I’d never heard of Ghost Vapes when I agreed to review the MV1. Now, after using a unit for a few weeks, I’m sure I won’t forget it. Hands down, this is my favorite dry-herb vaporizer.
There’s a certain level of convenience that comes with using a high-end herb vaporizer. Rather than dealing with ashes and smoke, or sticky concentrates and leaky cartridges, you simply vaporize fresh, ground herb and discard the desiccated plant bits. It’s the tastiest way to enjoy your cannabis, especially if you prefer potent, flavorful strains.
Unfortunately dry-herb vapes usually fall short when it comes to the act of actually consuming cannabis. My experience is that they’re great for micro-dosing or the “once or twice a day” user, but they’re more trouble than they’re worth if you’re a habitual or heavy-use consumer.
The MV1 changes all that. It’s the first vape I’ve tried that solves the battery-life problem, overheating issues, and cleaning nightmares that other dry-herb vapes have. It’s effectively an electronic one-hitter you can use all day and a session pipe you can pass around at the same time.
It can also handle concentrates, and comes with everything you need for both dry-herb and concentrate use. However I did not test it with concentrate, this review only covers its use with dry, ground herb.
Though it’s recently been reduced to $225, the MV1 is certainly not cheap. This puts is squarely in competition with the Pax 3 and Firefly 2+, which is a tough place for newcomer Ghost Vapes to find its first and only product. However, I’m sure I won’t be the only reviewer to say it’s landed with aplomb. The only area I’d say the competition bests the MV1 is in portability.
Let’s start with the looks. I love the MV1’s aesthetic, but I labor to describe it. Understated steampunk? Retro-future? Whatever it is, I think it’s gorgeous but I hate the flashing green lights. Everything about this thing screams elegance and then a light flashes at me like the notification signal on a smartphone. This is a personal preference, and in defense of the light, it serves the purpose of indicating that the device is on and heating, and it’s a quick reference for battery life.
The MV1 comes in five different colors, I reviewed the Rose Gold unit because black and silver gadgets are a dime a dozen. They all look fantastic, but the Rose Gold seems to stand out the most to me, which may or may not be a good thing depending on where you’re using it.
It’s incredibly simple to use. There’s a mechanical switch that releases the oven door. You pull out a ‘crucible’ and load it with herb, then plop it back in the arm. You shut the door, turn on the vape with three quick pressses on the power button, and then press and hold the operation button. After a few seconds (seriously, it’s very fast) a haptic signal (vibration) lets you know your herb is ready. You then take a 10-second draw on the vape, hold your breath for a few seconds, exhale, and listen to Kid Cudi or The Beatles or something.
Perhaps most importantly, the even heating of the MV1’s convection system produces the best tasting and most evenly vaporized herb I’ve ever vaped, and it does so consistently.
What’s innovative here is both the convection oven itself and the MV1’s unique design. Typically, you have to stir your herbs halfway through a session when you’re using dry-herb vapes, but the MV1’s even-heating makes this unnecessary, ensuring you get the full flavor without having to burn your fingers or risk flinging dried flower everywhere if you’ve over-packed and try to stir.
Credit: Nicole Gray
It also has a cleverly placed heat sink that keeps the unit from overheating in your hand and keeps your vapor cool and comfortable while you’re drawing it. The unit recycles heat to save energy and, thanks to a decent battery, it’ll make it through a few heavy sessions before you need to charge it. Battery life is pretty good, but if you’ll be using the MV1 daily you’ll want the optional high-speed battery charger and an additional battery. This will take your charging time down from eight hours to two, and give you a spare to keep juiced.
Speaking of accessories, the MV1 also has an optional ‘crucible loader’ that I tried out. On first glance, I thought it was a bit excessive. But, it’s one of those “they thought of everything” gadgets that at least some people will welcome.
It’s like a pill sorter that you put five loaded crucibles in so you can use them later. It’s actually quite convenient if you’re traveling – nobody wants to be sprinkling loose-leaf into a bowl in the back of a car or while walking down the beach. And, for caretakers, this could let you set up a medicinal cannabis user with doses for the day.
Using the MV1 is a breeze and so is cleanup. My biggest pet peeve with dry-herb vapes is that, once they’re lousy with resin, it can be nearly impossible to clean them out. There’s nothing worse than being in the middle of a session and realizing your vape’s clogged. You don’t have that problem with the MV1. You can access every nook and cranny that resin may build up in with ease, the MV1 comes apart intuitively to expose all those places.
The MV1 is a bit bulky, and I wish the crucible were about half-again the size it is, but otherwise I have no complaints. This is a premium product that’s perfect for light-use vapers who don’t want to waste herb in between uses and habitual users who go through multiple bowls per session.
I highly recommend the MV1. It’s my favorite vape. I don’t think there’s a better choice on the market, at any price, for dry-herb use. You can pick one up on the Ghost Vapes website here .
