Jim,
From my post above, I think this is the most important part as far as informing the new member on the difference between auto and manual.
Cut and paste with the additional 'both' comment:
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Manual or Automatic battery
Manual batteries require you to push a button to activate the battery.
Automatic batteries are activated by sound or the act of drawing on the ecigarette.
Automatic Batteries:
You have liquid in the cartridge. In order for the liquid to become vapor, it has to be vaporized. For that to happen the atomizer must heat to the point of vaporizing the liquid. Auto batteries are activated by drawing on the ecig or producing noise of drawing. The sequence is:
1. draw
2. battery activates
3. atomizer begins to heat up
4. the atomizer continues to heat up
5. the liquid is vaporized
6. you inhale
From 1 to 3 the liquid is still in liquid form. From 3 to 4 _some of the liquid_ in the area of the atomizer is still in liquid form. From 1 to 4 the mouth piece is acting like a straw and you can get liquid in your mouth.
One workaround is to take what's called a 'primer puff' - where you make the noise of drawing to start the battery but do not continue to draw. You then wait for the atomizer to atomize the liquid and then draw. Another work around is to start to draw but not very hard - because you'll get juice in your mouth - this sometimes starts the battery and sometimes it doesn't. If it does, if you then increase the amount of draw pressure and draw slowly like drinking a thick shake through a straw. But this prolonged drag can also take time to where you may run into the auto battery's 'cutoff' where the atomizer shuts off. Sometimes a 'waiting period' to where you can't start the cycle again, because the auto battery is still in the 'cutoff mode'. Iow, the battery controls you at that point.
Manual Batteries:
With manual batteries, you have to push a small button in order to start the above 1-6 sequence.
Here, the only part of this that is not part of the smoking experience is pushing the button. When you push the button before drawing, numbers 2 through 5 above occur before you take a draw. When you do draw, you draw vapor not juice, and this is very much more like taking a drag on a cigarette.
And, most people say that using the button in this manner becomes second nature in less than a day.
Some models are available with both the auto and manual batteries.
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Regards....
Kent this isn't any kind of slam, because anything that will help new people is good. And I appreciate the time you took with this guide, but...
It's a bit misleading.
Your description of the automatic batteries is actually pretty biased. You make it sound like a certainty, that buying an automatic unit will doom you with these problems, no exceptions, and that is very far from the truth.
I have a 401 automatic and have none of the problems you mentioned. While the potential for any of those things is there when you buy an automatic, carefully choosing the correct model will minimize or eliminate most, if not all of them.
Yes some units have a 3 or 4 second cutoff. But some models, like the 401 for example, actually have a 7 second cutoff. That is enough that most people will never actually cause it to engage. Certain models though, like the Red Dragon 2 piece unit, do have a shorter cutoff time. So by doing some research before buying, you can minimize the potential for this kind of problem.
You also make it sound like people need a degree just to take a hit from an automatic. And that they are almost guaranteed to get juice in the mouth. So, let me ask. Does using a manual battery guarantee that I won't ever get juice in my mouth?
As for the battery sometimes starting, and sometimes not starting when you take a draw. C'mon!! I'm not saying it doesn't happen, but much more so with a cheap unit, or an older model. Yes, occasionally someone will post about a new unit that has that problem. But considering how many units are sold, it's a small percentage. As e-cigs progress, quality is constantly improving, and I would have to say, this is another thing that is the exception, not the norm. Sometimes the auto batteries do stick, and that is usually cured with a few light taps on the desk. Also this a good spot to again ask something about manual batteries. Do they, (manual units), ever come with defective batteries?
My point is, you magnified everything regarding the automatic battery. But with the manual battery, you basically said, just push the button and vape.
People reading this, and trying to make a decision to buy, will categorize automatics as bad, and manual batteries as good, because that's the way you have painted the picture. The truth is, there are some pretty good automatic units to be had.
Like I said up top, please don't take my post the wrong way. But if I read this before I purchased my 401, I might not have bought it, and that would have been a mistake!
Ez
Ok. Ez, you think you're 'piling on' when I'm standing in the end zone on this issue, even though the scoreboard has been turned off... and rightly so, imo. The longer narrative on autos vs. manuals is necessary because of the nature of what happens with the autos and the fact that you have figured it out to where you got one working, says nothing about the multitude of people that report otherwise every day. I don't usually continue to argue a winning point, but I will if you're willing. Part of the reason Jim deleted the above posts was to stop the back and forth on the issue and as far as I'm concerned he can delete these too as long as he deletes both. 
