vaporizersale
Member
This has nothing to do with patents, it has to do with paraphernalia laws and/or dirty vapes being sent across state lines.
What Happened to Zephyr
- Thread starter Mike7752
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vaporizersale
Member
Admittedly I could be wrong because I do not know for sure like anyone else. I'm basing this on:
1. My personal experiences with customs confiscations.
2. The text on the Zephyr site which almost specifically says that the issues are related to the actual use of the vaporizer and nothing else.
Allow me to elaborate:
For example:
"Recently, questions have been raised by government authorities about the appropriate uses of our product as well as similarly designed products from other manufacturers."
The only 3 issues the government could have with the proper usage of the product are:
1. Paraphernalia (could be the least likely possibility but don't think for one second a few dirty vaporizers being confiscated on the way back to them wouldn't be enough to catch big brother's eye.)
2. Unapproved medical device (usually related to claims of better health, health benefit claims etc)
3. Unapproved smoking cessation device (they constantly go after e-cigarette manufacturers - which are also vaporizers - for this)
How can they prove any of these? Videos online, forum threads, reviews, company marketing material etc - they use these things frequently when trying internet related cases. Anyone who thinks this is far fetched knows absolutely dick about how our government operates.
>>> The "as well as similarly designed products" tells me that they are not looking at just Zephyr but vaporizer manufacturers in general regarding the use of their products rather than in relation to copyright infringement of a particular competitor's product.
"We take pride in the quality of our product and are committed to ensuring that its manufacture and distribution be in conformity with all applicable federal, state, and local regulations."
>>> This statement is obviously directly referring to US laws on local, state, and Federal level and insinuates IMO that the problem lies directly with the governments "questions about appropriate use" which would have absolutely nothing to do with patents as far as I can tell.
It could make sense that the government has no problem with the usage of the product relating to drug law but could much more likely come after them for something like selling an unapproved medical device or some crap like that. If this were the case it would be much less serious.
Again, could I be wrong? Yes of course. Just wanted to share my opinion with everyone.
On a side note, I also know that Zephyr was shipping refurbished units to their distributor(s) as new as recent as a few months ago. So many people who thought they were getting a brand new vaporizer, were in fact not. That tells you a little bit about the company itself.
1. My personal experiences with customs confiscations.
2. The text on the Zephyr site which almost specifically says that the issues are related to the actual use of the vaporizer and nothing else.
Allow me to elaborate:
For example:
"Recently, questions have been raised by government authorities about the appropriate uses of our product as well as similarly designed products from other manufacturers."
The only 3 issues the government could have with the proper usage of the product are:
1. Paraphernalia (could be the least likely possibility but don't think for one second a few dirty vaporizers being confiscated on the way back to them wouldn't be enough to catch big brother's eye.)
2. Unapproved medical device (usually related to claims of better health, health benefit claims etc)
3. Unapproved smoking cessation device (they constantly go after e-cigarette manufacturers - which are also vaporizers - for this)
How can they prove any of these? Videos online, forum threads, reviews, company marketing material etc - they use these things frequently when trying internet related cases. Anyone who thinks this is far fetched knows absolutely dick about how our government operates.
>>> The "as well as similarly designed products" tells me that they are not looking at just Zephyr but vaporizer manufacturers in general regarding the use of their products rather than in relation to copyright infringement of a particular competitor's product.
"We take pride in the quality of our product and are committed to ensuring that its manufacture and distribution be in conformity with all applicable federal, state, and local regulations."
>>> This statement is obviously directly referring to US laws on local, state, and Federal level and insinuates IMO that the problem lies directly with the governments "questions about appropriate use" which would have absolutely nothing to do with patents as far as I can tell.
It could make sense that the government has no problem with the usage of the product relating to drug law but could much more likely come after them for something like selling an unapproved medical device or some crap like that. If this were the case it would be much less serious.
Again, could I be wrong? Yes of course. Just wanted to share my opinion with everyone.
On a side note, I also know that Zephyr was shipping refurbished units to their distributor(s) as new as recent as a few months ago. So many people who thought they were getting a brand new vaporizer, were in fact not. That tells you a little bit about the company itself.
lwien
Well-Known Member
vaporizersale said:
You didn't originally state it as an opinion, but stated it as fact.
I know you're new here, but just a word to the wise. If you don't want to be challenged on just about everything you say, you may not want to state opinions as facts, but as opinions.
stickstones
Vapor concierge
You are also basing your opinion on Zephyr's statements as if they would be forthcoming right now. The last thing that is going to happen is Zephyr telling it like it is on their site.
Anthony
Anthony
Zephyr's website reads as it *sounds* like it might come back into buisness, no idea however:
http://www.zephyrvaporizers.com/
Welcome to Zephyr Vaporizers
Dear Customers and Zephyr Fans,
We write to inform you of an important matter regarding Zephyr Vaporizers. Recently, questions have been raised by government authorities about the appropriate uses of our product as well as similarly designed products from other manufacturers. Aromatherapy enthusiasts are well aware of the benefits of herbal remedies and the value of extracting the essential oils of herbs through vaporization as compared to ingestion. The Zephyr's patented vaporization system, effective in releasing the flavors and active ingredients in a wide variety of spices and herbs, also lends itself to a variety of culinary applications. And given the myriad toxic substances found in tobacco smoke as a by-product of combustion, the Zephyr Vaporizer provides a beneficial smoke-free approach for tobacco users, one that may also aid in smoking cessation. We take pride in the quality of our product and are committed to ensuring that its manufacture and distribution be in conformity with all applicable federal, state, and local regulations. We are working hard to address the concerns and questions raised by the government about our product. In the interim, and until we are assured that we can continue marketing the Zephyr in full compliance with all applicable laws and regulations, we have voluntarily elected to suspend temporarily operations at Zephyr. We are hopeful that Zephyr will be in a position to resume operations shortly and we thank you for your continued patience and support.
Sincerely,
Zephyr Vaporizers
http://www.zephyrvaporizers.com/
Welcome to Zephyr Vaporizers
Dear Customers and Zephyr Fans,
We write to inform you of an important matter regarding Zephyr Vaporizers. Recently, questions have been raised by government authorities about the appropriate uses of our product as well as similarly designed products from other manufacturers. Aromatherapy enthusiasts are well aware of the benefits of herbal remedies and the value of extracting the essential oils of herbs through vaporization as compared to ingestion. The Zephyr's patented vaporization system, effective in releasing the flavors and active ingredients in a wide variety of spices and herbs, also lends itself to a variety of culinary applications. And given the myriad toxic substances found in tobacco smoke as a by-product of combustion, the Zephyr Vaporizer provides a beneficial smoke-free approach for tobacco users, one that may also aid in smoking cessation. We take pride in the quality of our product and are committed to ensuring that its manufacture and distribution be in conformity with all applicable federal, state, and local regulations. We are working hard to address the concerns and questions raised by the government about our product. In the interim, and until we are assured that we can continue marketing the Zephyr in full compliance with all applicable laws and regulations, we have voluntarily elected to suspend temporarily operations at Zephyr. We are hopeful that Zephyr will be in a position to resume operations shortly and we thank you for your continued patience and support.
Sincerely,
Zephyr Vaporizers
aintnoencore
Member
mivory54 said:
I know it's been awhile but I got lucky and my local head shop honored the warranty themselves when I took my Zephyr back and gave me a new one. The new one has been fine working ever since.
Idk if places are still selling these but if anyone is thinking about picking one up they are a GREAT deal if you can be sure that the warranty will be honored by whoever you purchase it from (ie WOULDNT buy one online).
Hopefully Zephyr is back in business soon and is able to offer us even more features for this fantastic machine!
mattafix420
Member
My local headshop is advertising that they have zephyr vaporizers back in stock. Would these most likely be knockoffs?
Purple-Days
Well-Known Member
Stickstones says, "You are also basing your opinion on Zephyr's statements as if they would be forthcoming right now. The last thing that is going to happen is Zephyr telling it like it is on their site." 
Funny, if you do the 'internet sleuth' thing, crickets... you can't find anything other than reposts of the Zephyr statement. No news items of a 'raid', no pending court case . . . nothing that I can find. NO follow up comments, from Zephyr, who must have thousands of customers waiting to hear anything, such as, 'We are fighting this in XYZ court . . .' .
Bruce (FC forum member), what's going on? You worked for them... any word on a court date, so we can follow along? Where is the jurisdiction? Federal court (U.S. Customs)? What are the charges? I mean, sure it's a Chinese company, but you can't just bust in on somebody and confiscate their entire inventory (on USA property) without a warrant (from a US Judge) and charge of some sort.
Surely somebody, somewhere has this info. Unless, " telling it like it is", isn't the Zephyr intent. Sure, somebody will say, "they can't comment on pending court cases", but that doesn't stop them from giving the 'facts', such as charges and court date... At least then we would know they (Zephyr) were telling the truth...
As a fellow manufacturer, based on the Zephyr claims, I am interested in following this court case.
I bet we hear more crickets...
Funny, if you do the 'internet sleuth' thing, crickets... you can't find anything other than reposts of the Zephyr statement. No news items of a 'raid', no pending court case . . . nothing that I can find. NO follow up comments, from Zephyr, who must have thousands of customers waiting to hear anything, such as, 'We are fighting this in XYZ court . . .' .
Bruce (FC forum member), what's going on? You worked for them...
any word on a court date, so we can follow along? Where is the jurisdiction? Federal court (U.S. Customs)? What are the charges? I mean, sure it's a Chinese company, but you can't just bust in on somebody and confiscate their entire inventory (on USA property) without a warrant (from a US Judge) and charge of some sort. Surely somebody, somewhere has this info. Unless, " telling it like it is", isn't the Zephyr intent. Sure, somebody will say, "they can't comment on pending court cases", but that doesn't stop them from giving the 'facts', such as charges and court date... At least then we would know they (Zephyr) were telling the truth...
As a fellow manufacturer, based on the Zephyr claims, I am interested in following this court case.
I bet we hear more crickets...
CombustionJunction
What's Your Function?
Totally agree. They sure did make a quality vape. I really have hope that they will settle their problems and bounce back.PuffItUp said:
Lo
Combustion free since '09
Not sure what is going on w/ Zephyr but I was at a local shop couple days ago and saw a Zephyr there. I asked about whether they had been getting more units and parts for them. I was told they have been getting both units and parts for them in the last couple months. Not sure if they are back up and running or whether it was stock that had been sitting somewhere.
biojuggernaut
Snob
I'm not trying to say your head shop isnt reputable but I assume they would say anything to make a sale. Especially on a unit that no longer has any warrenty support (to the extent of our knowledge).
biojuggernaut
Snob
Oh I know I understood this. Just coming from a state (PA) where its hard for head shops to open and stay open I know they will pretty much tell potential customers anything to get rid of a unit. & not take a loss by not selling that 300 dollar vaporizer.
Would just like to hear a solid statement from zephyr concerning what exactly I CAN do with my own ion in case it ever does break. . . .
Would just like to hear a solid statement from zephyr concerning what exactly I CAN do with my own ion in case it ever does break. . . .
Vapenstien's Monster
Well-Known Member
Sure would be nice to be able to come in here and pass on some useful information. There is none to the best of my knowledge, I have no idea what is going on with Zephyr, Customs, Court Cases etc. As a former employee Zephyr doesn't have any obligation to tell me anything about what is going on. ( and they Don't ). I have heard a few shops still have Zephyrs in stock but I have not heard of any new zephyrs making it into the country.
Sorry for the crickets but I have no control over anything Zephy does.
I am moving well with Head Wize and should anyone need us, feel free to get in touch.
Sorry for the crickets but I have no control over anything Zephy does.
I am moving well with Head Wize and should anyone need us, feel free to get in touch.
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