Davinci IQ3 Review

The Davinci IQ3 is a portable conduction herb vaporizer manufactured by Davinci, one of a handful of pioneering companies in the dry herb vaporizer space. The IQ3 utilizes the same foundational design as the original Davinci IQ with some unique updates over both the IQ and IQ2 to include a more powerful battery, larger glass lined ceramic chamber, enhanced airflow, Cool Core™ Flavor Chamber and on-device dosage measurement. Overall the Davinci IQ3 provides robust vapor, cooler delivery and more personalized control over your sessions from its predecessors while still utilizing the IQ series design which has made it such a popular vaporizer.

Davinci released the Davinci IQ in October 2016. The IQ was one of the first smart vapes with bluetooth control (amongst a slew of other high end features for the time) which elevated Davinci as a premium brand and put the Davinci IQ on the list of “top 5 dry herb vaporizers on the market”. 

Three years later Davinci released the IQ2 which boasted some updates such as the airflow dial and dosage control. While the Davinci IQ2 was received well at first, many could not justify the $295 price point with the original going for nearly $100 less. Many felt the IQ2 much like the original with an adjustable airflow dial.  

With slowing sales of the Davinci IQ2 and the discontinuation of the original IQ,  Davinci released a more budget friendly IQ vaporizer in the Summer of 2021 dubbed the Davinci IQC. 

Whether from burnout or to pursue other ventures, Davinci CEO Courtney Smith sold to Greenlane in late 2021 in a deal worth around $20 million. With the founder out of the picture things looked bleak for the development of Davinci’ s next generation products. This same fate befell once high flyers such as PAX and Firefly. With the main founders cashing out and leaving innovation ceased. 

Over the next few years, Greenlane faced significant financial challenges as sales steadily declined, leading to a substantial loss in company value. The company’s underperformance led to the eventual sale of key assets, such as DaVinci Vaporizers, which was purchased back by none other than Davinci CEO Courtney Smith himself for an undisclosed amount; likely for a lot less than he sold it for. 

Ironic as it is, Davinci Vaporizers was named after Renaissance inventor Leonardo da Vinci. The Renaissance translating to rebirth. Davinci giving us a new vaporizer after being written off as a company which would go the way of Firefly – is a quasi manifestation of Davinci.

To get the best price on the IQ3 from an authorized retailer use the link below you will get 10% off, a 60 day trial period and lifetime trade-ins for store credit to ensure the Davinci IQ3 is the right vaporizer for you.

We have been spoiled with the falling prices of vaporizers the past few years. It has been one of the markets where prices have fallen considerably while everything else has nearly doubled in price. This inflation has hurt vaporizer manufacturers the most but we are finally starting to see prices come back in line to where they were years ago, especially on top tier brands,  for the simple fact that a new premium vaporizer costs alot to manufacture. 

The new Davinci IQ3 is priced at $299 which if you account for inflation would be the same as releasing it at $215 5 years ago.

While I would say $300 seems to be a bit steep, the Davinci IQ3 is going to be up there with the likes of the Mighty+ and Solo 3. It is a portable herb vaporizer that utilizes high quality inputs and is noticeably improved over the IQ2 which was released at the same price ($295) in 2019. 

The packaging like the vaporizer is refined and stylish copying the IQ2 packaging to the T. The IQ3 packaging has a pull out drawer on the bottom which carries the majority of your accessories. It is almost like a little mini elegant closet. This is just the absolute worst however for practicality. It is not easy to take out the IQ3 or accessories or put them away. It is a great display case but you want to use your vaporizer not have it on display. Obviously keep the packaging but likely will want to invest in an IQ3 case when they become available. 

• Zirconia 10mm Water Tool Adapter
• USB-C Cable
• Pick Tool
• Cleaning Brush
• Stainless Steel Dosage Pod
• Extract Kit
• Alcohol Cleaning Wipes
• User Manual

The DaVinci IQ3 vaporizer has a durable aircraft-grade brushed aluminum shell, with zirconia glass vapor paths and a glass lined ceramic chamber. The zirconia internals are what made the original IQ such a stand out vaporizer given the cooling properties it enacts on the vapor. After reviewing vaporizers for 10 years now, I feel this is some of the best material you can use in a heavy hitting conduction vaporizer. The addition of the glass lining of the ceramic chamber in the IQ3 is  another bonus here for flavor and purity. 

The magnetic clasp where the mouthpiece sits is opened to reveal the battery compartment, pick tool and allows access to the IQ3 Zirconia Flavor Chamber. Opening the top of the unit is how you would change out the mouthpiece to the 10mm Water Tool Adapter or swap out your battery. 

The three control buttons (home button and temperature up and down)  are on the right side and USB-C charging port on the back of the unit. On the bottom of the Davinci IQ3 you will find the airflow dial and the magnetic chamber door which gives you access to the herb chamber and chamber pearl which can be used to adjust chamber capacity. 

The Davinci IQ3 Flat Mouthpiece has 8 air holes, where the other IQ series vaporizers only have 6.

The zirconia spiraled piece (cool core) further adds to the cooling of the vapor by creating more distance to travel where the vapor is in contact with the zirconia material. However I did feel when removing the zirconia spiral that the vapor output increased at minimal detriment to flavor or temperature. In using the IQ3 I preferred the sessions without the Cool Core™ swivel in place.

Getting started with the IQ3 is easy in its most basic form. From unboxing you simply grind your herb, load the chamber and press the power button 5 times to turn on. The Davinci IQ3 will automatically begin to heat up to smart path 3 by default. 

However, leveraging the full spectrum of capabilities & customizing to your personal preferences with the app, reducing chamber size, attaching to a water pipe, etc. can be a tad cumbersome to navigate,  especially if you have not had a Davinci IQ series vaporizer before. 

One of the downsides of the ability to customize your Davinci IQ3’s sessions is the set up required. While you will get quality vapor with ease, even switching between the smart paths to precision mode (specific temperature) requires a quick hit of the control button. There are a handful of these features which require a sequence of button pushes which we will cover in our App & Customizations segment of the Davinci IQ3 review.

Overall using the app is the quickest and easiest way to adjust between the different modes. Since it is a web app and requires a path browser and strong Wi-Fi connection that is another process in itself.

The IQ3 is a session vaporizer. A large session vaporizer.  It is best to pack full and take at least 15+ draws in one sitting. You are not firing this thing up for a quick hit and while it heats up in 30 seconds the consistent vapor really does not start to get going until the vaporizer has had another 30 seconds or so to impart that heat into the herb. 

One question we got about the previous IQ models was can you at least pack it full, turn it on, take a few puffs and turn it off to return the following day for another session. To that we say yes. You will not tax too much of your herb if you are not actively drawing on it. The second and third sessions will just be less tasty than your initial session. 

The large .7 gram herb chamber size is something to consider when deciding whether or not to buy the IQ3 Vaporizer. Personally this would be too large for me and I do not like screwing around with aftermarket products such as the Zirconia Ceramic Spacers which will let you pack ½ and even ¼ chambers with good results. The adjustable chamber pearl will cut down the chamber size, however the best sessions with the IQ3 are on a full pack. Trying to use .2 grams of herb you do not get optimal results with the IQ3. Another thing we tried during the IQ3 review was putting a small amount of herb into the stainless steel dosing pod. This yielded next to no vapor. The best way to use it was as a chamber reducer, placing the herb in the glass lined chamber and then adding the Stainless Steel Dosage pod like a substitute spacer to cut down on chamber size. 

The Davinci IQ3 offers ideal sessions for those who are switching over from combustion and want a vaporizer that is alot like smoking. The large chamber and ability to customize make it all the more appealing to those seeking just that. It does feel like a bit of an herb hog though as I have to pack alot versus something like my Solo 3 or Venty which I can put in a small amount for a few quality hits.

The Davinci IQ3 Smart Paths are pre-set temperature profiles that increase in temperature over the course of a session. These start at a lower temperature to preserve flavor and increase to higher temperatures to enhance vapor production. This feature allows users to experience different aspects of their materials as they vaporize, providing the full spectrum of flavor and clouds without needing manual adjustments. Personally I am hard pressed to see a noticeable difference in the smart paths and generally opt to just hang out around 390°F. 

During a session you can press and hold the home button to engage Boost mode. This will rush your IQ3 up to 430°F. 

On a full chamber you can expect over 25 draws on a full pack. The issue being that with such a large chamber trying to pack smaller amounts will yield inferior results. So you either need to love getting really elevated or buy some chamber reducers. 

The IQ3 has a propensity to get hot in the hand too. This has been a drawback since the inception of the IQ and the increased power of the IQ3 make the onset of the IQ3 getting hot in the occur much faster. Hopefully Davinci releases a glove like they have for the IQ2 but assume there will be some other 3rd party IQ3 accessories in the future which will address this issue.

The Davinci Web App is absolute garbage. Half the time you cannot even get your IQ3 to connect to the app and when you do features Davinci advertises are nowhere to be found in the app. This is likely a work in progress but unfortunately good app developers costs alot of money to hire and fixing web app bugs often becomes a low priority.

The vaporizer apps are not what they once were. The kids vaping their homemade mixes made of Vitamin E acetate caused Apple to remove all vaporizer related apps from the App Store back in 2019. This is unfortunate as herb vapes were not complicit in the vaping related illnesses but nonetheless I digress.  The web apps are not on par with the iOS apps and are known for crashing and having lots of bugs. 

As it related to the IQ3, the know your dose technology  has to be input on the device instead. The original concept is nifty and you can see it here. Inputting on the device itself is a huge pain. If you check out page 12 of the IQ3 user manual, it gives you a run down of the on device dosage control set up. It entails alot of sequenced button presses. I am not even high right now and it is very unclear how this all works. Likely will go down the rabbit hole and release a video on this feature for a later date. According to the user manual this feature should also be available in the Davinci App (where it is much more clear) however it is currently no where to be found and this is substantiated by other users who say this feature is not available on the app. 

One thing Davinci has adjusted from the IQ2 to the IQ3 is the ability to turn the Bluetooth on and off directly on the device. If you do not plan to use the app Davinci recommends leaving it off to preserve battery life. When I first started getting going I was hitting my head against the wall wondering why I could not get the IQ3 to sync with Bluetooth. Turns out I just needed to turn the Bluetooth on. But even then the sync is hit or miss. 

In the app you can easily adjust the modes of the vaporizer, see history of your sessions, customize smart paths, then the obvious ones such as see exact battery life, adjust temperature, etc. 

It is nice to adjust your smart paths and see battery life, but I prefer a vaporizer that is Bluetooth free. Something like the Mighty+  which has a digital display with all essential information, power button and temperature up and down buttons. 

The vapor quality of the Davinci IQ3 is top tier with more emphasis on robust and voluminous vapor than on flavor. This vapor is cooler than the IQ2 but am not sure would say 50% cooler as Davinci states. Adjusting the airflow dial will also assist in adjusting the vapor to your preference but once the IQ3 gets humming it is like a freight train pumping out quality clouds and that is more prevalent over taste and flavor.

To get even larger hits putting some time in between draws will provide more robust vapor. Also mentioned above you can remove the Cool Core spiral for larger draws as well.

This flavor and volume balance of the vapor is relative. The Davinci IQ3 overall vapor quality is great so that is not to say you will not get any flavor profiles of your herb once you get going. To customize best for flavor ensure you have really quality herb that is not too dry. Start with lower temperatures and sip slow through the extended mouthpiece. The zirconia works wonders with keeping it cool and tasty.

For some reason I thought Davinci had stopped marketing the IQ2 as a dual use vaporizer. Meaning that it can vape concentrates and herb alike. I  anticipated the IQ3 would not come with the extract set up , but it does.  Spoiler alert – Every vaporizer is a dual use vaporizer but that does not mean you should. Concentrates are less than desirable in the IQ3 which only heats to 430°F but also must be placed on a pad into the dosage pod and then wait for the heat to transfer over.

With concentrates in the IQ3 you get very mixed results and are better off just getting something cheap like the $30 Boundless Terp Pen. If you load a good amount of extracts you will get good vapor but will also waste alot and also get your IQ3 really dirty.  Have said this in a handful of other vaporizer reviews. This option is great to mix in some extracts with your herb or fun to dabble in but it should not be seen as a 50/50 device. If you are not planning on using the IQ3 for herb 85-90% of the time you should look into another vaporizer.

Overall the IQ3 is a big hitter. You should be not be buying this one for on demand flavor profiles like provided by the Tinymight 2.

The Davinci IQ3 has a temperature range from 250°F to 430°F (121°C to 221°C). The temperatures can be customized in the app or manually on the side of the device. 

By default all smart paths are 8 minutes in duration but can be adjusted in both temperature and length.

Precision Mode lets you dial in the exact temperature and is the temperature setting utilized by most. You can dial in your specific temperature in one degree increments and always adjust with ease. This is another reason I don’t mess with the smart paths in the app. If I want to adjust my temperature there are buttons on the side. It is pretty easy to just do it myself.

The Davinci IQ3 is powered by a high-capacity 4000 mAh 21700 lithium-ion battery and utilizes USB – C charging. A full charge with the USB- C cable takes about 3 hours. While the battery takes longer to charge, on the flip side you get more up time too. The DaVinci IQ3 offers up to 90 minutes of continuous use, enhancing each session  50% longer than the IQ2.

The battery is also removeable making it easy to swap out but the downside being the move away from 18650 batteries which are very common with other vaporizers. Many suffering from VAS (Vaporizer Acquisition Syndrome) have spare 18650 batteries for all their vaporizers. Here you are going to want to pick up a spare IQ3 battery or invest in an external charger for faster charge times.

The larger batteries are something we are seeing across the board on newly released vaporizers. Arizer recently made a similar battery size adjustment with the Arizer Air MAX.

The Davinci IQ3 is 33% larger than the IQ2. It still is a good portable vaporizer but not something you will likely want to throw in your pocket. This is pretty much par for the course with quality herb vaporizers. They are small enough to use and operate with one hand, easy to take outside,  but not something you can toss in your pocket with ease. If you want something that is easily pocketable like the PAX Plus, it comes at the expense of vapor quality.

The Davinci IQ3’s larger size makes it alot more ergonomic. It feels more snug in the hand and highlights the durability. The main reason for the size increase is obviously the larger chamber and battery though. Better ergonomics is just a side effect.

The IQ3 is not an easy vaporizer to clean. The addition of the glass lined ceramic chamber helps avoid chamber staining. This was something which would occur on other IQ series with the pure white ceramic chamber if regular maintenance was not performed. That is about the one positive I can find in regards to cleaning the IQ3. The deep narrow chamber make cleaning difficult.

The Cool Core Helix and IQ3 Flavor Chamber will also gunk up over time. These need to be removed and soaked in 91% (or higher) isopropyl alcohol periodically. It is not so much that it is difficult to clean the IQ3 but with all the moving parts that must be taken out it is cumbersome and time consuming. We also strongly advise against using concentrates with your IQ3 as it can significantly gunk up the internals.

To the Cloud Vapor Store is an authorized retailer of Davinci, so when you purchase from us you will get Davinci’s 10 year warranty on the IQ3. This is one of the best in the game and ensures you will be covered for years to come. We are seeing customers who purchased the original IQ over 7 years ago be able to get warranty and upgrades all these years later. This is something which also must be factored into the value of the IQ3.

If you do not care about the warranty you can frequently find better prices from unauthorized vendors. These are durable devices and everyone has different risk tolerances.

In all these newly released vaporizers that are critically acclaimed (Solo 3, Venty, Puffco Peak V2 and now the Davinci IQ3) We are not seeing a huge departure from the foundational designs of their predecessor which accounted for their success in the first place. But instead refinements and upgrades which match the available technology.

The Davinci IQ3’s upgrades and updates will please any new user or connoisseur who has been vaping for the last ten years. If you are looking for a high quality heavy hitting portable herb vaporizer the Davinci IQ3 is the one. This is its rightful spot amongst some common contenders of brands who have also recently seen their vaporizers updated.