REVIEW – Air Purifier from Sharp – what is it and why you may want to consider one?

I’m using the Sharp KC-A50EUW air purifier for over couple of years now using it on daily basis and I would like to share my humble opinion about this piece of tech with my readers.

Before I committed to the purchase of mentioned air purifier, as always, I did extensive research to get best value for money. There is no secret that filters in these machines can be quite expensive and you will need to replace them rather often, similar tactic is used with printers and ink cartridges, the new printer can be purchased for the price of cartridge set. There is not much difference on air purifiers’ market, I have seen some costing fairly cheap (in region of £150 and set of filters would set you additional £120 every year, purchasing one of these you are not only getting a low value product which won’t bring you much value to your life but you will subscribe yourself to another retainer programme and will be contributing to it every year.

Sharp however is different, it will set you for £400 – £500 and you will be able to change the filters even every 5 – 10 years which is absolutely spectacular. As I like to purchase quality equipment to keep it longer I have opted for Sharp KC-A50EUW and I do not regret my decision even after 2 years of solid, every day use.

KC-A50EUW comes with 4 filters: deodorisation, HEPA, pre-filter as well as humidification filter. Most of these filters you can just clean every now and then, I do that every month. Instruction suggests that you have to clean your deodorisation filter every 720 hours of working when device operates 24/7 which is 30 days exactly. Device will remind you about cleaning now and then, it will also let you know when you will have to fill it up with water. The massive HEPA filter which you just treat with vacuum cleaner is very effective. Sharp estimate it’s lifetime for even 10 years which depends on quality of air in our home. If my calculations were right I will be changing it in the next 5-6 years.

Three other filters we can just clean, but when comes to it and when you need a full set of new filters you will be looking to spend around £150 which isn’t bad at all.

So what functions this device has?

Sharp KC-A50EUW can work in few modes:

• cleaning the air
• cleaning the air as well as humidifying
• ion shower

In two first modes we can also switch on ion if we want to but third option requires the ion function on. On top of these functions you can also select what sort of fan speed you need as well as set brightness of the display, you can choose to switch it completely off if you want to. Device completely helps to remove bad odours, allergens, bacteria, 99% of viruses and even dust mites in the air making your house full of fresh air! Sensors doing fantastic job by accurately measuring humidity, dust, smell and temperature in the room and adjust its settings accordingly.

Is it worth buying this air purifier?

When talking about all the features we cannot forget about the bad points. There is no remote control or connectivity to your smartphone so it is not compatible with smart home environment but I do believe in few years this would be an option when Sharp create a new range of products. It is just a matter of time. There is also no timer which could be quite handy, device however optimise its work automatically so you can argue that it can be left doing its job. One of the most annoying things is a lack of setting humidity levels, device will continue humidifying the room even if it exceed 55 – 65% levels. There is no UV lamp which could reduce amount of bacteria or viruses but you can argue that 4 high quality filters and ion mode will get rid of them pretty efficiently.

Device is very quiet compared to the air purifier made by another brands. I’m quite pleased with how it works and it definitely improve the overall quality in my work place as well as when I sleep!

Bonus tip:

During extreme hot summers you can use the humidifier feature to work as your little air con, take the 3.8L tank and fill it with water as well as ice cubs – this will help you to receive a nice breeze and lower the room temperature. Manufacturer is not advertising this feature but I have done that many times myself and could not be happier with the results !

Some tech specs:

Weight: 9.2kg
Measures (W x D x H): 399mm x 273mm x 603mm
Standby power: 0.9W
Applicable floor space: 38m2
Max air flow capacity: 306m3/hour
Fan speeds: 3 (max/med/low)
Noise level in cleaning mode: 49/41/16 (high/mid/low)
Max humidifying capacity: 600 ml/hour
Tank capacity 3.6L
Link to manufacturer page

Do you consider purchasing the air purifier yourself or maybe you have one already. Feel free to leave your comments below.

All the best,
Lucas