VECEE Maze
8.3
PROS
- Nice design (aside from the Maze game)
- Nice pastel colors with matching pods
- Very easy to use; as easy to use as a disposable
- Convenient for beginners looking to step up from a disposable
- No maintenance required; just charging
- 500mAh battery with Type-C charging
- 10 prefilled pod flavors available
- Less wasteful than disposable vapes
- Good draw and throat hit
CONS
- Making a vape into a toy is not a good idea
- Balls inside the Maze rattle
- Cherry Pomegranate flavor doesn't taste like either flavor
VECEE is a brand that mainly focuses on disposable vapes, but recently they’ve released a product that is a little bit different.
The VECEE Maze is a pod starter kit that uses prefilled pods which are available in ten different flavors. If you think about it, the Maze is a hybrid pod vape and disposable vape; the device is reusable and rechargeable, but you get the convenience of prefilled pods that you throw away once the ejuice is finished.
The Maze has a rechargeable 500mAh battery. Each prefilled pod comes with 10ml of ejuice in 50mg strength which should be good for up to 6000 puffs. These pods use a vertical mesh coil inside.
The VECEE Maze also features a maze game on one side of the device, so you can have some fun with it too. But is turning vapes into toys the right thing to do? I’ll go over the design, flavors, and performance of the Maze and you’ll get my full thoughts in this in-depth review.
Specifications
- Material: Plastic
- Dimensions: 77mm x 44mm x 24mm (with pod)
- Takes Prefilled Pods
- Eliquid Capacity: 10ml
- 5% Nicotine Salt Strength
- Up to 5000 Puffs
- 500mAh Rechargeable battery
- Type-C Charging
- LED Puff Indicator
- 10 Flavors
Design & Build Quality
It’s hard to accurately describe how the Maze looks and feels. Not because it has a weird shape or an intricate design, but because it gives me pod vape and disposable vape vibes at the same time.
With a size of 77mm tall, 44mm wide, and 24mm thick, it’s big for a disposable but the right size for a pod vape. It just has a look that makes me think “disposable” right away rather than pod vape, but I guess that isn’t a bad thing considering that it is a bit of a hybrid between the two.
The Maze has a plastic inner body which is wrapped in a clear plastic layer on top. Each device comes in one of five colors, four of which are pastel colors and one of which is a pearl white. I like the colors, especially the blue/grey color which I am using for this review.
The lower portion of the Maze is plain, but the top third of the device features a series of ribs under the clear plastic. You can’t feel the texture because it’s under the clear layer, but it looks neat. There’s also a lanyard anchor spot at one of the top corners, although you don’t get a lanyard included in the box.
Branding is pretty subtle. VECEE and MAZE are printed on one side of the device, but they are printed in a white font that makes it blend in with the pastel colors so it isn’t very noticeable.
Now for the reason that this is called the maze. Each device features a maze game on one side of the device which has two small balls inside. I suppose that you could make your own ways to play, such as getting both balls to one side, or getting each ball to a different side. In any case, I found it pretty simple to do and it took me under two minutes to get both balls all of the way through to the other side of the maze.
Is this maze game fun? Well, it had my attention, but only for a few minutes. The real question is this: should manufacturers be making vapes into actual toys? The vaping industry has received enough heat lately for being attractive to youth and I don’t think that adding games to vapes is going to do the industry any favors.
It might seem harmless since it’s a simple game, but I don’t think adding any sort of game to a vape is a good idea.
Plus, every time that you pick up the device to vape, you hear the balls rattling around inside. This is especially noticeable in a quiet room, and you’ll catch looks from everyone around you. Trust me, I know.
The Maze takes prefilled pods which attach and seat magnetically inside of the device. Pods attach firmly and there’s no wiggle at all once they are properly seated. I’ve dropped my Maze a few times and the pods have stayed put, so the magnets are pretty strong.
What’s nice about the Maze is that you can quickly and easily switch flavors. It’s also convenient to transport the relatively small pods (when compared to a full size disposable), so you can keep a few on you at all times to switch flavors on-the-go.
The pods are each different pastel colors so you’ll probably have a color mismatch situation between the pods and the device when you buy replacement pods. It looks funny to have a pastel blue pod in a pastel green device but it’s not a huge deal, at least not to me.
Overall, nice colors and nice build quality on these devices. The design is nice too, but it could do without the maze game.
Features
The Maze is a pod vape which takes prefilled pods. By definition, it’s a closed system pod vape, but you could call it a hybrid between a disposable vape and a pod vape.
The Maze comes with a 500mAh battery built in. This battery is good for 150-200 puffs, after which you can recharge it with the Type-C charging port which is located on the bottom of the device.
Also on the bottom of the device is an LED indicator. It’s not too bright and it lights up blue when you take a draw or when you remove the pod from the Maze. Speaking of taking a draw, the Maze is a draw-activated-only device and there are no buttons at all.
The pods for the Maze come filled with 10ml of ejuice. These pods are non-refillable, so they’ll need to be thrown away once they are finished. A nice thing about these pods, as opposed to disposable vapes, is that you don’t need to throw them in an electronics recycling bin because they don’t contain a battery. You can just toss these pods in the garbage when the ejuice is done.
These pods use a vertical mesh coil for vaporization. This means that the coil is positioned with one leg up and one leg down, as opposed to one leg to the right and one leg to the left. Some say that this delivers better flavor than a horizontal coil, but I’m of the opinion that the coil orientation doesn’t make a big difference to the performance or flavor. I’ll talk more about the performance in the “performance” section of this review.
Using the Maze is nearly just as simple as using a disposable vape. Take a pod, remove the sticker from the bottom, and insert it into the Maze. Now just draw on the device to vape. Once the ejuice is finished, replace it with another pod.
Aside from the steps listed above, you don’t have to worry about anything else with the Maze, other than charging it when the battery dies. There’s no wattage to adjust and also no adjustable airflow. It’s a true beginners device that is just a small step up from disposables.
Flavors
The prefilled pods for the VECEE Maze are available in ten flavors. These flavors are:
- Blue Fantasy
- Strawberry Mango
- Apple Grape
- Frozen Strawberry
- Lemon Lychee
- Cherry Pomegranate
- Peach Mango Orange
- Luscious Melon
- Frozen Banana
- Mineral Water
As you can see from the list above, it’s all fruit flavors with the exception of Mineral Water (which is an interesting flavor, to say the least). You’ll get one pod with each device, with the flavor labeled on the box. Replacements appear to be sold in singles or as packs of 30, but don’t quote me on this.
I’m going to describe how five of these flavors taste to me and what I think of them. However, keep in mind that just because I like a flavor that does not mean that you will like it. Similarly, if I don’t like a flavor this does not mean that you will not like it. This is solely my subjective opinion.
Cherry Pomegranate
It’s hard to discern individual fruit flavors from this one. It tastes fruity, slightly sweet, and pleasant, but I’m not sure what I’m tasting. I can’t taste the pomegranate or cherry, so I’m lost as to what flavor I’m actually tasting. It’s a good fruity flavor, but I’m not tasting what is supposed to be here.
Blue Fantasy
Blue Fantasy is a mix of blueberries and raspberries. Unlike the last flavor, I can taste both the blueberries and the raspberries. Blueberry is stronger, with the raspberry flavor coming in mid-way through the inhale. Quite tasty and fruity.
Strawberry Mango
I get a strong taste of strawberries on the inhale, followed by a quick burst of mango that doesn’t stay for too long, but which comes back as an aftertaste. This is one of my favorite flavors for the Maze because it’s not just a mix, but a little different with the way the flavors come through.
Luscious Melon
I taste watermelon the most from this flavor, with maybe some honeydew or cantaloupe mixed in. There’s definitely some cooling here too but it isn’t very strong. It’s a nice melon flavor that tastes natural but still has enough sweet flavor to it.
Mineral Water
I didn’t know what to expect with this flavor but it’s actually really good. It’s like lemon water with another subtle flavor that I can’t quite pinpoint. It’s a very mellow flavor that is good to vape on throughout the day when you’re after something that isn’t too sweet. Unexpectedly, this became my favorite flavor for the Maze. I highly suggest giving it a try!
Performance
The Maze is not like your typical pod vape, nor is it like your typical disposable. Because it sits somewhere between the two, you might expect the performance to be somewhere in-between as well. From my testing, I found that the Maze performs closer to a disposable than to a pod vape in terms of the flavor, draw, and overall vaping experience.
What do I mean? Well, the flavor and draw are good but it feels like I’m vaping on a disposable. Pod vapes have a strong draw and flavor that disposables can’t match up to and that’s not any different with the Maze.
This doesn’t mean that the Maze is not a good device though. I think that for what it is, the flavor and performance are great when compared to other disposable vapes. The 50mg/ml strength produces smooth vapor that isn’t harsh at all, while still being satisfying to vape on. The flavor is also full and dense, and the tight mouth to lung draw is excellent.
As I mentioned earlier, I like that you can quickly and easily switch flavors with the Maze. Instead of carrying around multiple disposables, you can easily carry around a few different pod flavors and switch them out whenever you like. This is also more convenient than switching flavors on a refillable pod vape, which would require multiple pods and multiple ejuices.
Verdict
The Maze closed pod system by VECEE is a great middle-ground between refillable pod vapes and disposable vapes. You get the convenience of a device that is as easy to use as a disposable, and the option of switching flavors by simply changing the pod. It also reduces waste because the device is recharged and reused, as opposed to disposable vapes which need to be thrown away completely when finished.
The Maze makes a great beginner vape for anyone looking to step up from disposables. You’ll get the experience of using a pod vape but with all of the conveniences of a disposable and no maintenance requirements.
The only thing that I truly dislike is the maze game, which is unfortunate because it’s the namesake of this device. I just don’t think that games, even one as simple as this, have any place on a vaping device as it just adds fuel to the fire for regulators. The balls moving around can also get annoying; I could do without the constant rattling each time I pick it up to vape!
Overall, the Maze is a good closed pod system, but the “toy” aspect makes it hard for me to recommend it. In the end, it’s your choice though.
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