Well, 420 Magazine Members & fans, I've got a new favorite portable vape for cannabis oils, and that's the Ispire Ducore Palm.
As a Product Reviewer, I've had the opportunity to review several vapes designed for cannabis concentrates and extracts, and this one really stands out for delivering on power, flavor, and performance in a small palm-sized package.
The Ispire Ducore Palm is available in 380 mAh, 400 mAh, 650 mAh, and a whopping 900 mAh versions. I was sent the 400 mAh model to test which came elegantly packed in a kit that includes the battery, micro USB charging cable, two 0.5 ml refillable cartridges, two 1.0 ml cartridges, and a pair of adapters that enable the cartridges to magnetically "snap" into the battery.
The battery itself has an attractive aluminum alloy body that is just under 2 1/4" tall x 1 1/2" wide and a little over 3/4" thick (actual size is 55.9 mm x 35.4 mm x 20.4 mm) so it easily fits, and is easily concealable, in the palm of the hand which, no doubt, played into the naming of the product.
Despite the small size, it has some features that, frankly, I just haven't personally seen in other palm sized vapes including the ability to adjust the power/heating levels between 2.9, 3.3, and 3.6 volts and a built-in "Pre-Heat" function.
There are two buttons/controls on the Ducore Palm - one on the side and one on the bottom of the unit. The side button will turn the unit on/off with five quick "clicks" and, once switched on, holding down this side button will heat the oil to deliver the vapor. The button on the bottom of the Ducore Palm is also multi-function. It allows the user to switch between power levels and, by pressing & holding the button for three seconds, it puts the Ducore into "Pre-Heat" mode which takes five seconds to heat the coils to the desired temperature.
As impressed as I am with the Ducore Palm battery, it's the Ducore cartridges that appear to be largely responsible for the great performance of this vape. I didn't know anything about Ispire or their products until I did some research after fully testing the vape but I did ask them only one question before testing and that was, "Can your product handle thicker oils?"
The response I received back was that the Ducore should be fine with thicker oils and I may just need to give some extra time for it to prime. It was also recommended I leave some extra room in the cartridge so it didn't overfill.
The truth is, Ispire has some of the best cartridges on the market for the thicker oils & extracts using their patented dual ceramic coil technology with a proprietary airflow system and an anti-leak, anti-clog feature that delivers both a great hit and fantastic flavor.
So, let's get on to the actual test results...
I started by mixing some concentrated cannabis oil (CCO), also known as "Rick Simpson Oil (RSO)", with a small amount of wax liquidizer and some Pineapple Express terpenes I happen to keep on-hand for just such occasions. I want it only diluted enough to be able to "suck it up" with a blunt tip syringe, which is why the importance of being able to handle the thicker oils.
I filled one of the 0.5 ml cartridges and I want to emphasize that these are re-usable/refillable cartridges that can be filled by the user.
I've previously tested some great vapes that I really love, but cartridges are not only NOT refillable, but empty cartridges aren't even available to the public. While this makes it a great vape for sale in dispensaries that sell them along with pre-filled cartridges, it doesn't meet the needs of those of us that like to make our own vape juices.
This is not an issue with the Ducore Palm since cartridges are not only refillable and replaceable, but the unit actually can take third party cartridges (something they don't advertise or recommend, but I did test).
I plugged the Ducore Palm into the included micro USB charger to give it a good charge before I started the testing and found it was fully charged right out of the box, which was something I appreciated.
My only negative comment about the vape isn't even about the vape itself, but that despite how much was included in the kit and how elegantly packaged it was, it only included a parts list/description and not even a basic set of instructions, so it took me a few minutes to even figure out how to turn the unit on (as I mentioned, five clicks on that side button!) and I was totally unaware of the "Pre-Heat" function until I was doing my research after testing. I did go back and test the Pre-Heat function later and it works great, although, I didn't find it necessary or miss having it, in any way, during the main testing period. I also recommended to Ispire that they include some set of user instructions with their kits.
In any event, getting everything together and working was fairly quick and easy, even without instructions, so I flipped the unit on, took a small drag off the vape, and exhaled a cloud of smoke that completely filled the room. At first I thought, "Wow!" and then I thought, "Funny, it didn't seem like it was a power assisted hit", so I tried another small drag. There was no power assistance on the draw but I again exhaled a room full of smoke. Then, I went back to thinking, "Wow! which was about all I could think after those two hits."
This small unit packs a very big punch!
In fact, Ispire contacted me during the testing period to see how things were going and if I had any questions and, other than my recommendation to include instructions, my only comment to them was, "The cloud chasers won't be disappointed!" and, no doubt, this is due to their patented dual coil design on their cartridges. It just delivers a fantastic hit with very little effort. I also took notice of how clean-tasting and flavorful the vaping experience was using the Ducore Palm, with no harshness despite the large plumes of clouds.
After using the Ducore Palm for a few days, I decided I wanted to play a little bit. So, I took a considerably thinner cartridge from another palm-sized vape I have, screwed on one of the Ispire adapters, snapped it into the Ducore battery, and, while there was a visible gap around the cartridge that would make me a little nervous about carrying it in a pants pocket, it gave me a noticeably better hit than the vape the cartridge came off of. In fairness, I did have the Ducore Palm power level on the highest, 3.6 v, setting which is likely more powerful than the other vape that isn't adjustable and doesn't even publish the voltage on their device.
When you combine the small size, with the advanced features such as the adjustable power and Pre-Heat mode, the ability to handle thicker oils, and the user refillable leak-proof cartridges, the Ispire Ducore Palm really "checks all the boxes" for me when it comes to what I personally want in a vape for cannabis extracts and I highly recommend trying one - you won't be disappointed.
Review By: Mr. Krip, Grow Journalist
For more information on the Ispire Ducore Palm, please visit: Ispire
As a Product Reviewer, I've had the opportunity to review several vapes designed for cannabis concentrates and extracts, and this one really stands out for delivering on power, flavor, and performance in a small palm-sized package.
The Ispire Ducore Palm is available in 380 mAh, 400 mAh, 650 mAh, and a whopping 900 mAh versions. I was sent the 400 mAh model to test which came elegantly packed in a kit that includes the battery, micro USB charging cable, two 0.5 ml refillable cartridges, two 1.0 ml cartridges, and a pair of adapters that enable the cartridges to magnetically "snap" into the battery.
The battery itself has an attractive aluminum alloy body that is just under 2 1/4" tall x 1 1/2" wide and a little over 3/4" thick (actual size is 55.9 mm x 35.4 mm x 20.4 mm) so it easily fits, and is easily concealable, in the palm of the hand which, no doubt, played into the naming of the product.
Despite the small size, it has some features that, frankly, I just haven't personally seen in other palm sized vapes including the ability to adjust the power/heating levels between 2.9, 3.3, and 3.6 volts and a built-in "Pre-Heat" function.
There are two buttons/controls on the Ducore Palm - one on the side and one on the bottom of the unit. The side button will turn the unit on/off with five quick "clicks" and, once switched on, holding down this side button will heat the oil to deliver the vapor. The button on the bottom of the Ducore Palm is also multi-function. It allows the user to switch between power levels and, by pressing & holding the button for three seconds, it puts the Ducore into "Pre-Heat" mode which takes five seconds to heat the coils to the desired temperature.
As impressed as I am with the Ducore Palm battery, it's the Ducore cartridges that appear to be largely responsible for the great performance of this vape. I didn't know anything about Ispire or their products until I did some research after fully testing the vape but I did ask them only one question before testing and that was, "Can your product handle thicker oils?"
The response I received back was that the Ducore should be fine with thicker oils and I may just need to give some extra time for it to prime. It was also recommended I leave some extra room in the cartridge so it didn't overfill.
The truth is, Ispire has some of the best cartridges on the market for the thicker oils & extracts using their patented dual ceramic coil technology with a proprietary airflow system and an anti-leak, anti-clog feature that delivers both a great hit and fantastic flavor.
So, let's get on to the actual test results...
I started by mixing some concentrated cannabis oil (CCO), also known as "Rick Simpson Oil (RSO)", with a small amount of wax liquidizer and some Pineapple Express terpenes I happen to keep on-hand for just such occasions. I want it only diluted enough to be able to "suck it up" with a blunt tip syringe, which is why the importance of being able to handle the thicker oils.
I filled one of the 0.5 ml cartridges and I want to emphasize that these are re-usable/refillable cartridges that can be filled by the user.
I've previously tested some great vapes that I really love, but cartridges are not only NOT refillable, but empty cartridges aren't even available to the public. While this makes it a great vape for sale in dispensaries that sell them along with pre-filled cartridges, it doesn't meet the needs of those of us that like to make our own vape juices.
This is not an issue with the Ducore Palm since cartridges are not only refillable and replaceable, but the unit actually can take third party cartridges (something they don't advertise or recommend, but I did test).
I plugged the Ducore Palm into the included micro USB charger to give it a good charge before I started the testing and found it was fully charged right out of the box, which was something I appreciated.
My only negative comment about the vape isn't even about the vape itself, but that despite how much was included in the kit and how elegantly packaged it was, it only included a parts list/description and not even a basic set of instructions, so it took me a few minutes to even figure out how to turn the unit on (as I mentioned, five clicks on that side button!) and I was totally unaware of the "Pre-Heat" function until I was doing my research after testing. I did go back and test the Pre-Heat function later and it works great, although, I didn't find it necessary or miss having it, in any way, during the main testing period. I also recommended to Ispire that they include some set of user instructions with their kits.
In any event, getting everything together and working was fairly quick and easy, even without instructions, so I flipped the unit on, took a small drag off the vape, and exhaled a cloud of smoke that completely filled the room. At first I thought, "Wow!" and then I thought, "Funny, it didn't seem like it was a power assisted hit", so I tried another small drag. There was no power assistance on the draw but I again exhaled a room full of smoke. Then, I went back to thinking, "Wow! which was about all I could think after those two hits."
This small unit packs a very big punch!
In fact, Ispire contacted me during the testing period to see how things were going and if I had any questions and, other than my recommendation to include instructions, my only comment to them was, "The cloud chasers won't be disappointed!" and, no doubt, this is due to their patented dual coil design on their cartridges. It just delivers a fantastic hit with very little effort. I also took notice of how clean-tasting and flavorful the vaping experience was using the Ducore Palm, with no harshness despite the large plumes of clouds.
After using the Ducore Palm for a few days, I decided I wanted to play a little bit. So, I took a considerably thinner cartridge from another palm-sized vape I have, screwed on one of the Ispire adapters, snapped it into the Ducore battery, and, while there was a visible gap around the cartridge that would make me a little nervous about carrying it in a pants pocket, it gave me a noticeably better hit than the vape the cartridge came off of. In fairness, I did have the Ducore Palm power level on the highest, 3.6 v, setting which is likely more powerful than the other vape that isn't adjustable and doesn't even publish the voltage on their device.
When you combine the small size, with the advanced features such as the adjustable power and Pre-Heat mode, the ability to handle thicker oils, and the user refillable leak-proof cartridges, the Ispire Ducore Palm really "checks all the boxes" for me when it comes to what I personally want in a vape for cannabis extracts and I highly recommend trying one - you won't be disappointed.
Review By: Mr. Krip, Grow Journalist
For more information on the Ispire Ducore Palm, please visit: Ispire