In succession to the V5.0, Flowermate created the Flowermate AURA. A compact, simple and affordable pen vaporizer. This digital vaporizer works with herbs, wax and oil. In this review we’ll take a closer look at this new product by Chinese manufacturer Smiss.
The box contains
1 Vaporizer
1 Mouthpiece
1 Liquid/Waxy Chamber
1 Medium Stainless Steel Pod
5 Stainless Steel Screens
1 Packing Tool and Dabber
1 Cleaning Brush
1 USB Charging Cable
1 User Manual
Design
The Flowermate AURA is a pen vaporizer that looks solid and robust. The casing is made out of hard plastic, and has a removable mouthpiece. The version that I’m using in this review is black with red tones. This vaporizer is also available in white or red.
The vaporizer has a small, built in OLED screen, that tells you how full your battery is, what the set temperature is, and whether it has already reached this temperature. Above the screen, you can find the power button and two smaller buttons that enable you to set the desired temperature. A USB port, for charging the battery, is located at the bottom.
This vaporizer looks simple, but is still very stylish. However, I found one disadvantage in the design. It is too big, and doesn’t have the right shape to fit in your pocket. Fortunately, it did fit in my purse (however I wouldn’t recommend to do that as it could accidentally switch on and get very hot).
Ease of use
The Flowermate AURA is quick and easy to use. To turn on the Flowermate AURA, you press the power button five times. Then you can set the temperature, using the two smaller buttons. The LCD screen displays the target temperature, and the current temperature as it is heating up. After you’ve set the temperature, the vaporizer immediately starts to heat up.
Subsequently, you can enjoy your vape, hands free, for five minutes, After that, it automatically switches off. As soon as it’s switched off, you’ll have to wait until the vaporizer has cooled all the way down, before it can be used again. I think this is a big disadvantage as you’re not in control of the duration of your vape session. Personally, I find this quite frustrating at times. I think it has to cool down so often to prevent overheating. The product can reach very high temperatures. The vaporizer itself, however (especially the mouthpiece) can get incredibly hot. This can be somewhat uncomfortable when you vape at a high temperature.
Loading the heating chamber is easy. You can access the heating chamber, simply by removing the mouthpiece. Put one of the (included) screens at the bottom of the compartment, put your herbs in there (when you use the vaporizer for wax or oils, use one of the included pods), pack them with the packing tool, and put the mouthpiece back in place. It’s really as simple as that. If you don’t use a pod, you should bear in mind that the screens can move quite easily. If you keep the vaporizer upright, you can prevent the screens from moving out of place.
The FlowerMate AURA is easy to clean and maintain. The only maintenance it requires is to replace the screens every now and then. The leftover herbs can be removed from the heating chamber by using the included brush. The vaporizer comes with two metal pods. One of them can be used for oil and wax and the other one can be used for pre loading, which is very handy if you want to vape outside of your house. Unfortunately it’s not so easy to clean the wax / oil pod. It contains a lot of very small, fiddly parts which the wax can get stuck to. Soaking in iso-alcohol or a similar cleaning agent is the preferred method to completely clean these pods.
Vapor and taste
The FlowerMate Aura features an isolated air path. Therefore it produces nice, pure vapor. The amount of vapor that comes out isn’t very high. However, the smell and flavour is good and concentrated.
The mouthpiece is also made out of plastic and it can get very hot when the vaporizer reaches a high temperature. This can cause the vapor to taste slightly plastic-like. When you’re taking the first few hits, you will definitely not notice this. But unfortunately, as soon as most of the plant material is evaporated, you will really start to taste the plastic. This is arguably the biggest downside of the AURA, and something that does not occur with other FlowerMate models, as those come with a glass mouthpiece.
When vaporizing at a high temperature, the vapor can get very hot. This can be harsh on your throat, and it can cause a dry throat and coughing.
Efficiency
It’s easy to regulate the temperature of this vaporizer. The FlowerMate AURA heats up really fast (although it works slower when the battery isn’t fully charged). It has a very wide and variable temperature range; it can heat up to 230 Celsius / 446 Fahrenheit.
One of the biggest plusses to this product, is that it’s totally combustion free. Even at the highest temperature. The vapor gets very hot, but you will never taste burnt herbs. When you remove the leftovers of the plant material, you will see that it’s dry and dark brown, but not burnt.
Durability
The casing of this vaporizer is thick and strong, with a solid plastic cover that shields the mechanisms inside. All in all, it’s a very solid and durable vaporizer. Also, it comes with a one year warranty.
The battery is built in, so it’s not replaceable. Still, the battery performs really well. It’s easy to charge by using the USB cable to connect it to your computer or USB wall plug. After three hours of charging, you can use it for two hours. This is exceptionally long and makes this vaporizer great for use on the go.
