Today, I will be looking at the new Joyetech Cuboid. This mod was provided by the awesome folks over at Gearbest.
Since I own the Joyetech VTC Mini, I will be making some comparison based observations between the two of them. This is NOT a compare and contrast review, however there are many similarities between the two that need to be covered and pointed out.
Joyetech Cuboid Review
Packaging – In The Box
Okay, so I am going to use this space to describe the packaging and the contents of the box. I don’t really want to spend too much time on it because we have all seen boxes before. This is a simple Joyetech box, with a foam insert to protect the mod during shipping. When you first open the box you are greeted with the certificate of authenticity sitting on top of the mod which is cradled in a foam insert. Below the foam insert is the multi lingual manual and the USB charging cable. The only real point of interest here is that the USB cable warrants its own box, rather than just being jammed into the package like most other mods.
Instructions
At first glance, the manual seems quite impressive and very thick. However, once you start reading the manual you will quickly discover is that the thickness is due to the same instructions being repeated in multiple languages. The instructions are not your traditional poorly written and horribly translated from Chinese, in fact, they are just the opposite and seem to be very well written, pretty thorough, and overall a great place to start.
Initial Impressions
I warned you up front that in this Joyetech Cuboid review I would be comparing it directly to the eVic VTC Mini, this is where that really begins. It’s obvious at first glance that the style of this mod is clearly the big brother to the eVic VTC Mini. The first thing you will notice is the similarity in shape and size, it has the same nice clean lines and an almost identical display. Unlike its little brother, it is a dual battery mod, so it is necessarily bigger, slightly taller, wider, and deeper, to account for the size of the second battery.
That said, it is not surprisingly larger, as you can see in the photos, but it is definitely heftier in the hand, you can feel the weight difference. Despite the extra heft, it feels very nice in my hand, not too heavy and the rounded edges make it comfortable to hold for long periods.
Joyetech did try to distinguish the Cuboid from the VTC Mini by moving things around a little bit, instead of putting the display, all of the buttons, and the USB charging port on the front edge, they put the display along with the up and down adjustment “bar” on the side of the mod and while they left the fire button in the same place, they did change the shape of it.
Out of the box, the one issue I noticed is a very small “ding” in the finish on one of the top corners.
Cuboid Specifications
Color | Black , Grey , Silver |
Battery Size | 28.00mm*42.00mm*91.20mm |
Weight | Battery (no cell) 213g |
Output Mode | VW/VT-Ni/VT-Ti/VT-SS316/TCR Mode |
Resistance Range | 0.05-1.5ohm for VT mode |
0.1-3.5ohm for VW mode | |
Temperature Range | 100-315℃/ 200-600°F |
The chart above is from the Joyetech website, but surprisingly leaves out a few notable specifications which I will cover here.
There are three big points that they don’t cover in the specifications that I think are pretty important for a lot of vapers. These are custom TCR values, maximum power outage, and upgrade-able firmware. For starters, they did not mention the ability to put in custom TCR values for just about any coil wire you might want to use. This is a big deal for intermediate to advanced vapers and I’m surprised that Joyetech isn’t making a bigger deal out of it in the specification list.
Next up is the maximum power outage, this mod with the original firmware is rated for 150 watts, which is nothing to sneeze at. The reason they may not have mentioned it is due to the final feature, upgrade-able firmware. The very first firmware they released is version 3.10 and it actually brings the mod from 150 watts up to 200 watts maximum power output. You can find this information on their website, but surprisingly it is not clearly promoted in the specifications where I would have expected to see it, since many people don’t read past the charts.
Fit and Finish
As I already mentioned in my initial thoughts above, as soon as I pulled it out of the box, I noticed a ding in the finish, on top near one of the corners. It’s not horrible, but my expectations for a brand new anything (mod, car, computer, etc.) are that there will be NO imperfections at all, that is why I buy everything brand new and not “lightly used”.
The next thing I noticed were all the scratches and rubs in the screen. Ultimately, I figured out that it was a screen protector applied at the factory, by a magician! That little protector was impossible to get a finger nail under, so I decided to just leave it in place until it works itself loose or I get tired of looking at the scratch marks.
The Joyetech Cuboid clearly shows design influences from the eVic VTC Mini. The mod has the same matte black color as my eVic VTC Mini, but with a little bit of a textured feel to it, unlike the smooth finish of the VTC. The edges are rounded and feel really nice in the hand. It would have been nice if Joyetech had also rounded the top and bottom edges just a little bit to match.
Other than the long plastic piece over the display, and the very top plate, there are no visible seams in the mod. Given that there is no visible bottom seam, it looks like the housing is made from a single piece of aluminum, although this could just be a fantastic finishing job that hides other seams between the parts.
The real design differences between the Cuboid and the VTC Mini, other than the dual batteries, are in the battery door, placement of the screen, buttons, and the USB charging port. I would have liked to see them on the front of the mod with the firing button, however the screen and the up and down bar have been moved to the side, while the USB charging port has been moved to the top of the back side of the mod.
The battery door is no longer held on by magnets, it has been given a new “hinged” design on the bottom of the mod. It would have been nice to have a spring loaded hinge, as it is a little difficult to get the door open when there are no batteries in the mod as it sits so flush to the base.
On the top of the mod, you will see the 510 connector, which appears to be made of stainless steel, and the only 2 screws I could find, holding the top of the mod to the base. The 510 connector has a spring loaded center pin, and is well fitted to the top of the mod. Try as I might, I could find no looseness to it at all.
The up and down (+/-) adjustment buttons are concealed beneath a single horizontal bar. This design gives the mod a very clean and simple look, although I personally would have preferred to see separate buttons like on the VTC Mini. I could not discern any rattle to the buttons, or any other part of the mod for that matter. It really feels very solid and hopefully the finish holds up as well as the finish on the VTC Mini.
Usage
If you own or have ever used the Cuboid’s little brother, then you will be right at home with the controls in this mod. If you are familiar with the VTC this mod works identically to that one. If not, then the controls are “mostly” intuitive. In cases where the configuration settings are not intuitive, the well written manual clearly gives you good instructions.
A couple of the non intuitive features are changing from Celsius to Fahrenheit and how to set the manual TCR settings. Changing from Celsius to Fahrenheit is actually pretty simple, even if it’s not easy to figure out. The Cuboid defaults to Celsius mode, and you have to cycle all the way to the end of range, then release the button and push it again to change to enter into Fahrenheit temperature adjustments.
The display is as beautiful as that on the VTC, in fact it is almost identical. It is one of the largest available on a mod, and as a result there is a lot of information you can see when it’s in use. The Cuboid’s display is slightly different from that of the VTC, to account for the dual batteries. In fact, in my personal opinion, this is the nicest part of the display, the dual battery indicator, because it gives you a view of the charge status of BOTH batteries at once.
You can change the bottom line of the display to one of several data points, depending on what you want to see while the mod is in use. The three data points available are the working amperage of the device while in use, the cumulative number of puffs you’ve taken, or the cumulative time, in seconds, since you started using the mod. Personally, the amperage is the only real useful feature for me, but you may have a need for the puff or time counter, especially if you are trying to track your vaping usage.
The Cuboid has multiple modes available that should be sufficient for most vapers. In Power mode it can be set from 1 watt to 150 watts, depending on the coil installed. It does to some sensing of the coil to help ensure that you don’t overpower your batteries. This is a wonderful benefit of newer regulated mods, in the “old” days of a year or so ago, this might have caused batteries to vent or “explode”. It also has automatic temperature control modes for Nickel, Titanium, and Stainless Steel.
For advanced vapers, there is also the ability to manually set the TCR values for three additional coil types. These modes are all identical to the VTC Mini’s modes of operations, but that is where it ends, there is one glaring omission, the Cuboid does not have the “Bypass” mode that the VTC Mini has. I suspect that this omission was intentional, and likely decided based on the potential liabilities should something go wrong if a build is too low and overpowers the dual batteries. I do wish the option were there, as I use it frequently on the VTC, but I can see why it isn’t.
Temperature Control
I won’t go into the specifics of the temperature limits since they are already listed in the specifications. Instead I will talk briefly about the different temperature control modes. As is slowly becoming the norm for new mods, the Cuboid comes with preset temperature control settings for Nickel (Ni200), Titanium (Ti), and Stainless Steel (SS).
There are also three manual TCR settings so that you can program in settings for anything other than the top three, this allows you to do any customization you might want to do. This is FANTASTIC and shows that the inexpensive mod market is able to keep up with the higher end chips, meaning that vapers at all budgets now have access to temperature control technology that used to be only for the high end market.
Performance
In my testing, I started with the stock V3.0 firmware. I used the mod for a week on this firmware, and then conducted the upgrade to V3.10. The Cuboid performed flawlessly with the stock version 3.0 firmware. Temperature control appears to be spot on in my testing, and battery life looks tremendous so far. After updating to the new firmware, there did not appear to be any real differences in performance, other than a jump from 150 watts maximum to 200 watts.
Here’s a quick video review by TiaVapes
Update Software
Like the VTC software, when you run the updater you have the option of selecting which firmware you would prefer to use. If you update to v3.10 and don’t like it, then you can roll back to v3.0 at any time. It’s pretty straight forward and does not give you any real customization like Joyetech offered with the eVic Supreme, but it works well for simple firmware updates. I do wish they would roll it into the MVR software so that you could track usage and statistics, but for the price of the mod, this is not a complaint, just an observation that it could be better.
This is also where the Cuboid shows it’s VTC roots. When I downloaded the update, it was on the Cuboid firmware page, identified as UpdateFirmware_V3.10.zip. Upon opening the zip file, I immediately noticed that Joyetech also included all 6 of the eVic VTC Mini firmwares in the same zip file. I did try to load several of them on the Cuboid, since they were included, but none would actually load other than the 3.10 firmware marked for the Cuboid. I do have to wonder why they included 6 firmware files for another mod that won’t even load.
Conclusion
As we have seen in the market lately, mods seem to be getting bigger and bigger. Joyetech has managed to squeeze the latest technology into a very small, compact size, yet still manage to leave room for dual batteries. I only have three real complaints, the first is the small ding in the finish, and while that doesn’t seem like a big deal, it does speak to the quality control process at Joyetech.
If they are letting products out with flaws in the finish, what else are they letting slip through the QC process? The second complaint is the lack of a bypass mode to use this like a mechanical mod. I suspect that this was intentional so as to reduce the risks of users trying to build too low and overpowering the dual batteries.
My guess is it is a conscious decision to reduce any liability if something should go wrong. The third complaint is actually with the firmware download, why would Joyetech include the 6 VTC Mini firmware files if I can’t use them in the Cuboid? There is no reason whatsoever that these firmware files should have been included in the Cuboid firmware update.
Otherwise, while I have no really big complaints, I do have some things I would have liked to see them do differently. I know they want to differentiate this from the eVic VTC Mini, but I do wish they had found a way to keep the buttons and the display in the same place on the front of the mod.
As it is, I’m not a real fan of the side mounted location of the display or the up down adjustment buttons, but they are functional and the mod has some very clean lines as a result. I would also like to see them update the My Vapor Software that is available for the eVic Supreme to allow you to track usage, maybe upload custom screens, and possibly even setup custom profiles for the settings. I hope someone from Joyetech reads this and decides to champion this issue. It would be really nice to have software to compete against the other big players in the game like the Evolv DNA 200 and the Yihi SX Mini series chipsets.
Straight out of the box, this is one of the most advanced vape mods on the market and fully capable with any pre-built coil you put on it. If you use temperature control already this mod will be easy for you to use. If you are a cloud chaser, then with 150 – 200 watts, depending on which firmware version you are running, there should have no issues with this mod, it should easily push your sub ohm builds.
This is by far the smallest dual battery mod I have ever owned or used. It has more advanced capabilities than many a mod in this price range and category than I have seen so far. Joyetech is really upping the bar on entry-level, good quality mods with the Cuboid. It could only have been better if they offered it in a full kit configuration with a tank and some coils for the first time vaper, but otherwise it is a great deal.
The bottom line is that with dual batteries, a large display with a ton of information, a spring loaded 510 connector and supported with regular updates, Joyetech looks like they have hit another one out of the park with the Cuboid, and I can’t wait to see what is in their future lineup.
I hope this Joyetech Cuboid review helps you make an informed decision for your next vape mod.
I just got mine the other day but haven’t used it yet. I ordered the batteries that have a positive nipple and they won’t fit in the Cuboid. You can call that a newbie mistake. This is my first mod that has needed batteries.
I really really hope you got the proper batteries. Google best batteries for vaping 2016. There are a ton of 18650s out there that won’t work for vaping, and/or could be dangerous in trying to use. Be. Careful.
I got some nice LG’s and I have a set of Sony’s in the mail. This works like a charm now.
I honestly didn’t notice the screen protector until you mentioned it. I thought mine just came with light scratches on it.
Thanks for the heads up and the great review!
Yeah, not sure how they got the screen protector on so well, but the one on mine is still holding strong. I’m pretty hard on my mods though, since I carry everything in my pockets, so I haven’t worried about getting it off yet.
Glad you liked the review!
I have had my Cuboid for a few days and I just love it so far! I can’t wait to get some stainless steel coils and wire to be able to take full advantage of the TC settings. Joyetech has a winner with this little bad boy. I had the option of getting this or the Wismec RX200 and even tho the 3 battery option would have been awesome, my favorite reviewer said he would go with Cuboid as of this time so that’s also what I did.
Yes, the cuboid is a great mod for the money! I’m looking at the Wismec as well, for a comparison review, but I think it’s going to be hard to beat the Cuboid (especially since they are the same chips)!
Wonderful review, with some great info. I also own the VTC mini but I haven’t looked at any of the upgrades for it. Do you just go to the joyetech website and hook up the mod to your computer and go through the download process? I’m sure they charge for the upgrades as well right?
To upgrade, go to the Joyetech download site and download the updater, unzip everything to the same place on your computer, plug in the mod, run the update software, and pick the firmware you want to install. It’s really a simple process.
The upgrades are free, they don’t charge for them. Enjoy!
Oh wow!! Thanks for the info. I thought for sure that they’d charge something for the upgrades. I’ll definitely have to check it out then. I’m still running the original 60w that my VCT mini came with. Again thanks so much for your help.
Unless they have changed the download, just download the Cuboid zip file, it will also have the VTC Mini firmware files in it. Then you can update both of your mods at the same time.
I agree with almost everything that you have said. Incredible value and tiny for a dual battery mod. A couple of points that I would emphasize to potential buyers as compared to the vtc mini. First although the width is very similar the difference in depth and height is still noticeable in the hand. Secondly the weight different is drastic in comparison to the mini so be prepared for something much heavier in the hand.
Also I found the battery meters to read the batteries at different levels often but simply pulling the batteries and putting them right back in fixes that. Last point when comparing to the high end mods, in particular the dna200 chip. there is that slightly ever present firing delay that is often found on the lower end market.
Now with all of that said you would be hard pressed to find a better value on the market. In my ideal world they would combine this model with the concept of the egrip style tank sidecar extension that allows other tanks up to 24MM and have an amazing device that fits the style of most vapers today and still fits in most peoples hands.
Yes, there is a slight size and weight difference to account for the extra battery, but I haven’t noticed the slight delay you referenced when firing it. My battery meters seem to be spot on for the most part, although the right one does seem to drop one bar a little quicker than the left, but then they equalize again after one or two vapes.
What type batteries and coil does this Mod take?
Coil on the CUBIS Atomizer that is.
The mod takes 18650 batteries, and I strongly recommend the LG HG2s, they have been exceptional in my mods and cost less than the VTC 4/5s. For all but the serious cloud chaser, they should be ideal for almost any mod.
I believe that Joyetech uses a proprietary coil design for their tanks, so you will have to find the coils specifically for the Cubis. I don’t own the Cubis, just the mod, so I can’t tell you anything more about it. Sorry!
18650 flat top batteries
the Cubis tank has its own specific coils
Thanks for the great review. Since I bought the Reuleaux DNA200, I haven’t been looking for a new or better mod. This Cuboid, however, has really piqued my interest for some reason. Now I know that between the styling, the features, and the ridiculously low price; I think I’m just going to have to pick one up. Thanks again!
Yeah, the Cuboid is a great mod for the price, I think you’ll really enjoy it.
I have had mine for a month and I have to say it is very easy to live wtih, I got SS finish which looks good but is a bit slick in the hand, so I put a PVC film on it with a texture. The twin battery gives a good life and it just works well, I have an RX200 which works in very similar ways but is huge in the hand.
I think the Cuboid is the best of the current wave of mods for size and ease of use, it has the power to go cloud chasing if you wish and with TC it is brilliant specially with SS coils that give the cleanest flavour IMO. I have not really found any negatives with it.
I know why they have just put the updates together, they use the same software interface and it is cheaper to increase the files on one piece of software than write 2 separate pieces of software (and pointless as it benefits nobody)
If you like TC vaping or cloudchasing BUY it
The stainless one might be slippery, but it is kind of sexy looking. :) I know they are using the same software for updating both mods, but it isn’t that hard to just not include the extra firmware files in the update zip. All it does is cause confusion in the end, especially with new vapers, wondering why the updates aren’t working or why they were included in the download if they don’t work. Joyetech could just as easily have taken a few seconds to delete the VTC Mini firmware files before putting the update out.
Nice review! Of course I am so particular about my decides that I would’ve contacted the company you purchased it from and requested a replacement. Any dings or scuff marks I might accidentally get on my device should and will only be done by my own fault. I would not have kept one that came to me that way. I LOVE my Black Cuboid and am trading a friend my hubby’s IPV3Li for the cost of a second Cuboid in grey for him. My DNA200 has taken a backseat to my VTC mini and Cuboid. SS TC and customizable TCR makes this a much better 2016 device that the IPV but my friend loves his IPV and wants another. A happy trade for us both! If the grey one shows up with scratches or dings when it is removed from the box, it will be sent back for an exchange immediately. That is unacceptable QC.
I could have probably worked with the company to get another, but for the purposes of reviewing the mod, this was how I got it, so that is how it got reviewed. I thought it was more important to point out that it’s possible to get one with a flawed finish so that potential buyers aren’t surprised if it happens to them. Ultimately it doesn’t affect the performance, it is really just an annoyance. If there were big scratches or scrapes that really stood out, I might feel differently, but the little spot was hardly noticeable. I’m hard on my mods anyway, so it was bound to get scratched at some point anyway.
Glad you love the mod, hope your husband likes his too!
The ding, the NO MECH MOD MODE, and the 6 other files ? If that is the worst thing about this then you obviously have a winner. The Evic vtc mini is a good mod without the Tron, but the cuboid is essentially 35 or less shipped, and JT went immediately to Software upgradeable, dual 18650, and killed your MECH MOD BYPASS because the market of newbie at this price people don’t know how to use it, and you don’t need it. Get a 20.00 mech for that . I have 2 of these with the Cubis and tfv4 mini, and as I have picked up the newest Kanger 200, Fuchai, Wismec Dna200 and a few other Dna200 models for the 50.00 investment plus 18650s the cuboid cubis combo is, on a budget or looking for quality you can’t go wrong Evic vtc taken to the next level yet less as a package. Capes of quality dropping in price going up in innovation daily is an amazing thing, and I look forward to 100’a more 30 00 high quality vapes, 200+ in my collection now. THINK ABOUT THE FACT 18 MOS AGO I PAID 80.00 FOR THE ITASTE VTR KIT, and was thrilled. .now? Even Eleaf 100 tc I just got works like a champ.
Only complaint I would make and hope to see rectified in the v2 version is a better quality battery door. Its the weak spot on the mod and no doubt will lead to aggrivations for those heavy handed
I have no complaints on the battery door myself, mine seems to do the job well, and feels solid enough. I don’t foresee it as a failure point without some serious abuse and misuse. Of course mine is only one sample out of however many thousands were made, so yours may be different.
Update to my 2/18 review, getting better and better. Comparing this now 30-35.00 mod to the Kanger cheap feeling 200, Innokin not in the same league overpriced Cortex, Sigelei offerings and various others to come weekly, the Cuboid /Cubis combo now essentially 50 for the setup, nothing else mod and tank is close. Quality and reliability, very well built and thought out, aND I have 3 of the sets, but running the Tobeco super tank mini on one ,and while I love my SX mini’s and Wismec dna and rx, for the I don’t care it’s a 50.00 setup carry mod, you buy used older technology or the Cuboid /Cubis combo. Temp control and compact, power for my Kennedy builds, and if it did break or I lost it, yes I’d because of the 50.00 combo price WOULD GO BUY ANOTHER ONE. Get this combo for your rotation, you will be glad you did.
This is exactly what I’ve been thinking. After I bought a DNA200, I thought that I wouldn’t be wanting to buy another mod for awhile. This Cuboid keeps nagging at my brain. All these features for under $50? Do I need it? No. Do I want it? Oh, yes! The only way for it to quit nagging me is to buy it.
For the price, I deal with it and just add it to my cheap mod pile, but there’s one major con to this mod that nobody seems to mention. Does anyone use their rdas on it, with somewhat low resistance builds? Or possibly the tfv4 with .17 ohm octuple coils..? Well I do, and that screen section with amp draw i just thought was neat (never ran into this issue with aNY prior mods so I didn’t notice in specs) well there is a severely overly safe /overly protective, amp limit of 25 on this dual 18650 mod. It’s sad , first off, it limits the …tfv4 for example octuple coils , the cuboid will not go above 106 watts ,that is 25 amps. Now, the fact that they have this limit as OUTPUT , makes it a complete gimmick. Then upgrading it to 200 is straight b.s. Most high powered devices have safety limits but it will automatically step-down voltage and allow much higher wattage, 40 amp output or 50 is more then safe on a regulated mod with TWO 18650S. Samsung 25r are most common 1865o , they have amp rating of 20, and a pulse of much higher (we don’t demand power for long. Regardless even if you want to stay in safety para meters this mod is a complete joke. Nowhere on its website where the features and specs are highlighted does it state such, and the even funnier part is they recommend Sony vtc4s, whuch are actually 30 amp which should allow a max combined of more like 55 or 60 not 25!. Flat out the upgrade was to just entice more newer vapers to buy it because everything is 200watt now. This made me never want to buy a joyetech product again. Also just for though, dna200 has 23 amp limit but Input , and is able to step voltage down to allow a true 200w. Oh yeah on top of it all the VOLTAGE max on cuboid is 9, thats below average for dual 18650s. As we speak I happen to be using my 200w Dual 18650 koopor plus (best mod ever for its price) and I’m safely using .17 tfv4 coils at 145 watts. The cuboid has some great features and great build quality I’ll give it that, but having the same restrictions as the istick 1o0 whichis also too low , makes it totally not right. To call a 200w device.