So continues the parade of 20+ watt box-style APVs here on Steve K’s Vaping World. Up for review this time, is the IPV Mini by Pioneer4You. This device is, thankfully, not completely boxy and pairs a nice aesthetic with a decent 30 watt power plant. Read on for the rest of the review!
Disclosure: This product was provided by Vaporizer Chief for review purposes.
You can buy the IPV Mini from Vaporizer Chief
Pioneer4You IPV Mini Specs
- 5-30 watts
- 3-8 volts
- 0.5 ohm minimum resistance
- 13A maximum power
- OLED display
- 5 Position memory function
- Available mobile phone charging
IPV Mini Review
The IPV Mini is yet another 30 watt advanced personal vaporizer. It’s based on the box-style mod, but it’s in no way boxy. Rather it features gentle curves and a sloping front.
I’m very much reminded of the art deco style when I look at the device’s sloped profile. My review model is a satin silver finish that has a very smooth feel to it.
The body shell is actually made from two parts. You can tell because there are screws in one side of the body. More telltale is a seam that runs on the narrow side opposite the control side.
If the were able to get the tolerances nailed down a little better, it would have made the IPV Mini actually feel seamless.
Even though there’s a bit more of a gap than I’d like at that seam, the device still feels solid. There’s no button rattle when you shake it. Yet, this is also a very light device.
You’d think something named the Mini would be, well, mini. This IPV is not as wide as a box mod, but it’s still a fairly large device. I guess that means regular IPVs are pretty large.
The size is forgivable, however, because this device houses an 18650 battery. Most of the really small devices like the iStick and the Defender use built-in batteries to help bring the size down.
Unlike some of the other box mods that use a screw on panel to remove the battery, you’ll find a traditional, round battery cap at the bottom of the IPV. Don’t worry if you don’t have an external charger. You’ll find a micro USB port located next to the battery cap.
It’s the best of both worlds when it comes to battery charging choices.
On the flip side of the Mini, you’ll find a flat 510 connector. The area around the connector is rounded as is the entire battery side of the device. Most of the larger tanks like the Atlantis and Protank fit beautifully with the shape of the device. Sorry, Subtank fans, but that one’s still a little big and hangs over the edges.
Immediately next to the tank area begins the slope that gives the IPV its unique look. Following the slope down, you’ll get to the control side.
The entire control side of the device has a silver mirror finish beneath which the OLED display fits. The display is wide and features what you’ve come to expect in modern devices. There’s the current setting in large print along with the working voltage, resistance and a battery graph.
Above (or to the left depending how you’re looking at the display) is the power button. The button is slightly raised and is tall (or wide). The location is perfect for firing the device with your thumb. The button has a wonderful tactile click to it when depressed.
Finishing out the control panel are the adjustment buttons. They have an odd shape to them which is sort of difficult to describe. Imagine a long rectangle bisected at the midpoint with a wide line at an angle, and that’s sort of what you get. It’s a good thing I can put pictures in these reviews.
Using the IPV Mini
The first thing you’ll notice about using the IPV Mini is the preset feature. There’s 5 preset wattages out of the box ranging from 7w to 30 watt.
When you press the power up button it will display the current preset. Press the power up again to move to the next one. If you find you don’t like the preset wattages, you can customize one, or all, of them.
Select one of the presets, then press the power down button. That will allow you to then use either button to adjust the wattage to your liking. Pressing the fire button will save that setting to whatever preset you used.
I have to admit its a confusing system. I ended up having all kinds of strange wattage settings because I regularly forgot about the feature and then just adjusted whatever preset was selected to what I was using at the time.
As I mentioned in the earlier part of this review, the power button is well placed. I ran into no issues vaping with the IPV Mini as far as having to look at the device to figure out where the buttons went.
One gripe I do have involves looking at the device. The display. When you’re pressing the fire button, the display lights up at full brightness. However, the second you let go of the button, it dims considerably.
This makes looking at the current settings on the display difficult in brightly lit rooms. I wish like some other devices there would be a delay where the screen stayed lit for some seconds after pressing the fire button.
Performance is an area where I have no gripes. The Mini happily fired on my .5 ohm tanks without complaining like some of my other box mods have (I’m looking at you iTaste 20 watt). Power seemed plentiful, and 30 watts is a good level to handle almost every tank. If you start running RBAs on a 30 watt device, it’s a little less cut and dry, it depends on how much power you intend to run through it.
I still maintain that 30 watts will deliver more than enough power for most users. One day we’ll all look back on that statement and have a good laugh, but for now it’s true.
Decent power and an attractive package make the iTaste mini a compelling device. While I had a couple of complaints in this review, they’re fairly minor. Taking the IPV mini as a whole package, this is device well worth considering.
Click here to purchase one for yourself from Vaporizer Chief
