OBS Cube Kit Review | It’s Too Hip to be Square

The OBS Cube kit is from a brand that we mostly associate with good quality atomisers.

The Engine 2 RTA has had its praises sung high and low.

Now, OBS have started to add to a growing range of mods in their stable.

What Can We Expect From The OBS Cube?

The OBS Cube is a self contained mod with an internal 3000mAh battery. A little bit of digging shows that the battery is a 23600, not one that I’m familiar with.

Available in Black, Chrome and Gunmetal. I loved masculine appearance and chunkiness, probably as these words describe me too. The Cube tank comes loaded with the OBS M1 mesh coil.

I’m familiar with this coil as it came with the Draco kit that I reviewed earlier this year. I loved it then, would I still love it now? Let’s find out.

Disclaimer: I received the OBS Cube kit for the purpose of this review. All opinions are based on my own experience and testing.

In The Box

• 1 x Cube Kit
• 1 x Spare glass tube
• 1 x USB cable
• Spare O-rings
• 1 x M6 OCC coil
• 1 x M1 Mesh Coil
• 1 x User manual

Features and Specs

• Cube Mod
• Size: 81.5 x 30.6 x 30.6mm
• Weight: 152g
• Capacity: 3000mAh
• Resistance Range: 0.1 – 2.3 ohms
• Wattage Range: < = 80w
• Output Voltage: 3.2-4.2V
• Continuous firing time: 10s
• 510 connection: Spring loaded, gold plated 510 pin
• Cube Tank
• Size: 25.5 x 47mm
• Material: 304 Stainless Steel
• M1 Mesh Coil Resistance: 0.2ohms (50-80w, best at 65-75w)
• OCC Coil Resistance: 0.3ohms (30-80w, best at 35-70w)
• Filling method: Removable top fill
• Drip tip: 810
• Capacity: 4ml (stated on OBS website)
• Threading: Gold plated, non-adjustable 510 pin
• Available colours: Chrome | Black | Gunmetal

Design and Build Quality

Cube Mod

The look of the OBS Cube mod is stunning. It has a robust look and a quality feel to it.

I received the chrome version which had a brushed stainless steel effect. The inlay on 2 sides is plastic but with a grain to it, which adds luxury. On the third side, we see the cube logo surrounded with a pillowed concertina detail. The fourth side houses the screen.

For me it appeared small, taking up approximately half of the total space on the side. Increasing the size of the screen would have added to the overall chunky appearance.

Operation

Five clicks of the over-sized fire button and we’re off, well almost. The fire button is stiff and quite unresponsive, requiring slow and definite presses to power on and off. When firing the mod to draw, the throw is very short on the button but again needs quite a bit of pressure.

There’s a neat little way to change your wattage. Instead of combination button presses, the Cube is operated by pressing the + or – button 3 times in quick succession. Not only is this convenient and easy, but it helps prevent accidental wattage changes.

I was shocked to find that there was no menu for customising any setting on the Cube. But this shock quickly turned to gladness. This is a mod for the purist in me. The guy who just wants to set a wattage and vape. Ok, so the battery isn’t going to last me too long vaping up at 75w, but so what (get it).

Charging

The USB charge port is set to the front of the mod, beneath the screen. While there’s no real issue with it being there, what I didn’t like is that hardly any of the USB connectors fit into the port. I’m definitely not secure with this and don’t like how easily it slips out.

Also, I’m getting a little tired of open charge ports on mods. Whether they be high end or budget, open charge ports are lint magnets. The Cube kit is no different, so just be careful you don’t block the USB port.

Hand Feel

The Cube has a really secure feel in the hand. It’s not tiny, but it is compact. The width fits neatly in hand and due to its size all of the buttons are in easy reach as you hold it centrally in your palm.

All 3 buttons have a grain to them which adds to comfort in use. I’ve found myself using this more in the pub than anywhere else, knowing that it won’t get knocked out of my hand whilst jostling at the bar.

Tank

The tank continues the chunky theme from the mod. It stands reasonably tall on top of the mod and the footprint is slightly smaller than the top of the mod, leaving a slight lip.
The drip tip is proprietary of sorts. It’s an 810 fitting with an O ring in the lid of the tank to secure it. The drip tip tapers all the way down its length providing a very comfortable mouth position. The drip tip from my Dead Rabbit RDA did fit, but because of the large lip left at the top of the tank I found it less comfortable than the one provided.

The knurling on the top cap reminds me of that on the Draco tank which I reviewed previously. And the filling method is the same – top fill.

The 4ml tank glass provides a clear view of the coil and the lovely large wicking holes on the coil.

The air flow control is at the base of the tank where you will also find CUBE etched on one side in upper case letters. The AFC ring has enough resistance that it will not move when being removed from pockets, but easy enough that the lack of knurling here only slightly frustrates me.

Refilling

The top cap is fully removable with a quarter turn for easy filling through 2 large kidney shaped holes and has a O-ring/gasket embedded in the cap to help prevent leaking.

Coils

The coils are set deep within the chimney, giving a long straight barrel to condense flavour and I found the vapour production and flavour really good with a variety of e-liquid types.

The e-liquids i used were both 70:30 VG/PG ratios. I used Super Manchee and Beard Vape 3.2, both from Flavour Boss.

Changing coils is easy with the base unscrewing, allowing for a quick change and reassemble. Although, make sure you really check you’ve got the coil threaded in properly or you might end up swimming in e-liquid, as I did.

Airflow

The Cube tank has bottom airflow. There are 2 large holes which are easily adjustable and have a stop at both fully open and fully closed. The lack of knurling on the AFC is a little niggle of mine as the base of the tank did tend to get a little slippery.

How Does The OBS Cube Kit Perform?

Mod

The Cube mod was beautiful simplicity. I loved the lines and the comfortable shape. The draw was powerful enough that I felt it really hit the 70w I was aiming for. The ramp up was almost instantaneous, making it a very enjoyable mod to use.

Charging

Charging was very fast. I plugged Cube in and saw the single bar on the display change to 4 in less than an hour. The final bar took another hour to stop flashing, but this is well within the 3 hours that OBS state on their website.

Usability

I used the Cube every day for 2 weeks. Mostly in the car and in the pub and I didn’t find it underpowered or lacking in anyway. It was compact enough that it fit neatly into my jeans pocket, and was discrete enough when using it to have a secure grip on it.

Battery Life

The battery has a good standby: I would regularly leave it switched on in the car overnight and when I came back to it the next day and it just kept on giving. This kit will definitely have a place in my cup holder for a long time.

Tank

I have to admit I have really enjoyed using this tank. The 4ml capacity will most likely be lowered to 2ml for TPD compliance and I found that neither of the supplied coils were overly thirsty on the e-liquid.

The draw was nice and punchy. I first started using the Cube kit at 55w but quickly bumped it to 70w and it stayed there for the rest of the testing period. The flavour was clean and pure and not once did I get a dry hit. The wicking on these coils is genius.

The top fill cap was easy to remove. Although, as a bit of a fumbler I found that filling on the go was a bit troublesome and I did drop the top cap occasionally and the use of a sliding top cap might have worked better.

Now for the downside.

After dismantling the tank for photographing, I reassembled it, filled it and left it to wick for a long while. When I came back I found a puddle of e-liquid at the base of my mod and next to nothing left in the tank.

Now this could have been down to me not threading the coil in properly and even though I didn’t get a full tank leak again, there was a definite seeping of liquid on the mod at all times. Not a deal breaker for me, but something I’m constantly on guard for when using it.

M1 Mesh Coil – 0.2ohm – Brand Recommended Output (30-80W, best at 35-70W)

The M1 mesh coil was great. It has 4 wide triangle juice feed holes and I found that I never got a dry hit. Vapour production was good with a looseness to it that I liked.

The flavour was even better.

It was nicely rounded and worked great with 70VG:30PG ratio liquids. I tried fruit and pastry flavours and found that it worked better with fruits. With daily, but not constant use the coil easily lasted 2 weeks and the only reason I changed it was that I needed to try the OCC coil for this review.

OCC Coil – 0.3ohm Brand Recommended Output (30-80W, best at 35-70W)

The OCC coil is a twin parallel wrapped coil. The juice inlet is 4 columns of 3 reasonably large holes, giving an even flow of juice. I’ve had 3 tanks through this coil and as yet have not had a dry hit.

I found vapour production to be denser with this coil and although the flavour was good, it didn’t stack up against that of the M1 mesh coil. Again, I’ve tried both fruits and pastries and found that for flavour the fruit are the better of the 2 with this coil.

Airflow

The airflow was clean and unobstructed. There was a lot of noise when fully open and even closing the AFC off by a quarter didn’t have much effect. Closing the airflow down almost all the way did allow for a very restricted draw, but I don’t think it can compete with dedicated Mouth to Lung (MTL) vape tanks.

Direct to lung on the other had was easy and I had a satisfying draw each time.

Pros

• Gorgeous looks
• Long battery life
• Comfortable draw
• Pocket friendly design

Cons

• Top cap would be better as a slider
• Watch out for leaks!

Final Verdict

This is a nice step away from the standard pen mod. The looks and shape are more grown up and have a very comfortable feel in the hand. The speed of the ramp up left me gob-smacked and I kept going back for more day after day.

If you’re looking for a simple mod you can just pick up and go with then I recommend you seriously consider the OBS Cube.