Which Is The Best Air Purifier To Buy?

As I look outside my office window I can see the plush condominium, tall and luxurious, it looks majestic. The towers seems touching the sky. On top of the tower is a steel grey chimney which spews out black smoke each time the genset is on. The road below has endless flow of traffic, each vehicle, unless it is electric, spewing out gases. Just a few miles across is the industrial sector where industries which include a car manufacturing unit besides hundreds of other industrial units each of them contributing toxic gases, smoke and other harmful stuff through their chimneys. The same air is the air we breathe.

Clean air is a challenge especially if you are living in one the metros in India. As awareness of clean air pollution increases so does the demand for air purifiers. According to an industry insider sales of air purifiers have been growing 60% to 70% year on year over the last few 3 years and likely to grow even higher. Depending on your price range here is a pick of some good air purifiers.

Top of the line - Blueair iClassic 480i
This is one of the top of the line home air purifiers. From removing airborne pollutants to allergy & asthma triggers Blueair iClassic does a great job of cleaning the air well. It works well in rooms up to 430 sq ft and takes around half hour to clean even in challenging conditions when pollution is high. The entire operation can be controlled through an app and it also has a great panel on the device itself. It also comes from a strong Swedish pedigree with really sound technology.

What's great
Top of the line HEPASilent technology and one of the best air purifiers available in the market
Great cleaning capacity with CADR (clean air delivery rate) of 510 m3/hr
Great performance- cleans the air fully 5 times an hour
Portable weighing at 15 kgs considering the performance it is great
Wifi enabled

What's not great
Priced at around Rs.70,000, it's quite high for the typical Indian household and even for those for whom clean air is a priority.
Doesn't automatically re-start after the power cut and power backup scenario.

Recurring costs
The cost of filter change is Rs. 12000 with a life of around 4320 hours that's 12 months @ 12 hours use.

Simple and affordable - Mi Air Purifier 2
There is something about Mi which nobody knows, they manage to sell products at price points few can match. Take the case of Mi Air Purifier 2. Priced at Rs.9,999 it has a lot on offer. It's takes 10min to circulate clean air in a 21 sq meters room and removes particles, dust from unclean air conditioners, germs, indoor plant pollen, odours and pet hair. Mi Home app also lets you monitor home air quality from your phone at any time. Create schedules to power on, power off etc.

What's Great
Very low power consumption at 4.8 watts in normal mode
Priced at Rs.9999 it sure is a deal
CADR at 310m3 /hr is decent
Really silent
Wifi enabled with an awesome app that lets you can control your home air purifier from anywhere.
Ultra portable at just 4.8 kgs

What's not great
Lacks display
Does not remove odour as efficiently as it claims.
Frequent filter change at 3 months

Recurring costs
Filter change costs Rs.2500 every 3 months.

Midrange - Kent Alps
Kent is a household name in purification. Their offering Kent Alps has state of the art HEPA technology.The activated carbon filters foul odours, foul smell, volatile organic compounds, cigarette smoke and dust. The ionizer improves the freshness and overall air quality.

What's great
Cleaning capacity is good at CADR at 400 m3/hr
Priced at 21,000 but it available at around 15,699 in online stores
Reasonable change of filter costs at less than Rs.300/month
Good after sales service network

What's not great
Power consumption is 55 watts in normal mode
Not wifi enable

Recurring costs
Rs.3600 every year

Verdict
If you looking for performance and serious about air quality it's definitely Blueair iClassic 480i. It's the best it can get and is far ahead of others. If you are looking for a balance between affordability and performance Mi Air Purifier 2 is a great buy.