Marvos X 100W Kit by Freemax

Freemax Marvos X Kit

Review by Jen_Turista

Freemax Marvos X 100W Kit: A Solid All-Rounder!

It was 2020 and single 18650 pod mods were all the rage in the industry. So much so that so many companies put up their own versions of it, with the hope of attracting new vapers to this style of vaping device, or even hobbyists to grow a collection of them. Lightweight but powerful, convenient, and relatively flexible to one’s style of vaping, it’s not difficult to see why this kind of pod mod was so successful. This trend took a while to slow down, but fast forward to the present, we still see new ones released every now and again.

Freemax is no stranger to single 18650 pod mods. Indeed, previously they had released the Marvos 80W kit, as an addition to their ever-growing Marvos line of products. And today, we shall be looking at their newest creation within this line: the Marvos X 100W Kit!

This kit was sent to me for review purposes by Freemax (my biggest thanks!). Within the vaping community, Freemax has gained its rightful place as one of the go-to companies for sub-ohm atomisers and stock mesh coils. The quality of their coils and devices was just undeniable. In fact, in my own experience, I have not had any dud coil from them which is a feat to say the least, given that I have had the odd one every now and again from other vape hardware manufacturers.

So, another single 18650 pod mod, does the market really need it? And what does the Marvos X bring to the table to set it apart from others that have come before it? To answer those questions, I invite you to take this journey with me as we closely look at the Marvos X 100W Kit and everything it offers!

As always, I will review this kit as an average vaper, as most of us in the community are.

Packaging and Contents

Freemax Marvos X Kit ContentsI was sent the sample packaging of the Marvos X 100W Kit that contained:

  • Marvos X 100W mod that runs on 1 x 18650 battery (not included in the kit).
  • Marvos CRC Pod has a 5mL capacity.
  • 1 x MS-D mesh coil (0.15 ohms).
  • 1 x MS-D mesh coil (0.25 ohms).
  • A USB-C charging cable.
  • Paperwork including warranty card, user manual, and warning card.

Salient Features include:

  • Mod goes from 5 to 100W.
  • Outputs 0.7 to 4.2 V.
  • Reads 0.1 to 3.0 ohms resistance.
  • Has 2A charging.
  • Dimensions at 137 x 31 x 33mm. It is a pretty tall kit!
  • Different mod modes via its FM2.0 chip include power, smart, VPC, and bypass. Indeed, this mod doesn’t offer any TC at the moment (maybe in a future upgrade?).
  • 0.96” OLED screen which is vibrant and bright.
  • And the piece de resistance: the mod is kitted out with LED lights!
  • Top-fill PCTG pod which uses coils from the Marvos line.
  • Coils that use Freemax’s latest FM Coiltech 5.0. More about this in a bit!
  • And best of all (at least for me), cross-compatibility with other devices in the MS Platform. So, remember the Marvos RTA Pod Freemax released some months back? Yep, you can use this pod with this mod too!

Impressions and Experience

As compared to other Freemax kits I’ve used in the past, the packaging of the Marvos X 100W kit is a little more straightforward, but still classy nonetheless! The outer sleeve has a silky finish on it, listing kit contents, pod and mod features, manufacturer information and warnings. It has a nice and eye-catching colour design, with “Marvos X 100W Kit” neatly embossed on its front. An inner tray slides out to reveal the mod, pod, and all accessories nicely laid and compartmentalised on a foam tray. All in all, it is the kind of packaging that stands out on shelves but doesn’t necessarily take up more space than needed. Definitely a pro for me on this aspect!

Per the dimensions I mentioned earlier, putting the pod and mod together does put it on the taller side of things, primarily because of the tall-ish mod. Saying that though, it doesn’t look awkward at all, and as a unit, feels very nice in the hand!

Marvos CRC Pod and MS-D Mesh Coils

Freemax CRC PodThe Marvos CRC pod comes as a clear pod, with strong magnets at the bottom to secure it on the mod. One of the great things about this pod is that it has a removable 810 drip tip, and before you ask: yes indeed, you can use your own 810 drip tip with this pod! This may seem like a small thing but having this feature already sets this kit apart from the majority of pod mods out there. And the included smoked drip tip is very comfortable to use, especially in DL with its wide bore.

Refilling happens by 1) locating the indicator, 2) pulling up a spring-loaded top cap, and 3) sliding it forwards (we’ve seen this child-safety feature before in other atomisers). Doing so exposes the fill hole which is OK in terms of size, but I do wish it was a little wider especially as I was using mostly shortfill/large volume bottles. I didn’t have any problems refilling, though, and it was fast enough for sure. My advice is just to pay attention when refilling and make sure that your e-liquid nozzle is wholly pointing downwards (not angled in any way) to make sure that all of the e-liquid goes into the pod smoothly. Another tip is to remove the drip tip when refilling so that the e-liquid bottle isn’t on an angle. Do both and your refilling experiences shall be perfectly fine!

The coils insert and can be replaced from the bottom of the pod, and the coils can be inserted in any which way you like.

Branding is very minimal and the pod is finished very smoothly with no rough edges. I am also very happy to report that I didn’t experience any leaking from this pod in combination with the coils supplied- always a major pro!

Freemax MS-D CoilsAs for the coils, Freemax did something new with these MS-D mesh coils. Per Freemax’s website, the FM Coiltech 5.0 technology brings 50% improvement in flavours and heat ramp-up due to having a parallel mesh coil structure and upgraded tea fibre cotton used in the wick. Full disclosure: I have been a big fan of tea fibre cotton coils since they came out just because of the seemingly purer flavours I get from them, and so I am especially interested to see how these upgrades will translate to my vaping experience with these coils.

I started with the MS-D 0.25 ohms mesh coil (30-50W, best 45W) to vape e-liquids with a touch of cooling, given the scorching hot summer we are having in the UK at the moment. This coil gave me a surprisingly amazing flavour for its wattage range (8.5/10 rating)! Now, is this due to the upgraded coil technology Freemax had used? I’d say most probably. I say that because when vaping my fruit e-liquids in DL at 40-45W, I’ve become resigned to the fact that not all flavour notes will come out versus DL at, say, 70W or so. But I was overjoyed with the MS-D mesh coil that even at 40W, I could pick out the different fruits of the cocktail e-liquid I was vaping. I could taste the orange, the juiciness of the peach and the tartness of the cranberry juice (if you know your cocktails, then you know what I was vaping lol!). Needless to say, I was very, very impressed! Vaping the coil at 45W with 70/30 VG/PG E-liquids will give average clouds, of course.

I used the MS-D 0.15 ohms mesh coil (60-80W, best 75W) on dessert flavours and this coil performed just as impressive as the 0.25 ohms coil! Again, this coil breaks down complex flavours into their individual notes beautifully. Running this coil at 75W gave me the right balance of warmth and flavour I was looking for and of course plenty of clouds at that wattage level (my garden filled up with vapour in no time at all!). I’m rating this coil at 8.5/10 too in terms of flavour, and continue to be impressed by it!

In the number of reviews I’ve written over the years, it’s not very often that a claimed new feature or innovation translates into the final product. Well, I can happily say that Freemax has done so on the FM Coiltech 5.0 innovation and they did it very well in a real and tangible manner. Bravo, Freemax!

B. Marvos X 100W Mod

Freemax Marvos X Mod BackAs impressed as I was with the coils and pod, the most marketed component of this kit is the mod, particularly the LED light feature. I have to say that the mod is slightly bulkier than most single 18650 mods in the market, both the pod and 510-connection kind. But it looks pretty damn sleek! Especially in the Navy Blue finish I received, the workmanship of the metal parts is smoothly done. The leather component is made classier with the debossed eagle design and red contrast stitching. The transparent front panel adds another layer of pleasing design too- I especially like this as I’m able to see the clean wiring work done on the mod. All in all, just a very unique and pretty mod to have!

The mod without a battery in does have some weight to it, but nothing too heavy to drag pockets towards gravity. That’s because the mod really is mostly metal (zinc alloy, maybe?), even the leather of the battery door is placed on top of the metal, which is a good thing in my book because it should speak to this mod being durable.

The branding is pretty much where you’d expect them to be, which is on the leather panel and at the bottom of the mod. This is another pro for me as this makes the mod appear clean and classy.

Freemax Marvos X Pod InsertUp top, you will find the pod cradle, coil contacts, and airflow control ring with full stops and 2 massive cyclops holes. Let me tell you, this kit has bags of airflow at its fully open setting! However, the control ring is very effective in customising the airflow and so I had no issues in finding the level of draw restriction I wanted.

The battery door/panel attaches to the mod securely via strong magnets, with very minimal play. This door is quite thick so if you happen to drop it somehow, it shouldn’t break or fall apart, unlike other doors made of plastic. Definitely a pro there! But…my only niggle with this part of the mod (and this is not a con, to be clear) is that there is no groove to guide you where to stick your nail in to detach the door. It’s not difficult to detach from the mod (just grip and pull back) but I suppose I got used to looking for this groove whenever I use similar battery doors.

Freemax Marvos X Battery CompartmentThe battery compartment is very unique on this mod, with it being translucent- and it also lights up! How cool is that?! The cell polarity markings are visible enough, and this part just lights up brightly as you install the battery.

And if you look at it, this lighting and the LED system used in the mod are most probably the reason for its larger-than-average size, to accommodate the LEDs. Now, I’m not usually a fan of LED lights if I’m being honest (I normally find them gimmicky), but the way Freemax designed the LEDs on this mod was really well done! It definitely adds a little something-something into the vaping experience and allows for more expression of personality as these LED lights can be controlled or customised in the mod’s menu (more on this in a bit).

Freemax Marvos X LEDs

In front, you will find the conveniently placed fire and adjustment buttons which are very clicky. The USB-C port and lock/unlock switch alongside the mod screen are also in front. As for the lock/unlock switch, it is just that and is very effective. The whole mod is locked when engaged, so it sort of saves you the usual five clicks to turn the mod on/off. The screen actually displays a brief animation to guide you on how to unlock when the button is toggled, and when you press any button with the lock engaged. This is of course very useful and saves from having any on/off marks on the mod, contributing to its clean look!

Freemax Marvos X DisplayThe screen displays the usual: battery bar, ohm load, puff count, the mode selected, and wattage/VPC/voltage depending on the mode. I did wish that there was also a battery percentage displayed as the screen size could have accommodated this, but again, not such a big deal as the screen displays all the important vaping information required.

Performance-wise, the mod performed very well with the coils provided. It was quick to fire, but one thing I did notice is that the fire button sometimes cuts off momentarily when pressed. So, I needed to press this button slightly harder than usual to make sure it remains engaged throughout my puff. It is worth noting that I was reviewing a sample unit, so this may not be an issue with the retail units.

One other note I have to make is the wattage range of the mod: being a single 18650 battery, reaching 100W is a bit of a stretch and I’m not quite sure why Freemax opted to go as high as this, given that the coils supplied (the MS-D 0.15 ohms coil) has an 80W wattage limit. Perhaps Freemax is planning a 21700 capable mod in future? I hope so, as 100W is more in the 21700 territories than 18650, at least in my opinion.

Operating this mod is very simple:

  • Five clicks of the fire button = on/off.
  • Three clicks of the fire button = access to the menu.
  • Pressing + and – buttons simultaneously = lock adjustment buttons but still allows the mod to fire.
  • Fire button and – button = cycles through the 5 UI colours.
  • Fire button and + button = cycles through different LED modes.

The menu is quite simple with 3 main icons: mode, set(tings), and exit. The mode icon allows you to choose the mod’s mode of operation as mentioned in the salient features of this review. The set allows you to adjust the UI theme colour, control the LEDs, reset the puff counter, and reset the entire mod itself.

For the LEDs, Freemax gives a wide range of options for personalisation here. You can toggle it on or off entirely, or choose between 10 LED modes (always on, circle, flash, alternate, waterfall, Tetris, drop, rise, spread, and gather). I found myself preferring the waterfall mode for the LEDs as it just looks beautiful! It’s also useful to note that when the LEDs are “on”, they’re only turned on when the mod is in use, i.e., they don’t light up when the mod is left on its own, so no need to worry about battery drain there. LED brightness, speed of effects, and whether you want multi or uni colours for the lights can also be adjusted.

Overall: Yay or Nay?

As a starter pod mod, you can’t really go wrong with the Freemax Marvos X! It’s solid in appearance, gives great flavour from its coils that do not leak whatsoever, a pod that is childproofed, plus the stunning LED lights make it very much a head turner!

I recommend this kit for those who vape or would like to try RDL or low wattage DL.

It is on the tall side, and time will tell if the transparent front panel will stay clean, but I can’t really fault this kit for its aesthetics and function. With its many unique attributes, it certainly sets itself apart from the very congested pod mod market, and gives another great kit option for vapers!

Once again, my biggest thanks to Freemax for sending this kit for my review! To purchase the Marvos X Kit, head over to Freemax via the links at the start of the review. Alternatively, give it a search at your favourite vape shops.


This review was written by jen_turista who is very active within the vape community. You can go give her a follow on Instagram and Twitter.

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