In a recent survey conducted by Truth Initiative, disposable vape users admitted to carelessly throwing away the devices:

•  More than half of respondents (51%) said they throw used disposable vapes in the regular trash
• 17% of young people disposed of disposables by putting them in regular recycling not designed for e-cigarette waste
• 10% disposed of disposable vapes by littering on the ground

There is currently no legal requirement for manufacturers or retailers to provide disposing instructions to consumers. However, to do our part in combating disposable waste, when you are purchasing a new product from Ecigwizard, you can recycle your disposable vape, (or any old vape products) for free.

2. NON-RECHARGEABLE

Whilst we understand that many vapers have become accustomed to disposable products for reasons such as convenience and ease; it is important to highlight that there are much more convenient, cost-effective options available on the market. 

For example, the Aspire One Up R1 Rechargeable Disposable Vape Kit can simply be recharged with a type-c charger, and used for around two weeks before having to be disposed of. The Elfa Pod Kit by Elf Bar is another great alternative as it offers the simplicity of a disposable, but is in fact a rechargeable device which uses prefilled Elfa pods.

As you have complete control over the battery life, you avoid experiencing the issues many disposable users have encountered, such as the battery being dead or half-charged on arrival. Additionally, there is no battery indicator on disposable vapes, therefore you cannot monitor when your device will run out of charge - so although disposables are single-use, is it really suitable for on the go vaping?

3. EXPENSIVE

Disposables are often considered cheap - and in some ways, they are. For example, an average pack of cigarettes cost around £10, whilst a typical disposable device will cost you just half that at £5. A pack of 20 cigarettes will give you around 400 puffs whilst you can easily expect 600 puffs from a disposable vape. However, the important factor here is that disposables are cheaper than cigarettes. But In the vaping world, they are actually very costly, especially in the long run. 

Vapers who opt for alternative kits can save around £100 per month. The Aspire One Up R1 Kit in particular is less expensive, and longer-lasting than your traditional disposable, with vapers only needing to replace this kit every two weeks on average. So, over the course of two weeks, the Aspire One Up R1 Kit will cost you around £20, whilst disposables will set you back a whopping £70 in the same time frame.

On the other hand, there are many refillable vape kits with devices that don’t need replacing at all; £35 spent in just one week on disposables can easily purchase an open system with a month’s supply of e-liquid. This leads us to our next point.

4. FEWER OPTIONS

Again, when comparing disposables to cigarettes, disposable vapes have a great range of flavours to choose from. However, compared to e-liquids; disposables are in fact extremely limited.

At Ecigwizard, we stock over 300 e-liquid flavours; we have 10ml bottles, shortfill e-liquids (which are available in both 50ml and 100ml), as well as nicotine salt e-liquids. You’ll get complete control over your vape experience when you choose the flavour, nicotine content, VG:PG ratio as well as the brand. Remember, if you have any difficulty choosing the most suitable e-liquid for you, our online and in-store team are more than happy to help! In addition to this, our easy to follow vape guides will also provide you with all the information you need about e-liquids.

The option to choose your nicotine content alone is quite rare with disposables; most offer a set nicotine strength of 20mg nicotine salt which can be too high for some vapers. On top of this, disposable vapers are subjected to MTL style vaping when there are many more options available such as direct to lung (DTL) vaping. Many new kits such as the VooPoo Vinci 2 Vape Kit are now offering the option to switch between MTL style vaping and restricted direct to lung vaping!

5. COUNTERFEITER TARGETS

Because of their popularity, disposable vapes are a high target for counterfeit manufacturers; in February of this year, Daily Record reported that over 90,000 disposable vapes were seized from shops in Scotland alone as they did not contain sufficient safety information or had a capacity of over the legal limit of 2ml. 

In 2021, 53,000 ‘Geek Bar Pro’ disposable bars were sold per week despite containing more than twice the legal limit of nicotine, equaling 125 cigarettes. Daily Mail reported that Geek Bar Pro users experienced nosebleeds, dizzy spells, chest pains and some were even coughing up blood.

These counterfeit disposable bars are illegally manufactured in China and imported to the U.K; they are done at a much cheaper cost as they ignore safety guidelines, and can potentially cause severe health issues to consumers. On the other hand, all Ecigwizard products are TPD compliant and are subject to strict testing regulations before being available to consumers.

It is very difficult to spot fake disposable products as the packaging and device are often identical to real products and can easily be picked up in your local corner shop. Whilst many disposable manufacturers such as Geek Bar have implemented several anti-counterfeit courses of action, the truth remains that counterfeit disposable products are on the rise and very much subsist on the disposable craze. On the other hand, e-liquids which are manufactured in the UK undergo harsh testing procedures and must follow these guidelines:

• The maximum volume of nicotine-containing e-liquid for sale in one refill container is 10ml
• E-liquids should have a nicotine strength of no more than 20mg
• Nicotine-containing products or their packaging should be child-resistant and tamper evident
• E-liquids must not include certain ingredients including colourings, caffeine and taurine
• E-liquid bottles must include new labelling requirements and warnings
• All e-cigarettes and e-liquids are to be submitted to and published by the MHRA before they can be sold