If you are living in urban areas or polluted cities like Beijing or Doha, you will absolutely appreciate clean air more. The Beijing’s air is so bad that residents have to buy bottled fresh air imported from Canada.
At the moment of writing this review, I’ve checked the air quality in Beijing and it is still extremely polluted. The air quality index here stays at 174 which means everybody would experience health effects and should avoid prolonged outdoor exertion.
Xiaomi has released a lot of smart products this summer, some doesn’t make sense but some are very helpful. People might think they are stupid to make an air purifier, I had the same thought until I had a chance to test the new Xiaomi Mi Air Purifier 2. Keep reading to figure out what makes the product useful.
Design
This is the 2nd generation of the Mi air purifier and there’ve been some significant changes here. As compared to the original version, the new one is 40% smaller and more lightweight as well. The maximum capacity is 388 cubic meters per hour, which is a little lower than its predecessor. You can use it in a room of 27.2 to 46.6 square meters.
Similar to recent Xiaomi’s products, the new Xiaomi Air Purifier features a minimalist design with only 1 button on top to switch modes and 1 button on the back to dim the light.
The Xiaomi Air Purifier 2 runs in 3 modes, which are Auto, Sleep, and Favorite modes. The Auto mode automatically switches between modes according to the environment, the sleep mode turns down the fan for a quiet night’s sleep, and Favorite mode allows you to adjust the air flow.
Notably, the purifier uses a 360-degree barrel HEPA filter which will increase performance by purifying air from all directions. It’s very easy to replace the filter and Xiaomi recommends you to change the filter every 4-6 months, depending on your usage. The Xiaomi Home app will let you know when you should order a new one. The replacement filter costs about $30.
Performance
You can install the Mi Home app to get the most out of the purifier. The app will show you the PM2.5 estimate, the room temperature, humidity, filter condition, running time and amount of clean air delivered. You can also control the purifier with the app.
The most important info here is the PM2.5 estimate. PM2.5 shows the amount of particulate matter in the air small enough to penetrate deeper into the lungs. The fine particles are less than 2.5 micrometers in diameter. An increase of 10 μg/m3 will result in a 36% increase in lung cancer and contribute to heart diseases as well. In the United States, the daily average standard is 35 µg/m3 while the annual average standard is just 15 µg/m3. So you can imagine how hazardous the air quality is in developing countries. The PM2.5 in Beijing even passed the 500 µg/m3 a few times per year, they had to close industrial plants and everyone is recommended to stay indoors.
I live in a green suburban area, so I thought that the air here was clean enough to keep me healthy. When I powered on the Mi Air Purifier, it shows the PM2.5 estimate of nearly 40 µg/m3 which is a little higher than the recommended standard of 25 µg/m3. Therefore, I know that I will need to use the air purifier more often. After operating for about 40 minutes, the PM2.5 level has decreased to just 11 µg/m3. It also manages to get rid of the smell coming from my kitchen.
However, when I use the Auto mode, I don’t see a significant change in PM2.5. Therefore, I had to switch to the Favorite mode to adjust the fan speed, and the air quality is improved dramatically faster. This is because Xiaomi considers the air in my room fairly clean and doesn’t boost the fan. It only works harder when someone in the room light up a cigarette or when I start cooking.
Conclusion
Pros
Clean design
Improve air quality indoors
Affordable price
Cons
The filter needs to be replaced every few months
The Mi Air Purifier 2 is a great upgrade from its predecessor or from any other normal purifier. It will help you keep track of the air quality indoors and know when to clean it. I highly recommend the product.
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