Your Guide To Getting Started With E Cigarettes
For a lot of people the e cigarette is looked at as a ‘fad’, nothing more than a gimmick that will disappear as quickly as it arrived.
I have to admit, I looked on them as a kind of gimmick at first, despite that I saw an offer for a well-known e cigarette brand here in the UK and thought I would give it a go. The results for me were fantastic, from day one I stopped smoking, this is the reason I started this blog, to make it easier for smokers to make a decision when switching to e cigs.
This post is going to go back to basics to focus on what you want from an e cigarette. Once you can answer this question it will be a lot easier for you to pick the right brand/product for you!
Ok, so lets take a look at some of the features to look out for.
E Cig Cost – Upfront & Ongoing Costs
I am starting with the price as lets face it we all love a bargain and want to get the best value possible. The problem with approaching an electronic cigarette purchase like this is that cheaper is not necessarily better. When I say cheap I am talking mainly about the cheap e cigs that can be bought in newsagents, petrol stations and so on.
These are usually disposables and while they can sometimes be ‘ok’, the ones I have tried are not a patch on the rechargeable, refillable kits that are now available.
A few friends of mine were actually put off the idea of electronic cigarettes due to trying the cheap ones and not liking them, they assumed all e cigs would be the same. If this sounds like you then I would urge you to try again, you will be pleasantly surprised!
As well as the up front costs, which can range from £20-£150, you will also need to keep an eye on the cartridge refill cost. Again this can range massively depending on the options you choose.
So to recap, quality is something to keep in mind as well as the cost of the refill cartridges.
Build Quality
The actual quality of e cigarette is something to consider, if you are going to be using it out and about, maybe in bars, then you want something that feels good to hold and also looks the part.
Luckily most brands we have covered on this site have a quality feel to them although some slightly better than others.
E Cig Size
This is something that I personally focused on when choosing my first e cigarette, I was looking for something that didn’t draw too much attention and some of the e cigs I came across were the size of cigars!
I have since moved away slightly from the micro batteries due to battery performance but a small enough size is still possible while keeping a certain level of battery life.
E cigarette brands that make small batteries:
Sky Cig (Micro Battery – Similar to a real cigarette)
Green Smoke (2 battery options including a short)
V2 Cigs (3 battery sizes)
Jacvapour
Is A Realistic Look Important For Your E Cig?
Some brands have decided to keep their electronic cigarette design as close to the real thing as possible. This includes the faux rings, cartridge (filter) colour and tip colour that can be red, blue, orange or green.
Others have gone for different battery colours to allow customisation to fit in
more with each individuals taste.
Realistic looking e cig brands:
Green Smoke
E-Lites
Customisable e cigs:
V2 Cigs
Choosing The Right Type Of Battery
There are two types of battery, automatic and manual. What’s the difference? The manual battery has a button that needs to be pressed before taking a drag in order to activate the battery. Simply taking a drag activates the automatic battery.
The reason why some prefer the manual battery that it heats up the e-liquid prior to taking a drag and can produce a better vapour on your first drag without having to take ‘primer drags’ that some automatic batteries require.
There isn’t much in it but I personally like the manual battery a touch more than the automatic. If both were available it would be good to buy both
Brands that sell only automatic batteries:
E-Lites
Green Smoke
Sky cig
Brands that offer both automatic and manual
V2 Cigs
Flavours & Nicotine Content
This is one of the most important areas to consider, after-all if you don’t like the flavour then you won’t like the e cigarette. The good thing about electronic cigarettes is the variety of flavours available. Think of a flavour, you can most likely vape it! I have tried waffle, cherry, cola, vanilla, chocolate, coffee and pina colada just to name a few.
If these kinds of flavours are not your thing then you will need to concentrate on the brands that have good tobacco flavours.
All this really comes down to a personal preference so if you are not sure then you may want to buy a brand that has a lot of flavour options or allows you to use refill cartridges that you fill with any e-liquid.
Nicotine content is also important, the great thing about e cigs is that there is a range of nicotine strengths available including zero nicotine. If you are looking at quitting smoking altogether then this is a great way to wean yourself off nicotine by reducing the strengths gradually.
Brands reviewed with good tobacco flavours:
Green Smoke
V2 Cigs
Jacvapour
For flavoured carts the following brands rated well:
V2 Cigs
Disposable Cartridges or Refill Your Own?
For those new to electronic cigarettes it may be better to stick with the disposable cartridges to start with. These come pre-filled with e-liquid and you simply replace them when they run out. It allows you to get used to the product without adding extra hoops to jump through as well.
Of course this is entirely up to you and for those that want to save a little more money then buying e-liquids and refilling your own cartridges is probably the way to go. If choosing this option then you will buy empty cartridges and buy bottled e-liquid to ‘drip’ into the cartridge yourself.
The other benefits (apart from the monetary savings) are that you open up a massive selection of liquid flavours as you can buy them from anywhere.
Brands that sell both disposable, empty refillable carts and bottles of e-liquid:
Jacvapour
V2 Cigs
Vapour Volume – Does The E Cig Produce A Good Cloud?
Vapour is another important feature, we love an e cig that produces a good amount of vapour, and maybe this is something you are looking for as well?
The thickness of the vapour is the combined result of a good battery and cartridge.
Brands we have found to produce the best vapour:
Green Smoke
V2 Cigs
Jacvapour
Returns & Warranties – Can You Send It Back If You Don’t Like It?
A good return policy offers a little peace of mind and also shows how confident the company is in their product!
This really does vary with each brand, I won’t go into detail about each of their returns as they could change without notice. The best thing is to check with each as things can change so I won’t list. The same is said for the warranties/guarantees on the products.
To Summarise
So, are things clearer now?! Hopefully I haven’t confused things even more! For those that are still struggling, or for anyone with any questions, you can get in touch with me by email or just leave a comment below and I will try and answer the best I can.
For instant recommendations then our particular favourites are Green Smoke, V2 Cigs and Jacvapour. Don’t get me wrong, we haven’t come across any e cigs we don’t like (oh… apart from Clearsmoke) so if you were to buy any of the brands we have reviewed then you won’t go too far wrong. The three we mentioned before are the ones we found ourselves going back to, they also offered a mix of great customer service and great product.
Whatever you do, give e cigs a try! You won’t be disappointed and according to this National Geographic article they could also be a better option environmentally.
I, along with my wife and daughter decided to quit smoking and we tried JACVAPOUR, i spent £70 on 3 e-cigs, two standard packs and one PCC (portable carry case charger)
we have now been just over a month without smoking a cigarette, JacVapour’s customer service is second to none, UK based and i am glad i tried it.
BTW, i recommend mint and menthol flavours (i was never a fan of menthol cigarettes but love the vapours)
hello how much is a nicolite and how much are the cartridges please thanks
Hi Joshua, We haven’t carried out a Nicolites review as of yet but will be doing shortly.
You will need to go to their website to find out prices for the time being.
Thanks!
Jonny
ecigclick.co.uk
I have tried E-Lites and NicoLites and I actually took them apart. They both have fibre which holds the e-liquid, and historically this should not have a shelf life of more than 3 months, we all know the hazards of fibre and biochemicals and when using an e-cig, the health implications have to be high on your list. Both of these brands boasted 300-400 puffs…absolutely not true and it was like sucking air out of a room! Also because the fibre holds 20% of the e-liquid, you are always going to get less than you paid for.
I tried Eigarette (cool breeze e cigs) in a medium nicotine level, pre-charged in a blister pack, it doesn’t have fibre, none of the heating elements touch metal so the vape is cleaner, and also the cartridge is in a compacted all encompassed case so child and pet safe. I vaped it for almost 3 days. The vapour ran out but the battery still worked. It says on the pack equal to 40 cigarettes, but this is definitely an under estimate. I have since bought many, many more and I also have the eGo HydroVape Kit. The disposable costs £7.20 (inclusive of VAT) which is less than I used to pay for a pack of cigarettes, so the savings moneywise speaks for itself!.
I would highly recommend these, in fact any of their products, plus I feel safer as they hold the patent and many awards and certificates.
Linda
PS: I do wish that these companies would stop being so greedy especially when there is such a big mark-up on e-liquids and manufacture, there is no need to do people out of e-liquid and make false claims, I wouldn’t buy another E-Lite or NicoLite – in fact I’m more than happy with what I have and so too are the friends I’ve recommended them to – one friend said “no thanks, I’ve tried E-Lites and that was a waste of cash so I bought a packet of fags”, when she tried mine, she was converted! She ordered herself a re-chargeable (all have soft tips by the way) and a pack of cartridges (5 in a pack) with a free atomizer – she was and is chuffed to punch and hasn’t smoked a tobacco cigarette for nearly 5 weeks now!!
The products speak for themselves, companies like E-Lites and NicoLite give other great companies a bad name and put them off wanting to try e-cigs altogether!
Hi Jonny,
I just want to drop you a quick line to thank you for this site. I am new to e cigs and have enjoyed trying a few different bands, finding out what works for me and what doesn’t. Throughout this your reviews and videos have been extremely informative and accurate.
Like many others before me I think I am now settled on the excellent products from Jac Vapour and/or V2 Cigs. I also very much like the Nicolites brand available from Tescos and on line and would welcome your informed review of these at some point in the future.
Anyway thanks again and keep up the good work.
Jason.
Thanks Jason, glad the reviews have helped.
We will be sure to get a Nicolites review up in the near future!
Cheers
Jonny
I am so glad I found your site.I made up my mind to quit smoking not because I wanted to but to stop complaints from the wife.
I used to smoke roll ups ,but thought I would give e cigarettes a try using discount codes found on your site I sent for The Steamlite Kit,The Skycig And after reading the reviews of yourself and others I am now waiting for the Jacvapour to arrive.It may sound like a big outlay but I would have spent that amount on tobacco this week and my last tobacco cigarette was smoked a week ago and I feel great.
The only problem I have is I now have three different systems that do not connect to each other so people should read the reviews like yours and make one selection……unless you know a way to marry the batteries to the different cartridges
Hi Ron, good to hear it is working out for you!
As far as I am aware the three kits you mentioned are not interchangeable.
SKYCIG are compatible with ROK cartomisers and vice versa.
Jacvapour do have a number of battery sizes and a good selection of cartomisers that are are all built with the KR808 thread, so are interchangeable.
So the VGO and VIP can use the same carts.
Be great to here how you get on with everything Ron, be sure to pop back and let us know!
I wish I found your website and youtube channel sooner. Thanks for replying to a comment I posted on someone’s youtube video.
I’ve watched all your videos and it’s opened my eyes to more options.
I ordered the e-lites pro pack with charging case and took it for granted that a cartridge claiming to be equal to 40 normal cigs would be true only to hear quite a few say this isn’t the case. So their refills don’t sound as cheap as I once thought.
Still….I’m new to this, it was only last weekend I was looking. I’ve still to quit the tobacco though, but hope to soon. I’ve still to get the most vapour out of them to make them effective. Slower longer drags seem to help but it makes me cough. Maybe that’s because of the 30-40 a day cigs I’ve been smoking.
Hi Vinny, thanks for dropping by. There are a lot of options out there, I know how confusing it can be!
The E-Lites are a not a bad starting point and at least it got you to try out e cigs.
As for not giving up cigs straight away, this is quite normal for a lot of people that switch to e cigs. No point trying to force it, just try and cut back a bit at a time! It can take a few weeks to get used to vaping.
Need anymore help though Vinny just ask.
Oh how i wish i had read this report before spending a fortune on Clearsmoke products. I have a pile of unusable refills and an empty bank account. I am still waiting for a reply from them telling me what they are going to do about replacing all these unusable refills.
Sorry to hear that Helen. Hope you get things sorted soon. There are some great e cig products out there so don’t let your Clearsmoke experience put you off!
Why is there no guide to using FREEDOM e Cigarettes?
I haven’t tried them yet, if I get chance I will have a look at them though.