Focus V Carta Review – Best Value Dab Vape

If you like to dab, you know how important it is to have a good rig. And you know how much easier that session can be with a vaporizer versus the traditional glass & torch.  A high-quality vaporizer will give you a smooth experience, with ample flavor and zero harshness. You don’t have to mess around with  multiple moving parts, and you don’t have to physically handle any hot surfaces. The benefits are plenty and all encompassing making your sessions much easier.

Enter the Focus V Carta V2 Vaporizer. This is one of the most basic yet popular vapes of its generation and it is high time we review the Carta. The Carta V2 was one of the first vaporizers to imitate the uber popular Puffco Peak doing so at a lower cost. While it is a lower cost e-rig it provides great value when you consider all the potential benefits. Among other things, it’s easy to use, can be transported if need be, doesn’t have a million moving parts – oh and that vapor is darn good too. With the release of the new Carta 2 , the OG Carta is even a better value given it’s  price drop.

But with all the new dab vaporizers out there is the Carta the right choice for you? Let’s take a closer look and find out!

The Carta V2 Vaporizer has a three-part design. The main housing is constructed from a two-tone white and black plastic, with a smooth matte finish. This makes it easy to hold onto, as well as easy to keep clean. Despite the plastic build, It doesn’t feel cheap, and it sits well in your hand, without being too heavy or too light. The control button is located on the front of the housing, along with a row of four green LEDs that indicate the current temperature level.

The second main component is the Carta glass. This is a big glass bulb that sits on top of the housing  and provides you with the all-important water filtration to cool and smooth out your vapor. The third component is the atomizer. This sits on a little extension to the side, which also serves as a curved surface that you can comfortably support with your thumb. All in all, the design is well put together, and users won’t find anything to complain about.

• 4 temperature presets Ranging from 500°F to 842°F
• Optional app for more advanced control
• Haptic feedback lets you know when the atomizer is hot
• USB Type-C charging
• Interchangeable Quartz and Titanium atomizers

To use the Carta V2, turn it on by clicking the home button 5 times and wait for it to come up to temperature. It vibrates when it reaches your set temperature, so you know it’s ready to go.

Of course, everyone has their own temperature preference. By pressing the button on the front of the housing, you can cycle through four different temperature modes. These are 500 °F , 630 °F 770 °F, and 842 °F which are in ascending order along the base of the Carta. To turn off after your session press the home button again 5 times or give it a long hold. Thankfully if you forget to power down , there is an automatic shut off, something that Puffco did not engineer into the original Peak which caused batteries to unknowingly die.

Even on the highest heat setting, the atomizer only takes about 15 seconds to get to temperature. On the lowest settings, you’ll be ready to go in less than 10 seconds. That’s a very short heating time, outperforming even new top models like the Ispire Daab which take 45 seconds to reach 800 °F.

Which setting is best will depend on what you’re vaping. Oils tend to do better at low to mid temperatures, while waxes vape best at medium temperatures, and shatter gets the best results on the higher settings. Of course, a lot of this is a matter of preference. Lower temperatures will produce thinner clouds, but the clouds won’t be as hot. Higher temperatures produce thicker clouds, but some people find the hit too harsh and lacking flavor.

If you’re a serious dabber, you can get even more customization out of the Carta V2. With the companion app, you can fine-tune the temperature to your heart’s content. You can also adjust other advanced settings, which is good news to vaping connoisseurs.

The kit comes with two bowls: a titanium and a quartz. The titanium bowl is easy to clean, but it’s also surprisingly good with concentrates, which isn’t always the case with a titanium bowl. The quartz bowl is harder to clean, but it also provides better heat dispersal. You don’t have to worry about any hot or cold spots, so you’ll get a more consistent experience. You can also order a dry herb chamber for a few extra dollars.

The Carta V2 produces a top-tier vapor but it is not amazing. To be clear, this isn’t an eNail or similar device that’s going to blow your lungs up with vapor. But you’re not going to get that with any electronic dab rig, and it’s silly to expect. What you will get is a moderately powerful hit, with moderate temperatures that won’t destroy the flavor after the first hit. This allows you to take several hits without the flavor deteriorating too badly.

Best results will be doing a little at a time. On a small sized grain of extracts you can expect about 4 sizeable hits in the  630 °F setting.

There is an aftermarket atomizer you can buy to vape dry herb but we recommend using the Carta only for concentrates. For those who wish to try dry herb, you’ll get more mixed results. It definitely helps if you grind your herb thoroughly and mix it up between hits to ensure that it’s evenly distributed. If conservation isn’t a factor, you’ll also get better results by running your herb through only a single hit cycle. It’s wasteful, but you reduce the risk of combusting any of your herb and getting smoke.

The dual use (herb/concentrate) features have been seen as a marketing ploy by manufacturer’s. One example with an herb vaporizer is the Davinci IQ2 Vaporizer. Davinci claims this unit can accommodate concentrates when their previous models which utilize the same design didn’t make this claim. If you own the Davinci IQ2 and have tried it with concentrates you know firsthand, you are going to make a filthy mess and not get anything comparable to an electronic rig. Likewise The Carta utilizing the herb attachment will not give you anywhere near the quality vapor you can obtain with a vaporizer like the IQ2. Keep your dab vapes for extracts and your herb vapes for flower. Of course the 90/10 rule is in play here too 😉.

As far as battery power goes, you get about 40 hits per charge, depending on the temperature. That’s a moderate amount of power, but it’s on par with other popular vapes in its class. Recharging is also easy, with the included USB Type-C cable, and it only takes around an hour. Not only that, but the pair of 18350 batteries are replaceable. So if you wear them out to the point where they won’t hold a charge, you don’t have to replace the entire Carta Base or send it in for warranty. Then even if you have no spare batteries and are on 0 juice but really want to vape, the Carta V2 has pass through charging. As far as always being ready to roll versus rigs like the Boost Evo or Peak Pro, the Carta wins handedly.

Since the release of the original Carta V2, Focus V has released a myriad of different colors and limited editions. If the plain black and white is too basic for you, you can spruce it up at some additional cost. While the Carta is the most basic and budget friendly concentrate vaporizer to give you quality dabs doesn’t mean you cannot put your own touch on it. There are plenty of 3^rd party customizations for the glass and atomizer cups. If you really want to get a Carta that represents your style it can be done.

As you can see, the Carta V2 vaporizer has all the facets you would need in an entry level e-rig. It’s reasonably durable, highly effective (especially if you download the app and play around with the advanced settings) and easy to use.

While you will get better vapor quality and performance with the pricier Puffco and Dr. Dabber vaporizers, if you are only using once a day or a few times a week and want something that does the trick just fine – that’s the Carta. For these reasons the Carta V2 has been a best seller given it’s quality relative to price.