Ever wondered what the futuristic, space-age vape would be like? Recently, discussions and forums about what’s in store for the vaporizer have fascinated us and sparked our creative minds to come up with our own list of what technological advancements are needed for that great leap forward. From solving the most common problems to optimizing your vaping pleasure on the go, here are the most promising improvements that we believe would create the ultimate vaporizer of the future.
Temperature Settings for Vape Pens
We understand how the very compact nature of pen-style vaporizers leaves little room for electronics and modern heating elements for the added feature of temperature adjustments. But a company that would innovate and accomplish such a feat would upend the longstanding controversy surrounding vape pens.
Despite the undisputable popularity of these ultra portable devices, vape pens are known to combust (burn) rather than vaporize dry materials because of the rather closer proximity of the heating element and the botanicals inside the chamber. To solve the problem, companies like the Atmos developed a glass filter for the Atmos Raw to provide a sort of protection for the dry herbs, keeping them from reaching combustion temperature.
But solutions like this is just temporary, and how much better would our vaping experience be if we finally come up with a compact heating system that can control the core temperatures, in turn also limiting the heat level to about 230 degrees Celsius, the temperature ceiling for most true vaporizers.
How then can we achieve this? Today’s electronics systems are becoming more and more compact, and they’re nowhere more evident than their use in today’s modern smartphones. Perhaps the next step is to use a heating system that can be controlled efficiently with lesser power to make it fit perfectly in the thin-bodied vape pen.
Now, let’s talk then about the future of heating elements.
The Space-Age Vaporizer Heating Elements
In the not-so-distant future, gone are the old-fashioned stainless steel coils, as well as ceramic and aluminum materials. We believe that laser and ultrasonic heating devices will dominate the vaporizing world.
Laser Vaporizer
Imagine heating your vaping materials from 0 to 230 degrees Celsius in just a split of a second! Today’s vape pens need about 5 seconds or more to vaporizers your botanicals, while the larger portable and desktop vaporizers take about at least 90 seconds to 3 minutes to do just that, depending on the volume of materials inside the chamber.
Laser heaters can quickly heat up your ground materials or concentrates much quickly by directing the concentrated radiant energy right into the botanicals. One only needs to control amount of radiant energy released to control the temperature. But one major challenge with this type is that those surface areas of the materials not exposed to the beam might not equally vaporize. So, some kind of stirring mechanism could be a nifty solution.
Other Alternative Heat Sources
As if laser lights are not enough, how about microwave energy right inside your vaporizing device? This may seem like a very probable alternative, but microwave energy works well only when water of fat is present in the material. That leaves the dry ones out of the picture.
How about ultrasonic heating? Well, this technology has already been in existence for years. And surprisingly, the inventors of the e-cigarette have originally considered such heating option. But eventually, the heating element has gained favor because it was easy and cheaper to manufacture. The tradeoff, however, is the tendency of the materials to burn especially in the smaller pen-style vaporizers.
Ultrasonic micro-heaters work by using a certain type of energy to create mechanical vibrations in the target material, and this in turn generates heat by friction between the miniscule particles. This proves a better alternative to the traditional metallic or ceramic heating element because it is easier to control the intensity of the vibration, thus also controlling the amount of heat produced. Obviously, combustion is easily avoided when using ultrasonic heating method.
So, why are ultrasonic micro-heaters not available in the vaporizing world? One answer could be the more complicated and expensive process to adapt the technology at present. Another challenge would be that such vaporizers would be more sensitive to shock or damage because of the nature of the ultrasonic transducer.
Maybe, in the near future, mass production of such device could become cheaper, and that stronger and more durable materials could make better and longer lasting transducers. Such technology, shall we say, is indeed worth the wait.
Dry Botanicals Versus Concentrates
At present, we see a lot of our connoisseurs and even beginners trying to explore the use of dry botanicals. In fact, at Smokazon.com, our bestseller vaporizer is still the Atmos Raw (RX) Vaporizer , which, when bought as a single purchase can effectively vaporize dry materials (you have the option to purchase a separate oil attachment that’s just worth $10 for you to use the Raw for oils or concentrates).
But many believe that there is an ongoing shift from using dry, ground materials to vaping oils or other concentrates. Part of the reason is the convenience of getting stronger hits with less. In contrast, vaporizing with dry herbs require more of the ground materials to experience the same effects you get with a smaller dab of wax or budder.
As the method of extracting the active ingredients from cannabis plants and other herbs become more efficient and more affordable, there is no doubt more and more people will prefer concentrates. In addition, waxes and oils are less prone to burning as compared with the dry cellulose materials, and using oil vaporizers does not produce the mess of scattered burnt weed too.
So, it’s only a matter of time when we see a shift toward the use of concentrates. But what is certain is that vaping dry herbs will never die. By far, it is still the most convenient way to get those highs. And in Colorado, where planting marijuana is legal to a limited amount, using dry, ground cannabis still remains very popular.
Space-Age Materials for Super Lightweight, Portable Vaporizers
To date, many companies still rely on stainless steel and even cheap plastic for the body, chamber, mouthpiece and other parts of their vaporizers. True, many of the space-age materials that are more durable and heat-resistant already exist, but their use is far more limited to only a number of companies and government agencies because of their very expensive nature. For example, ceramic fabrics used by NASA are stronger than aluminum, and can withstand extreme heat. But it is still expensive to mass-produce such advanced materials.
In the near future, when we’d hopefully find cheaper ways to manufacture these super-strong and lightweight materials, vaporizer companies could make use of them to create very durable devices that are so light that they would only weigh a fraction of the vaporizers of today.
Ultra-Long-Life Batteries and Wireless Charging
If we had it our way, we would have wanted to use a pen or portable vaporizer that required no wires, USB or power outlets to charge. But of course, we’re still stuck to the old-fashioned cables or, in the case of gas-powered vaporizers like the Wispr 2, a butane tank.
The good news is that wireless charging technology already exists, and it is just a matter of time when compact versions of this technology become available for even the smallest pen-style vaporizer.
How wireless charging works can be summed up this way: A transmitter circuit from the alternating current (AC) power source induces a magnetic field in the transmitter coil. The receiver coil from the device (in our case, the vaporizer) then picks up this magnetic field and, through a series of steps, convert the energy into direct current (DC), which charges the battery inside the vaporizer.
Present technology and materials only this kind of transmission within a limited distance only, but such energy can easily pass through any non-metals such as plastic, wood and even granite. Years from now, however, you can use your vaporizer and charge it at the same time even when you’re several meters away from the charging source. And that itself is a very great leap in terms of convenience and mobility.
But for now, the most advanced innovation we can get is the larger rechargeable battery with better power capacity. One good example is the Atmos Liv portable vaporizer, which can double as a power bank. Of course, at the same time, it could power the heating coil for a significantly longer period of time.
The Future of Pen-Style Vaporizers
We predict that pen-style vaporizers will continue to dominate the vaporizing world, and will even do more so when added features like temperature heat settings become a possibility, Gone will be the issues of combustion because the heating system itself will be powered with laser or ultrasonic transducers, accurately adjusting the heat level to the most specific temperature you desire. Also, the vape pen of the future will become so light that you won’t notice it’s right there in your pocket.
With the improvements of batteries and introduction of wireless charging in the vaporizing world, you could just continue vaping with your pen without having to worry about running out of battery power. Of course, your vaping pleasure will be as limited as the amount of herbs or concentrates you carry with you.
The Future of Portable Vaporizers
Portable vaporizers will continue to reign supreme despite the every soaring popularity of vape pens. But the line that separates portables from the vape pens will continue to blur as future technologies will make portable vaporizers smaller and more compact with even more improved performance and durability.
And here’s one more exciting feature we believe you’ll also love! We’ve featured the Puffit X Vaporizer as the very first forced-air vaping device. Yes, we are very positive that other portable vaporizer makers will follow suit if the idea is to provide you the easiest ways to draw those flavorful hits without exerting too much force to pull those flavors out. As battery technology becomes better, small fans fitted inside these portable vapes will be so common. Who knows, one day, you can easily inflate the balloon (only used for desktop vaporizers with forced-air systems) with your portable? With this feature, you can easily share those vapors with your friends by giving passing to them the balloon. That sounds fun indeed.
The Future of Desktop Vaporizers
As for desktop vaporizers, cheaper and more durable ones will come to replace even the basic models. And these devices of the future will become more efficient with new heating devices. Of course, the whip will always be there and the balloon will also remain popular for greater mobility inside your living space.
In the culinary world, we also expect the desktop vaporizers to be the king of the kitchen in terms of enhancing flavors of your everyday dish. Currently, prestigious chefs and other culinary experts in the United States have already begun exploring the flavor enhancing powers of the Volcano Vaporizer.
Want to add a smoky, pine and cornmeal scent to your roasted beef? Chefs can easily do this by placing cornmeal and pine inside the herb chamber of the Volcano and attach the whip to a plastic bag called the balloon. Once inflated, the bag is gently poked, placed right under the roasted meat right before serving. The wafting scent released as the meat pushes down on the bag gives that heavenly scent of these flavors, making your dinner a truly delightful experience.
The Connoisseurs of Tomorrow
We predict that as more states push toward the legalization of recreational marijuana use, the federal government will inevitably loosen its grip and will eventually legalize the use of cannabis. So you, the connoisseurs of the future, will have the freedom to bring with you and use your vaporizer in the open. Never again will you experience the fear of being misunderstood, prosecuted and criticized for doing something that has already been proven as safe and even medically beneficial.
Your Thoughts
We envisioned the vaporizing world the way we see it through our eyes. We’d love for you to share your thoughts too! Leave your comments below and we’d love to hear from you too!
Leave a Comment