Not the normal design by any means, the Freemax Maxpod Circle is exactly as its name implies. It’s circular in shape, similar in size to that of a Rich Tea biscuit (but far tastier) in terms of the overall dimensions.
The Freemax Maxpod Circle is a smooth Mouth-To-Lung (MTL) draw with the option of being either auto-draw or push button activated. The capacity of the pod is 2ml and it’s a re-fillable pod which incorporates a non-replaceable coil.
It’s also got an internal 550mAh battery, providing a fixed output power of 10W with the 1.5ohm mesh coil. Operation is very straightforward, simply charge via the micro USB port, fill the pod with e-liquid and vape.
A small multi-colored LED on the front of the Maxpod Circle indicates its charging and battery remaining status.
Freemax have certainly been brave and thought outside the box with the design of this pod (quiet literally!). I’m guessing it won’t be to everyone’s liking but good on them for trying.
Read on and find out what we thought of it!
Firstly a big thank you to the guys at Freemax for sending me the Maxpod Circle Pod kit. As always this review is completely unbiased and gives my honest opinion on the Maxpod Circle Kit. If this post contains an affiliate link I may receive a small commission on any purchase made at no extra cost to you.
Freemax Maxpod Circle Review
Contents
Features and Specifications
What’s in the Box
Maxpod Circle Design and Appearance
Pod Design and Appearance
Maxpod Circle Performance
Maxpod Circle Battery Performance
How do I fill the Maxpod Circle Pod?
How do I charge the Maxpod Circle?
Maxpod Circle Price
Maxpod Circle Verdict
Features and Specifications
- Dimensions: 62.2mm Diameter x 12.1mm Thick
- Weight: 75 grams
- Construction: PCTG and Zinc Alloy Frame
- Charging: Micro USB
- Output Wattage: 10W
- E-liquid capacity: 2ml Pod
- Pods: Refillable
- Coil Resistance: NS Mesh 1.5ohm
- Battery specification: 550mAh Internal Battery
- Output Voltage: 3.7V Constant Output
- Display: Single Color Changing LED
- Firing Mechanism: Draw Activated and Fire Button
- FM Chip: Low Voltage Protection, Short Circuit Protection, Overtime and Open Circuit Protection
What’s in the box
- Freemax Maxpod Circle Body
- Freemax Maxpod Pod (1.5ohm NS Mesh Coil) x 2
- Lanyard (chain)
- USB Cable
- User Manual
- Warranty Card
- Warning Card
Freemax Maxpod Circle Design and Appearance
The dimensions of the Maxpod Circle are 62.2mm diameter and 12.1mm thick. It’s constructed out of steel and zinc alloy and despite its size, does feel reasonably heavy (75g).
4 colors are currently available, Carbon Fiber Black (the one used in this review), Carbon Fiber Red, Resin Black and Resin Yellow. Both flat surfaces are inlaid with the color design.
The Freemax name is written on one side of the alloy casing and the LED status indicator is on the other side.
The small but very bright LED lights up when you insert the pod to indicate the pod is attached and ready. This LED also changes color when you draw on the pod indicating the amount of charge left in the battery. It lights up from green, (full charge) to blue, (nominal voltage) and finally red (needs charging).
There’s also a very small flush mounted push button on the side of the Maxpod Circle used to fire the pod. Pressing this button 5 times within 2 seconds will turn the device on or off.
A micro USB charging port is located on the bottom edge of the Maxpod Circle. When connected to a power source, the LED will illuminate to indicate it’s being charged. The LED changes color during the charging cycle from green, blue or red depending on its charge status.
The top of the Maxpod Circle has a deep recess where the pod is housed. Two strong magnets, either side of the 2 control pins that connect to the coil, hold the pod in place very well.
An internal 550mAh battery, coupled with the FM control chip, power the Maxpod Circle and vaping is either auto draw-activated or push button operated. Strangely enough, there are NO visible air holes for venting the battery in the casing.
If you wish to use the supplied lanyard chain, this attaches onto the two small openings towards the top edge of the device.
Overall the finish is very good with no rough surfaces. It does feel very tactile in the hand. This really is a very sturdy, well-built and solid designed pod.
Freemax Pod Design and Appearance
The Maxpod Circle pod has a capacity of 2ml and is black (semi-opaque) in color. The lower section of the pod is rectangular and has a side filling port, located behind a black silicon rubber flap, that fits into the recess of the Maxpod Circle.
The top section of the pod that remains visible (the mouth piece) forms the complete circular shape when inserted into the device. There is no drip tip as such, the contours of the pod rest between your lips with an oval indent and circular hole in the top.
Because of the semi-opaque design, the e-liquid level is visible when the pod is fitted. In poor light conditions, you’ll need to place this against a light to see the e-liquid level.
The pod has an in-built 1.5ohm mesh coil that’s non replaceable. Freemax recommend 6-8 e-liquid refills before the coil should be replaced for optimum performance.
At the time of writing this review however, I’d filled up the pod 14 times and hadn’t noticed any drop off in flavor.
The pod is held in place with 2 strong magnets that locate with the corresponding magnets in the recess of the Maxpod Circle. The in-built coil contacts also line up with the spring loaded pins in the recess too.
Inserting the pod is straightforward, simply line up the pod to the Maxpod Circle opening and it will slide into the recess and be held in place by the magnets. The pod will fit either way round.
Removing the pod is carried out by applying pressure to the mouthpiece and pulling upwards.
When the pod is attached to the Maxpod Circle, the small LED on the side panel will light briefly to indicate the pod is fitted and ready for operation.
Freemax Maxpod Circle Performance
The composition of the 1.5ohm mesh coil is 66.66% tea fibre cotton and 33.34% organic cotton. Freemax recommend using 20-50mg Nic Salts or 3-12mg freebase nicotine.
Having filled the pod with my usual e-liquid (6mg freebase Thug Juice), the flavor from the coil/pod was spot on. I didn’t expect it to be so intense as the vaping power is only 10watts but it really was very good. The cloud production was also great, especially from a lower power device.
Definitely a very smooth and medium MTL draw and the throat hit was better than I expected. There are no air intake holes in the Maxpod Circle, unlike the original Maxpod, but that didn’t matter as the draw for me was just right.
I switched to 20mg Nic Salts (Mango Ice) to see how that vaped and the flavor and throat hit was really good. In fact I can honestly say the flavor was much more pronounced than a lot of other pods I’ve tried.
Having cycled both 50/50 PG/VG and 75VG through the pod, the coil always delivered and never once struggled or gave a burnt taste.
The auto-draw activation was faultless, it worked every time and I found it to be very responsive. I am a little bemused why Freemax choose to include the fire button as it seems a little pointless.
One very big plus point for me is that not once did I ever have any signs of e-liquid seeping from the pod and the Maxpod housing recess was always dry.
Freemax Maxpod Circle Battery Performance
With the Maxpod Circle having an internal 550mAh battery capacity, I found it gave me a good 8hrs of vaping before requiring a recharge. Obviously, this is subjective depending on your vaping style.
The small LED on the Maxpod Circle side panel illuminates when you draw on the pod and gives you a visual indication of the remaining battery level. This is achieved by indicating either, green, blue or red as highlighted below:
- Green light indicates 65% – 100% battery power level
- Blue light indicates 30% – 65% battery power level
- Red light indicates 0% – 30% battery power level
While this is a handy feature, giving you a visible battery status, don’t take these figures as being accurate. Once the LED light was indicating red I only got about a half dozen or so draws before it shut down.
How do I Fill the Freemax Maxpod Circle Pod?
To fill the pod it will first have to be removed from the Maxpod Circle. Simply grasp the pod mouthpiece and pull upwards away from the Maxpod Circle.
Once removed, you’ll see a little silicon rubber flap on the side of the pod. Gently pull this flap open.
Tilt the pod on its side to make filling easier. Place your e-liquid bottle tip into the opening and squeeze the bottle. You’ll see the e-liquid start to fill in the pod.
Once the pod is full, replace the silicon rubber flap and re-insert the pod back into the Maxpod Circle.
Quick Tip: If you’re filling the pod for the first time leave to stand for approx. 10-15 minutes after you fill with e-liquid. This’ll help saturate the wick fully and help prolong the life of your coil.
How do I Charge the Freemax Maxpod Circle?
Using the supplied charging cable, plug the mini USB cable into the charging port on the bottom of the Maxpod Circle. Plug the other end into an appropriate power outlet.
The LED on the Maxpod will slowly cycle ‘red’ on and off indicating that it’s charging. This will cycle for approx. 10 minutes and then turn to a cycling ‘blue’ color. A further 35 minutes later the LED will change to a cycling ‘green’ color. A further 20 minutes later the LED will go out indicating that it’s completely charged.
Charge time from discharged to full charge will take approx. 65 minutes. Unfortunately you won’t be able to vape while it is on charge as there’s no pass-through vaping facility.
Freemax Maxpod Circle Price
Expect to pay anywhere between £20-30 for the complete kit in the UK and around $30 in the USA. Replaceable pods are in the region of £7 /$7 for a pack of 2.
For a small compact pod with a fantastic build quality, it really is worth the money. Freemax always do an excellent job of producing well built quality vapes and the Maxpod Circle is no different.
Freemax Maxpod Circle Verdict
Having used the Freemax Maxpod Circle non-stop now for over a week, the design and appearance are certainly growing on me. I will be honest I was skeptical at first but the more you use it the more you’ll like it.
The design and build quality is up to the usual Freemax high standards. The operation was flawless. The flavor was excellent and vapor was really thick and tasty. Throughout my usage, I never once had a dry burn or a miss-fire.
Pros
- Excellent build quality
- Sleek, compact and stylish
- Great flavor and vapor production
- Flawless auto-draw
- Pretty quick charging cycle
- Good battery life
- No leaks from pod
- Pod works with higher VG
Cons
- LED battery status not accurate
- Fire button is small
- Fire button not really required
- No Pass-through vaping facility
My only two minor observations were the fire button and the usage of the Maxpod Circle. The fire button in my opinion is too small and not really needed as the auto-draw activation is faultless. Because the Maxpod Circle is flat and round, you do need to check when you go to vape that you have the pod section in your mouth.
As per the other Freemax pods we’ve reviewed, there were NO signs of any leaking at all. Every time the pod was removed to fill, the Maxpod Circle housing recess was totally dry.
For a totally unique and different shape to other pods, it certainly packs a punch and vapes really well.
Would I recommend this?
Yes! If you like the shape, you will definitely enjoy how is operates and vapes. The flavor really is pronounced with the 1.5ohm mesh coil.
Hope you enjoyed this review and found it useful. If you have any questions or feedback, please feel free to leave us a comment below.