UWell Caliburn GK3
Antony finally gets his hands one of UWell's near legendary pod kits and gives his thoughts on the brand new Caliburn GK3
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by Antony Lord
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Believe it or not, whilst the UWell Caliburn series has almost become a standard which all other mouth to lung starter kits are measured against, I’ve never actually used one. I finally got the chance to change that as UWell have sent out the latest version of the Caliburn GK3 for me to try and this has a couple of very interesting features which make it stand out from the crowd of other low cost starter kits, plus I get to see if the new Caliburn G3 pods live up to their almost legendary status.
Specifications
- 74.8 x 49.2 x17.1 mm
- 52 grams
- PCTG, PC and ABS plastic construction
- Segmented LCD display
- 900 mAh internal battery
- USB-C charging
- Max output 25 watts
- Compatible with Caliburn G3 Pod system (2.5ml capacity)
The UWell Caliburn GK3 comes in a small presentation box with a simple user manual, a USB-C charge cable, lanyard, and two Caliburn G3 pods, and it is available in four colours: Black, Red, Silver and Blue. I instantly took a shine to the red version but so did someone else….one of the smokers at work commented on how nice this looked and that they should really try to quit again so this was handed over to her the following day along with three 0.9 ohm G3 pods from the other kits I was sent.
For my first impressions I liked the lightweight nature of the GK3, weighing in at just 52 grams, which makes it perfectly pocketable. I was somewhat surprised to find that it’s largely constructed from plastics, but it certainly doesn’t feel like it and has a much more premium feel in the hand, plus it seems to be quite robust with no weird creaks or cracks whilst in use.
The UWell Caliburn pods typically come in two form factors, the standard Caliburns which have a pen/stick style design, and the KoKos (Keep on Keeping on) which have this square form factor, and the GK3 sticks to this convention. The main body is made from ABS plastic with colourful Polycarbonate panels on either side with softly rounded edges. The only metal part on display is the large lanyard clip on the top corner of the device.
The front of the device has a display and this is actually pretty clever as UWell have opted for a segmented LCD display which they say only requires around 1% of the power needed for a colour TFT LCD that we’ve become accustomed to on our vape devices. Even though the screen is always on, UWell claims that this could run for up to two years without a recharge if you left this turned on a shelf, which is rather impressive. There’s also a backlight should you need it, and this can be activated by pressing the small button on the side once. The button also lets you turn the GK3 on and off with five clicks, change the power setting with three clicks, or reset the puff counter with four clicks.
Another neat feature is the haptic feedback built inside this tiny shell. The GK3 will vibrate when you turn it on or off, insert a pod, or plug it in to charge.
UWell have opted for a 20% larger battery compared to earlier releases bumping the capacity up to 900mAh this time around. This can be charged via the USB-C port on the base and in my test this hit a peak charge rate of 1.38 amps.
The haptic feedback comes into play again once the charge cycle has finished with a reassuring buzz from across the room letting you know that you’re good to go again. This happened at the 45 minute mark with 829mAh capacity recorded, however I was still registering a 0.24 amp charge rate at this point. This finally dropped to just 0.002 amps at the 55 minute mark with a final recorded capacity of 852mAh.
Pods are held firmly in place in a recess on the top by two magnets and the GK3 was easily able to pass the shake test, no low flying pods here. This is a purely auto draw device with the air coming in from the small hole on the side above the button and a small auto draw sensor located in the bottom of the recess. The auto draw function has worked flawlessly throughout my time with the GK3.
The GK3 uses the latest generation Caliburn G3 pods which have a 2.5ml capacity and a decently sized fill bung located on the side. A 0.6ohm pod comes preinstalled, and you’ll find a 0.9ohm pod in the box as well. These both use FeCrAl mesh coils so they’re suitable for those with nickel sensitivity problems like me. Ultrasonic welding is used in their construction for a tighter seal, and this has made for a completely leak free experience.
Both pods are clearly marked on the base along with a suggested wattage, and you even get a degree of airflow control built in which is achieved by turning the pod around to either the larger or smaller air inlet for a loose or tight draw, which is another nice feature.
The flavour from the pods has been outstanding, easily matching some of my favourite pod kits, and they definitely deserve their status as the market standard, so I’ve been very satisfied on that front. With the 0.6ohm pod, you obviously get a looser modern mouth to lung vape and here I actually found myself preferring the tighter of the two airflow options, whilst with the 0.9ohm pod, I preferred the looser option. You won’t be disappointed with either option on offer here so I’d recommend trying them both before deciding which you prefer and committing to buying your next box of pods.
Pros
- Sleek, lightweight design
- Market leading pods
- Good battery life
Cons
- I’m stumped here as I haven’t really found any!
Conclusion
I’ve thoroughly enjoyed my time with the UWell Caliburn GK3 and finally having got around to using the Caliburn system, I can say its reputation as one of the best pod systems available is well deserved. In case you’re wondering how my smoker is getting on with this, well I think she’s well on her way to quitting as the roll ups are being phased out in favour of the GK3 and I think that is praise enough for any starter kit.
I’ve been asked to start giving my reviews a rating and I’m happy to award the UWell Caliburn GK3 a solid 9/10
If you are interested in the Caliburn GK3, UWell are currently running a giveaway event with GK3 kits plus some other big prizes like PS5s up for grabs which you can find at the following link (running until 8th Jan 2024):
UWELL Have Fun with GK3 - Participate Now and Win Big!
Antony Lord
Reviewer at POTVI was a twenty a day smoker for 25 years and like most smokers I was always going to quit "next week". Having hit my mid forties and having the usual smokers cough and difficulty with anything more than moderate exercise it was obviously time to give up the cancer sticks. I bought my first e-cigarette in 2013 when they were expensive, difficult to find and quite frankly... crap. I used it for about a week then went back to the roll ups, mark up another failed quit attempt. The fact that I had just changed jobs and was under quite a lot of stress probably didn't help. Move on to 2016 and whilst I was browsing eBay I noticed that one of the suggested items that would occasionally pop up was for a cheap e-cigarette. It looked similar to the one I'd bought 3 years earlier but it was only £5 (about 8 times cheaper than before) so I decided to give it another go on a whim. Once the kit arrived I managed to gradually replace the cigarettes with my new kit over a two month period and got into watching YouTube reviews for newer kit. My cheap and cheerful kit was replaced by a more upmarket affair, and being a noob I made a mistake once it arrived... I put in the supplied direct lung coil, this was of course a complete revelation and I haven't touched a cigarette since. Oh and I no longer spend the first five minutes of every day having a coughing fit either.
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