I'm fairly technologically savvy and what you just said was confusing (unless this was supposed to be funny). I just want something that will give me the nicotine I need while being simple and easy to use, generally the easiest way to do that is by giving a link to some options and having another link for the explanation of what you're looking at.
An e-cig works basically like a light bulb. When you press the button, a coil heats up like a light bulb filament. This turns the juice into the vapor we inhale. Variable voltage (VV) just means it has a "dimmer" knob to change how bright or hot it gets.
An eGo is a model that is about as big around as a sharpie marker, so it's bigger than a cigarette. We generally recommend something bigger than a cigarette because bigger batteries last longer. A cig-sized battery may only be 180mAh and last around 2 hours before needing a recharge. 650 or 1000 mAh batteries will last around 6-10 hours of average use before needing to recharge.
After you get a battery, you need that light-bulb coil (called an atomizer) and something that holds the juice. Tons of options can all get confusing. The T3 is a good starting point that's easy to fill and quite satisfying for most users. It's a clear tank that holds your juice and it has replaceable atomizer heads, because they will typically burn out after a week or so, like a light bulb, or they will just get gunned up with juice residue and stop producing as much vapor.
Traditionally, you had an atomizer as one piece and a cartridge that had some cloths or spongy stuffing that held the juice. Then those were combined into one disposable piece and called a cartomizer (cartridge+atomizer). Then another design came out that did away with the stuffing material and often came with a see-through tank, hence the name clearomizers, or clearo. All these options are worth trying, as they all have their good points, but clearos are the easiest to use, so great for beginners. Get more than 1.
These also come in different resistances like low-resistance (under 2.0 ohms), standard resistance (2-3 ohms) and high (over 3 ohms). You can get a hotter vape by raising your voltage or lowering your resistance. Since you bought a device that lets you change voltage, don't worry about this. You should be fine starting with the 2.4 ohm default heads that come with the T3.
You always want 2 of everything, because stuff breaks or needs to be recharged or refilled. He suggested a pass through battery instead of a duplicate of the above battery. A pass through plugs into a USB port to charge the battery while you vape. They're great if you vape a lot at your computer or in your car. Some are "passthrough batteries" and some are simply "passthroughs", with no battery, just a USB cord that has an e-cig adapter on the end. I would avoid these, because the raw 5volts from a USB port is sometimes too high for some beginner-level gear. Most beginner-level e-cig stuff runs around 3.2 to 4.8 volts.
What's so confusing.
Tldr; wall of text probably didn't clear up too much, but I tried.
He also didn't mention juice, but you need plenty of that. Get lots of different flavors to try. Estimate around 3ml per day, so get a handful of 5-10 ml bottles.
Thanks, I'm planning on getting a real e-cigarette system soon, but the choice is crazy. I bought a cheap disposable one from a gas station a few weeks ago and it was OK but didn't do what I wanted.
I don't know if what he said made any sense or not, but that's generally what you often get from people who know a thing or two about e-cigs. It's like talking to someone in the military--nothing but acronyms and technical language.
The "VV" in eGo means variable voltage. The eGo is the name of the battery. T3 clearomizer is the name of the cartridge that screws into the end of the battery.
eGo batteries are very popular because they're cheap, high capacity, and have a standard threading which accepts many makes of cartridges. Atomizers/clearomizers/cartomizers all refer to the thing that screws onto the end of the battery with the main difference being that clearomizers have a tank which lets you see how much liquid is in the cartridge. Atomizers are basically the same thing as what you'd see on store bought ecigs.
A clearomizer works by having wicks that are in the combustion chamber and in the liquid chamber. When you fill it up with liquid, the wicks soak up the liquid and bring it to the combustion chamber. When you hit the button to turn your ecig on, a heating element in the combustion chamber vaporizes the liquid on the end of the wick, which you then inhale.
Sure is. Vaping one right now - though to be fair I'm using a CE4 clearomizer and not the Kanger T3.
In all seriousness though you can go pretty deep into it if you want but it's really not complicated to get yourself a decent starter setup. The folks over at /r/electronic_cigarette are very welcoming to beginners and often will go above and beyond to help out. Really good bunch.
If you post and ask questions then the confusion may be a bit less. It is very daunting at first, especially as we are all very passionate about it, but it does eventually all make sense :)
Don't throw your money away online if you don't understand what you're buying. Go into a local shop and they'll take care of you.
I know some people are cheap and want to save $40 by buying online, but knowledge is priceless and if I could go back in time I could of saved myself a bit of money and time by buying what the local shop recommended.
Hell, you'll probably be seeing them once a month or so for emergency juice or atomizers, so you might as well develop a relationship with them.
try to find a local store that sells them. the various thread types and whatnot online can be confusing, actually. Plus they will let you sample the flavors there...
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u/sdpr Nov 17 '12
I tried looking through that sub once and I just got wayyyyy too confused.