The Wirecutter is a highly flawed review site, but at least it's a real one. There are vanishingly few left for general consumer products. There's WC, Consumer Reports, and what else? They've seem to have all been killed off. When I'm researching some category of product, I feel lucky if I find any professional reviews written by people who have actually touched the thing they're reviewing. I know we've all had the experience googling "reviews of X" only to get overwhelmed with SEO spam. Forget finding something written by somebody who has experience with it. It's hard enough to find something written by a human.
Contra Wirecutter on the IKEA air purifier
51–60 of 723 posts
Re: Contra Wirecutter on the IKEA air purifier
#52Note that Ikea also sells a more powerful air filter called the Starkvind. This one is able to detect the air quality and automatically turn itself on. It is sold either as a standalone device or integrated into a nightstand / small coffee table: https://www.ikea.com/us/en/p/starkvind-table-with-air-purifi...
Levoit also sells more powerful air purifiers with particle detection, though. I think the point of this article was to compare the bottom end.
Re: Contra Wirecutter on the IKEA air purifier
#53Levoit seems to be recommended by /r/AirPurifiers/ https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07VVK39F7/ The replacement filters are quite expensive though.
I've got a Blue Air 211+ and am pretty happy with it. I have extraordinarily bad seasonal allergies.
Well, I'm happy except the fact that the filters have gone up in price by 40% in the past year. I suspect this must be standard industry practice; launch a new purifier and price the filters at (near) cost. Once all the reviews have been written and the initial sales start to trail off, raise the filter price considerably.
Luckily there are knockoff filters.
Re: Contra Wirecutter on the IKEA air purifier
#54Would the Ikea filter with gas cleaning help with my stinky farts? Honest question.
Re: Contra Wirecutter on the IKEA air purifier
#55The Wirecutter is a highly flawed review site, but at least it's a real one. There are vanishingly few left for general consumer products. There's WC, Consumer Reports, and what else? They've seem to have all been killed off. When I'm researching some category of product, I feel lucky if I find any professional reviews written by people who have actually touched the thing they're reviewing. I know we've all had the e…
rtings.com is very good for certain types of products like TVs, headphones, etc.
Re: Contra Wirecutter on the IKEA air purifier
#56Not surprising given Wirecutter was acquired by NYT a few years back and mainstream media’s obsession with not-quite-robust “fact checking”
Re: Contra Wirecutter on the IKEA air purifier
#57Also worth reading, in the same vein:
Re: Contra Wirecutter on the IKEA air purifier
#58The Wirecutter is a highly flawed review site, but at least it's a real one. There are vanishingly few left for general consumer products. There's WC, Consumer Reports, and what else? They've seem to have all been killed off. When I'm researching some category of product, I feel lucky if I find any professional reviews written by people who have actually touched the thing they're reviewing. I know we've all had the e…
Is Tom's Hardware still around?
Personally, I don't trust reviews unless I personally know the reviewer. Too much garbage out there.
Re: Contra Wirecutter on the IKEA air purifier
#59Not to be a conspiracy theorist, but the IKEA one which they singled out as not recommended to buy is the only one in the article they don't earn a commission on when someone buys it
This is definitely not a conspiracy theory. Incentives affect reviews, which is why truly unbiased review sources exist.
Sometimes conspiracy theories are true. They are still conspiracy theories
Re: Contra Wirecutter on the IKEA air purifier
#60Protip: you can turn a box fan into an incredibly effective air purifier[0] (particle measurements in thread). The one they show is pretty elaborate, using 4 filters and some construction, but you can also use a single filter and slap it on the back of the box fan and have similar results. The air purifier industry is more about aesthetics than it is function. 0. https://twitter.com/LazarusLong13/status/1425517352624…
> The air purifier industry is more about aesthetics than it is function Well, sure, to a point. I could make my own air purifier (like the one you link) but it looks awful. I would not want that in my home. So yeah, aesthetics do matter. Its not the only thing but it is a factor.
> it looks awful. I would not want that in my home.
When west coast forest fires put dangerous levels of smoke into peoples homes, box fan air filters are an extremely valuable tool for lower income families. Consider yourself extremely fortunate if you are able to choose form over function on devices like this.