Dr. Dabber Boost Black Edition Review
The Dr. Dabber Boost Black Edition is a updated version of the Dr. Dabber Boost, one of the most popular portable e-nails on the market. The Black Edition includes bigger nails and a replaceable heating element. Lets take a closer look at its performance now. And if this is your first wax vaporizer be sure to check out our Wax Pen Buyers Guide for helpful info and tips.
If you would like to see how this electric dab rig stacks up against other popular units check out our Best Electric Dab Rigs & E-Nails article.
Review: Dr Dabber Boost Black Edition
How it Works
There are only a few small changes to the way the Black Edition works when compared to the original Boost. You still have a base, three nails, and a glass water filtration attachment that goes on top.
The nails screw into the base from above, then the water attachment slides over top. When you are actually doing a dab, you use the supplied tool to put your material on the nail, then cover the opening above using the supplied carb cap.
There is only one button on the device. According to the manual, you click it three times to turn on the unit when using it with the titanium nail, and you click it five times for quartz or ceramic. Ill go over the temperature differences in the next section.
Like the Dabado Bolt 2, you can also unscrew the top of this to access the heating element. Replacing it is as simple as pulling the old one out and pushing the new one in. I have to imagine this upgrade was due to frequent failures in the original model.
Temperature Flexibility
When I recently reviewed the Bolt 2, I was discouraged by the lack of temperature flexibility. It had a screen, and I initially thought that meant a portable e-nail with full temperature control, which I was excited about. As it turns out, it just had two different settings that were a little hot for my liking, ranging between 680F and 720F.
Unfortunately, the Boost Black Edition is also lacking in terms of temperature control. When you are using it with the titanium nail, you click the button three times and it will begin heating.
After 25 seconds or so, the light on the device will turn blue from white, indicating that the temperature has reached 515F and is ready for dabbing. It will continue to heat for 20 more seconds, reaching a max temperature of 610F.
When using it with the quartz or ceramic nail, you click the button five times. The light will start blue this time. After a 40 second preheat, the light will turn white indicating the device is heated to 520F and is ready for dabbing. It will continue to heat for 20 more seconds, reaching a max temperature of 600F.
While the flexibility is limited, I think they did a much better job at calibrating the temperature levels than Dabado, even though it could be made much better when we see other wax pens such as the Focus V Tourist performing so well in the market.
Vapor Quality
The vapor quality is great. I really appreciate the lower temperatures, especially having just tried the Dabado Bolt 2. This delivers vapor that is smooth and extremely flavorful, even with the stock water attachment, however, users looking for strong big clouds usually prefer devices like the Utillian 5 (V3).
The bigger nail also helps you get really dense clouds of vapor, though I recommend treading lightly at first!
Like Dabado, Dr. Dabber has a whole lineup of very cool glass attachments that offer even better water filtration than the stock option.
If you want really smooth vapor, I recommend checking out their site and picking one up if you get this vape.
Manufacturing Quality
The manufacturing quality is good. Im still hoping to see more temperature flexibility in the future, but what you get works well.
Dabado included a screen with their Bolt 2 like the one available on Source Orb 4 Signature Kit, but I didnt think it added anything to the ease of use or functionality, so I dont really miss it at all on this.
The replaceable heating element should help to extend the life of this when compared to the regular Boost, and I also like that they made the nails bigger.
Battery Life
The battery life is good. They say you can get up to 40 heating cycles per charge, but in practice, I find that you dont really get that much.
You still get a lot, but Id say that a more realistic estimate is 15-20 similar to the Puffco Peak. Your mileage will obviously vary.
Portability
In my opinion, this is only portable in the sense that you can carry it around your house or pack it up and take it with you somewhere.
This isnt something that you would take with you setup and ready to go. In other words, this isnt a solution for enjoying concentrates all day or while out on a hike, something you could do with devices like the Linx Hypnos Zero.
Ease of Use
This is very easy to use.
The only thing that could be a little tricky is remembering to click it three times for titanium and five times for ceramic or quartz as is required by most of the devices like the Evolve Plus.
In practice, youll probably grow to like one nail more than the others and only use it, so you wont really have to worry about this at all.
I dont see any reason that a complete beginner couldnt pick this up and start using it with minimal instruction.
Overall Experience
The Dr. Dabber Boost Black Edition is a great update of an already good portable e-nail.
Compared to the competition, I think the best feature is the relatively low temperatures. If you are in the market for your first e-nail, this would be a decent one to get, especially since the replaceable heating element will extend its life compared to units without this feature.
If you are looking for something pen shaped and lower temp, I really like the Utillian 2 Wax Pen for its similar ceramic dish style atomizer.
If you already have an e-nail, the decision becomes trickier. I personally wouldnt upgrade to this from the Boost. There just arent enough differences.
You get bigger nails and a replaceable heating element, but these dont make that big of a difference to the performance. Id rather wait for the original to break before investing in something new in that case.
If you are looking for a portable e-nail that has actually has precise temperature control and the bonus of having a herb attachment as well.
Thanks for reading and as always, keep vapin!