G-Pen Dash Review

Background

G-Pen had a busy year with some significant releases of extract vapes, namely the Roam (Review) and the Connect (Review), and Mid 2020, they released the GPen Dash dry herb vaporizer. 

The Dash is a small and stealthy vape aimed at beginners that are looking for a simple to use affordable vape. At 3.6 inches tall, the Dash stays true to its name. It is an entry-level, simple to use vape with unique features such as magnetic mouthpiece, haptic feedback, and glass-lined oven. 

Design

The Dash has an exterior shell that is made from smooth all-black Aluminum, and it is very small and light. Air intake holes are found on the front and back of the shell and the Dash has a one-button interface with 3 LED lights that changes color with every temperature level setting. A micro-USB port is located at the bottom of its shell and supports pass-through charging capability.

Mouthpiece

The Dash has an isolated airpath, so the “visible mouthpiece” is just a cover of the isolated internal mouthpiece. The isolated mouthpiece can be pulled out from the cover, and it has a helix insert inside that cools down the vapor. I was surprised to find it there (the Helix insert), as these are features that you typically don’t expect to see on such an affordable vape. Also, there wasn’t any mention of that on the user manual or on their website. When the air passes

through the helix, it cools down before it is inhaled.

The mouthpiece is magnetic, and it has two pins at the side to line it up for a seamless fit. I like the design of the mouthpiece as it has no latches or “closing mechanism.” Other vapes in this price range have mouthpieces held in place with a latch or just by pressure, which seems to fail fairly quickly. Using magnets and small pins to line it up and close the mouthpiece is smart, convenient, and durable.

Heating Chamber

The Dash has a glass-lined oven that is the perfect size for Solo sessions. It has air-intake holes all around that pull air into the oven through little holes at the bottom of the oven. This is a simple design that is easy to clean, fill, or empty. The top of the vape has a smooth surface shaped like a funnel that easily slides herb into the oven.

Interface

The Dash has a super-simple one-button interface and it has haptic feedback, which means it vibrates when the desired temperature is reached. Pressing the button five times turns it on and it will begin heating up. 

Pressing the button three times will toggle the three temp levels- Blue (375°F/ 190°C), Green (401°F/ 205°C), Red (428°F/ 220°C). The number of LEDs (1,2,3) signals the battery strength.

How to Use

1. Remove the mouthpiece and load finely-ground material into the chamber. The chamber holds up to a quarter of a gram and you should not pack it too tight.
2. Attach the magnetic mouthpiece. 
3. Press the button five times to power on and activate heating.
4. Press the button three times to select the desired temperature range.
5. When the desired temperature is reached, the Dash vibrates.
6. Pull slow and deep inhales. 
7. I recommend emptying out the oven immediately after a session. This will make cleaning easier and ensure the longevity of the vape. 

Performance & Vapor Quality

The overall performance of the vape was excellent, although there were a few issues worth mentioning-

Small vapes are great, but they do have a limitation when it comes to heat dispersion. Because the Dash is so small, it shares this problem with similar vapes and even more expensive ones such as the Pax 3 (Review) and IQ2 (Review). The devices are small, and heat has nowhere to dissipate. This causes both the vaporizer and the vapor to be warm, which can get uncomfortable.

G Pen tried to overcome this problem and cool down the vapor with the helix insert I mentioned earlier, partially succeeding, but not entirely. The only way to fix the heat dispersion problem is to make a bigger vape, with some type of heat sink, such as the Crafty+(Review) and Mighty+ (Review). But of course, these vapes sacrifice stealthiness and portability and are also much more expensive.

The vapor was surprisingly strong and thick, especially considering the price point of this thing. The vapor quality was not as good as we’d see from larger and more sophisticated vapes such as the Solo 2 (Review) or the Utillian 620 (Review), but that’s not a fair comparison as both vapes are more than double the price.

The Dash is powered by a 950mAh battery that takes 1-2 hours of charging time. On a full charge, the Dash is enough to last about 5-7 sessions.

Bottom Line

If you are an advanced user that prioritizes vapor quality, the Dash is probably not your best option. But if you are a beginner looking for a simple to use vape that provides great value for the price, the G Pen Dash is certainly one to consider.