An E Cigarette is not a typo but a short name
So just what is an ecig or electronic cigarette? Well it is a cylinder shaped item that may look like an ordinary cylinder or it may be designed to look like a real cigarette. It may come in three pieces or two pieces but generally the pieces are the LED light with cover which you can get in a couple of different colors. There is the battery charger which may plug into a wall or into a cigarette lighter or charger in a car. There is the atomizer or heating element which may have a limited life use up to about one month. The vaporized flavored liquid is stored in the mouth piece or cartridge. These cartridges can be refilled or replaced.
There is a lot of discussion in different countries as to what these cigarette substitutes actually are. In some cases they are classified as a tobacco product as opposed to a drug/device. In some countries this would change which entity regulates the sale and distribution of the device. Some places define them as a mechanical device whereas others identify them as a nicotine therapy product. They are sometimes referred to as a personal vaporizer. You would use it to inhale vaporized nicotine just as you would inhale on a regular cigarette.
Whatever you choose to call this item it is generally shaped like a cigarette so that a person who wants to quit smoking may use an electronic cigarette instead of a real cigarette. It does not contain any of the hundreds if not thousands of additives or other products that are in a real cigarette but it does have the ability to allow you to inhale nicotine.
There is some concern that if these are not regulated they will be sold to children or others that are too young to buy tobacco products over the counter. The main reason this is of concern is that the liquid that is vaporized can be flavored. You can get chocolate flavored or vanilla flavored. There are even flavored liquids that are supposed to imitate the taste of a specific cigarette brand such as a camel. This liquid can also be mentholated just as a real mentholated cigarette might be. But this liquid may not contain any nicotine at all. I suppose then the concern might be that the child will like the 'feel' of holding a cigarette in their hands and will grow up into the habit of smoking real cigarettes.
Electronic cigarettes certainly would be a handy substitute for holding a real cigarette in your hands if you are a smoker. It would beat all the calories in hard candies also.