The Levoit LV-H133 is another competitor to the Coway AP-1512HH, and it produced similar test results—98.8% and 92.9% reduction in particulates on high and medium, respectively, versus 98.9% and 87.6%. But it’s more expensive up front and over the course of five years’ upkeep, and its taller form and higher noise output make it visually and audibly intrusive. We like that the Blue Pure 311 Auto automatically shuts off the white LED lights on its control panel, on top of the unit, after a few moments.
We have also found no evidence that the machines’ fan function, as Dyson claims, makes them superior to other purifiers in the distribution of filtered air throughout a room. In fact, our years of testing have shown that any appropriately sized purifier will distribute filtered air evenly, into levoit purifier the farthest corner of a room. With its compact size and modern design, the Levoit LV-H132XR Compact HEPA Air Purifier is ideal for smaller rooms, like bedrooms. This air purifier features a three-stage filtration system including a pre-filter, a HEPA filter and an activated carbon filter.
John Holecek, who co-wrote and performed testing for previous versions of this guide, holds a master’s degree in earth science, with a focus on climate, aerosols, and analytical chemistry. He has conducted laboratory tests for Wirecutter’s air purifier reviews since 2014. Since 1999, he has studied particulate air pollution for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and in the private sector. Levoit air purifiers are equipped with 3-stage filtration to keep your home
as healthy as possible.
That’s a matter of taste and budget, and whether you think the wireless charger adds significant value. If your main concern is air quality, you can certainly find purifiers that are just as powerful—such as the Coway Airmega AP-1512HH Mighty, the Winix AM90, and the Blueair Blue Pure 311 Auto—for far less. But we expect this sort of design-forward, multipurpose purifier to become more common as improving air quality becomes a concern in many households. The AP-1512HH has also demonstrated the ability to maintain its high performance for years, even as we’ve pushed its filters far beyond their stated one-year lifespan. We ran our original test model for two years without replacing the filter, and it still performed just as well in our follow-up test as it did on day one. We ran our second test model 24/7 for four years, and again we saw no change in performance, noise output, or reliability.
Clear the air of allergens, smoke, dust and pollen with the touch of a button. The Levoit Vital 100’s compact design makes it perfect for your bedroom, living room, kitchen or any large space. Before using it, the only thing you need to do is remove the plastic bag from around the filter. Simply twist the shell counterclockwise to remove it from the base, take out the filter and lock the shell back in place.
I run it full blast during the day and turn it to the lowest setting at night. I took another reading in 30 minutes, but the monitor still showed the air was in the hazard zone. After letting the Levoit run an additional 30 minutes, I checked again, but the air quality was still unsafe, although it was improving. The GermGuardian CDAP4500 is a small-space unit that usually costs $150 or so—more than our pick in that category, the Levoit Core 300—mostly because it offers Wi-Fi connectivity, which isn’t useful or necessary. It’s an attractive machine, too, with its simple cylindrical form and tweedlike fabric covering (which also acts as a prefilter; you can launder it to keep the prefilter performing at its best). The purifier comes standard with a gray covering, and several other colors “inspired by the natural landscapes of Scandinavia” are available for purchase separately.
I’d highly recommend it for anyone looking for a quiet, effective and affordable air purifier. Air purifiers are fairly straightforward appliances with minimal installation and upkeep. Still, you want to make sure your unit continues to work correctly — and lasts as long as possible. That’s why we’re going to walk through the process of cleaning a plug-in portable air purifier here, so you know how to keep yours in good shape as it takes on the allergens in your home.
The Levoit air purifier comes preassembled, which is nice; however, users must remove the plastic covering from the internal air filter. Fortunately, the device had a prominent sticker on top directing me to remove the plastic wrap before using the machine. Levoit’s Core Mini Air Purifier (LAP-C161-WUS) is considered a personal space model, meaning it’s designed for small areas. It will purify the air in a room up to 178 square feet, making it well suited for use in a nursery, bedroom, or small home office. Tim Heffernan is a senior staff writer at Wirecutter and a former writer-editor for The Atlantic, Esquire, and others. He has anchored our unequaled coverage of air purifiers and water filters since 2015.
The above findings make the Förnuftig an automatic dismissal under our criteria. If the AM90 is unavailable, the otherwise identical Winix AM80 is worth considering. It comes only in dark gray, lacks Wi-Fi connectivity, and uses a one-year VOC filter in contrast to the AM90’s three-month filter.
It offers two distinct fan functions—diffuse and focused—and we tested it on both functions in the lab and in the real world. John Holecek further tested it for VOC removal in the lab, considering that Dyson had implemented an upgrade of its VOC filter since our 2016 test of its predecessor. In every case the HP02 offered disappointing performance relative to our top pick. Considering its high up-front cost and relatively weak performance, we can’t recommend it. The Winix A230, a small-space purifier suited for bedrooms or offices, performed well in our tests—seemingly too well for such a small machine. Afterward, we realized that we had inadvertently tested it with its ionizer function on, and we recommend against ionizers because of their (admittedly small) production of ozone.