Touch screen electronic cigarettes with video games to attract young people

Researchers from the University of California[1], Riverside, are sounding the alarm on new versions of electronic cigarettes, equipped with touch screens, animated displays and integrated video games which could attract young people who are not yet consumers, while reinforcing dependence on nicotine among current users.

The electronic cigarette market is evolving rapidly and new models are regularly put on sale. Recently, some products have come with small light displays, usually to indicate the remaining battery life. Gradually, screens grew to the size of a flip phone screen and were outfitted with retro video games such as “Pac-Man” and “Tetris.”

Products that directly target adolescents and encourage consumption

Among the products identified, researchers discovered devices integrating digital games, equipped with animations that change as the user consumes their product. They also reported devices that have built-in Bluetooth and can be personalized with photos. Likewise, vapes bearing the image of celebrities offering promotional cards to collect have been spotted.

These multifunctional products are available in vaping stores and online and cost approximately the same as traditional vaping products, making them particularly attractive and accessible to young people. Among the products identified by the researchers, the “AiRMEZ MATRIX is a disposable electronic cigarette, available in 15 different flavors, with a 2.1-inch touch screen. Presented as “the first intelligent vape in the world”, it works with LUCKY ROOM, a slot machine-style video game. This product has been available online since May 2024 at a price of $19.99 (a little over €18).

Figure 1 – generalvape.com screenshot (July 2024)

Another example, the URSA POCKET from the manufacturer Lost Vape is a rechargeable pod system with a 1.7-inch OLED screen, equipped with two digital games that encourage users to vape. In the “Virtual Pet” game, the consumer accumulates coins by vaping. The coins are then used to buy food to feed and train your virtual dog. As part of the “puff number contest” game, the user is ranked according to the number of puffs they consume and they can post their ranking on Lost Vape's social networks to win prizes. This product costs $38 (35€). For the authors, it is particularly worrying that vaping is necessary to progress in these games, which risks accelerating nicotine addiction.

Figure 2 - Screenshot of the vapesourcing.com website (July 2024)

Other products respond to user actions and voice by producing different lighting effects and can change power settings and turn the device on or off by voice command.

The functions integrated into smart e-cigarettes are increasing the use and purchase of these products. In doing so, this type of device reinforces nicotine dependence among current users. Furthermore, according to the authors, associating nicotine with existing behaviors among young people, such as video games and the use of screen time, makes it possible to greatly expand the market for vaping products among young people, previously non-consumers of nicotine-based products.

A call to regulate these devices

The researchers suggest introducing stricter regulations to limit some functions of e-cigarettes and implementing a total ban on disposable devices - an approach that has been adopted by several countries, including France.

These new models also have a significant environmental impact and contribute to further accentuating plastic pollution. As disposable devices are single-use products, they generate significant amounts of waste, a phenomenon further compounded by the addition of screens, Bluetooth and digital storage linked to these devices. Due to the way they are manufactured, these devices are almost impossible to recycle and the materials and chemicals used make them potentially dangerous toxic waste.

During the negotiations of the future plastic treaty, public health and environmental organizations, grouped under the Stop Tobacco Pollution Alliance (STPA), are asking that avoidable pollution linked to tobacco and nicotine products be taken into account, among other things, by the inclusion of new products such as electronic cigarettes[2].

©Tobacco Free Generation

AE

[1] Wong M, Talbot P Pac-Man on a vape: electronic cigarettes that target youth as handheld multimedia and gaming devices Tobacco Control Published Online First: 15 June 2024. doi: 10.1136/tc-2024-058794

[2] Communicated, Plastic treaty negotiations: future treaty must include avoidable pollution from tobacco products, CNCT, published April 22, 2024