CES 2021’s most innovative air purifiers so far

This story is part of CES, where our editors will present the latest news and the hottest gadgets from CES 2021 entirely virtual.

While the coronavirus reordered life in much of the world, new and old forms of consumer technology have advanced to provide solutions: masks, hand sanitizer and – in homes and workplaces – air freshener. Although conventional air purifiers do not solve the COVID-19 problem, they can reduce its spread by removing aerosol particles that normally take hours to settle naturally in the air. And now, in CES 2021, device manufacturers are showcasing new air purifiers, boasting more mobile designs, more effective filtration and more creative approaches to basic air cleaning logic.

I wrote about the best air purifiers on the market and interviewed air quality researchers and, in general, the most effective air filtration technology is HEPA – a method for cleaning air that has been around for decades. Most air purifiers on the market use HEPA filters, which essentially move air through a plastic or fiberglass screen designed to capture at least 99.7% of the 0.3 micron-sized particles (a particularly difficult size to capture).

Air purifiers at CES 2021 are venturing in new directions, however. Here are some of the trends I noticed.

Sustainability: The first trend at CES is a greater focus on minimizing waste. The purifiers from Luftqi and CleanAirZone, for example, do not require filter replacements, opting for washable filters. Other standards that I wouldn’t be surprised to see as more products are announced include energy efficiency and environmentally friendly device hardware, using materials from sustainable sources, for example.

Innovation in filtration methods: Manufacturers have been testing other filtration methods for years, but HEPA-based air purifiers have remained the industry standard because they are so reliable. Larger companies such as TCL, Brondell and LG are adhering to this method, even if they are adding other technology to their devices. That said, with the explosion of research on the subject, we will undoubtedly see more devices trying to use more recent approaches to air purification. While these devices certainly need to be tested before praising them, this kind of innovation is welcome, if only because of how it develops our long-term understanding of air quality and purification.

COVID-19: The coronavirus is not just the elephant in the CES room this year, it is the room itself. The pandemic has completely reshaped CES and is a major motivator for device manufacturers. Dealing with dust and pollen will be far lower on the priority list for developers selling their purifiers than talking about eliminating airborne virus particles. This means that ultraviolet light and other forms of disinfection technology may be disproportionately represented in this year’s air purifiers – as we can see, with almost all air purifier developers focusing much of their messages on how their devices eliminate particles of viruses.

Although I am not able to test these devices yet, these new air purifiers represent some genuinely interesting ideas. Here are CES 2021’s most creative air filters so far.

Read More: The best air purifiers of 2021

Luftqi Luft Duo

An air purifier that you can carry with you

Luftqi

Luftqi’s Luft Duo is a battery powered air purifier that you can take anywhere. If you want to put it on your desk at work, then take it in the car or even put it on your desk in the cafeteria, Luft Duo will apparently clean the air around you throughout the day.

The Luft Duo also has a removable and washable filter, instead of using disposable HEPA filters. In addition, it uses ultraviolet LEDs and photocatalytic technology (basically light-activated) to break down irritants and pathogens. This type of approach may seem familiar if you follow air purification devices like Molekule, which used another form of photocatalytic technology to break small particles. Molekule encountered performance problems, but that does not mean that the underlying technology does not have much potential.

The 2020 crowdfunding campaign for the Luft Duo has been incredibly successful, raising over $ 300,000 in the past few months, so the excitement with this air purifier is high. We are looking forward to testing it ourselves.

Airthings wave sensors

Air quality sensors that measure the risk of viral transmission and mold

Airthings

The new Airthings devices are not purifiers, but they are innovative devices that could work well with air purifiers – and could be intelligently combined with them in the future. The Wave Plus sensor tracks the risk factors associated with viral transmission in the workplace, including CO2 levels, humidity and temperature. He then provides this information to office managers, who, in theory, can make adjustments to make the room more inhospitable for wandering virus particles.

The Wave Mini is intended for home use and focuses on risk factors for fungi, rather than virus transmission.

Both devices are really creative ways to help people understand different types of air quality in different spaces. Although they are not air purifiers, I think the ideas behind them can be influential in the design of future purifiers – especially since many air filters already use some form of air quality monitoring.

CleanAirZone Purifier

Cleaning with natural biotics instead of filters

CleanAirZone

CleanAirZone, or CAZ, is exhibiting a new air purifier at CES that cleans the air using “biotics and natural enzymes derived from nature”, instead of using traditional filters. The company says its proprietary cocktail of water, microbiotics and natural enzymes will eliminate pollutants from the air, including coronavirus particles.

CAZ’s goal is to remove waste from other air purifiers – its disposable filters, most notably – and create a more sustainable and “green” environment at home. As with other air filters on this list, the technology is promising, but we don’t judge until we can test the product ourselves.

The rest of the purifiers

The purifiers Luft Duo and CAZ are the two most interesting devices announced so far at CES, although there is certainly more to come as soon as the show starts in earnest next week. But some other large companies are entering demand for air purification devices during the pandemic.

Most notably, Brondell is soon launching its Pro Sanitizing Air Purifier, which is a one-device tank: instead of focusing on innovative filtration strategies, Brondell’s air filter uses the shotgun approach. This means HEPA filtration, a UV disinfectant lamp, a nanocrystalline filter and a plasma generator. Each of these technologies has strengths and weaknesses, but together, they cover most of the irritants and airborne contagions you’ll find in any home.

The Brondell Pro can effectively clean the air in a space of 538 square feet and will be sold at major retailers for $ 650.

LG announced three new air purifiers – the PuriCare Mini, PuriCare and PuriCare 360 ​​- each of which covers small to moderate areas of the home with conventional HEPA or HEPA-like filtration. Although the price has not yet been released, they are comparable to purifiers that cost less than $ 500. The only PuriCare air purifier launched to date costs well over $ 1,000 for about 500 square feet of coverage, so they they may end up falling into more premium price categories than devices of their size typically land.

CES has barely started, so we’ll update this article as the show progresses, adding more devices as we find them.

The information in this article is for educational and informational purposes only and is not intended for medical or health advice. Always consult a doctor or other qualified healthcare professional regarding any questions you may have about a medical condition or health goals.