I appreciated that the pieces and parts arrived intact. The A3 arrived in a small black cardboard box and was well-secured. At first glance, the new Caliburn A3 vape looks like the old A2. On closer inspection, I see they added a nice-looking raised LED indicator light across the base of the front side of the A3. The device is slightly thinner and, in my opinion, feels better in hand. It is a good-looking device that hits well for the price.

What's Included in a Caliburn A3 Kit?

• 1x Caliburn A3 Device
• 2x FeCrAl Meshed 1.0Ω Caliburn A3 Refillable Pods
• 1x User Manual
• 3x small instruction cards, 1 – warranty, 1-FDA warning, 1-How to fill it, 1-spec card.
• No Charging Cable – I was disappointed they didn’t include the charging cable. Not every device works with every Type-C cable. I haven’t had any issues charging the A3 using the USB-C cable I borrowed from my Mi-Pod Pro+.

Caliburn A3 Specifications

• Size: 109.8 mm x 21.3 mm x 11.7 mm
  • Approx: 4.3” Tall X 1” Wide x ½” Deep
• Materials: Aluminum Alloy, PCTG
• Colors:Black, silver, red, blue, grey, green.
• Net Weight: 31 g
• Pod: Top fill design (break-off drip tip access).
• E-liquid Capacity: 2 ml
• Output Wattage: Maximum 13w
• Coil: FeCrAl Meshed 1.0Ω CALIBURN A3 Refillable Pod
• Battery Capacity: 520mAh

Caliburn A3 Device Features

• LED Display
• Type-C charging: 15-30 minutes until charged.
• Optimized tech inside for more effective utilization of the battery.
• Comfy, Ergonomic Design
• Auto Draw or Button Fire
• Button Lock Function
• Magnetic Cart
• E-Liquid window
• LED Battery Indicator

How to Use the Caliburn A3

1. Charge it - Charge with a Type-C charger
2. Fill it - Fill your favorite vape juice by snapping off the mouthpiece and pouring juice into the red tube.
3. Wait for it - ten minutes for the cotton to saturate.
4. Hit it - Auto draw or press the button. Vape until you run out of juice or power, at which point you will have to refill or recharge it.
5. Replace Pod - When the vape juice starts tasting bad (Every 3-5 refills, depending on your juice).

A3 Features Explained

• Turn On/Off: It turns on and off by pressing the button five (5) times. The light will let you know when you have done it correctly.
• Button Lock: Turns on and off by pressing the button two (2) times. Click another two (2) times to enable the button again. The device will not fire in this mode when accidentally pressed (like when bouncing around in your purse or pocket). The auto-draw feature continues to work.
• Auto-Draw Firing Mechanism: There is no airflow slider, but I think it didn’t need one.
• Heating Control: A3 uses an automatic (auto-draw firing system) and also gives you the option to use a button.
• Draw lightly - if you want a smaller, low airflow, mouth-to-lung (MTL) puff. The auto-draw mechanism provides a smaller, slower puff that is perfect for an MTL.
• Draw hard - for a passable DTL puff. The A3 auto-draw mechanism, combined with its airflow, almost delivers a decent DTL-worthy puff with a thinner e-juice.
• No Slider for Air Flow: No airflow slider exists, but I don’t think the Caliburn A3 needs one. I have reviewed several other pod systems recently and dozens of disposable collections. While many devices sporting sliders show marked improvement in airflow when the slider is wide open, few provide a decent DTL no matter how high their slider goes (Evo Drip and MPP+ excluded). The A3 has decent airflow, even without a slider.

Performance

It is a quality vape pod device that has a lot of features that vapers will thoroughly enjoy. I enjoyed vaping all my favorite e-Juice through it. I was surprised at how great it vaped e-Juice. It brought flavors alive that I had not tasted in my old favorites. It was especially good with high VG e-Liquids, which is a little surprising for a refillable vape pod device.

However, it does not perform as well with nic salts as some of its counterparts do.

PROS

• The Uwell Caliburn A3 is an improvement over the A2 and AK2
• Greatly improved charge times
• The weight feels good in your hand despite it looking like a Juul on steroids.
• So far, no leaky pods
• Clear window to see e-Juice level.
• This device brought high VG/PG e-Juice to life. It hits E-Juice wonderfully. If they had told me this device was tailor-made to burn max-VG vape juice better, I would believe them based on the puffs I got.
• A pod system saves money compared to disposables.

CONS

• The finished case is slick. I would have preferred something less prone to slipping that feels good in-hand.
• I wish they had changed from their pop-top refill system to one that is more user-friendly.
• The flavors were not as unique with Nic Salts Vape Juice as with E-Juices (VG/PG Vape Juices).
  • I heard “too harsh” more than once when someone would test Nic Salts through it for me.
  • I didn’t hate it with Nic Salts, but it wasn’t exceptional, either. I am not sure the A3 has the horsepower to cook thicker Nic Salts. I expect big crackly flavor-filled Nic hits when vaping a Nic Salt Vape Juice.
  • I did not get the same intense flavors or hits with Nic Salts that the A3 served up with freebase e-Juice.

Switch to a Refillable Vape Device and Save

You should notice savings of about half of your vape budget after the first couple of months it takes to recoup the cost of the battery. If you vape more, you will save more; if you vape less, you will save less, but the savings rate remains constant.

Pick a refillable vape pod kit. Invest in some vape juice and replacement pods. The replacement pods are usually around $5 a pod (sold in different pack sizes), lasting 4-6 refills. Most vape juice is $13 on average online. If you use three pods and a bottle of juice monthly to consume 30 ml of juice, you will spend around $28. On average, it would cost you around $57 to consume 39mls of juice using disposables or $29 more dollars for every 30mls you vape moving forward.

Conclusion

It is an excellent little pod system and the perfect starter kit for someone just getting into vape pod systems. For around $30, you can pick up the kit with two pods and a battery. Buy a good vape juice bottle for $13, and you are set for as long as it would take you to vape through three disposables.