Discontinued The Grasshopper

[Doktor Dub]

all i know is, as much as i like the Hopper when it works, if it would be a car, i would not buy this car ever....

 

[travis]

Has anyone made a warranty claim for blue light flickering (weak performance)? If so, what was the outcome?

I have an old ti that can only make it 1-2 hits before flickering and about 4-5 hits before the battery craps out. It takes at least 2 batteries to finish a bowl. The hits are all on the weak side too. The backend always heats up so I'm pretty sure it's a poor conduction issue in the backend.

I recently got a new ti and it blows away this old one. I was planning on selling my old one with the original warranty and disclaimer (for a loss) but now I'm wondering if they'll swap a new backend and I can keep it as a spare. I'm apprehensive to do this if they say it's working as it should and then I've wasted the transferable warranty.

 

[GreenHopper]

Has anyone made a warranty claim for blue light flickering (weak performance)? If so, what was the outcome?

I have an old ti that can only make it 1-2 hits before flickering and about 4-5 hits before the battery craps out. It takes at least 2 batteries to finish a bowl. The hits are all on the weak side too. The backend always heats up so I'm pretty sure it's a poor conduction issue in the backend.

I recently got a new ti and it blows away this old one. I was planning on selling my old one with the original warranty and disclaimer (for a loss) but now I'm wondering if they'll swap a new backend and I can keep it as a spare. I'm apprehensive to do this if they say it's working as it should and then I've wasted the transferable warranty.

I've had a similar concern with my Green Ti. I know it's underperforming when comparing it to my Purple-Ti but I don't want to send it in only to have it returned with a note saying something along the lines of 'within acceptable tolerances'.

 

[Hjalmark]

Find in irritating to see people getting flagged in conversation for "company bashing"

Not sure what purpose that is suppose to serve in an open discussion about a product we use/used

 

[shmoedog]

So I have owned The GH for a little over a month now and I thought it was time I gave my thoughts on this amazing little piece of vape tech. Now before I pulled the trigger on this I did a ton of research first which I always recommend before making a purchase like this. You want your expectations to be in line with what you get. I'll start first with what I feel are the only major downsides of this device but really imho are to be expected.

First off battery life is somewhat short. Depending on my temp setting I get on average between 12-15 draws per battery. Which usual equates to 3 sessions worth of power. Some view this negatively but I feel if you think about it realistically it's waaay better than you could expect given the size of the battery and the 45 watt heater that the GH possesses. Luckily batteries are cheap at $7 apiece. I have 5 and never run out. They charge very fast as well. I should also note I have never charged them in the GH itself preferring my Tenergy external charger.

The second thing is the temperature of the mouthpiece and the vapor exiting it. It is very hot. Sure you can handle a quick draw on 3 no probs but it quickly becomes uncomfortable. It is definitely doable just not optimal. In fact the big deal for me is I just have to keep my lips totally out of the way of the exiting vapor even with the silicone. Way to hot for me. Realistically speaking this heater is pushing out temps over 400 degrees Fahrenheit less than 2 inches away from your mouth. Once again this should be expected given the design. For a quick draw here and there while on the go for stealth its perfect just really not awesome for sessions unless using with glass.

The third issue I will mention is reliability. While mine has worked flawlessly others have not. Mine does however do one weird thing. If I lay my finger between the temp selector and the lower body especially the clip it feels like it gets very hot but seems to quickly be gone when I move my finger. I read that it may be an actual fault and a warranty issue. But regardless it works. So until it stops vaporizing properly I will live with the weirdness. It probably has something to do with the fact there are no wires in its design and I'm creating a connection when I place my fingers there. I just try to keep all my fingers on the main body. But regardless of issues there is luckily the lifetime warranty. Which from what I have read they have been really good about standing behind if there are any problems with it. Which these problems are somewhat understandable if you consider how advanced this thing really is and how tiny that little heater is. It does suck to have to deal with sending stuff back and forth with the manufacturer for sure so probably the biggest thing to consider when buying this.

The GH reminds me of a functionally working car with no body. It does have everything you need to drive just not super comfortably. So for me it's basically a vaporizing drive train that needs a body. So I just use it with my MFLB orbiter, J-hooks and I even have an aluminum stem I use thats made from the stem out of a broken water piece from my combustion days which cools the vapor amazingly well . The stem is what I use when I'm just being quick and not fancy. Plus the stem is easy to pocket for portability. I actually think Hopper labs is missing the boat on these potential mouthpieces you could sell for this unit. I'm even thinking they could build a mouthpiece like they already have just with a metal tube extending off the end. All one piece. It would cool the vapor and screw on and off easy peezy. Just an idea if course.

I have heard others complain that there is not a meaningful click at each of the temp lines I think the reason is so people feel more comfortable adjusting it in-between the lines. Which they might not be as comfortable with if it actually did click at the line. I know I wouldn't and it's nice to be able to dial it in to that perfect temp. But that being said the selector does move firmly and will not move when in my pocket. It also feels very responsive. When you turn it up you can definitely tell.

The GH also has what I feel is a nice chamber size that's good for about 5 solid draws worth of material. I do not have a scale or I would give you the exact weight of the material it held. If I had to guess I'd say like .2 maybe. A medium grind seems to work perfect. I tried a fine grind with my MFLB finishing grinder and it was way too constricted to get a comfortable draw from.

GH is very efficient at extraction. Turning my herb a dark brown in about 5-6 draws. This thing gets up to temp in like 6 seconds and you will be milking it at temp set 3 in like 2-3 seconds. You can draw as fast as you want and the GH will pretty much keep up. But regardless if you draw at a slow to medium pace you'll get noticeably more vapor. The amount of vapor is awesome to watch in clean glass. The GH can also very effectively vape even the smallest of amounts but I do think it works better full. Also cleaning is super easy. I brush out the chamber with my MFLB brush after each use and have only soaked the MP once in ISO and it looks barely used. Chamber retains no residue from what I can tell.

My method of use is this. Medium grind onto an envelope size piece of paper. Wrap the paper around The GH chamber and tip it up funneling the herb in until it's full to the top (do not tamp down at all) and close. I then start at temp set 3 and then slowly move up .5 every consecutive draw after. 3-3.5-4-4.5-5. Sometimes I do a second draw on 5 if I get a significant amount of vapor on the 1st 5 draw. My avb comes out totally extracted. No point in even saving it for edibles.

Just so everyone knows I'm new to vaping. I Haven't combusted in close to 4 months. I love it. If only I had known how great it was I would have given it a shot years ago. When I first heard about vaporizing I didn't give it much consideration I was always thinking it would be a major compromise in someway. But age, worry and shortness of breath finally caught up with me and I finally reevaluated it and WOW if only had I known how great vaping is. How I wasn't making any compromises. How it was better in almost all conceivable ways. 1st it's way healthier. It doesn't take long after the switch for that to quickly become apparent. I can feel it in every satisfying breath I take. 2nd the effects are way better IMHO. I feel more medicated and it feels like a cleaner feeling in a way I can't quite articulate. 3rd its more efficient. I use much less to go a lot further. 4th the taste is spectacular compared to combustion. It really feels like you become more of a connoisseur than you were before. There is only 1 downside I see currently. Because of it I have contracted a severe illness. I believe you all call it the dreaded VAS and it is deadly to the wallet. I have bought 6 vapes in the last 3 months . An FF2, MFLB, GH, Lotus, Ti Woody and Ti Vong in that order. In my defense I sold the FF2 but still if it continues counselling may be in my future .

 

[GreenHopper]

So I have owned The GH for a little over a month now and I thought it was time I gave my thoughts on this amazing little piece of vape tech. Now before I pulled the trigger on this I did a ton of research first which I always recommend before making a purchase like this. You want your expectations to be in line with what you get. I'll start first with what I feel are the only major downsides of this device but really imho are to be expected.

First off battery life is somewhat short. Depending on my temp setting I get on average between 12-15 draws per battery. Which usual equates to 3 sessions worth of power. Some view this negatively but I feel if you think about it realistically it's waaay better than you could expect given the size of the battery and the 45 watt heater that the GH possesses. Luckily batteries are cheap at $7 apiece. I have 5 and never run out. They charge very fast as well. I should also note I have never charged them in the GH itself preferring my Tenergy external charger.

The second thing is the temperature of the mouthpiece and the vapor exiting it. It is very hot. Sure you can handle a quick draw on 3 no probs but it quickly becomes uncomfortable. It is definitely doable just not optimal. In fact the big deal for me is I just have to keep my lips totally out of the way of the exiting vapor even with the silicone. Way to hot for me. Realistically speaking this heater is pushing out temps over 400 degrees Fahrenheit less than 2 inches away from your mouth. Once again this should be expected given the design. For a quick draw here and there while on the go for stealth its perfect just really not awesome for sessions unless using with glass.

The third issue I will mention is reliability. While mine has worked flawlessly others have not. Mine does however do one weird thing. If I lay my finger between the temp selector and the lower body especially the clip it feels like it gets very hot but seems to quickly be gone when I move my finger. I read that it may be an actual fault and a warranty issue. But regardless it works. So until it stops vaporizing properly I will live with the weirdness. It probably has something to do with the fact there are no wires in its design and I'm creating a connection when I place my fingers there. I just try to keep all my fingers on the main body. But regardless of issues there is luckily the lifetime warranty. Which from what I have read they have been really good about standing behind if there are any problems with it. Which these problems are somewhat understandable if you consider how advanced this thing really is and how tiny that little heater is. It does suck to have to deal with sending stuff back and forth with the manufacturer for sure so probably the biggest thing to consider when buying this.

The GH reminds me of a functionally working car with no body. It does have everything you need to drive just not super comfortably. So for me it's basically a vaporizing drive train that needs a body. So I just use it with my MFLB orbiter, J-hooks and I even have an aluminum stem I use thats made from the stem out of a broken water piece from my combustion days which cools the vapor amazingly well . The stem is what I use when I'm just being quick and not fancy. Plus the stem is easy to pocket for portability. I actually think Hopper labs is missing the boat on these potential mouthpieces you could sell for this unit. I'm even thinking they could build a mouthpiece like they already have just with a metal tube extending off the end. All one piece. It would cool the vapor and screw on and off easy peezy. Just an idea if course.

I have heard others complain that there is not a meaningful click at each of the temp lines I think the reason is so people feel more comfortable adjusting it in-between the lines. Which they might not be as comfortable with if it actually did click at the line. I know I wouldn't and it's nice to be able to dial it in to that perfect temp. But that being said the selector does move firmly and will not move when in my pocket. It also feels very responsive. When you turn it up you can definitely tell.

The GH also has what I feel is a nice chamber size that's good for about 5 solid draws worth of material. I do not have a scale or I would give you the exact weight of the material it held. If I had to guess I'd say like .2 maybe. A medium grind seems to work perfect. I tried a fine grind with my MFLB finishing grinder and it was way too constricted to get a comfortable draw from.

GH is very efficient at extraction. Turning my herb a dark brown in about 5-6 draws. This thing gets up to temp in like 6 seconds and you will be milking it at temp set 3 in like 2-3 seconds. You can draw as fast as you want and the GH will pretty much keep up. But regardless if you draw at a slow to medium pace you'll get noticeably more vapor. The amount of vapor is awesome to watch in clean glass. The GH can also very effectively vape even the smallest of amounts but I do think it works better full. Also cleaning is super easy. I brush out the chamber with my MFLB brush after each use and have only soaked the MP once in ISO and it looks barely used. Chamber retains no residue from what I can tell.

My method of use is this. Medium grind onto an envelope size piece of paper. Wrap the paper around The GH chamber and tip it up funneling the herb in until it's full to the top (do not tamp down at all) and close. I then start at temp set 3 and then slowly move up .5 every consecutive draw after. 3-3.5-4-4.5-5. Sometimes I do a second draw on 5 if I get a significant amount of vapor on the 1st 5 draw. My avb comes out totally extracted. No point in even saving it for edibles.

Just so everyone knows I'm new to vaping. I Haven't combusted in close to 4 months. I love it. If only I had known how great it was I would have given it a shot years ago. When I first heard about vaporizing I didn't give it much consideration I was always thinking it would be a major compromise in someway. But age, worry and shortness of breath finally caught up with me and I finally reevaluated it and WOW if only had I known how great vaping is. How I wasn't making any compromises. How it was better in almost all conceivable ways. 1st it's way healthier. It doesn't take long after the switch for that to quickly become apparent. I can feel it in every satisfying breath I take. 2nd the effects are way better IMHO. I feel more medicated and it feels like a cleaner feeling in a way I can't quite articulate. 3rd its more efficient. I use much less to go a lot further. 4th the taste is spectacular compared to combustion. It really feels like you become more of a connoisseur than you were before. There is only 1 downside I see currently. Because of it I have contracted a severe illness. I believe you all call it the dreaded VAS and it is deadly to the wallet. I have bought 6 vapes in the last 3 months . An FF2, MFLB, GH, Lotus, Ti Woody and Ti Vong in that order. In my defense I sold the FF2 but still if it continues counselling may be in my future .

Great review man!

I'm gonna add another benefit of vaping which is the fine tuning of effect.

By temp stepping as you do, its possible to get a heady high from the actives that vaporise at the lower temps. Then as you later crank up the temps you can get a more sedate and stoned buzz going.

I'm loving being able to 'shape' my session so that towards the end of the night I crank up the temps for my bed time hits.

Sometimes I dump the AVB from daytime low temp sessions and then re-vape the AVB later on in the evening. Works great with the Hopper as you can really get the extraction going through a water tool (love the hopper/Orbiter combo) at T5.

 

[disGRUNTled]

Purple Elephant in the Grasshopper. Watching Grind Mode Cyphers on Youtube.

 

[almost there]

Purple Elephant in the Grasshopper. Watching Grind Mode Cyphers on Youtube.

Dude, why do u continue to torment me week after week like this. First u appear with those weekly IQ photos when I was rocking a broken unit for a month and now you're being all bling in the grasshopper thread while I'm hopperless. Must be karma for some past crime of mine

 

[Vape Dr.]

Hello all!
I just received my Ti Hopper today and the 14mm Grasshopper WPA!
Big shout out to Nicole, Trevor, and the rest of the Hopper team for getting me everything so quickly!

Customer service has been a pleasure to deal with and Nicole is VERY fast to respond to emails.
Thanks Nicole!



I am very hopeful they have worked out the bugs since my previous hoppers.
The WPA is super sweet. It's like the barrel of a shot gun!
Here are some pics.



Very nice, very happy!

I just got back from a party and the hopper worked fast and flawlessly! I am still on the same battery believe it or not and have kept it at the 3rd notch (338F).

I will say my early SS hopper got much hotter than my new Ti hopper.

I have been hitting it for 5 seconds, clicking it off and continuing to draw 5 more seconds. After 6 or 7 hits I draw for 8 seconds click off and inhale for 8 more seconds.

I take 3 hits but wait 30 seconds between hits and it is not bad at all without the condom. The SS would have needed the condom for sure.

I have been easily getting 10 hits per chamber and great taste and vapor, more vapor than I would have expected from that low of a temperature

I will be back tomorrow with some waterpipe videos using the new WPA.

 

[MoltenTiger]

So uhh how'd you get that adapter so soon?

Is it available or did you request it early?

 

[Poostuff]

Shit man they sure hooked you up Vape Dr, the WPA still isn't on their site. I hope they hurry up & release it already I can see I'm not the only one waiting on one of those.
It must have a different screen... come on hurry up with your testing & give us some details already.

 

[biohacker]

WPA in someone's hands already even though it hasn't even been released? And no explanation?? Common @Vape Dr. you know better than to torture us like this! And Nicole? WHO's Nicole and WHAT have they done with Caroline??

Now i'm Ti free and down to 2 SS GH's which are both at HL for RMA (straight to blue and coplights). But I don't care much because I have a Sublimator. The Sub does what I wanted the EVO and Herbie to do. And the Sub can obliterate the GH, but we're talking apples and nuclear weapons here.

REALLY hope I can pick up one of those WPA with my RMA returns! Looking forward to hearing how you worked that magic @Vape Dr. !

 

[vapviking]

It must have a different screen...

I hope it has same basic screen but NO funnels, plastic or otherwise.
They better have a boatload of these wpa's in the pipeline. But I'm kinda glad there's no 'pre-order' phase!

and thanks @Vape Dr. !

 

[MoltenTiger]

well, my glass blower is still making my adapters, so I guess I shouldn't be rushing about this WPA business til I have beautiful reason for it

But I really want them to send me a couple back with my warranty return too, with which I'm still holding onto on my end. International postage is bad enough to pay one side, and an extra 15 or whatever for two adapters (which I assume will be 25USD?)
Ehhhh

I was thinking earlier, after 3 years, if these guys could have learnt only 1 thing; it's that you don't continually blunder your events calendar.
These guys are totally lucky that all other portable vapes are (still) either expensive, shit or both.
Because they honestly haven't done enough to veer from that themselves.

Wish I could opt for a sublimator, next time I move I'll have to pick one up.

I'm content with my hoppers, they do work well (mostly) and they are better portables for me than any other electric option. But now I've sorted my GAS along comes VAS haha

 

[biohacker]

Yeah @Vape Dr. would like to hear your feedback on the WPA airflow. Apparently since it's been opened up, the airflow should be much greater, however... this doesn't always mean better performance (as has been recently discussed in the Herborizer thread). So curious now!

 

[slcbdco]

Hello all!
I just received my Ti Hopper today and the 14mm Grasshopper WPA!
Big shout out to Nicole, Trevor, and the rest of the Hopper team for getting me everything so quickly!

Customer service has been a pleasure to deal with and Nicole is VERY fast to respond to emails.
Thanks Nicole!



I am very hopeful they have worked out the bugs since my previous hoppers.
The WPA is super sweet. It's like the barrel of a shot gun!
Here are some pics.



Very nice, very happy!

I just got back from a party and the hopper worked fast and flawlessly! I am still on the same battery believe it or not and have kept it at the 3rd notch (338F).

I will say my early SS hopper got much hotter than my new Ti hopper.

I have been hitting it for 5 seconds, clicking it off and continuing to draw 5 more seconds. After 6 or 7 hits I draw for 8 seconds click off and inhale for 8 more seconds.

I take 3 hits but wait 30 seconds between hits and it is not bad at all without the condom. The SS would have needed the condom for sure.

I have been easily getting 10 hits per chamber and great taste and vapor, more vapor than I would have expected from that low of a temperature

I will be back tomorrow with some waterpipe videos using the new WPA.

Nice, i've been really enjoying the WPA also. I hit my grasshopper native most of the time but since I got the WPA one of my hoppers now basically just lives on my bong!

Also you're right, you should be experiencing better battery life with the GB2 batteries and some updated backend brains in the newer units.

Have you tried the WPA as an alternate native mouthpiece yet? I bet some will like that due to the increased airflow

 

[voodoo_vape]

WOW.. WPA, photos and Nicole!! I'm with @biohacker what's happened to Caroline.. I haven't heard back from her for some time now.. Actually HL haven't even read my updates on the warranty claim. For the time being, I don't really care.
I'd like to try this WPA tbh.. Looks like a proper bind for the glass..
Soooo, so far my Ti GH is still working fine, believe it or not!! Hopefully it'll last some more.. .Good newz is that I'm getting a job again so there will be some extra $$ flowing in and who knows, maybe I'll another vape, maybe even a desktop one. Under other circumstances, I'd probably have gone for another GH.. I think that there so many other vapes out there to be tried out, that owning just one GH is ok, with two you're safe as well.
Btw, has anyone tried the Apollo? The portable from finland.. looks like a real beast as well.. if not a desktop, this one has always been on my wish list since it first came out..
Anyway, happy hopping guys n'gals!!

 

[GreenHopper]

Nicole!! I'm with @biohacker what's happened to Caroline

Sorry couldn't help myself.

Caroline is on the left, Nicole is on the right:

*** this is a dig at the "Caroline is an A.I." conversation from several months back and is not a dig at either Caroline or Nicole.***

 

[jivebuggered]

well, my glass blower is still making my adapters, so I guess I shouldn't be rushing about this WPA business til I have beautiful reason for it

But I really want them to send me a couple back with my warranty return too, with which I'm still holding onto on my end. International postage is bad enough to pay one side, and an extra 15 or whatever for two adapters (which I assume will be 25USD?)
Ehhhh

I was thinking earlier, after 3 years, if these guys could have learnt only 1 thing; it's that you don't continually blunder your events calendar.
These guys are totally lucky that all other portable vapes are (still) either expensive, shit or both.
Because they honestly haven't done enough to veer from that themselves.

Wish I could opt for a sublimator, next time I move I'll have to pick one up.

I'm content with my hoppers, they do work well (mostly) and they are better portables for me than any other electric option. But now I've sorted my GAS along comes VAS haha

Howdy Molten Tiger it`s been a while. Just about to send back for second time my Ti heater section, I get red lights for a few seconds then nothing which is similar to my last warranty for the same unit. I have two (one SS) and swap between the two along with my ORIGINAL and first batch Solo (shows how reliable and solid the are even with a cracked front control). In other words the hoppers dont get used heavily so it lasted three months since last warranty fix which is a bit of a joke really. IF ONLY Hopper Labs could get there quality control better what are they waiting for?? It is the biggest problem they have and they just dont seem to want to fix the problem. They must be losing so many potential customers because of it and is the constant complaint that potential and existing customers talk of. WAKE UP HOPPER LABS AND FIX THE PROBLEM!!
I too am waiting for a response to my warranty emails but still it is early days and I have to be the most impatient person on the planet. I was thinking of sending the whole unit back but since they never fully replace it anyway I will just send back the heater section again. One of the biggest questions I have is have they changed the Lifetime warranty in any way for customers outside of USA/Canada?? Australian Vaporizers seem to be dirty on them with such a claim (correct me if im wrong) also some stuff concerning sending them spare batteries??. Do they still cover ALL customers for lifetime warranty from anywhere on the planet correct? Thanks

Howdy Molten Tiger it`s been a while. Just about to send back for second time my Ti heater section, I get red lights for a few seconds then nothing which is similar to my last warranty for the same unit. I have two (one SS) and swap between the two along with my ORIGINAL and first batch Solo (shows how reliable and solid the are even with a cracked front control). In other words the hoppers dont get used heavily so it lasted three months since last warranty fix which is a bit of a joke really. IF ONLY Hopper Labs could get there quality control better what are they waiting for?? It is the biggest problem they have and they just dont seem to want to fix the problem. They must be losing so many potential customers because of it and is the constant complaint that potential and existing customers talk of. WAKE UP HOPPER LABS AND FIX THE PROBLEM!!
I too am waiting for a response to my warranty emails but still it is early days and I have to be the most impatient person on the planet. I was thinking of sending the whole unit back but since they never fully replace it anyway I will just send back the heater section again. One of the biggest questions I have is have they changed the Lifetime warranty in any way for customers outside of USA/Canada?? Australian Vaporizers seem to be dirty on them with such a claim (correct me if im wrong) also some stuff concerning sending them spare batteries??. Do they still cover ALL customers for lifetime warranty from anywhere on the planet correct? Thanks

Can anyone confirm there return address is : 2775 Valmont Rd Boulder Colorado co 80304 US ? ta

 

[tubasco]

Can anyone confirm there return address is : 2775 Valmont Rd Boulder Colorado co 80304 US ? ta

Yes, but add "#3"

 

[biohacker]

WAKE UP HOPPER LABS AND FIX THE PROBLEM!!

Sometimes I wonder if that's even possible..

I too am waiting for a response to my warranty emails but still it is early days and I have to be the most impatient person on the planet.

+1 add me to the list...they received them yesterday, haven't heard anything yet but should be tomorrow. As always patience young/old grasshoppers...

 

[jivebuggered]

Yes, but add "#3"

#3 go where? thanks

 

[MoltenTiger]

Howdy Molten Tiger it`s been a while. Just about to send back for second time my Ti heater section, I get red lights for a few seconds then nothing which is similar to my last warranty for the same unit. I have two (one SS) and swap between the two along with my ORIGINAL and first batch Solo (shows how reliable and solid the are even with a cracked front control). In other words the hoppers dont get used heavily so it lasted three months since last warranty fix which is a bit of a joke really. IF ONLY Hopper Labs could get there quality control better what are they waiting for?? It is the biggest problem they have and they just dont seem to want to fix the problem. They must be losing so many potential customers because of it and is the constant complaint that potential and existing customers talk of. WAKE UP HOPPER LABS AND FIX THE PROBLEM!!
I too am waiting for a response to my warranty emails but still it is early days and I have to be the most impatient person on the planet. I was thinking of sending the whole unit back but since they never fully replace it anyway I will just send back the heater section again. One of the biggest questions I have is have they changed the Lifetime warranty in any way for customers outside of USA/Canada?? Australian Vaporizers seem to be dirty on them with such a claim (correct me if im wrong) also some stuff concerning sending them spare batteries??. Do they still cover ALL customers for lifetime warranty from anywhere on the planet correct? Thanks

A pity about this devices durability, absolutely.
They're very aware of the faults users are experiencing, and they've done a good job avoiding discussing it.

Part of the problem, I assume, is that there has been ongoing design tweaks (@slcbdco mentions new back-end brains for eg., that effect power drainage. In an earlier post I explored how that could be causing issues, as firmware upgrades are not simple).

The device is complex and the overwhelming majority of faults are limited to very few symptoms. This actually means their QC/QA is reasonable for a device of this nature.

It seems they have transitioned from a powerful unit that commonly died after a short usage period to a finicky unit that doesn't offer consistent performance and still commonly fails, but only after a longer less satisfying usage period.

I really like the hopper but I would much prefer a consistent device.

I have experienced this with the hopper, I feel it's possible given enough time it will be like this again, but in the mean time it's not properly a desktop killer - which it has the potential to be.

There's not really much else that competes with the GH in theory, but in practice it's clear the theory hasn't been fully realised.

Until then, I think their lifetime warranty is as good as it was back in the day.
It's probable that Caroline is fed up with constantly solely dealing with an amassment of issues, and that will mean a bumpy transition expanding her department or training an alternate employee.

AusVapes, probably mostly alternate reviewers/peddlers, are much more interested in selling other more lucrative options than the hopper.
The hoppers only sales pitch is its effectiveness, which if another 15,000 devices need to be returned (It will be pivotal to observe the newest batch market reaction) could be rendered null.

So here's to hoping in 6 months >98% of the latest units are still going strong, otherwise without any external investment/stakeholders that's all she wrote.

PS. Their return details are as follows;

Hopper Labs
2775 Valmont Road #3
Boulder, CO 80304

BE SURE TO INCLUDE YOUR WARRANTY REFERENCE NUMBER. You can find this at the top of your warranty request page.

 

[Vape Dr.]

Hello All!

As promised here is a video using my new Ti Grasshopper with the new Grasshopper 14mm WPA (which is absolutely awesome and I totally recommend!) through my peyote pillar.

Freshly charged GB2 battery on my favorite temp, #3 (338F....I l'm a flavor chaser what can I say).
Let me take this opportunity to apologize. I was pretty lit off of some black and blue dream. I promise I will do better videos and use higher temps so you all can truly see what the Grasshopper is capable of through water..

I was ripping chambers through the water pipe when I remembered to remember that I promised you all a WPA video and here it is. I hope you all enjoy. I promise to get some better videos at higher temps.

P.S. The WPA is absolutely amazing!

 

[Hogni]

Thanks @Vape Dr., is that a GH-bubbler or did you've just pin a GH-sticker on it? Probably you know more about date of release of the WPA?