Now This Is Cool! The Innokin iTaste DRV!
The Innokin iTaste DRV (I’ve decided the DRV stands for DRIVE) is a variable voltage automobile pass-through device that looks more like a fancy gearshift knob than it does an eCigarette. It includes a manual button and an auto switch for vape settings on the fly. At first glance it looks kind of weird, but after you use it you’ll wonder why it’s taken this long before some company got it a “car vape” so right.
The iTaste DRV is designed for vaping in a car, truck, boat, plane, or anywhere where there is a built in cigarette lighter or accessory socket (12/24DCV). Period.
The iTaste DRV offers comfort and convenience with advanced features you’ll find in the most other advanced iTaste products by Innokin. The Innokin iTaste DRV Vehicle Vaping System (the official product description) draws its power from any standard automobile cigarette lighter or accessory socket. As long as your car, et al, is working you’ll always have the power to vape. Of course, you’ll need eLiquid and a functioning atomizer, but you get the point.
When I first heard about the iTaste DRV I thought to myself, “Come on, really? No!” But then I started reading the specs and I got interested in it. “Could it really work as a viable product these days? Just how many cars have cigarette lighters in them these days? Will it work with the “accessory socket” in my car, Keira’s car, or your car? So I decided to review it. And I am so glad I did. My iTaste DRV arrived about a week ago. Perfect timing too because I’ve been using my car a lot more these days, driving down to Palm Beach, Ft. Lauderdale and Miami with Keira to do some stock photography work before heading back to Boston for the summer. Before I started using the iTaste DRV I always carried a couple of extra batteries with me when I got in my car, now that’s become 
almost obsolete. I still carry a battery with me because ultimately, we’re going to get out of the car, but at least I’m not depleting batteries on the way to my destination and back again.
Real World Usage
The iTaste DRV comes with a coiled cord that stretches from the unit that plugs into the lighter/data port with an iClear 16D on the other end. The cord easily stretches up for easy vaping as long as the data port/cigarette lighter is in the ‘usual’ areas. Some cars and trucks don’t have either type of port or the port is in the glove box or under the dashboard. Mine is on the console near the gearshift and behind the console for back seat occupants, so it fits well.
The cable/cord has a 510/eGo thread and you not restricted to using just the iClear 16D. In fact, I’ve used an AeroTank, iClear X.I., an X.Jet Spider and an Aspire Vivi Nova-S, and others and they all worked just fine.
With a viable voltage range of 4.2v to 6.4v it’s supposed to be capable of using an atomizer as low as 1-ohm. Remembering that the lower the ohms of the atomizer inside the clearomizer the more voltage are sent through to heat the eJuice. The minimum setting of 4.2v is still a lot of power to through to a dual-coil 1.8ohm atomizer, I can’t imagine using a 1ohm atomizer at 4.2v. Still, I’ve used 1.8ohm, 2.0ohm, and 2.2ohm atomizers so far and the performance was outstanding for all of them, but I’ve yet had to go up to the max of 6.4v. With a simple twist of the dial you can adjust the voltage to find your sweet spot in just a few seconds, give or take. The voltage dial is easy to use and the voltage numbers are not hard to see from the driver’s side to the console installation of the DRV.
After using the included iClear 16D (2-ohm) for the first couple of days I started changing up the clearomizers and haven’t found one yet that didn’t work. But, if I had to pick a favorite for the DRV I think the X.Jet Spider or Kanger AeroTank Mini would be my preferred choice. (review coming soon).
A Drive to Palm Beach
I can recite a bunch of specs, as I just did, but in the end it’s all about the vape experience. This past Wednesday Keira and I drove down to Palm Beach to visit the Apple Store in the Mall there. During the drive down and back I thought that the only issue that some people might be bothered by was what to do with the cable/clearomizer when they weren’t using it.
We tried various spots as a resting place for the cable the clearomizer on the drive down and, including letting it dangle from the rearview mirror. My car doesn’t have an ashtray, so we decided that just letting it rest on the console was the best, or at least easiest, thing to do.
Another issue that might come up is leaving the clearomizer in the car when you get out at your destination. If the car gets hot your clearomizer can and will most probably leak, pushing the liquid out as it gets warmer and warmer. Not wanting to take that chance I detached mine and threw it in my purse. I thought about stashing the entire unit in my glove box, which might be a good idea for most people that live in cooler climates, but it wouldn’t work during the summer or in climates like Florida, Texas and southern California.
For now I’m keeping the device, with clearomizer attached, where I keep my keys. That way I won’t accidentally leave it at home, unless I want to.
Conclusion
Like other iTaste products it is exceptionally well built. In photos it looks sort of funny, more like a showerhead than an eCigarette, in real life it looks dead serious, like a high tech hookah for a car. If your cigarette lighter or accessory port is within easy reach and not at some weird angle that won’t allow a 3-inch diameter ball stick out of the port the iTaste DRV is simple to use, and very straightforward. Plug and Play, ya know?
The $79.95 price tag (MyVaporStore) is worth it if you spend a good amount of time behind the wheel and you’re changing out batteries a lot, particularly when you’re zooming down the highway. If all you do is drive a short distance to and from work, drive to the supermarket, or run short errands this might be a device you don’t particularly need. That said, it would make a great gift for Vapers because it is both useful and frivolous, the best characteristics for any gift, yeah?
Julia Hartley-Barnes
Update: We sincerely apologize for all the occurrences of DVR when it should have read DRV. I’m not making an excuse, it was my responsibility and I failed. Since when did WORD auto-correct for DVR? I also apologize to Julia, who did in fact turn in an article that read DRV, not DVR. The article has been corrected – Dave Foster – 4/29/14
