Models that have the Energy Star rating will use less energy than comparable products. Despite being a powerful machine, it doesn’t take up too much space and as far as white goods go, sits comfortably in my living space, bedroom or office. Due to its relatively lightweight, it’s easy to maneuver from room to room and can slot nicely into the corner or a cupboard when not in use. The Alen BreatheSmart 45i performed excellently, cleaning our test room of all particle pollutants in 33 minutes.
I went for the ‘Fresh’ model, which contains a medical-grade H13 True HEPA filter plus an activated carbon filter for added protection against VOCs and smoke. ? The replacement filters are expensive.? The cheapest filter option doesn’t have an activated carbon filter.? Being provided with 3 different power cables for various regions is unnecessary and wasteful. Speed can be adjusted manually or using an automatic mode, and a countdown timer lets you shut the unit off after two, 4, or 12 hours.
This is quite a long lifespan for a HEPA filter, with many other manufacturers suggesting replacing the filter after 6 months or a year if used infrequently. However, as the replacement filters cost up to $119, I hope it proves true. In reality, the power consumed will be much lower as the purifier operates on the lowest setting 99% of the time. Each of Alen’s True HEPA filters can capture 99.99% of airborne contaminants alen breathesmart down to 0.1 microns, which are certainly impressive figures and was something we saw for real in our performance tests. However, these results reflect controlled lab testing, so I was keen to see how these figures translate in the real world. Once everything is unwrapped, open the front hatch via the air inlets on the side of the machine and slot in the HEPA filter, with the pre-filter facing towards you.
And our beautifully designed, whisper-quiet units do it without disrupting your conversations or your lifestyle. While we all want to be in a room breathing clean air, some machines are simply too noisy and distracting to make it feel worthwhile. In order to see just how noisy each device was, we turned each one on and measured the sound output with a decibel reader.
Even when set to the turbo, the BreatheSmart 75i produced very little noise. In this setting, it omits a pleasant low hum that our testers found to be noninvasive white noise. When running on medium, it was even quieter, and it was all but unnoticeable when set to low. While the Alen Breathesmart 45i proves to be highly efficient in energy use, filter replacement costs are considerably increased by average running costs.
Alen’s BreatheSmart 75i is the company’s largest air purifier, and it’s one of the largest I’ve tested altogether. The 75i is also quite powerful–indeed, maybe too powerful for most residential users, making it a better fit in commercial venues. Our experts test thousands of products each year using thoughtful test plans that bring out key performance differences between competing products. And, to assure complete independence, we buy all the products we test ourselves. Reflects how intuitive and easy the controls are to use, carrying ease, ability to remove the filter, and filter life indicator.
Dust, pollen, smoke removal is how well a model cleared air of fine clay dust and cigarette smoke when operating at a low speed that was typically one setting above the lowest speed. Many models have multiple speeds and the lowest is not as effective at cleaning the air. A model that scores well for dust removal should perform comparably for pollen. Although its price lasko pedestal fans comes in at the higher end of the mid-range market, you’ll struggle to find another purifier for under $450 that boasts 5 air changes per hour in an 800 sq. Ft room with a CADR rating of 245, along with the real-world performance to back it up. The smart features include App support and an accurate auto mode that switches on when it detects pollutants in the air.