The Dabtron is one of the newest portable e-rigs to land on our doorstep and with it comes an alluring price tag, coming in under $100 and making this device one of the cheapest of its kind on the market. But is it any good?

Summary: 

✅ Excellent value, one of the cheapest full feature e-rigs on the market

✅ No coil quartz cup makes for less mess and better heat distribution

✅ Decent battery life with USB-C charging

❌ Not the best for flavour

❌ Small oven chamber

❌ Fragile glass parts 

Dabtron by SeshGear: Initial Thoughts

 

It comes neatly packaged in a shiny box (ooh, shiny) with all of the parts packaged separately. Putting the device together for the first time feels a little daunting, as there's quite a few parts to put together, however thankfully the instructions are clear and illustrated, making this a quick and easy job.

A quick read through the instructions shows that to operate the device, is similar to other rigs on the market:

• 5 clicks to turn on 
• 3 clicks to cycle through temperature presets
• 2 clicks starts a session mode
• hold down click provides 'on-demand' function 

There's only one button, and by using the functions above you're able to select temperature and the heating mode. 

I found that the lowest temperature setting is more than adequate to produce big hits. In fact, venturing above this setting caused the flavour to really drop off and become quite harsh for me. 

After some experimentation I've found the best settings to be thus:

• YELLO heat setting selected (from low -> high heat the colours go blue, yellow, green, red)
• Push and hold the button to activate on-demand mode. Keep the carb cap off so you can visually inspect the oven, heat the chamber until your extract has fully melted
• Take your finger off the heater, add the carb cap, cycle to the BLUE heat setting
• Activate the session mode (2 clicks) and start your session

I've found that bumping up the heat at the start helps to provide a nice melted, bubbling extract that primes you for some big hits. By turning the temperature back down before you start your session, you're helping to preserve some of the flavours. 

The carp cap includes a hole to provide fair flow. I keep this covered while inhaling, which means all air is pulled through the oven chamber, causing vapour to collect in the water bowl. Once I'm ready for the hit, I release my finger from the carb cap and continue inhaling. This additional source of air into the unit forces new air into the chamber, and pushes the vapor from the unit into my eagerly awaiting lungs.

The battery life is actually quite decent on this unit, and USB-c charging provides a quick and universal solution for replenishing battery life. 

✅ Why you should buy the Dabtron e-rig by SeshGear

If you are looking to dip your toe into the world of dabbing, this is an excellent starter device. The price makes it very alluring, and you get all of the features you would on a unit that could cost 4 or 5 times as much.

You are able to use this device to get big hits, with only little need for maintenance.

The oven includes a quartz cup, which means you're not placing your extracts directly onto the coil. This helps to prevent making a mess and makes cleanup much easier.

The device is well designed and the mouthpiece protrudes at an angle that has been well-engineered - it feels natural and easy to rip on this device without craning your next.

The glass water tank is easily accessible, and is therefore easier to clean than other rigs.

I would recommend this device for those on a budget looking for their first electronic dab rig. 

❌ Why you shouldn't buy the Dabtron e-rig by SeshGear

Despite having a quartz cup, I feel that the device is somewhat lacking in flavour. Anything above the lowest heat setting seems to provide quite a harsh taste, which is not something I'm mad about.

The oven size is small; even smaller than most other portable electronic dab rigs. If you're looking for really big dabs, you might consider an eNail instead, which come with much bigger ovens for enjoying larger amounts of concentrate.

There are many pieces to this device. On one hand, this could be a positive, as it makes dissembling and cleaning easy. However the first time I removed the percolator to give the device a clean, I dropped it a few inches into the sink and it smashed. Replacement parts are cheap to pick up, but it was still an inconvenience and demonstrated the fragility of some of the glass components.  

 Overall, this is a budget-friendly unit which is ideal for those starting out with dabs. 

 Full video review of the Dabtron e-rig by SeshGear: