2014 has seen an explosion in the popularity of vaporizers, and celebrities including Lawrence Fishburne, Sarah Silverman, and Childish Gambino have all been seen sporting different types of vapes. With the holiday season rapidly approaching, I took some time to reflect on which vaporizers I’ve been using the most often this year. A few are old favorites, whereas others have been more recently released and offer some cool features! If you’re looking to get the perfect gift for the cannabis enthusiast in your life, surprising them with a cool new vaporizer is a great idea! I’ve divided things up into three different categories; portable, desktop, and vape pen, and I chose vapes from different price ranges to suit everyone’s budget. I’ll also be updating this page in the coming months once I receive a few new vaporizers which should be on their way soon!

Portable

DaVinci Ascent

Since I first reviewed it last year, the DaVinci Ascent has been my favorite portable vaporizer. The Ascent sports the most features of any portable vaporizer, boasting an all glass vapor path, long lasting battery, digital temperature gauge, and auto shutoff features. If your loved one already has an Ascent, there’s plenty of attachments available including a water tool and oil chamber. Although I’ve had a few issues in the past with the Ascent, DaVinci has always quickly honoured their warranty, and my most recent model has been getting daily use for several months now without any issues. For the price the Ascent has more features than other similarly priced vapes such as the Pax and Firefly while still remaining discreet, and for this it gets my nod. A close second however is the Inhalater INH-05.

Firewood 2.1

I’ve previously reviewed the Firewood 2 and concluded that it works well as an entry level portable vaporizer with good battery life. Since then, the Firewood 2.1 has been released which offers several improvements over the second generation, including faster heat up and usage times, and a battery that will last for 1500 charge/discharge cycles. The 2.1’s heating element is controlled by holding down a button and it takes some practice to learn how to hit it optimally. Given the price and high quality wooden exterior, the Firewood 2.1 is both sleek and stylish and sports a glass heating chamber.

Desktop

VapeXhale Cloud Evo

Since writing my review on the VapeXhale Cloud Evo, I’ve been using it as my daily at home vaporizer. When used in combination with a Hydratube, the Cloud Evo produces some of the smoothest vapor I’ve had and it is virtually maintenance free (you just need to clean the screens and mouthpiece on occasion!). Furthermore, the Cloud’s all-glass vapor path ensures that you get the cleanest possible vapor (I’ve had some bad experiences with bad smells coming from cheap vapes in the past, most on that in a further article though!). You can also purchase the optional nail kit, allowing you to vape concentrates with ease. The price for the Cloud Evo can be a little steep, but I’ve been getting daily use out of my unit for several months now and have yet to run into any issues. Its also backed by a good warranty and you can purchase a unit (as well as Hydratube) on the VapeXhale site.

Arizer Extreme Q

My first desktop vaporizer, the Extreme Q is a dual function bag and whip vaporizer with a digital temperature gauge, all glass vapor path, and a sturdy build. Although it requires more frequent cleaning than the Cloud Evo, its packed with features given the price and is a great vape to buy if you’re on a budget but are still looking for the best possible unit.

Vape Pens

V2 Pro Series 3

As the majority of vape pens are rebranded e-cigs with special atomizer attachments, they don’t really stand out… Except for one; the V2 Pro Series 3. Designed as V2’s first entry into the cannabis vaporizer market, the Series 3 has three different magnetic ‘smart’ cartridges which can vape cannabis e-liquids (such as my DIY liquid!), hash, and loose leaf. Although I was initially skeptical about the loose leaf claims, I was surprised to find that when I reviewed the unit, it did in fact vape loose leaf without burning it like most vape pens do. However, the vapor isn’t as strong as a dedicated unit and the bowl is fairly small, so I recommend it for light vapers as well as those who mainly vape concentrates while on the go. The Series 3 can be purchased here on the V2 website and is a very reasonably priced vape pen given all its features.

There’s quite a few vapes in the reviews section now (and many of them have their own strengths!) so it was hard to narrow everything down, but these are the vapes that I’ve used the most often. I also recommend taking a look at my accessory reviews section here to see if there’s anything else that may work as a gift idea for someone who already owns a vaporizer!