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Pac-Man on a vape: electronic cigarettes that target youth as handheld multimedia and gaming devices

tobaccocontrol · 2025-12-10 · canonical JSON source

2 visible annotations · policy: published · automated confidence ≥ 75.00%

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Electronic cigarette (EC) manufacturers are now turning fourth-generation ECs into functional gaming devices. Emerging ECs have high-definition (HD) displays with built-in digital games, such as Pac-Man (figures 1–3). These ECs are of particular concern, as they are user-friendly, attractive to youth and may couple nicotine addiction with gaming disorders. One of these products has gone viral on social media and currently has over 12 million views (figure 1). Some emerging ECs also have features found in smart devices (phones, tablets and watches), such as HD touchscreens, photo wallpapers, customisable displays, ‘find my device’, bluetooth, speakers, wireless charging and voice recognition figure 4A-I, which may further entice youth by resembling mobile devices.1 These multifunctional ECs are available in vape shops and online and cost roughly the same as traditional ECs, making them accessible to youth.2