“…one of the fastest heating portables out right now.”
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Overall Rating - 81%81%
SPEED REVIEW (SUMMARY)
What we like about this vaporizer is the fact that it's basically idiot-proof. What we mean by this is that no matter how you load it -- finely ground, loosely grind, or not ground at all -- it works just fine. Between this and its easy to use digital temperature controls, it's one of the best portables for beginners. But there is one big downside and that's its size. It's not the smallest vape, that's for sure, but it does work better than your average vape and it supports concentrates in addition to dry blends. With all this in mind, plus its fast heat up time, wide temperature, large oven capacity, and ability to connect to a third-party glass tools like water filters, we have no shortage of reasons to appreciate it. And the best part is: it's cheap. If you're interested in buying the CFX, we suggest you buy it through an authorized retailer such as this store here.
*This is a quick summary, in-depth review below.
Temperature
CFX vapes have a wide temperature range that spans from 100 degrees Fahrenheit all the way up to a whopping 430 degrees Fahrenheit, which is quite high by any measure. For reference, this is the equivalent to 38 degrees Celsius to 221 degrees Celsius. And thanks to the incorporation of digital temperature controls complete with a large 1.7″ OLED display, changing the temperature is as easy as pie. When it’s ready, once the desired temperature has been reached, it’ll vibrate to let you know that it’s ready to be used.
In addition to showing the current and set temperatures, the display also shows how much juice is left in the battery and tells you how long your current vaping session has been going for.
Heat Up Time
With a heat up time of roughly 20 seconds or less, this is one of the fastest heating portables out right now. Not as quick as the Firefly 2 or the Dr. Dabber Ghost, both of which have near-instant heat up times, but still better than most.
For the most part, when heating the vape up to about 400 degrees Fahrenheit, it tends to take around 20 seconds or less to heat up. However, when using lower vaping temperatures, it heats up that much faster – well under 20 seconds.
Battery Life
The batteries, two 2500 mAh 18650 lithium-ions, on the CFX last for about an hour. Once they’re depleted, they can be quickly recharged using the wall charger, which takes about 30 minutes. Alternatively, they can be recharged via a regular USB port, which takes roughly 2.5 hours instead of a mere half an hour. Unlike with some of the other portables we’ve tested like the DaVinci IQ and Haze V3, the CFX’s two internal batteries are not user-replaceable. Still, with anywhere from 50 minutes to 1 hour and 15 minutes of battery life, we’re certainly not going to complain because that’s more than enough time to get in some serious sessions — about 10 to 15 to be exact, assuming your sessions last for about 5 minutes each. Any longer and the vape will actually automate the shutdown of its heating element to help save power and conserve blend.
The vape’s batteries are covered by a 90-day warranty that’s separate from the 3-year manufacturer’s warranty covering the vaporizer itself. If there is a problem with either of the batteries, Boundless Technology will remedy the situation so long as it’s within the 90-day window. If outside of this window of coverage, they’ll replace the vape for a fee in order to remedy any battery issues.
Note: Whereas some vaporizers use pass-through charging technology that allows you to use it while the battery is depleted by the charging cord is plugged in, this Boundless vape needs to be at least halfway charged in order to function properly while charging.
Weight & Size
This isn’t the most portable of the portable vaporizers we’ve reviewed. It’s actually quite big, similar in size and shape to Storz & Bickel’s Mighty, which is the vape it appears to be geared towards competing with. Like the Mighty, it is a cordless portable, but due to its large size and bright display, it’s just not all that portable nor is it all that discreet. It will fit in some pockets, but it’s more of a home-use portable or a carry-in-a-bag portable, not a pocket vape like some of you might be hoping.
As for the exact dimensions, the CFX measures 5-1/6 inches tall, 2-3/4 inches wide, and 1-1/4 inches deep. And it weighs approximately 7.5 ounces, which is the equivalent to about 208 grams.
Cleaning & Maintenance
When Boundless first released the CFX, the screens it used were a real pain. They’d clog easily and require constant cleaning to maintain. Fortunately, Boundless realized the issue and resolved it by coming out with new screens for the vape. The new screens are much better, but for those still using the old ones, our advice is to either buy the new ones or to use your own third-party screens because those standard ones are just too much of a hassle given that the draw resistance increases dramatically when you fail to clean them regularly. With the new screens, the draw resistance stays consistent throughout sessions, although they do require occasional replacement and if you care to, the occasional cleaning. Still, it’s nowhere near the hassle it was with the old screen variant. With this out of the way, we’re going to tell you exactly how to clean this vape.
After each session, simply take the brush that it comes with and use it to clean out the oven while everything’s still warm. If you wait until after everything cools down, it’s going to prove to be a bit more difficult to clean so make sure you do this right after your session ends. To do this, remove the mouthpiece, dump the oven, and then use the brush to clean the screen and to remove anything that didn’t fall right out when you dumped the oven. So long as you do this regularly, you won’t have any issues with the vape’s air/vapor pathway getting clogged. That’s all there is to it. Pretty easy to clean and maintain. No real issues beyond the stock screen’s necessity to be constantly cleaned, but a quick upgrade to the latest screens will solve that problem in a jiffy.
Accessories
Every Boundless CFX vaporizer comes with the vape itself, a charger, instructions, a USB charging cord, concentrate pod for vaping extracts, a cleaning brush, and a packing tool. In addition, there are other accessories available as well as replacement parts, which include:
- Universal Adapter – Want to connect your CFX to a third-party glass tool like a water filter? With this little adapter, you can do just that. It works with the CFX, CF, CFV, and Boundless Hybrid. Available in both male and female, 14 millimeter and 18 millimeter sizes.
- Mouthpiece Assembly – If you need a replacement mouthpiece assembly, no problem, Boundless has them and you can buy them.
- Replacement Screens – When it comes time to replace your screens, you’ll be pleased to find that replacements can be purchased in packs of five for a reasonable price. These things are cheap, which is good because you’ll definitely need them at some point.
- Concentrate Pods – Sold in packs of five, these little pods transform the CFX from a dry blend vape into a concentrate vape. Load them up, pop them in, and vape away as you normally would, only with concentrates in the oven instead of dried blend.
- AC/DC Charger – Want to plug your CFX into an electrical outlet on a wall? That’s where this charger comes in. It allows the CFX to be recharged via a wall outlet.
Warranty
Every CFX is covered by a 3-year manufacturer’s warranty which protects against defects. The battery, however, is covered by a separate 1-year warranty. For issues with batteries that fall outside of the warranty period, the manufacturer offers replacements for a small fee.
Vapor Quality
This vape has an isolated air path, which means all of its electronics are kept separate from the air used to heat the blend that ultimately travels to the user. The idea is to keep the air and vapor as pure as possible, but with a medical grade plastic pathway, the vapor isn’t actually as pure and tasty as it is with some of the other vapes out there. It’s good, but there are vaporizers that taste much better, like the Arizer Solo II. And as a result of its design, you really do need to run some dry sessions at max temp to burn off any residues leftover from the manufacturing process. Otherwise, those first few sessions might taste pretty bad. So long as you do this though, it should taste just fine when you first use it. As for the draw resistance, it’s actually pretty good so long as you use the new screens and keep them clean, otherwise it’ll start to feel like you’re sucking through a straw pretty quick. As for the overall quality of the vapor, it’s pretty good. Definitely above average, but not quite as good as some of the other portables it competes with. It’s relatively cool, pretty smooth, and surprisingly dense. If you’re looking for thick clouds, this is one vape that does not disappoint as that’s one area where it undoubtedly excels.
Final Thoughts
Boundless seems to have had the Mighty Vaporizer in their crosshairs when they designed this vape. Like the Mighty, it has digital temperature controls, a big display that’s easy to read, the ability to vape concentrates and dry blends, and it’s a bit larger than your average portable. While it does well to offer a lot of what the Mighty has to offer at a dramatically reduced price, it’s not quite as good. But at less than half the price, it’s easy to see where some users might prefer the CFX over the Mighty. If you have the money for it, the Mighty is the superior vape and the one we recommend, but if you can’t afford its high price tag, the CFX is a nice alternative that works well, especially given how cheap it is. If you’re interested in buying the CFX, we suggest you buy it from this authorized dealer.
