Vape pens are all-in-one vape kits (shaped like a pen) that allow you to inhale vaporised e-juice and absorb nicotine. Vape Pens are made of a built-in battery, sometimes called a mod, and a pod or tank. You can find out more information here about vape tanks and vape mods.
Some vape kits come with prefilled vape pods, and some have replaceable coil heads to allow you to fill up using your own e-liquid. Vape pens are slim and discreet and work well for beginners due to their low maintenance, ease of use (like single button draw) and similarity to a cigarette. Being a good introduction to vaping, vape pens can use a versatile amount of liquids, so nicotine strength and flavour are completely up to you allowing you to reduce your nicotine consumption effectively if required.
Vape pens are more likely to have one built-in battery that you recharge. They can range from 450mAh to 3000mAh. If you’re going to be vaping all day and want a sturdy battery that can last for a while then the bigger the mAh the better.
Vape pens use a variety of tanks and coils heads, meaning that the options for e-juice are much bigger. 50VG/50PG (vegetable glycerine, and propylene glycol respectively) are better in vape pens due to the thickness of the liquid. Any strength from 3mg freebase to 20mg Nic salts will work great in your vape pen and provide a satisfying hit.
Generally, if your coil head has small wicking holes and/or is 1.0ohm or higher in resistance, 50%VG e-liquids are more suited. If your coil head has bigger wicking holes and/or is 0.9ohm or lower in resistance then 60%VG+ plus will work and produce more vapour and sometimes a stronger flavour.
Vape pens can support anywhere between 3mg freebase e-liquid, to 20mg Nic salt e-liquid. Nic salts are much smoother on the throat and absorb differently, allowing a higher nicotine strength. Freebase nicotine absorbs slower and has a stronger throat hit, so it’s entirely dependent on personal choice.
Generally, if you’ve just quit smoking or are a dual user, 10mg or 20mg nicotine salts will suit you more when vaping MTL (mouth to lung). To mimic the feel of a cigarette, nicotine salt in your vape pen would be your ideal e-juice.
Vapes pens contain an in-built battery that supplies power through an atomiser to heat the coil head and vapourise the e-juice that has soaked into the coil. When you inhale the e-liquid (if it contains nicotine) you get a nicotine hit like smoking a cigarette.
The temperature and power are determined by how many watts (W) the device is feeding out. The higher the wattage the warmer the coil and vapour get. With 50VG% liquid, a lower wattage works best as it created minimal vapour and a stronger nicotine hit. With 60VG%+ e-liquid, the liquid can be heated to a high temperature to create thicker and bigger clouds. This ratio is usually favoured in sub-ohm set ups that create large clouds and
On average, a refillable vape pen usually costs around £20. This includes a charger, the mod, the tank, and some coil heads. Depending on the brand and the size of the kit, the price can range from as little as £5 to £35.
The price range can depend on the size of the battery, the materials used and the specs inside. Some vape pens come with a screen fitted, some feature draw activation and some feature button activation.
If you’re a beginner, a small pod kit with a simple button inhale-activation would be a great option. Vape pens for beginners are usually no more than £20, and the fact their lifespan is anywhere from 6-12 months means it's a great investment.
Known to us, cigarettes contain 7000 harmful ingredients like tar and carbon monoxide. Vape pens themself are just a piece of hardware, and if filled up with nicotine e-liquid then nicotine is considered the most harmful ingredient.
A cigarette is proven to damage every aspect of your body, and the NHS state that people who used e-cigarettes are twice as likely to quit smoking than people using patches or gum. Although vaping can never be considered 100% safe, vape pens are a great tool to use when wanting to kick your smoking habit.
If you’re unsure of what is fact or fiction, you can check out our blog on Smoking vs Vaping, the facts to learn how to better your health and get some extra information on the vaping world.
There are a few different types of vape kits and each has different features. For a brand new vaper, a kit with a tight airflow and a higher resistance coil like the Vmate Infinity or the Xros Nano that supports a 1.2ohm coil.
Some people have already vaped for a while, like with disposables, and want a vape that they can progress with. For users like this, we recommend the Flexus Q (£19.99) which has adjustable airflow and a choice of 0.6ohm or 1.0ohm coils. Another great contester is the Caliburn X with an 850mAh battery and a screen to view battery level and wattage.
Disposables vapes play a huge part in helping people quit smoking and are favourable to beginners, so Elf Bar have created a rechargeable device.
For people who love the Elf Bar flavours, the Elf Bar Mate 500 is a great choice as the prefilled pods available for the device feature the exact liquid used in Elf Bars for a fraction of the cost. A pack of 2 refillable Elf Bar Mate Pods are only £5.95, where as one disposable costs £5 each.
