In India, in recent times, air pollution has been a major issue in several growing cities. Whatever the reason is, including the industrial smoke, vehicular exhausts, or the crop burning issue that is affecting the national capital of the country, in the end, it is people who are suffering the most from their own doings. While there are long-term approaches to fix the issues in hand, the current situation of bad air that we breathe can be tackled to an extent by using air purifiers. The rise of air pollution is thankfully accompanied by the growth in the number of air purifiers in the market, and Xiaomi has as usual been one of the brands to offer budget-friendly options for someone looking for a well-working solution while not being heavy on the price tag.
This year itself, Xiaomi has launched two air purifiers, one being the budget option with its obvious emissions of some features to keep the pricing low, while the other one is the best from the brand so far in India, the Mi Air Purifier 3. While this is an upgrade from the Air Purifier 2s that was already doing well in the market, is it worth the price tag of Rs. 9999, and does it come with any major changes? Let’s check it out in the review.
Design, portability, and specs
The basic sizing is like the Mi Air Purifier 2s if you have had one already. If not, it is a tall and slim cuboid and it is quite simple to look at, and it would adjust in any place with most of the decors. Xiaomi’s one brand that one would admire for its design standards, and that continues here with the design of Air Purifiers. The purifier has a mesh on every side of it vertically to help suck in air, and the exit is from the top of the purifier.
Usually, for these kinds of appliances, weight is a major issue for moving it around and making it hard for household chores like cleaning. But with the Mi Air Purifier 3, it is about 4.8kg and is easy to lift and move around.
Now, if we are to compare this with the 2s, the circular design of the exit fans on the top is changed into a square one, giving the top a larger area for the exit of the purified air. The change is not just for the easier exit of the air but also is done to help with the newer arrangement of the internal fans. The bigger change here is with the buttons being replaced by a circular OLED panel, which is touch-enabled. In the previous version, a physical button helped switch between the modes, but now the same can be done using that touch panel. The display shows AQI levels, ambient temperature, moisture in the air around, and also the mode that is currently selected.
On the back, just above the filter cover, there is a physical button that toggles the brightness of the display, and pressing it would either increase or reduce the brightness or even turn off the display when you don’t want to always bother checking the AQI and want the purifier to do its job.
The Mi Air Purifier 3 has a Clean Air Delivery Rate (CADR) of 380 cubic meters per hour, and the effective area covered by it is 26 to 45 square meters. Unlike the previous version that had the Class 12 EPA filter, this time, the Mi Air Purifier equips the HEPA Class 13 filter for better air purification. Also, the fans are made centrifugal in the arrangement and the motor is powerful to push the air out at a faster rate comparatively.
Xiaomi has not changed the rear filter cover, which is still easy to lift off and give access to the filters that can be replaced whenever they are almost dead. I got to admit this, no knowledge or training is really required in replacing the filters on this particular air purifier, unlike the others in the market that make you either spend a good time understanding things or call an expert to come to do it for you.
Smart functionality, connectivity, and adjustments
Some air purifiers in the market are smart, some need manual adjustments, and smart here, we mean the connectivity that they have with the smartphones to easily set them up and adjust the settings. The Mi Air Purifier 3 is smart and has the connectivity through the Mi Home app. Not just that, being smart means it can be controlled with Google’s and Amazon’s IoT platforms.
Once the air purifier is connected, the Mi Home app has a plethora of options, and also the live information of the air quality index, and the filter health, with the remaining health percentage and the estimated lifespan after which you would have to replace the filter.
From the app itself, you can schedule the purifier to turn on/off automatically at set times, and control the brightness of the display, and set parental controls as well. The app can be used to toggle the levels of purification, and to turn it off without having to reach the power adapter.
The purification – Is it that good?
In some places, the air quality is so bad that people have opted to use a purifier even in their cars, and in those places, using an air purifier is a must and it does make a difference. But for some conscious minds who are worried about the air around and want to have clean air throughout the day, the Mi Air Purifier 3 does seem like a good option when setting on Auto.
The job of the purifier is not to make the oxygen levels higher, and it has never been that, which some of the users expect to see happen. The air purifiers are meant to reduce the PM2.5 particles from the air which we are breathing. The Mi Air Purifier 3 does work in reducing the particles and make the air quality better, and the sensors that test the AQI levels real-time show how quickly the air around you is getting purified. Of course, the usage would depend on the area of the room and if you want a single purifier to purify the air in a large hall, it won’t happen too quickly even though the filters are better and the CADR is more than what was in the previous generation.
The noise levels are said to be reduced but they cannot still be ignored if the air purifier is trying to bring down the PM2.5 levels at a good pace. When the PM2.5 levels were over 200, it took no more than 20 minutes to bring it down to below 100, and then the speed of fans got reduced when it was on Auto mode, but when on full force, the sound was disturbing enough and easily noticeable. It is a three-layer system in the filter, and each has a purpose and the new centrifugal fan adds to the performance.
Final Verdict – Is the Air Purifier 3 good for Rs. 9999?
Given the current-day situation in the country, the rising air pollution demands cleaner air at least when you are at office or home, and that can be done only with an air purifier. Whether you want to purchase an affordable option like this one, or something like a Dyson or Honeywell, that’s your choice but to be fair, we aren’t talking about an unknown brand and an experimental product. Xiaomi’s earlier gen. air purifiers have been good enough, and the Mi Air Purifier 3 makes the deal even better.
The OLED touch display, stronger fan, better filter, and the smart connectivity, with even the option of changing the filter with ease, constitutes a good air purifier for a price that is not bad at all. For what the price is, the Mi Air Purifier 3 has enough to clean the air around you and make it well breathable.
