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The “Basiq” vaporizer made by KANPEKI poses a compelling proposition for cannabis brands — what if there was a top-of-the-line vaporizer that was specifically designed to work with your concentrates?
After 14 years living and working in China, months spent stranded with his family in Thailand during the pandemic, and multiple full family quarantines, Israeli Yuval Navon is back in his home country and preparing to unveil his vaping innovation to the world.
“Basiq” is a rechargeable cannabis oil vape system that is slick, sophisticated, and fully customizable. It uses a proprietary vape pod made of cutting-edge materials that is filled with cannabis extract that pops into the top of the vaporizer with a satisfying magnetic click. The product is produced and distributed by Buddy.
Set to debut in Las Vegas at the CHAMPS conference later this month, the vape isn’t being marketed to individual cannabis consumers at the moment, rather, the vision is to focus on the B2B market. Here’s the idea — cannabis brands, such as extractors, cultivators, and even dispensaries, will partner with the makers of Basiq to produce a custom-made version of the vaporizer that is meant to be used specifically with their product.
It doesn’t use a smartphone app, doesn’t require any precision temperature settings by the user, and everything is kept, well, basic.
Navon, the co-founder and general manager of cannabis vape company KANPEKI, which makes Basiq, said that it is meant as a white label product specifically for cannabis brands.
“Our vision is to make something that is more personalized on the brand level. Brands are seeking to differentiate themselves and sharpen the [vaping] experience. This is their war, their competition and if we can help them emphasize the great things about their oil compared to others, that is the win. What is available in the market currently is very generic, without the option to customize and optimize the [vaping] experience,” Navon said.
“Our focus is on working with formulators and cannabis brands to design the temperature profile that will work best with their pod,” Navon said, adding, “today when you vape, a lot of the terpenes and flavors are lost very quickly. Temperatures rise quickly and you don’t have enough time to enjoy all the flavors before the oil is vaporized.”
Navon said that the company will work closely with cannabis brands to develop the right specifications for their specific cannabis extracts, because “only the person who designed the formulation, grew the plant and extracted the oil knows what the proper temperature is and what flavors to expect.”
How the Basiq vaporizer works
To enter your vapor quest with Basiq, you first press the single button five times to turn it on, after which a power indicator light will flash to confirm that lift-off is imminent. Next, insert the pod in the top of the Basiq vape, where a magnet will quickly fasten it in place. The device will then vibrate and a light will come on to let you know that everything is set.
The vape has three power settings — low, medium, and high. Simply press the button three times to toggle through the settings, using the changing colors of the LED light as your guide (blue = low, green = medium, red = high). When you’re ready, inhale through the mouthpiece while pressing on the button. After 8 seconds the device will vibrate and cut itself off to conserve oil.
The vape has a simple, single button interface, and a haptic engine that vibrates when it’s ready to go. It also charges extra fast (a full charge in 30 minutes) by way of the USB-C port.
But how does the vape actually perform and what does it feel like?
First things first, when you hold the vape in your hand it is remarkably light and fits in the palm of the hand, making it an ideal portable vape for hiking in the woods, lounging on the beach, or anywhere that you want to discreetly (or blatantly?) ensconce yourself in a warm cannabis vapor mist.
This reviewer used a white Basiq vape, and the form and appearance was very modern and minimalist. And while Navon says the company was inspired by car manufacturers and went for a key fob design, for this reviewer (and his neighbor) it also brought to mind EVE, the female robot and love interest from Wall-E — and it hits almost as hard.
In fact, we found that the 8 second recommended inhalation is more than enough. And while many users may find that vapes only hit hard on the higher settings, inhaling the Basiq while on its low and medium settings produced thick, powerful clouds of vapor — even when the pull only lasted a couple seconds. The feeling, to put it simply, was anything but basic.
While it may take a little bit of practice (one session, two tops) to get the hang of using Basiq, it’s a remarkably light and sleek vape that produces truly potent yet smooth and flavorful vapor hits.
And this was a test run with a cartridge of oil that hadn’t been customized for working with Basiq so one can only imagine what the experience would be like with a cartridge that was calibrated with pre-programmed settings to optimize the extract’s flavor profile and aroma.
Fully customizable design
Basiq has a fully customizable design, and brands can choose a variety of different colors for the exterior of the vaporizer, as well as custom finishes and the option to add the company logo. They can also opt for an all-metal or wood build.
For brands, Basiq also offers fully customized packaging “to match your brand vision and aspirations.”
The vape will be launched in Las Vegas between July 27-30th, first as a B2B product for concentrate and vape pod manufacturers and cannabis cultivators and producers.
And while it’s only marketed as a B2B product for now, it’s easy to picture how the customizable design could be appealing to everyday consumers.
Basiq — a long time coming
Navon entered the vape business in 2012, when he worked for an e-vapor startup company called Green Smoke, which was purchased for $130 million in 2014 by Nu-Mark LLC, a subsidiary of the multinational tobacco company Altria (formerly Philip Morris Companies).
Navon was based in Shenzhen, China (which he refers to as “the capital of vaping innovation”) working for Altria to develop a new vaping product. In 2019 he decided to branch out on his own, partly because “we noticed there was a lot of hardware on the market that didn’t perform well or had very cheap components. Companies couldn’t meet demand and just bought whatever they could.”
In 2019, Navon co-founded KANPEKI, a technology company developed to craft “innovative development, supply chain, and manufacturing solutions to the vape industry,” according to the company website.
In addition to Basiq, KANPEKI is also developing the disposable all-in-one vape pen called Epiq, which it refers to as “a powerful vape experience in a small package.”
But the real centerpiece is Basiq, which is now ready for its closeup.
“We finally feel comfortable launching the product,” Navon said, and described the ideal customer base as being a trinity of sorts — vertically-integrated cannabis companies who want a vaporizer calibrated specifically to work with their extracts, oil processors who make proprietary blends, and dispensaries and similar cannabis brands that make their own extracts and want to fill them in a custom-made device that they can sell out of their storefronts.
Navon said that their idea was to combine “experience, lifestyle, and design,” for the optimal vaping experience.
“Our vision is to have a more precise experience,” Navon said, which sounds anything but basic.
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