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Vaporesso FORZ TX80 Kit Review

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After years of complete GeekVape dominance in the rugged, durable vape mod sector, we finally have some decent competition. Vaporesso, one of the leading vape brands in the world, recently unveiled the FORZ TX80, a kit designed to take on the GeekVape brand in general, and the Aegis Solo, in particular. If anyone was going to go up against GeekVape in this niche market, it was going to be Vaporesso, but did they do enough to challenge the king of durable mods? Let’s find out:

Vaporesso FORZ TX80 Packaging and Presentation

The new FORZ TX80 kit comes in the standard cardboard box with a picture of the device printed on the front, and a list of contents, some technical specifications and manufacturer contact information on the back.

Inside the box we have the FORZ TX80 single-battery vape mod, the FORZ sub-ohm tank, a USB-C charging cable, spare glass section and o-rings for the tank, a spare coil-head, a metal tool to help you take the tank apart and remove the coil-heads, user manual, as well as a FORZ pin badge, if you feel like wearing something like that…

Vaporesso FORZ TX80 Design and Build Quality

The FORZ TX80 vape mod measures 85mm x 30mm x 42mm, is made primarily of stainless steel and is wrapped in a rubberized protective coating. It also features a very nice stitched leather (leatherette?) handle with the embossed FORZ logo. It comes in a black and silver combination, with the only part varying in terms of color being the leather handle. My review sample was red, but you can also get it in blue, brown, or even a carbon fiber imitation.

Design-wise, it’s pretty obvious that Vaporesso drew quite a bit of inspiration for the FORZ TX80 from their rivals at GeekVape. It’s not a blatant rip-off by any means, but the general design, and certain elements, like the leather handle and the battery door, were obviously inspired by mods like the original Aegis 100W or the Aegis Max.

Starting at the top, we have a black metallic plate screwed onto the mod with five beefy screws, yet another similarity to the Aegis. The 510 connection is located to the side, rather than being centered, which is bit peculiar for modern vape mods. The FORZ Tank included in this kit is 25mm at the base, but you can use this mod with a 26mm atomizer without any overhang. Anything larger than that will probably look a bit weird, though.

The control panel side of the FORZ TX80, where all the buttons are located, is a bit too crowded, in my opinion. We have a nice slanted fire button, which almost feels like a trigger, a bright, rectangular display, as well as three smaller buttons, the usual + and – buttons, and a menu button, similar to the one on the Vaporesso Gen S and Gen Nano mods. The buttons are nice and clicky, easy to reach and press, so no complaints in that regard.

The USB Type-C charging port is located on the side of the FORZ TX80, and is covered with a rubber plug marked with the classic lightning sign. This helps keep the device waterproof, so make sure to plug it back in after using the port.

The battery cap on the bottom of the mod has the same design as that of the Aegis – a thick piece of metal that screws on to the mod. It can be a bit of a pain to unscrew, due to the thick o-rings designed to keep water and dust out, but the built-in lever should help.

As I mentioned the leather used by Vaporesso on this mod is of very high-quality, and gives the FORZ TX80 a premium look and feel. I don’t know how it will hold up in the long run, but after about two weeks of daily use, it’s still looking as pristine as when I took the mod out of the box.

All in all, the Vaporesso FORZ TX80 looks and feels like a very solid, durable vape mod, which I’m guessing is what the Chinese manufacturer was going for. The smooth, rubberized exterior feels like it could cushion a fall or two, the exposed metallic accents look like they can take some punishment, and the leather accents give the device a bit of class as well. The FORZ TX80 definitely looks like a serious contender for the GeekVape Aegis.

Vaporesso FORZ TX80 Menu System and Navigation

The FORZ TX80 is powered by Vaporesso’s famous AXON chip, but an updated version that also includes a new vape mode called F(t) Mode.

To turn the mod on or off, all you have to do is press the fire button five times in rapid succession. Pressing the same button three times rapidly will lock and unlock the three smaller buttons under the display, so you can vape without accidentally pressing one of them.

The enter the menu system, you have to press the menu button near the bottom of the mod, three times, within two seconds. This is where you can browse all the different vape modes and settings available on the FORZ TX80. Because this is virtually the same AXON chip we’ve seen used in all of Vaporesso’s mods since the original Gen, most of the modes and settings are exactly the same.

You have Pulse mode, which allegedly ensures a more stable power output all through the draw, by pulsing at the set power output every 0.2 seconds, Power Eco, which should optimize battery life without affecting vaping experience too much, Smart TC, which as the name suggests, is a smarter version of temperature control that scans the attached atomizer and automatically adjust power output, if the detected coil is made out of a supported material (stainless steel, titanium or nickel).

In the DIY Mode submenu you will find a few other available vape modes, like Variable Wattage/VW (with three different preheat settings – soft, normal, high), Temp. Control/VT, Variable Voltage/VV, Custom Curves/CCW, Bypass Mode/BP and Super Player/SP. The last one on this list was introduced on the Polar 220W mod, and basically allows you to fire resistances as low as 0.03Ω, which I don’t think many vapers are interested in, to be honest.

Finally, the new F(t) Mode introduced by this updated version of the AXON chip is supposed to deliver a smooth vaping experience, by changing the output voltage and heating range within a certain time, which doesn’t make much sense to me. It doesn’t feel that different than Pulse Mode, to me, but I usually use in classic variable wattage mode anyway.

You can also do other stuff in the menu, like adjust the brightness of the display, toggle Auto Eco mode on and off, and reset the puff counter. For more detailed information on how to do all of that check out my in-depth review of the Vaporesso Gen 220W mod.

The outdated black and white display doesn’t really do the AXON 2.0 chip justice in my opinion. This is one of the most advanced chipsets in the vaping industry, and one of the main advantages of the FORZ TX80 over the Aegis (they all use the same outdated chip), but you definitely couldn’t tell by the display.

The Vaporesso FORZ Tank

The FORZ sub-ohm tank is 26mm in diameter, holds up to 4.5ml of e-juice, and is compatible with the new GTR line of coil-heads, which introduces a new, leak-proof architecture, better airflow and “anti-bacteria organic cotton” wicking.

One of the things GeekVape Aegis fans have always complained about was the lack of a proper tank to fit their durable vape mods. GeekVape has launched over a dozen Aegis products so far, but not one durable tank to go with them. Every time they launched a kit, they always paired the Aegis mods with conventional tanks that couldn’t handle the same punishment the mods could. That’s another thing Vaporesso got right.

Even though the FORZ tank looks a bit too big for a single 18650 battery mod, there is no denying its apparent durability. Featuring a cage-like design that wraps around the glass section, and a rubberized exterior that absorbs shocks, the FORZ tank looks a lot more solid than any GeekVape tank.

Measuring 25mm at the base, the FORZ tank flares out to around 26mm, and it’s quite tall for a 4.5ml tank as well, but this atomizer was never designed to be compact. It’s built to last in precarious conditions, and in that department it’s better than most other atomizers I’ve seen recently.

The FORZ tank features top-filling. All you have to do is turn the top cap slightly and it will come off exposing two fairly large filling slots. Do make sure you insert the juice bottle or dropper at an angle, though, as the slots have a visible lip, which can prevent the juice from flowing down into the tank, and cause it to spill out through the fill ports.

Coil-heads go in through the bottom; all you have to do is press them into the tank firmly, screw the base back on an you are good to go. Both the 0.15Ω and the 0.40Ω mesh coil-heads perform beautifully, both in terms of flavor intensity and vapor production, which isn’t very surprising as Vaporesso has been creating great coil-heads literally since it launched.

If you’re having trouble taking the coil-head out of the tank, you can use the metallic key-like tool included in the kit to pry them out. That’s not all the tool is good for, though. If you want to take the tank apart or remove the glass section, you can use it to unscrew the chimney off. That’s fine of you want to thoroughly clean the tank, but I don’t recommend trying to take out the glass, as putting it back on is a pain in the behind.

Conclusion

The iJoy Captain 2 mod we reviewed a few months back seemed like a timid competition for the very popular GeekVape Aegis mods, but the new Vaporesso FORZ TX80 is a new beast altogether. Not only does it rival the Aegis in terms of build quality and ergonomics, it actually has a much more advanced chip, and comes with a tank actually designed for use in tough conditions. It might take people a while to become familiar with the new FORZ line, but I think the TX80 is a great first step in the right direction.