REASONS TO BUY
Energy efficient
Easily portable
REASONS TO AVOID
Underwhelming cooling abilities
Airo Comfort Review
The lower cooling abilities do not quite make up for the energy-efficient capabilities
Credit: Airo Comfort
Our Verdict
The Airo Comfort has all the makings of a great portable AC unit except for one fatal flaw — its poor cooling ability cripples this device. This poor cooling is unfortunate because this appliance scored surprisingly well in all other metrics. It's relatively quiet, easy to move around, and the cheapest machine to operate far and away. Given its downright bad cooling performance, we can't, in good conscience, recommend this unit.
Our Analysis and Test Results
Performance Comparison
The Airo Comfort is highly portable and energy efficient.
Credit: Laura Casner
Cooling Power
To be one of the very best air conditioners, a unit must cool. Unfortunately, the Airo Comfort failed to impress us. Defined as being rated for rooms up to 350 square feet in size, we expected this unit to have no problem cooling off our testing room. Our testing room started at 80 degrees, and after an hour of running this unit, the ambient air temperature only dropped to 74 degrees. A drop of only six degrees over an hour made this the worst-performing air conditioner in our test group at the time of this update.
Portability
An obvious perk of portable air conditioners is the ability to move them from room to room. Run it in your home office during the day and then move it to your bedroom at night. This unit scored above average in its ability to be moved from place to place. It was a little awkward to wheel around but was one of the easier units to actually carry. The built-in grips fully accommodate the tips of your fingers, and the way the weight shifts when you pick it up makes the unit rest on your stomach, making it easy to balance. The window installation equipment is straightforward to use and doesn't require tools, giving you the ability to seamlessly change where this appliance is installed.
The large built-in grips made this unit one of the easiest to carry.
Credit: Laura Casner
Noise
The Airo performed above average in the noise metric. Overall it was pretty quiet, but there was a copper tube that rattled around on the inside. Opening up the machine and putting a piece of foam inside stopped the rattling. It did produce an audible hum but overall wasn't very loud.
This unit is incredibly energy effiecient.
Credit: Laura Casner
Energy Cost
This is the metric where the Airo truly stands out. Based on our calculations, three months of daily use would cost you around $88. There was only one other option that was more energy-efficient, and the next best option cost around $116 for the same amount of use. However, its poor cooling abilities hardly make the low cost worth it.
The slick window installation system doesn't require any tools, which we appreciate.
Credit: Laura Casner
Should You Buy the Airo Comfort?
We assume that most folks looking for a portable air conditioner are looking for fairly decent cooling power; otherwise, they'd simply get the best fan. Unfortunately, in our cooling power metric, the Airo Comfort was one of the worst-performing models in the test, so it's hard for us to recommend this unit despite good scores across the other test metrics.
What Other Portable Air Conditioners Should You Consider?
For an AC unit that offers a good balance of energy efficiency and cooling power, we recommend the SereneLife SLPAC10. For those seeking maximum cooling, the Whynter ARC-14SH is the way to go — however, you'll pay more for energy costs with this unit.
—
Buck Yedor & Austin Palmer
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