Credit: AlenCorp.com
| Specifications | |
|---|---|
| Price | $499.00 |
| CADR (Clean Air Delivery Rate) rating | 220 |
| HEPA Filter? | Yes |
| Energy Star certified? | Yes |
| Area coverage | 800 square feet |
| Dimensions | 10 x 16.8 x 22.2 inches |
But the price is scary to look at – and although it’s likely to live up to the investment, this purifier is simply not in the budget of most shoppers.
Read the full review below.
- Huge coverage area — great for your biggest rooms.
- Intelligent; monitors air quality and adjusts work rate accordingly
- Packed with cool features, like child-lock and air quality indicator lights
- Beautiful and smart design
- Expensive.
FULL REVIEW:
There’s a lot to discuss when it comes to the Alen BreatheSmart FIT50. But the first thing that any buyer sees is the price tag – and the price tag is, indeed, a bit shocking.
Credit: AlenCorp.com
But it’s best to talk about price in context. So I’m going to touch on other angles first and come back to price at the end.
Performance
The FIT50 boasts some impressive power. It’s one of the best air purifiers for allergies, because it’s particularly effective against allergens and smaller particles; it also eradicates dust very well. If the device has a relative weakness, it’s dealing with odors and smoke. It’s certainly still powerful against these things – more-so than the vast majority of purifiers – but it’s not quite “$500 powerful”, so if you’re looking specifically to get rid of smoke and odors you might look for a less expensive unit that will better fit your needs.
But the one number that jumped out right away was the 800 square foot area coverage; that’s not a number you usually see attached to “home” air purifiers. And I don’t think the manufacturer is blowing smoke here. This device really does handle huge rooms exceptionally well – at least, on it’s highest setting.
The unit actually has four settings – the first two are perfectly effective for bedrooms and other medium-sized rooms (coverage area of the lower settings lands anywhere between 300 -500 square feet). What’s more, these settings are nearly “whisper” quiet, despite the device working fairly hard.
The third setting is designed for even larger rooms (600 – 700 square feet), or medium-sized rooms that have particularly bad air quality. The device is still reasonably quiet on this setting. And on all three of these settings, the unit works quickly and efficiently.
The last setting is called “turbo speed”, and this is where the device gets heavy-duty. On “turbo”, the FIT50 can handle pretty much any room you can throw at it (up to 800 square feet; in other words, a 26 ft. x 30 ft. room). It’s not the fastest working device; its CADR rating is 220, but that’s immaterial here, because any device is going to slow down when you ask it to handle more space.
The FIT50 loses most of its “quiet” factor on this highest setting. That’s fine; if you’re running “turbo”, you’re looking for results over quiet.
If you’re looking for specifics on sound, the manufacturer provides the following noise levels per setting:
Speed 1: 32.4 dB
Speed 2: 38.5 dB
Speed 3: 44.5 dB
Turbo: 48.7 dB
Intelligence and Features
This device has all the nifty features you’d expect from a $500 price tag. First, the FIT50 actively monitors your air quality, and can adjust its work-rate based on the presence of pollutants. Additionally, the device almost serves a dual-purpose as a home air quality test; with a series of light-up buttons, the unit lets you know what the air quality is like in your home at any given time.
Credit: AlenCorp.com
The FIT50 has a child lock to prevent your kid’s adventurous hands from tweaking the purifier’s settings. Now that’s a legitimately cool feature.
I also want to touch on energy efficiency. This device draws about 65 watts (that number will go up when on “turbo”, and go down when on lower settings). That’s an impressive level of efficiency for a device that works as hard as the FIT50; other units with similar power typically draw 120 watts or more.
The FIT50 is beautifully designed; it’s modern, sleek and fairly compact (dimensions of 22.25″ x 16.75″ x 10″). It you feel like shelling out an extra $40, you can get the same device with a great oak finish.
Price
Ah, the price. There’s no getting around the price tag. It’s expensive.
But here’s the question you need to ask yourself: what are your needs, air quality-wise?
The answer will vary person-by-person. For many – say, people who simply want a purifier for their small bedroom – the $500 isn’t worth it. This isn’t a device you buy to stick in a small room and use once a week.
But for other people – let’s say, people with major allergy, respiratory, or other air-related medical issues – $500 isn’t unreasonable for better health, comfort and peace-of-mind inside their own homes.
This device is worth every penny if your personal needs align with a high-end purifier.
