The Vandy Vape Pulse V3 Review

The holidays are just around the corner (or already here), so Vandy Vape has been thinking of all the vapers who don't want to lug around heavy and/or bulky setups when heading out for a walk or off to the beach: third in its line-up, the Pulse v3 is a small regulated single-battery box dedicated to Bottom Feeding.

Getting to Know the Pulse v3

Unboxing it, the first impression is a good one. The finish is neat and the build quality solid. There's no play to be found anywhere, neither in the front-facing buttons nor in the side panels. Nothing wobbles, everything is clean and well put together: we're pleased so far.



On top of the box, the 510 connector is refreshingly simple.



Spring-loaded, it happily accepted every dripper I fitted on the Pulse v3, without exception. Job done.

The side door that gives access to the battery and the squonk bottle stays firmly attached to the body of the box thanks to two strong magnets.



As there's no pull-tab for removing the battery (a 21700 by default, though an 18650 adapter is included), you'll need to take off the second side panel and push the battery out with your finger.



It's not the quickest manoeuvre, but it works just fine.

Once the battery's been freed up, it's easy to grab hold of and pull out the squonk bottle.



This has been genuinely well thought out and well executed by Vandy Vape. On the front, there's a small silicone flap, pod or rechargeable puff bar style, giving access to the fill port.



As this isn't massive in size, you'll want to stick to bottles with a slim nozzle, Chubby-style. Once closed back up, the bottle proves perfectly watertight, even when shaking the box about in every direction. Worth noting that you can top up the bottle at any point, even with the battery still in place, which is really handy if you're out and about or simply don't fancy stripping everything down just to refill.

You can also fill the squonk bottle from the top, by removing the upper section. To do this, simply give the cap a slight clockwise turn.



And that's it, job done!



The bottle as a whole is well designed and allows for a thorough clean, which is another point in its favour.

Putting the bottle back is just as easy: slot it back in from below, into its dedicated spot, making sure the small translucent tube goes into the gold metal nozzle.



With BF boxes, this step is often a dreaded moment, since you can easily end up with juice all over your fingers while putting the bottle back… But that's not the case here with the Pulse v3: the bottle is rigid enough that you can handle it without accidentally squeezing out any e-liquid.

As for the squonking side of things, then, it's an absolute clean sweep for the Pulse v3!

Chipset

The electronics don't disappoint either, with an effective, highly intuitive chipset. Pressing the + and - buttons together brings up the menu.



You navigate through the various submenus using the + and - buttons, and to enter a submenu, simply confirm with the switch.

The first submenu is probably the most interesting, as it lets you switch the various vaping modes on or off, including Temp Control, Variable Voltage and Bypass.


If the "Fir" option is ticked, this lets you keep vaping even while the box is locked.

The "Arr" option, when unticked, will ask "Coil new" or "Coil old" every single time you screw an atomiser onto the Pulse. Personally, I leave this one ticked, so the box doesn't bother me with unnecessary questions…


The rest of the Pulse v3's menu lets you set how long before the box goes to sleep, adjust screen brightness, reset the puff counter, change the theme colour, or restore the box to its factory settings.

One last little thing: to lock the box, simply press the switch and the + button together.

All in all, then, we're looking at a chipset that's both comprehensive and nicely laid out.

Living With the Pulse v3

In everyday use, the Pulse v3 proves both practical and effective!

The information shown on screen is clear and perfectly legible, even in full sunlight.


It's really comfortable to hold, with the switch falling perfectly under your index finger.

As for squonking, it's spot on: filling is both clean and quick, and in use, it's flawless: the squonk bottle is neither too soft nor too stiff, meaning you get just the right amount of e-liquid into your dripper with one or two squeezes.

As for battery life, it's really comfortable: the squonk bottle has a generous capacity (almost 8ml) and the chipset isn't power-hungry: I managed 153 puffs at 53 watts before draining my Samsung 30T.

That said, there are two small things you might find yourself wishing were different. Firstly, the chamfered edges machined into the top face of the box mean that drippers larger than 22mm won't sit completely flush. That said, 24mm RDAs fit on perfectly well, as is the case here with a Vaperz Cloud Sith RDA.



Then there's the dark grey colour of the squonk bottle, which makes it hard to see how much e-liquid is left before needing a refill. However, a second bottle, in a lighter colour, is included in the box for anyone who might find that annoying.

Discover the Pulse V3 box

One last point, and far from the least important: the weight of the box! Empty, it weighs barely more than 110 grams: a genuine featherweight! 178 grams once fitted with a 21700 battery, who can top that? Combined with the fact that it's made entirely of plastic, the Pulse v3 can feel a touch "cheap" at first glance, especially when compared with pieces like the Tesla Punk, for instance. But don't be fooled by appearances! It proves to be remarkably sturdy, and after carting it around all over the place without any particular care, the Pulse v3 hasn't budged an inch: not a single scratch, not a single mark, it looks as good as new.

In short, the Pulse v3 is the ultimate portable BF box. Genuinely good news with the holidays just around the corner!

Renaud