INTRODUCTION
Hello everyone and welcome to another review. This is Pizza Dave and today I will be going over the Maxus 100 and 200 watt kits from Freemax. This is the first full mod combo that I recall ever seeing from Freemax, and they hit the nail on the head in a lot of areas. These are formidable entries into the starter kit category, and they have plenty of features for new and long time vapors to enjoy. I will break down what you get with each, the specs, and my overall thoughts on them. As always, final thoughts down at the bottom. Let’s get right to it eh?
DISCLAIMER: This device was sent to me by Freemax for review.
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WHAT YOU GET - Maxus 100W Kit
- Freemax Maxus 200w mod
- Fireluke 3 tank
- .15-ohm single mesh coil
- .2-ohm dual mesh coil
- 3ml “jewel” glass
- 5ml bubble glass
- Spare parts bag
- USB C Cable
- Paperwork
Available in Blue/green, red/yellow, black/red, green/orange, blue/yellow, and orange/black. These are all black-framed devices with multi colored resin panels.
PACKAGING
UNBOXED
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WHAT YOU GET - Maxus 200W Kit
- Freemax Maxus 200w Mod
- Mesh Pro 2 tank
- .15-ohm single mesh coil
- .2-ohm dual mesh coil
- 3ml “jewel” glass
- 5ml bubble glass
- Spare parts bag
- USB C Cable
- Paperwork
Available in green/red, red/blue, blue/yellow, black/orange, yellow/black, and orange/green. These too are black framed with multi colored resin panels.
PACKAGING
UNBOXED
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MAXUS 100 SPECS
Measurements: 134.5mm 27.9mm x 37.5mm
Battery: Single 21700
Power Range: 5-100w scrolling in 1-watt increments
Other features: Smart-load battery sensing. Battery can be inserted in any direction.
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MAXUS 200 SPECS
Measurements: 135mm x 28mm x 52.4mm
Battery: Dual 21700
Power Range: 5-200w scrolling in 1-watt increments
Other features: Smart-load battery sensing. Both batteries can be inserted in any direction. It even works with the left battery inserted w/ max power of 80w.
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FIRST IMPRESSIONS
With both of these, I was rather impressed upon opening the package. I have never seen a full kit like this from Freemax, so it was a bit of a surprise. One thing I will point out right away is that my samples are pre-production. I was asked to give them feedback on items I think should be fixed. I will bring some of these issues up, but am told that they will be addressed in final packaging.
With both, one might instantly think Voopoo Drag Resin. They have similar lines, the resin paneling, and a similar layout of everything. Both have the same chipset with bright, single color display. They also have the same features within the chip, but I will get into that more in the operation segment. Both of the devices feel solid, and a bit weighty. On one side, there is some etching with the Freemax branding. The back of the mod then shows some Maxus branding. The resin side is colorful and has a nice feel. This also serves as the battery door. These are magnetically held in place, and they are a little sloppy on my samples. The 200w is worse than the 100w, but I am told they will correct this. Inside the battery bay you will find one of the biggest innovations to hit box mods in years. This is “Smart-Load Technology.” This allows the user to simple toss the batteries in regardless of orientation. This works in both models, and it really doesn’t matter how you do it. With the 200w model, it will even power up with the left battery only and tops the wattage out at 80w and shows just one cell on the screen. Once the 2nd battery is inserted, it will then show up on the screen. This is very cool, and enough innovation to already put these high up on the list. It’s something that seems so so simple, but nobody else has done it to my knowledge. Other than this, we get an offset 510 plate, which is a little raised which sucks. No matter what attie goes on top, they will all show a slight gap. There are a few things that are not refined for sure, but not bad for their first entry in the mod game in my opinion. Kind of giving them the benefit of the doubt a bit.
Included with these mods are their new mesh sub-ohm tanks hitting the market. The 100w comes with the Fireluke 3 and the 200w comes with the Mesh Pro 2. Both tanks are inlaid with resin that matches one of the colors on the device for a super matchy matchy appearance that I really like. These also have a new line of super beefy mesh coils they are rolling out as well.
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OPERATION
Both devices rock the same chipset so operation is the same for both. It’s a simple, single color OLED display device, with fire button, up button, and down button. Nothing crazy here, but this is how to operate.
- 5 clicks of the fire button turns the device on and off
- Pressing up and down together locks out the adjustment buttons, but the device will still fire
- Clicking the fire button 3 times enters the main menu, which houses all settings
- MODE
- Power
- Variable power curve
- Buapps
- TC Ti
- TC SS
- TC Ni
- TCR (1,2, and 3)
- SET
- Screen timeout
- Coil resistance test
- Puff Counter
- Time
- Temp (In C or F)
- Reset
- INFO
- Battery(s)
- Version
- Mod Temp
- EXIT
- MODE
Super simple setup and the display is crisp and clear. I had no issues reading this in bright sunlight, and it is very easy to navigate. It has all of the functions one would want in a board. No clue who is making these for them, but they have done a bang up job.
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USEAGE
Disclaimer on usage, but I ran out of SS round wire and my SS builds are all under .10-ohms. Since this is the case, I did not test the temperature control of these devices. I strongly suggest viewing some youtubers that accurately test this for TC feedback, but I ran these in wattage only for my review. Sorry to let you all down, but it is what it is.
When it comes to overall usage, I don’t have much to say about the mods in poor taste. Both offer a different frame size and feel. The 100w is slimmer and more pocketable, but the 200w is around the industry average for a dual battery mod. Like I mentioned before, the 200w is very much like a Voopoo Drag in terms of size and weight, with the 100w just chopping 18mm off the depth. Buttons are super clicky and the menu is easy to view and navigate. In power mode, both devices work as intended, and both ramp up very fast. I ran these with both the sub-ohm mesh tanks as well as RTAs, and there is nothing to complain about in regard to their capabilities. Power is on point, battery displays are on point, and they never faltered at all. I never had mis-fires, no fires, or buttons sticking. I cranked them up to their max wattages just for grins too, and without knowing the exact output, I believe them to be accurate based on the fireballs I spit (especially at 200w). The only standout thing as I used them was the movement on the battery door, mostly on the 200w. I said this right out of the gate in my first impressions, and it is something that I thought about all the time. Hopefully this is addressed for retail.
I will talk a little about their new tanks too. Both are awesome mesh tanks, but are any of you surprised by this? Freemax has long been known as the best in the mesh game, or at least the first to make great mesh tanks. Both tanks have amazing vapor production, flavor, and they match the mods well. They may not look great on other mods due to the resin, but I assume they will make some more generic models for external sale which will match other devices better. I only have one con with both of them and it is the fill port. No, it doesn’t slide open on it’s own thanks to ball bearings holding it back. Rather, the fill ports are kind of small and the slides don’t get out of the way far enough for my liking. They work, but many of my 120 bottles had a battle with the drip tip. Other than this little con, they are solid tanks that I can see many getting into.
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PHOTO GALLERY
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FINAL THOUGHTS
I will keep this kind of short, as I really don’t have much to talk about that I didn’t already mention. Both devices do great for what they are. The 100w is more compact and best for wattages 80w and under. It works great when paired with the Fireluke 3, as this tank has coils that run well with the wattage of the device. It would also be a great mode for single coil RTAs or even MTL setups. The 200w is the one I see most people going towards, as it offers more battery life and higher output. The pairing of this and the Mesh Pro 2 is flavor heaven and it has enough battery to run at 80-90 watts all the way through a work day. Both mods have the excellent smart-load battery tech, which is a huge pro that allowed me to overlook several minor cons on these devices. This is just so cool, that it deserves a lot of praise. The mods overall are built solid as well, with my only con being the wiggle in the battery doors. If they get that tweaked, there are just a few small cons left. One, is the 510 plate is offset. I like to see this centered more. Two, the 510 plate is slightly raised by like a ½ of a mm. It leads to atomizer gapping. The final con is the color choices. I would have liked to see them in single resin, as they get a bit loud with dual colored resins. It’s cool that it stands out, but I have grown to enjoy more subtle styling (call me old, fine, GET OFF MY LAWN!!!). Regardless of these cons, they are kits that work well and have great tanks out of the box. I would not tell anyone that this is a bad purchase if they like the styling of the devices. The pros outweigh the cons easily in my opinion and Freemax did a solid job of making these two kits, especially them being their first full kits.
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OVEN TEST – If this were to accidentally fall into the pizza oven, would I go out and get another? I can see myself using the 100w a little more than the 200w. It looks nice, more pocketable, and I have so many nice dual battery mods, it’s tough to put this over any of them.
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PROS
- Smart-load battery sensing is a win
- Board is simple, with clear readout and easy navigation
- Nice, clicky fire buttons are always a win
- They both comes with great mesh tanks
- Tanks and mods are very matchy matchy
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CONS
- Battery doors have some wiggle
- 510 plate is offset
- 510 plate is slightly raised
- Overall look may not be for everyone?
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Thank you everyone for reading and thank you to Freemax for sending this my way for review. The 100w is going for about $65 (£52) and the 200w is going for $75 (£60).
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Pizza Dave – delivering real reviews with no extra toppings
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REVIEW CRITERIA: I use each item for about two weeks to ensure I have collected enough data to adequately write a review. I use the same e liquid in tanks or rdas throughout all my reviews to ensure that I am comparing apples to apples between all modern equipment. I do not post reviews until I feel confident that I have used it enough to give an educated review. The reason I started doing reviews was due to poor purchasing decisions in my vaping infancy about two years ago. Back then, I purchased several different pieces of hardware without really enjoying it and I hope my reviews can guide people into spending their hard-earned money more wisely than I did! ****Keep in mind that some items I receive may be pre-release and not in retail packaging. Quality may be less than the finished product and what is in the package may differ from the retail package as well.
