Should I Buy A Vape Pen Or Vape Mod?

If you are looking to take up vaping, you will need to learn the ropes because this is a different sport from smoking, despite the similarities.

From acquainting yourself with the different inhalation styles, to learning about the different e-cigs available, there is plenty to incorporate into your mental rolodex.

You will need to dive into the crux of e-liquid constituents to understand e-liquids better, get a primer on Ohm’s Law and know how to choose an ideal nicotine strength vis-à-vis the different types of e-liquids available at your disposal.

Beyond that, there is the maintenance to think about – tank cleaning, coil replacement and battery care – vaping laws to brush up on and some useful hacks to gather, such as how to find the best vaping deals.

At first, it can all feel a bit overwhelming, but thankfully, it doesn’t take long to get up to speed on the basics of vaping.

It all starts by picking up on fundamentals such as the device options available to you and how to select the best fit for you. This is the lesson we want to delve on in this post, so let’s take you to school.

Understanding Vape Pens

As the name suggests, a vape pen is an e-cigarette that looks like a ballpoint pen; only that it’s beefier, sleeker and of course, electronic.

As vape tech keeps evolving, though, we are starting to see sub-ohm kits (more about this shortly) that resemble vape pens. Point here being that not every pen-shaped device these days is a vape pen.

But it is what lies under the hood that can tell you if the device is a vape pen or something else.

Vape pens come with a mouth-to-lung (MTL) tank that is loaded with what’s known as regular e-liquids. These are juices whose composition contains equal amounts of propylene glycol (PG) and vegetable glycerine (VG); hence why you might see them being referenced as 50/50 e-liquids. If the VG amount is anything above this level (60%), that is considered a sub-ohm juice.

Vape pens are low-powered devices that run on vape coils above 1.0 Ohm. They are appropriate for everyday vaping and the perfect fit if throat hit and nicotine satisfaction is your priority.

Understanding Vape Mods

Vape mods are bulkier than vape pens and are the most advanced form of e-cigarettes available.

These devices employ lower resistance coils (below 1.0 Ohm), and it is here that the term sub-ohm was born. The term sub-ohm can be in reference to any device that runs on coils of less than one Ohm, and the phrases can be applied interchangeably.

Traditionally known as APVs (advanced personal vaporisers) earlier vape mods came in the form of mech mods (short for mechanical), although these have been gradually phased out by box mods.

However, there are plenty of other sub-ohm kits that are neither mech mods, nor box mods. These include pen mods (mods in the shape of a vape pen) and pod mods (pod version of mods)

Vape mods make use of sub-ohm e-liquids or higher VG juices whose composition includes more than 60% VG content in relation to PG. Some common VG/PG ratios include:

• 60/40 VG/PG
• 70/30
• 80/20
• 100% VG

These e-liquids are famed for their ability to generate dense vapour. The more the VG, the bigger and thicker the clouds.

Thus, if blowing huge clouds is the plan, the sub-ohm kit category is where you should be looking. These devices are not an ideal pick for those prioritising throat hit and nicotine satisfaction.

That especially goes for smokers switching to vaping. After all, vape mods are powerful devices and are only recommended for experienced vapers – although there are starter kits targeted at intermediate vapers to help ease them into the world of sub-ohming.

So, if you’re a beginner (ex-smoker or not) the mod category is not the aisle to be shopping in.

What Are The Differences Between The Vape Pens And Mods?

By now, you already have an idea of what to expect with either category of device. But let’s expound on that further by looking at individual aspects where the notable differences lie…

1. Size

Vape pens are smaller and lighter compared to vape mods, thus easier to carry around. Actually, before vape pod kits came along, the vape pen was the device of choice when vaping outdoors, although some vapers still use it for that.

Earlier sub-ohms were bulky devices to move around with, but present-day models are not as cumbersome. Regardless, they are still bigger in size considering they typically have a bigger body due to the larger tank and battery.

3. Power ( and battery)

One area that vape pens differ most from vape mods is in performance. Vape mods are powerful devices by their very nature as they are primarily made for sub-ohming – a form of vaping that relies on more powerful, high-performing devices.

This is evident in the battery capacity of the two, with vape mods typically dwarfing their smaller counterparts. The battery itself is larger in size in vape mods besides packing more punch. Additionally, mod batteries come in more options and are built with variable wattage vaping in mind.

3. Simplicity and Features

Vape mods are more advanced than vape pens. That’s because the latter are designed for regular vaping, therefore tend to be simpler in design and function and more user-friendly, so much so that it’s possible to pick up a vape pen and start vaping right off the bat.

Vape mods, on the other hand, are relatively complex and will involve a bit of a learning curve before you can effectively use one. Even the inhalation style is different; in this case direct-to-lung (DL) vaping. A DL draw is different. It entails inhaling vapour from the device straight to the lungs.

Vape pens, for their part, are made for MTL (mouth-to-lung) vaping, a style very much similar to a combustible cigarette’s and the default inhalation technique for most people.

4. Features

Vape mods boast a long list of features that you’ll not find in your ordinary vape pen, including variable wattage, temperature control (TC) vaping, safety features and other bells and whistles.

In a nutshell, a mod gives you more control over your vape due to the slew of customisation options it offers.

In Closing

It’s also worth pointing out that vape mods are more expensive than vape pens.

They also tend to be more durable, although that will depend on the grade you invest in – this ranges from cheaper models that will hardly last a few months to high quality models that can give you years of service.

Where you buy also matters keeping in mind that the market has its fair share of knock-offs, which is why you should stick to reputable vendors like Aquavape.

If you’re new to vaping or vaping for the nicotine satisfaction, a vape pen is the ideal pick. Mods are more suited for cloud vaping and require a little more experience in the game.