I spend a lot of time raving about expensive e-cigarette mods on this website, but a lot of readers have written in to tell me that e-cigarettes like the VaporFi VOX II don’t look like they’re made for beginners — and they’re right. This website receives a lot of visitors who haven’t purchased their first e-cigarettes yet, and in my goal to make this website as non-promotional as possible I’ve neglected to make a clear recommendation as to the best e-cigarette for beginners.

I’m going to come right out and say it: If you’re a complete beginner, the best e-cigarette for you is the V2 e-cigarette. If you’d like, click the links and follow along with me while I explain why I’ve come to this conclusion. If you’re an international reader, visit the European V2 Cigs website.

If you’ve read any of my posts on Vapegrl.com, you’ve probably gotten the idea that I have a good amount of experience with e-cigarettes. What you may not know is that I’ve covered the e-cigarette industry as a journalist for almost as the industry has existed. I own literally dozens of e-cigarette kits and the fact is that a lot of them perform quite well. Buying the best e-cigarette for beginners is about far more than just picking one that has great vapor production. It’s the little things — and some of them not so little — that put V2 over the top.

The best e-cigarette should have great vapor production.

Vapor production isn’t the beginning and end of what a great e-cigarette should offer, but it is perhaps the most important quality. Two important features help put V2 over the top here: a 4.2-volt battery and foil-sealed cartridges. Most e-cigarette batteries are 3.7-volt models; the extra half volt of the V2 battery helps it produce a nice warm, thick vapor. If you’re a beginner, you can’t possibly imagine what a huge benefit it is when an e-cigarette company seals its cartridges in foil. Most companies plug their cartomizers with little plastic caps and ship them in card stock boxes. That’s not a proper seal and I can’t tell you how many times I’ve tasted stale e-liquid because of that packaging strategy.

The best e-cigarette should come in a polished, complete kit.

I can’t tell you how amazing it was for me to open the V2 Ultimate Kit after seeing countless e-cigarettes shipped in plastic bags or brown cardboard boxes, or kits that only included enough cartridges for a day or two. Finally, here is an e-cigarette kit in one box containing everything you could possibly need for at least your first month as an e-smoker. The box is beautiful, everything is laid out perfectly — it really makes you feel like you’re getting your money’s worth. You couldn’t possibly imagine how nice this is unless you’ve opened as many mediocre e-cigarette kits as I have. V2 has the most complete e-cigarette kit in the world, bar none — but it doesn’t end there.

V2’s e-cigarette starter kit only becomes more exciting when you open the huge box. All of the batteries are neatly tucked away in the top panel, while five boxes of cartridges are stored in a side compartment. When you lift the battery panel, you’ll see all of your various charging and storage accessories, laid out in a way that makes perfect sense. I absolutely love the V2 portable charging case. It’s a nice thin case — about the same size as a smartphone — that fits easily in my purse and holds one battery and three extra cartridges. The case itself has a battery so that if my V2 battery dies when I’m out of the house, all I have to do is screw it into the case and press a button. I can get almost ten battery charges out of the case before I have to connect it to my computer for recharging. It’s the best e-cigarette accessory I’ve ever owned.

The best e-cigarette should be simple and reliable.

You’ll see a lot of discussion here and on other websites about crazy e-cigarette accessories like cartomizers, tanks and mods, but that isn’t what most people want. For most people, the best e-cigarette is the one that just works — screw a cartridge on and go. The battery goes for hours before it dies, and when it does die, you’ll have a portable case that gets the battery back up to a full charge quickly. Nothing could be simpler.

The best e-cigarette should have a money-back guarantee.

The e-cigarette industry is big, and it’s only going to get bigger. Right now, almost anyone can jump in and start offering e-cigarettes to the public. However, a lot of these companies are simply out to grab some quick cash and really don’t care if you like the product or not. I suggest V2 to beginners because they stand behind their product. If you buy a starter kit and don’t like it, send it back within 30 days for a full refund. Almost no one in the e-cigarette industry offers this. The most that a lot of companies will offer is a 30-day warranty for product failure, which brings me to my next topic:

The best e-cigarette should have a lifetime warranty.

While you remain a customer, V2 offers a lifetime warranty on its e-cigarettes. As long as you’ve bought a pack of refill cartridges or another item in the last three months, V2 will replace any battery, charging case, battery charger or other device that fails, up to a maximum of five times.

The best e-cigarette should use safe, lab-tested e-liquids.

You might have read about how much the FDA hates e-cigarettes. One of their reasons for this is the fact that they tested a few generic e-liquids from China and found that some of them actually contained toxins and carcinogens. A lot of e-cigarette companies in the United States and elsewhere are now performing lab tests on their e-liquids because of this, but they don’t actually show the results to the public. Only V2 lets you instantly retrieve the lab quality report, in PDF format, for any box of cartridges. Give it a try — go to this page, scroll down to the “E-Liquid Test Results” box on the right side and enter the code “VSAA.” Click “Submit,” and then click “Peppermint,” “12” and “View PDF.” You’re now looking at the actual lab report for the box of V2 cartridges in my hand, showing that the e-liquid tested free of cancer-causing nitrosamines and phthalates, toxic diethylene glycol and lead. No one in the e-cigarette industry offers anything like this.

The best e-cigarette should have a simple, professional website.

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve looked at an electronic cigarette company’s website that looked like it was built in 1997, with generic shopping cart software, an impossible navigation system and sometimes, no credit card security. The V2 website is laid out in a way that makes perfect sense and walks you through the buying process without fuss. To select the options for each item in your starter kit, just click the boxes.

The best e-cigarette is innovative.

With their recent release of the EX Series, V2 created a small e-cigarette that’s entirely unlike anything else on the market. The new windowed cartridges don’t require filler material, which improves airflow and allows each cartridge to hold more e-liquid. V2’s EX batteries last longer than ever, and each one comes with a matching cap that slips over the cartridge for a sleek appearance. There simply isn’t a small e-cigarette anywhere that looks nearly as nice as — or performs better than — the V2 Cigs EX e-cigarette.

The best e-cigarette gives you room to grow.

Many people who begin with smaller e-cigarettes eventually upgrade to larger devices. Larger e-cigarette “mods” are popular with experienced e-smokers because they tend to offer superior battery life, e-liquid capacity and vapor production. The problem is that people often upgrade to larger e-cigarettes only to find that the e-liquid they used to love is only available in cartridge form. V2 Cigs not only offers two ideal options for people who want larger e-cigarettes — the V2 Pro Series 3 and Series 7 — but all V2 e-liquids are available in bottled form as well. Upgrade to a V2 Pro vaporizer and have exactly the same experience — just more of it.

The best e-cigarette should come from a trusted brand.

Note that I said trusted, not expensive. V2 is one of the oldest e-cigarette brands, and their website currently receives about 800,000 visitors each month. That’s literally 700,000 more visitors than the next most popular e-cigarette website — it isn’t even close. In spite of that, V2’s prices are right in line with what I’d expect to pay for a quality e-cigarette with a full money-back guarantee and lifetime warranty. V2 doesn’t attempt to price gouge as many other “big name” e-cigarette companies do — and many of those companies don’t offer full warranties in spite of their high prices.

The best e-cigarette should have a good support network.

No company offers as many ways to get fast product support as V2. If you have a question or problem, you can talk to someone on the telephone, open a live chat session, send an email or talk with other e-smokers on the V2 forum. With most of these support options, you can expect to have an answer within minutes.

The thing that makes V2 so great is the fact that they offer the complete package. You get the best e-cigarette, the best quality control, the best starter kits at the most logical prices and the best support after the purchase. Visit the V2 website and I think you’ll agree. Don’t hesitate to contact me if you need advice.