Okay, so I ordered one of these a week ago, in blue, got it yesterday (I got lucky on that wait time). I read this thread and the online reviews before I pulled the trigger. My vaporizer experience is limited to the original vapir no2 and the old vapor brothers wooden box with the whip thing (so I ain't shit compared to this crowd), but I do have a lot of experience with many different facets of ganja. I was paranoid about the quality control concerns expressed here, but I was way too caught up in the hype to be patient.
The blue is silvery blue. Really nice IMO. I think the web photos make this blue a little weirder and less attractive/expensive looking than what it in real life.
No comment on the app. Have not tried that at all.
In my experience, this thing this does everything it is purported to do. It has all the positive qualities people are talking about, and this unit has none of the negative qualities. No issues with its function, everything fits together, flavor chamber was in there, etc.
It does get hot, but it was not something where I needed a glove. I was holding it in my bare hand, but maybe somewhat more loosely. I think if I were to make a fist around this thing, with my fingers together for maximum heat retention, it would be uncomfortable. But this is after 2 back to back sessions on smartpaths 3 and 4. I think less lengthy, lower temp use does not get it as hot. There's a way of holding things where you kind of make less contact, but still hold them safely. When it's hot, I kind of cradle it in my fingers, maybe with the fingers more spread, and put my little finger under the bottom, so it doesn't slip down. It works for me. Pain is subjective, so somebody with the same unit might find this unacceptable. I have no conclusion about the heat phenomena of the iq, and no means of accurately measuring these temps. I think if it was 105F outside, I would like my vape to be freezing cold, but people in hell want ice water. I can suffer for my "art." Seriously, I don't think the heat is a big deal. I think the people with the super heat probably have defective units.
The favor is the best flavor I've experienced in my life with my limited vape experience, and experience with good glass paraphernalia, and lots of joint rolling in RAW and pure hemp papers. Stuff in my stash that I thought was flavorless now has flavor. I do think these strains were less flavorful overall, and the ig manifested what was there-like the prince awakening Sleeping Beauty.
The thing that brought me here was portability. I wanted something I could take into the community, to the occasional music show, and to be able to use it discreetly when my daughter is home. She knows I am a legal medical user, but does not want me to blow huge bong hits in her face because she is not into it. Fine with me. Basically the NO2 is only good inside the walls of your home. You need 4th amendment protection to even fire up the NO2. I smoked off of somebody's small $170 portable unit-name is escaping me-and I wanted one too. I started researching small vapes, was trying to go cheap to get my feet wet. There's some decent small stuff out there for $60 with very short warranties. But then I was thinking "I'm gonna be smokin this shit until the day I day, and will probably be buried with the means to get baked several more times. This $60 is gonna be gone and I'm going to buy something better. Better to bite the bullet now." So then I just searched as if money was no object and ended up with the iq, better reviews than Pax 3, and better warranty and more portability than Stors and Bickel products. I wanted something small, palmable, good vapor, doesn't look like paraphernalia. I think this is it. My wife loves it. I'm getting her her own copper one, even if I have to donate plasma several times.
I just feel like, the smaller it is, the easier it is to integrate into my lifestyle. The automation is like that too, because you can take it in and out of your pocket without having to look at it much or work too many controls.
Okay, here is where I can contribute something new to the iq literature: I put fresh chocolate mint from my wife's plant in the vapor chamber! It worked. I was using a strain with a lot of Blueberry genetics in it, tastes and smells like fake blueberry. Put a little mint in there with it. It tasted like blueberry/nice reefer with mint. This may be like my bong with ice notches where I put ice in it exactly 2 times per year, but hey, it was cool.
I think I could just be happy with the smart paths and the boost function. All four paths are useful and will get you high. Boost is useful. I have this one session, where I'm in the bed, looking at my tablet in the dark before sleep and it's always the same session. I thought I would try to program a smart path for that, starting lower and ending higher, maybe 365 to 410 or something, but I'm really satisfied with what I'm getting from these temp ranges.
My pearl seemed to be a little more "in motion/movable" than what people describe, but I'm just leaving it because I'm okay with the larger bowl size. I have adjusted the pearl up and down a little to clean under it. My wife and I can get really baked with one bowl. I think we could get a third person in there too if we stayed a little more focused.
If this thing dies and I get questionable customer service, I'm going to be singing a somewhat different tune, obviously. Still, 10 years is a long time.
This thing has lived up to the hype IMO. Most internet hype releases have backlashes that are partly in proportion to the hype and partly related to the quality of the product. In terms of its function, I cannot imagine what complaint I might have. I don't think I will end up wishing I had gone with another product, because I think this is the king of portability with quality.
I would give this thing a 95 out of 100. If this was school, I would give it an A, not an A-, not an A+, but a solid A. I see da vinci as having been successful in realizing their vision and having made something really useful to people who vape bud. This is very useful to me as a heavy cannabis using professional.
Sorry if this is a little long. I hope somebody got something out of it that they can use.