We have a great many questions, comments, and conversations from our valued customers who come to us here at White Cloud. Lately, we have heard quite a few folks bring up vaping and e-cig use as completely separate things. But are they? Or aren’t they?

The Difference Between E-Cigs and Vaping

Most folks consider vaping to involve the use of larger tank and mod systems where one must maintain the coils and refill the liquids manually.

It also seems that current parlance describes e-cig use as something akin to the majority of what White Cloud offers: batteries and e-tanks, or disposable e-cigs, which look like a traditional cigarette when in use and require no manual filling or maintenance of coils. These are called ‘cig-a-like’ products in the industry.

We can only imagine the world of confusion those who are new to e-cigarettes may encounter. The innovation of the industry has resulted in tons of different products to choose from – all in different shapes, sizes, and colors – so it’s no wonder why the inexperienced get vaping terminology wrong.

The delivery systems do have their differences. The tank systems are larger than White Cloud cig-a-likes, have larger openings to puff from, offer a bulkier body design and will offer a variety of settings to fine tune the temperature and vapor output. These systems require the pushing of a button to heat up the e-liquid and turn it into vapor.

White Cloud products tend to be a bit more elegant and simple with no settings or dials. They feature a sleeker design that works with small e-tanks. They operate at lower temperatures and generally have a smaller opening to puff from.

While the form in both of these types of products is different, the function of vaping and e-cig devices is basically the same. The liquid is heated via a battery to produce the vapor we inhale. In fact, the term “vape” was named the International Word of the Year by Oxford Dictionaries back in 2014 and was officially added to the Oxford English Dictionary in 2015.

So, if you Google “What does the term vape mean?”, you will see this:

And, when it comes to vaping laws – including the FDA’s vaping regulations – the laws apply to any device that heats e-liquid to produce vapor, regardless of whether it is a cig-a-like, vape pen, or open tank system.

Now let’s look at a real world example. If you’re at the wheel of a Ford or a Buick, your experience may vary, but you are still driving. The same goes for vaping. Whether you are using a cig-a-like or using a larger tank and mod system, you are still vaping.

I hope that clears up any confusion about vaping and e-cig terminology. And, of course, we are always happy to hear your thoughts!

Happy cig-a-vaping!