If you could please explain, in layman's terms, what I need to get that is decently inexpensive for a pack a day smoker.
Baditude has some
good recommendations for beginners here.
I usually recommend either
an Evod starter kit or
a Mini Protank starter kit to newcomers. They each come with two batteries (the more expensive kit has variable voltage), two clearomizer juice attachments (the more expensive kit has glass tanks), a battery charger with wall adapter, and some replacement coil heads (these need to be regularly cleaned and eventually replaced altogether). After reading
Baditude's guide, these terms will make more sense. This is pretty much all you really need to start other than juice. (The same or similar kits are also available from other sources, such as Discount Vapers.)
These units I recommend are "eGo-style." They're larger than cigarettes (they're about the size of
petit corona cigars, which are still quite small), but they have longer battery life and more versatility than kits that resemble cigarettes. In the long term, they're usually much cheaper than kits that resemble cigarettes as well. Overall, it seems most former smokers find these a lot more satisfying, making it much easier to quit smoking cigarettes.
The next step up would be a "mod." Baditude has another great
article here about what that means. WarHawk-AVG has already recommended the iTaste MVP, which is
currently available for only $40 in the United States. It's a good deal for a great unit about the size of a box of smokes. Because the MVP has an internal battery and comes with a charger and juice attachment, the only thing you'd need is juice and (eventually) replacement coil heads. (At some point you would also want a backup unit of some kind-- such as an Evod kit, another MVP, something else entirely-- just in case it gets lost, stolen, or broken.)
You can also
learn more about juice attachments here. Feel free to ask any questions you may have!