Arizer Air MAX Review | Arizer’s Newest Vaporizer Fails to Innovate

After our Arizer XQ2 review we pumped the breaks on picking up and reviewing the Arizer Air MAX.  We have been staying busy and Summer 2022 was jam packed with a slew of new releases such as the Carta 2 and the Puffco Proxy. The new releases and innovations coming out of the concentrate vaporizer space  shines some light on the lack of innovation we are seeing with new releases amongst herb vaporizers and this could not be more apparent than with the Arizer Air MAX. 

For all intents and purposes it is best to compare the Air MAX to the Air 2. As this feels like what we have been seeing time and time again. The same vaporizer as the previous model with a refined exterior, changing the charging port from micro USB to USB-C and offering a slightly better battery which in turn gives more sessions and faster heat up;  The latter of which is not even the case from the Arizer Air 2 to the Air MAX. Great to improve and update an old model, but hard to justify calling it a different model which warrants a different name. 

Don’t get me wrong, Arizer makes a superior product to most and is an established name as one of the pioneers in the vaporizer space. The Arizer Air MAX is a good vaporizer, but it is not much different than the Air 2 or other Arizer portable vaporizers. This makes the high price a tad hard to justify.

Arizer released the Air MAX at a whopping $319.99. While this was certainly an attempt to cash in on the hype of a new release or an attempt to re-establish the margins of years past when vaporizers were selling for a hefty premium, Arizer has now discounted it to $223.99. This $220 price tag is still rather expensive given you can have something like a Crafty+ in this range.

If you use our link above you can get the best deal on the Arizer Air MAX for only $199 which will come with a free grinder, 60 day trial period and lifetime trade ins for store credit. So not only are you saving quite a bit, you are also getting the best value on the Arizer Air MAX.

One thing that Arizer previously never put much attention into was the packaging.  This cannot be more on display than with the original Arizer SOLO, Air and The Extreme Q all which came in a plain brown cardboard box.

The packaging on the Air MAX shows an improved focus on presentation and packaging. The Air MAX packaging even is even quite a nice step up from the Arizer Air 2. The compartmentalization is nice and compact. All the parts and pieces fit like Tetris. This does make putting the Arizer Air MAX and all it’s parts & accessories back somewhat of a task  if you are going to be repackaging between every session.  The packaging works great for both storage and travel. 

• Arizer Air MAX Vaporizer
• 5750mAh Air MAX Battery
• USB-C Charger & Adapter
• Aroma Glass Tube
• 14mm Water Pipe Adapter
• Potpourri Dish
• Stir Tool
• 4 x Air MAX  Screens
• Lavender
• Instructions

The Arizer Air MAX has an anodized aluminum body. A more durable material than the alloy which is used for the Arizer Air 2. Besides the improved durability of the Air MAX shell the build offers a cleaner sleeker look which can also be cleaned with ease. 

The Air MAX Vaporizer sticks with Arizer’s tried and true stainless steel heating element. The all glass vapor paths, in both the aroma tube and 14mm water pipe adapter, are made from borosilicate glass. This is an all around A+ in materials used for health and why Arizer is known to have some of the healthiest vaporizers on the market.

The most notable improvements in the Arizer Air MAX are the stronger more durable alloy body, inverted screen, included water pipe adapter (WPA) and the larger battery.

The larger battery is being debated as an improvement given that many vaporizers utilize a standard 18650 battery. If you have say a Davinci IQC or already have the Air 2, these batteries are interchangeable along with any other vaporizer that has a removeable 18650 battery. Also since the battery is removeable on the Air MAX is detracts a tad from the need for a super long battery life.

When comparing to an old Arizer Air 2 I didn’t realize how much wear & tear I had put on mine over the years and how many scuffs showed on the body. The Air MAX is surely going to stand up better to spills and anything else you can throw at it over the other Arizer portable vaporizer.

The included water adapter is also nice. This is our best selling accessory for buyers of the Arizer SOLO 2 so Arizer including one with the Air MAX is a huge plus for customers who don’t need to shell out any money out of pocket. Hitting any herb vaporizer through a water pipe will provide much smoother and larger hits. To accompany this water pipe addition, Arizer programmed the Air MAX screen to adjust upright when inverted so the user can see the LED screen readout without needing to stand on their head.

 The Air MAX is predominately conduction. Some have loosely assigned it an element of convection based on the divots in the stainless steel heating element and the glass providing a barrier between the herb and heating element. This however is not enough of a convection element to call it a dual heating (convection / conduction) vaporizer. 

The Arizer Air MAX is a session vaporizer and can even stay on for up to 15 minutes before auto shut off kicks in. This makes for some mellow long sessions. Personally I have mine set to 5 minute auto shut off and was finishing an entire pack in 3-4 minutes after which I did not need more.

The chamber capacity is about .2 -.25 and any more than that can really hinder airflow and cause increased draw resistance. On a full pack you can expect an average of ten medium sized hits.

For the optimal vapor it is recommend to pull for 4-5 seconds and give it at least 20 second rests between hits. This let’s the herb aromatize a tad to make your next hit more bountiful.

The Air MAX offers better vapor in the lower temperature ranges of 350°F – 365°F. here you get a better consistency throughout the whole session. The vapor can get a little hot around 400°F+  and while the first few hits are good and plentiful in this higher range the good flavor goes south fast.

You need good buds. I have not been vaping herb that much with all these electronic rig  vaporizer releases. I have been vaping alot more concentrates. I have some old herb and man oh man , the Mighty+ and Firefly 2+ still do it some justice, meaning it is not that bad out of those vapes. Certainly it would be much better with better herb, but there is some sort of magic that exists with those two mentioned for the vapor profiles of dry herb that I am not getting with the Air MAX.

Arizer still sits in a higher category of quality vaporizer than all entry level vaporizer. You need to remember in 2017 when the SOLO 2 was selling for $239.99 it was considered a bargain. So a factor that must be considered is price to quality ratio. The Arizer SOLO 2 is going to be a much better purchase with the same vapor quality. In fact the Arizer design of stainless steel heating element and glass draw is what makes the Arizer vaporizers all provide nearly identical vapor. 

The Arizer Air MAX like the Arizer Air 2 is powered by a removable battery. The Air MAX battery is a much larger 26650 5750mAh lithium-ion battery, than the 18650 size on the Air 2.

The Arizer Air MAX charges via USB-C and on a full battery you can expect a little over 2 hours of continued use.  The downside to the long battery life being that the battery takes about the same  time to charge.

Two downsides are borne from Arizer’ s decision to use a larger battery. 1.) The 18650 battery is very common and most reading this review likely have a few spares which they can interchange. The 26650 has not yet been widely adopted in vaporizers; It could be Arizer is leading the way on this 2.) The Air MAX battery is too large for an external charger which means you must charge in the Air MAX unit. External chargers significantly cut down the charge times and the 2 hours and some change charge time of the Air MAX could certainly use an external charger.

The Air MAX is going to be an around the house portable vaporizer. The protruding glass stem make it so it is not easily taken out of the pocket for a session here and  there. Back when I lived in San Francisco and herb vapes were relatively new on the scene (yeah I wanted to be cool and tech savvy 😉 )   I would take my original Arizer Air with me on Bart. My second trip ever the glass stem snapped in my pocket. Herb vaporizers in general have really lost their appeal as pocket portable vaporizers, given how much easier something like a 510 cart vape is. 

It is nice to see Arizer give up on that approach and stop including the belt buckle case accessory. This is an accessory which comes with the Air 2 and SOLO 2.  The Arizer vaporizer belt attachment case is kind of funny as it brings up thoughts of a shop teacher walking around with his vape on his tool belt. 

The Air MAX and other Arizer portables are great vaporizer for walking the dog or lounging on the back porch; Even good for camping and road trips but if you are needing a truly portable herb vaporizer it is the PAX 3 and likely will be that way for a while.

Upon arrival it is important to remove the plastic battery protection disc which keeps the Air MAX from turning on in it’s packaging.  This had me super confused as my Air MAX was charging with it in but after a full night only added about 13% battery. Once removed all problems were resolved. 

Once you get the button sequencing down the Air MAX could not be any easier to use. A light pack of herb into the bottom part of your glass stem and place it in the heating element. Once you reach temp, draw slowly. The biggest thing will be the feeling out with what temperature you like, the consistency of your grind and pack and how many seconds to draw. Your hit is not going to feel like cutting butter like with the Mighty+, but major draw resistance is generally only an issue if you packed it too tight. 

Arizer has designed some of the most intuitive vaporizers and just by looking at a picture of it most will understand where each part needs to go in order to session. Arizer has also done an excellent job of laying out everything in the packaging on their portable vaporizers so you can easily find what needs to go where.

The intuitive design makes the Arizer Air MAX a breeze to clean and no deep clean is ever required. There are just two parts to keep clean in the glass stem and heating element and if you do that then your unit will keep you happy for years. 

Arizer is a victim of their own success. Their vaporizers were always relative values to other high end vaporizers while being well-made and designed – stainless steel chamber and glass draw.  This simple design is at the core of all portable Arizer Vaporizers, but there is only so much this design can do. You can improve heat up time, move buttons around, add an improved screen and a USB-C charging port. End of the day the Arizer Air MAX is not any better than the tried and true Arizer SOLO 2 or Air 2 which can be had for cheaper. 

Where Arizer has previously shined is in the cost to quality ratio and with the recent falling prices on vaporizers, coming out with a vaporizer that is roughly the same as a previous model but charging twice as much make the  Air MAX one to pass on unless you can get it on sale. The Arizer SOLO 2 and Air 2 at their current prices are about as good as it gets for Arizer Vaporizers.