What Is Heated Tobacco and How Is It Different from Vapes?

As global anti-smoking policies continue to advance and people become more aware of the health hazards of smoking, more and more individuals are turning to new tobacco products. E-liquid e-cigarettes were invented by Chinese pharmacist Han Li in 2004, and have developed over the past 14 years. The benchmark product of new tobacco products, IQOS, began trial sales in Japan in 2004 and was immediately popular among consumers. In the past two years, it has swept the globe, driving the development of the entire industry chain. This has led to confusion among some regarding the differences between the booming heated tobacco products and the more traditional e-liquid e-cigarettes. What is heated tobacco and how does it differ from e-cigarettes? <\/strong>

What is heated tobacco? <\/strong>

Typically, traditional cigarettes can reach temperatures of over 800 degrees Celsius when smoked, and within the temperature range of 370°C to 600°C, over 200 harmful substances are produced. Heated tobacco products are designed with the concept of "heating without burning" in mind, working at a temperature range of 250-350 degrees Celsius, which allows the specially designed tobacco sticks to be heated just enough to release flavor and tobacco taste without burning, thus avoiding the harmful substances produced by traditional smoking. As a result, heated tobacco products contain less nicotine, no tar, no ash, no open flames, and no secondhand smoke hazards! Structurally, heated tobacco products are quite similar, mainly consisting of a battery, mainboard, and heating rod/heating plate.<\/p> From the experiences of e-cigarette users and their friends, using heated tobacco products can effectively help reduce harm. The most basic aspect of harm reduction is no longer smoking traditional cigarettes, and only those who have personally experienced it can deeply feel the benefits, such as no longer having nighttime coughs and waking up without excessive phlegm.

Furthermore, using heated tobacco products allows for more freedom in smoking.

Aside from special occasions, there is no need to hide while smoking.

There is no ash or odor, so it does not disturb those around you.

Smoking becomes much more convenient.

You can smoke in the car without damaging the interior or having ash flying around.

At work, it seems that the girls across from you have no objections.

You can smoke indoors at home, saying goodbye to the balcony and bathroom.

If you're feeling rebellious, you can even smoke in bed.

Moreover, disposing of the used sticks is more convenient and safer, as they do not ignite and cause fires.

E-liquid e-cigarettes

E-liquid e-cigarettes are electronic products that produce vapor similar to cigarettes, and some e-liquid e-cigarettes have a similar appearance to traditional cigarettes. After 14 years of evolution, e-liquid e-cigarettes now come in a variety of shapes, but the principle remains the same: they use a low-pressure micro-electronic atomization device to vaporize a solution containing tobacco flavor and nicotine, allowing smokers to perform the action of "smoking" and "exhaling vapor". However, in my opinion, they have not become a substitute for traditional cigarettes but have instead become a popular toy, where the enjoyment lies in the fun of using them.

E-liquid e-cigarettes use e-liquid as their main material. E-liquid generally consists of nicotine, propylene glycol, glycerin, and flavoring agents. Some users even refer to it as a handheld electronic device containing aromatic liquid for atomization. The fun aspect is the primary reason for the popularity of e-liquid e-cigarettes. Compared to heated tobacco products, their growth has been relatively slow, mainly because e-liquid e-cigarettes entered the adult "player" market before gaining popularity among mainstream smokers, and this market is predominantly composed of young people.

The culture surrounding e-liquid e-cigarettes and vaping has already become a subculture among players. Currently, most e-cigarette experience stores have a very "subcultural" vibe: staff often dress in a street style—tattoos, baseball caps, or loose clothing (the people showcasing e-cigarettes on video platforms often dress similarly). If there is a TV in the store, you are likely to see videos of players blowing smoke rings, with background music possibly being hip-hop or electronic, and scenes of skateboarding, modified cars, or street dancing.

IQOS Leads the Trend

New tobacco products have become key products for giants like Philip Morris International, Imperial Brands, and Japan Tobacco Group to transform. Philip Morris International's heated tobacco product IQOS has even helped it salvage its performance. In the fourth quarter of 2016, sales of "low-risk products," including IQOS, rose by 60%, driving overall revenue growth. Martin Inkster, the Operations Director of Philip Morris in the UK and Ireland, stated: "Our ultimate goal is to replace cigarettes with non-combustible products."<\/p> #p#分页标题#e# The heated tobacco technology as a typical harm reduction method has risen globally. The Tokyo 2020 Olympics has announced a complete smoking ban (including outdoors), but heated tobacco and other new e-cigarettes are exempt. This shows that new tobacco products are gradually becoming a research hotspot, leading industry transformation. Due to their harm reduction characteristics and realistic taste, heated tobacco products have become one of the directions that major tobacco giants are increasingly focusing on, with rapid market growth.

Which is better, heated tobacco or e-cigarettes? <\/strong>

As the global anti-smoking environment continues to promote, and people's awareness of the harm of smoking deepens, new tobacco products are being increasingly valued by smokers and their families or friends.

Among them, e-liquid e-cigarettes have developed and settled in China for 14 years, with a rich variety of products. However, the inherent nature of the products determines that their market is in the player market rather than the smoker market. Therefore, despite 14 years of evolution, the market share of e-liquid e-cigarettes remains less than one-tenth of the tobacco market. They are relatively niche, and the market is mainly concentrated in Europe and the United States.

In contrast, heated tobacco products have been embraced by smokers since their launch, achieving in four years what e-liquid e-cigarettes took ten years to accomplish, and heated tobacco products continue to maintain a rapid expansion speed. After the tobacco bureau halted IQOS in China, it still remains relatively active among smokers, leading to many smuggling cases of IQOS, with recent news of smugglers being caught. However, objectively speaking, smuggling IQOS should be treated separately from the development of the heated tobacco industry.

Therefore, from the perspective of market demand, one product cannot satisfy all markets. Due to various factors such as tobacco policies in different countries and the diverse needs of consumers, both e-cigarettes and heated tobacco products have their space for survival. However, in terms of market capacity, heated tobacco products targeting the smoker market have greater potential for future growth.