Cheap Air Purifiers

Loud, but works
This machine does a great job cleaning the air, but is very loud on high setting. Can't hear the TV when the purifier is on high, but is great white noise for sleeping.

Great, High-Quality Product
I love this purifier, all the parts feel sturdy and well made. It is somewhat loud but it also moves a LOT of air so you have to weigh what is most important to you. Make sure you have a large space it can be placed in as it does have a bit of size to it.

AVOID Allergy Be Gone retailer
BEWARE of this company! I purchased the Honeywell 50250n (permanent HEPA) air purifier with 380002 pre-filters (4-pack) from Allergy Be Gone because they advertised free shipping & no sales taxes and had the lowest price at the time I was online. I have not received the unit, they charged my credit card 2 weeks ago, I never got a confirmation notice and had to call to get my ORDER NUMBER. Last week I got 2 emails stating it was delayed because they would not receive the item until Nov. 9th. I requested they cancel the order; then they sent an email stating the item had been shipped this morning. I asked what would happen if I refused shipment, they said the return policy charges a 10% restocking fee + to and from shipping (shipping is non-refundable). Customer service is not helpful and rude. Allergy Be Gone has improper disclosure of their return policy at the time of the transaction (when you check out of shopping cart - when you hit ORDER button). The return policy is on their website (under company info) but does not come up when you check out! I am suspicious about the order being shipped early this morning when I requested a cancellation since earlier emails said the item would not be in stock until Nov. 9th! I hope they will send me a BRAND NEW item and not a refurbished unit or someone else's return!

99% perfect
I will echo all of the positive reviews seen here and add some extra information.

Reading the various reviews, people may be worried if they are finding the right model in the stores, and if the model inside has the lifetime HEPA filter or not. The box may say permanent or it may say something else, with a sticker that says "permanent filter inside". This is all you need to know. I don't think it's even possible to find inventory that still contains the replaceable filter.

As a torture test, we put our unit in the kitchen when we roasted greasy chickens over the 2008 holidays. This usually stinks out our apartment for a week, and it still did. It was too much greasy smoke for the Honeywell. Worse yet, after moving the unit back to the office, there was a roast chicken scent for another 5 or 6 days. I was about to replace the one month-old carbon pre-filter, but then it finally wore off and now the unit seems as fresh as new.

But roast chickens aside, the difference in air quality in the office and bedroom (we move this unit around daily from home to office) is very impressive. Dust is down, chemical odors are gone, (I sell glue and solvents), and the computers are staying clean. (When we had an ionic breeze, the electronics would attract more dirt, and the air would be dusty, now the air is clean and so is the equipment).

I did so much research before buying this and I am very happy I chose this unit. I run it on low for about 16 hours a day, occasionally on high after making the bed in the morning, and only turn it off at night (for silence).

I'm considering getting a second one, but then its so easy to move...

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Update: March 11th 2009, used every day since December 11th (3 months) and still working perfectly and very effective, without any filter change or vacuuming. The only odd thing is that the filter indicator lights seem unchanged so maybe they don't work. I don't know, but I will try to wait another three months before changing the pre-filter and vacuuming the permanent HEPA filter.

if you can stand the noise
Cleans Air very well, but so loud - even if in another room - I turn it off to watch TV or just to give my ears a break. Hard to clean and change filters. That said, and my wife loves it because of the good job it does. She doesn't do the cleaning!