The Best Handheld Vaporizer 2022 – Mighty by Storz & Bickel Full Review
- The Storz & Bickel Mighty remains the best portable vaporizer on the market
- In fact, we think it’s the best overall weed vaporizer
- Portable, compact, and highly efficient
- Long battery life, gets tons of vapor out of buds
- Expensive but not overpriced
- From the makers of the Volcano vaporizer
- High-quality German engineering
German vaporizer manufacturers Storz & Bickel took the world by storm 20 years ago with the Volcano Classic Vaporizer. Now, the international cannabis community has almost universally declared the Storz & Bickel Mighty portable vape even better than the original desktop model.
Why? The Mighty is simply everything a cannabis vaporizer should be. It heats up quickly, it delivers even, consistent clouds of vapor, it has a long battery life, and it’s portable and discreet enough to take with you anywhere you go.
Just as powerful as a desktop vaporizer while nearly as portable as a vape pen, the Storz & Bickel Mighty spans a great divide to deliver the world’s most excellent cannabis vaping experience.
What’s in the box?
- 1 Mighty vaporizer
- 1 wall charger
- 1 acrylic grinder
- 3 spare screens
- 1 cleaning brush
- 1 bowl-filling funnel
- 1 set spare o-rings
Is the Mighty still the best vaporizer?
Yes, we would still consider the Storz & Bickel Mighty to be the hands-down best cannabis vaporizer available. A variety of newer models from other companies have emerged over the last few years, but while some show improvement in certain areas, none have overtaken the Mighty in enough categories to truly be considered a “Mighty-killer.”
If Storz & Bickel were to release an updated version of the Mighty with a universal charging port and faster heating times, the vape’s dominance in the market would be assured. As it stands, though, the Mighty will eventually be made obsolete by what can only be described as inherent design flaws.
With so many so-called improvements simply turning out to be so much more poorly made Chinese crap, the Mighty is a breath of fresh air. It’s still made the same way it has been from the beginning, and it’s possible that any changes to this iconic design could mark the beginning of the end for the world’s favorite weed vaporizer.
How do you inhale a Mighty vape?
Using a Storz & Bickel Mighty vape is pretty easy, but there are a few important steps you have to get in order. Let’s run down a list of everything you need to do to start vaping a Mighty:
1. Remove your Mighty vaporizer from its packaging.
2. Identify the charger and plug it in. Connect the Mighty to its charger.
3. Wait for the battery to charge all the way before your first session.
4. Remove the top of the Mighty by gently turning it 90°.
5. Your Mighty’s bowl features a screen. Make sure it is properly in place.
6. Grind your bud. The Mighty comes with a basic acrylic grinder.
7. Fill the bowl. Its maximum volume is around 2g of ground-up weed. Try 1g to start.
8. Press the orange button on the side to turn your Mighty on. It will vibrate slightly.
9. Choose a temperature. Stick with the standard 180°C to start.
10. Your Mighty will vibrate again when it has reached the designated heat.
11. Place your mouth on the Mighty’s mouthpiece, and inhale.
How tight should my Mighty vaporizer’s bowl be?
To close the bowl of your Mighty vape, simply turn the top of the vape until it locks into its original position. You don’t need to make sure the top of your vape is tight — the Mighty is designed to lock the top of your bowl for optimal heating and airflow.
Can I use my Mighty without a screen?
No, you can’t, and you’d find that out for yourself with a single no-screen inhalation. That screen keeps plant matter from contacting the Mighty’s heating elements, and it also keeps plant matter out of your mouth.
Changing out the screen is one of the only pains of owning a Mighty, but you get used to it after a while. If it makes you feel any better, every dry herb vape on the market features one type of screen or another.
How many hits do you get out of a Mighty vape?
Most users get around 10 hits per session, but it all depends on (1) the size of your bowl, (2) the potency of your weed, and (3) the heat to which you set your Mighty. Dry, low-potency weed may only produce a few good hits even if you pack your Mighty’s bowl to the brim, but the magic of the Mighty can just as easily turn 0.5g of bonafide dank into 10 amazing hits.
Does the Mighty get you high?
Yes, the Mighty vape absolutely gets you high. Unlike rinky-dink cheap vapes that might or might not actually heat your bud evenly and provide adequate airflow, the Mighty features top-notch engineering that will assuredly extract every cannabinoid molecule from your flower — if you learn how to use it like a pro, that is.
Does the Mighty vape smell?
Yes, like all vaporizers, the Mighty vape releases an aroma when you use it to vaporize cannabis. As anyone who has vaped before can attest, though, the aroma of cannabis vapor is much less noticeable than the smell of smoke. In this way, at least, the Mighty and other weed vaporizers are somewhat more discreet.
Can you fly with the Mighty vaporizer?
Sure. The FAA has no problem with you bringing a clean, residue-free weed vaporizer in your carry-on or checked luggage. If you pull out a bag of weed and start vaping mid-flight, though, airline staff will probably mark you for immediate arrest upon landing. Using cannabis on airplanes is still illegal, and you technically shouldn’t fly with flower unless it contains less than 0.3% THC.
Is the Mighty vape safe?
Among weed vapes, the Mighty is among the safest options. German manufacturer Storz & Bickel has a sterling reputation for excellence within the international cannabis community, and unlike newer models such as the Crafty, the Mighty still features lots of analog components that last a long time and pose very little risk of failure.
The vapor you inhale is only as safe as the weed you put in your vaporizer, though. Choose indoor-grown, organic bud whenever possible to enjoy a truly connoisseur vaping experience.
Compare and contrast: Mighty vape vs. top weed vapes
Is the Mighty truly still king of the vapes? Let’s compare it to 3 common models to find out:
1. Mighty vaporizer vs. Crafty vaporizer
- The Crafty is the “updated” version of the Mighty
- Its battery life is worse, though, and it overheats more easily
- Plus, the Crafty’s high-tech hardware is more prone to failure
- The Mighty’s analog hardware will be the only thing to survive nuclear armageddon along with the cockroaches
We give the Storz & Bickel Crafty an opera clap, or maybe even just a golf clap. Bless them, they tried, but this isn’t the way to modernize. Even the iffy Storz & Bickel Volcano Hybrid (another “update”) is more high-powered and reliable compared to the Classic than the Crafty is compared to the Mighty. One of these days, maybe we’ll get the true successor to the Mighty that we’ve been owed for more than a decade.
2. Mighty vaporizer vs. Pax 3
- Known as the “Apple of Weed” Pax makes some truly epic vaporizers
- They’re purely handheld, though, and don’t hold a candle to the Mighty’s power
- Grab a Pax 3 if you like high-tech and don’t care for the Crafty
- At $200, you might want to pick up both a Mighty and a Pax 3
- One for flower, one for concentrate
Like the Mighty, the Pax 3 is a dry herb vaporizer. The Pax 3 is also a concentrate vape, though, and what’s more, it’s about a quarter the size of the Mighty.
If that immediately makes you suspect the Pax 3 is weak and has a wimpy battery, bingo, you’re exactly right. This tiny portable vape won’t deliver the thick, delicious clouds the Mighty is known for. It’s much more discreet, though, and it’s an example of brand-new tech done right (take note, Crafty).
3. Mighty vaporizer vs. Zeus Arc GT
- Powerful-yet-small portable vape
- Doesn’t offer much that the Mighty doesn’t
- For the price, you might as well pick up the Pax 3 instead
- Pax is more trusted than Zeus
The Zeus Arc is essentially a direct competitor of the Pax 3. With slightly souped-up hardware, it’s a somewhat more serious toy than the Pax, but it’s still nothing like the Mighty, the ultimate men’s vaping tool.
The main perk of the Zeus Arc is the Arcpod, a newly patented tool that vapes raw flower. The Arcpod actually hasn’t been released yet, but it might spike the Zeus Arc to newfound popularity once available.
Are there any bad things about the Mighty vaporizer?
As the best portable Volcano vaporizer, there aren’t many bad things we can say about the Mighty vape. This somewhat outdated piece of hardware does have a few drawbacks, though.
First, the Mighty has some years behind it. This is noticeable in the very simple buttons and the LCD screen as well as the non-universal charging port that becomes a point of great consternation for many users.
Responding to the failings of its increasingly dated model, Storz & Bickel released the Crafty vape, featuring Bluetooth connectivity and all the bells and whistles. The only problem is that the Crafty is a noticeable step down from the Mighty both in battery life, heating mechanism, and overall quality. A true update to the Mighty without altering the spirit of the technology is what’s required, but it’s unlikely to happen.
Is the Mighty vaporizer worth the money?
At $350, the Mighty is on the spendier side of portable weed vapes. Remember, though, that you’re not really buying a portable vape — you’re buying a compact direct-draw desktop vaporizer that somehow doesn’t have to be plugged into the wall all the time.
The technology behind the Storz & Bickel Mighty is truly next-level. It’s somewhat ironic that this model is so dated since it perfectly crystallizes everything a vape should be… if we’re still living in 2010, that is.
Where is the Mighty 2? Keep the Crafty, but give us analog performance nerds something to chew on as well. Something with USB-C charging, perhaps?
How do I get the most out of my Mighty vaporizer?
Treat your new Mighty vaporizer with respect by cleaning and charging it often, and this portable/desktop vape will deliver you hundreds of high-quality sessions over the years. Old-school technology like this never truly ages — you’ll still be vaping your Mighty 20 years from now to cope with the ongoing stress of the zombie apocalypse. Just don’t lose the charger.
1. Like all portable vapes, the Mighty loses voltage as its battery decreases. Try to keep it fully charged whenever possible.
2. Experiment with different temperatures for different buds. Dry buds might vape best at low temps while wetter nugs could require more heat.
3. Keep your Mighty clean. That screen is annoying to replace, but you don’t want the alternative.
4. Take big hits at low temperatures. Try to fill your lungs as much as possible with vapor that doesn’t scorch them.
