Many people who are just starting their foray into the world of electronic cigarettes may not know a lot about their gadgets and the terms used for components and peripherals. One of these peripherals that may come with your e-cig is the USB Passthrough. What is it, and what does it have to do with my electronic cigarette.
Other terms such as atomizer, cartridge, wick, and so on may seem alien to the non-e-cig smoker and the newcomer.
The birth of technology that enabled the manufacture of electronic cigarettes have, understandably, gone hand in hand with the coining of numerous terms. The e-cig industry is still in its relative infancy. Thus, e-cig juice makers and e-cig manufacturers and their advertisers have tried to introduce a lot of catchy terms and phrases at the speed at which new cigarettes and peripherals are being made.
What It Is
A Passthrough electornic cigarette is essentially a connection from a computer USB port to an electronic cigarette for constant power. The USB cord is usually permanently attached to the LED tip end and can be connected to any type of USB port including powered hubs. It is not a rechargeable device that can be detached. USB passthroughs aren’t charged, which is the primary difference between these and rechargeable batteries for electronic cigarettes.
There is an exception to the “passthrough” term. For example, a vaporizer sometimes allows you to connect a USB cord to the battery and charge it while using it. However, it is usually found on personal vaporizers or bigger eGo devices since the battery has to be large enough to have a port on one of the sides. Special adapter cables are sold that attach directly to atomizer tanks, but keep in mind that USB cannot provide the same amps and volatge as those large batteries. E-cigs are small and usually require you to detach the cartomizer and use the same threaded connection port to charge it, hence the required permanent USB cable attached at the LED tip end, but as you can see, the technology can carry on to many avenues.
It is not a battery, but rather a small structure comprising components that allow the transmission of power to the cartomizer or cartridge or atomizer, depending on your particular electronic cigarette. This sends power from a laptop, for example, through the cord. The main benefit of this connection is user convenience.
For instance, if you’re at your laptop slaving away at work or spending some time surfing the Web, you may have your rechargeable e-cig batteries in the charger so these will be ready for the next day or later. If you do not have extra batteries, how will you smoke your e-cig as the batteries recharge? Of course, with the USB cig, that concern does not exist, you can vape anywhere you have available ports to use or carry a powered hub around with you for special cases.
To use the passthrough for your electronic cigarette, you simply need to plug it into a powered port and attach a cartridge of your choice, don’t get confused with any need for computer settings or apps, it’s completely standalone and simply allows you to use it without the need of batteries.
You can also use this device in the car. Buy a compatible car adapter – which is included in some electronic cigarette starter kits – so you can plug the e-cig and vape in traffic or while you are coasting down the road. Ensure that your USB Passthrough is long enough, and you will have backup power while you’re waiting for the replacement battery to charge. Cool little e-cig to consider, and one that I use very often at my office desk.