I'm waiting on 2 packs of horizontal coils from China to give a proper comparison but I do think you may be correct. When I got my subox kit I was very disappointed in the .5
coil it came with. I'm certain it was a dud or absorbed the flavor of the packaging. Flavor was noticeably muted. However after all the local shops ran out of the horizontal coils I gave the new ones a try and have been through a pack since. The flavor has been good but I ordered a few packs of the old ones to give a proper comparison. Also because my favorite take to work mod only puts out 30watts and these new coils take 36watts minimum to vape decent.
They do wick reliably, last much longer, and handle higher wattage tho. I was also glad to see that they (like the old ones) don't require an extended "break in" period before they taste good. How people tolerate "organic cotton" break in period is beyond me. Kanger occ coils, cotton bacon v2, and fiber freaks all taste good from the first hit and there's no reason other companies can't make their wicking materials do the same.
The new coils need alot more wattage than the old so perhaps try cranking the watts up. I use to vape the old ones at 20-25 where the new ones need a minimum of 36 to provide a similar vape. Try 36-40 range.
Based on what my drippers taste like with the different types of airflow I believe a bottom airflow ( which is the equivalent of the horizontal coil) provides a wetter and more flavorful vape. I don't see why that wouldn't carry over to the kanger coils too.
