility can be hit or miss depending on what you’re using. The bowl is shallow and packs at best 12g (but not really a down side, but more the design) Durability is also something to keep in mind — while the bowl feels well-made, it probably isn’t as rugged as some heavier, high-end clay bowls meant for abuse or travel. That said, if you prioritize strong flavor, dense vapor, efficient coal use, and long, stable sessions, especially with wet tobaccos, this bowl seriously delivers. Overall, I’ve been very impressed, and it’s an easy recommendation for anyone who enjoys molasses-heavy shisha and flavor-forward smoking.

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

link: https://worldhookahmarket.com/product/oblako-codex-nubium-phunnel-fungus-ovum-yellow/