Vaping has come a long way since it was originally introduced to the UK and Europe in 2003 with a variety of different style devices from an array of different manufacturers worldwide. Did you know that the first documented patent for an electronic cigarette was granted to a Joseph Robinson in 1930? Sadly, his device didn’t make it commercially to market; who knows we could be using completely different devices now if his idea took off.

First Generation - Cigalike

Originally e-cigarettes began by trying to stay looking like cigarettes; these tiny little devices used to use cartridges (known as cartomizers or carts for short), instead of tanks, which were pre-filled with e liquid and simply screwed onto the device. They also had no buttons, similar to a Nicorette, and an LED light at the end to indicate the device was working. Due to the size of the internal battery on a cigalike devices, usually around 100-500mAh, they were unable to hold very much charge throughout a day of regular use, leading to manufacturers looking for a new way to get a bigger battery inside of a device. It was also conclusive that due to cartridges being pre-filled users where throwing away large quantities of empty cartomizers and so manufacturers moved to what we now know as the ‘Tank & Coil’ combo giving consumers the ability to change their coils, a choice on different resistance coils and reducing the amount of waste material that was being thrown away.

Second Generation – Vape Pens

It wasn’t long till manufactures, such as the likes of Aspire, started bringing out slightly larger devices, sticking to the same shape as a cigalike, but bigger and furthermore now known as a ‘Pen Style’ device due to their appearance. These devices, unlike cigalikes, brought in a single button to operate the device; usually 5 clicks on, 5 clicks off and hold for use. There is an obvious aesthetic difference with vape pens, as they’re slightly taller than their cigalike predecessors, but they still work in the same way: Battery heats coil, coil heats cotton, e liquid saturated evaporates and the user inhales. Although throughout time there have been a variety of different devices created still classified under the umbrella term ‘Pen Style’, they all have different internal battery sizes and functions. For example, if you compare the A Sub Evod to an Aspire K4 the differences are fairly obvious although both under the Pen Style umbrella: The A Sub Evod has a 1100mAh battery and replaceable 0.5ohm coil, whereas the Aspire K4 has 2000mAh battery and a 0.27ohm coil; although the K4 is much chunkier than a standard cigalike device, it offers a larger internal battery which means longer battery life.

A SUB EVOD & ASPIRE K4 (left to right)

How Its Evolved

Throughout the years the Vaping scene has accelerated forward with hundreds of new devices all different shapes and sizes offering a variety of different functions and features that continue to be replicated and advanced upon to date. From large pen devices to box mods vape kits with a variety of functions from memory banks, touch screens variable power, temperature control and so much more!

Innokin ITaste Kroma-A Axoim M21 Kit, SMOK Alien 220w Kit & SMOK G PRIV 2 (left to right)

Vape Mods also known as Box Mods, come in a variety of shapes and sizes, colours and either use external or internal batteries to supply power to the device. Devices such as the Innokin ITaste Kroma-A Axoim M21 Kit features a built-in 2,000mAh Li-Po battery in comparison to a SMOK Alien 220w that requires two 18650 batteries, such as Samsung 25r’s, 18650 batteries also come in an array of mAh. Variable Power is notably one of the first forms of extra features in a vape device which meant users of e cigarettes could change the rate in which their coil was being heated by, therefore allowing them to change the strength of their vaping experience. Squonking and Squonker devices came into the vaping scene in 2017, featuring an e liquid bottle internally that upon squeezing would feed through an inner tube through the 510 pin to allow for an RDA’s wick to be saturated with e liquid; on releasing pressure the excess e liquid feeds back down the inner tube to the bottle. Check out our blog post What is a Squonk Mod? blog post if you're unsure what one is.

You can view a list of all of our 25+ UK stores here with the relevant address and contact details with more opening monthly here! Make sure to check out the new Croydon store on Crownhill we’re opening on the 27th of January! If you’re unable to get into store we advise you to take a look at both our ‘Which Vape Kit is Best Suited for Me?’ & take a look at some of our other posts such as ‘Vaping Battery Safety’, ‘What’s Inside my E Liquid?’ and any others you feel you’d like to know more about! If you require any assistance with anything vape related you can pop into your local vape shop and speak with any of our enthusiastic and knowledgeable members of staff. Alternatively, if you can’t make it into any of our stores you can connect with us over social media; Facebook, Twitter, Instagram & YouTube. Keep vaping & #VapeWithEvapo

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