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- Quiet operation
- Simple controls
- Effective purification
- Industrial, plastic look
- Purification could be faster
South Korean brand Coway specialises in filtration. Its Aquamega, Airmega and Bidetmega ranges aim to provide clean water, air and, um, intimate care. While its bidet toilet seats are tricky to source in old Blighty, its range of air purifiers is more widely available.
The Coway Airmega 100 is the brand’s second smallest air purifier, but the brand says it can still clean rooms up to 63m2 in an hour. Its filter only needs replacing annually, and is able to remove dust, dander and impurities as small as 0.01 microns from the air.
There’s no fancy bells or whistles, like app controls or wi-fi connectivity, so I was intrigued to see if this simplicity felt refreshing or if that meant it underdelivered for a purifier of this price. While it isn’t the fastest purifier in the world, I found it’s still a good choice for those who value simplicity above all else.
Coway Airmega 100 review: What do you get for the money?
At £149, the Coway Airmega 100 is a mid-range air purifier. It’s suitable for spaces up to 63m2 and has an impressive CADR (clean air delivery rate) of 244m3/hr. Its closest comparator, the £169 Blueair Blue Max 3250i cleans spaces up to 48m2 at a similar CADR on paper.
Spend the extra £20 on the Blueair and you’ll get far more smart features, like an app, Wi-Fi connectivity and air quality tracking. But, if none of those things sound like features you actually care to use, the Coway is a far simpler option.
The Coway purifies the air using three filtration layers; a pre-filter to catch larger particles like dust, followed by a HEPA filter to catch smaller particulates like pollen, and a deodorisation filter that keeps your air smelling fresh. If you suffer from allergies, it’s ECARF-Certified, which means it’s proven to help those who suffer from airborne allergies. The filter needs replacing annually, and there’s an indicator that reminds you when it’s time to switch.
There are five modes in total, including a night mode, automatic, and three static speed options. Night mode is the quietest on offer, which Coway claims is just 20db, while the automatic mode senses the air quality using a PM2.5 sensor and adjusts accordingly.
As mentioned, you won’t need to faff around connecting this to your wi-fi to get started. It’s controlled via a simple panel on top of the purifier, which has clear options to set timers from one to eight hours, with a child lock and light options. These include mood lighting which glows blue, green or red from the air outlet, depending on air quality, an illuminated display or switching the display off completely at night time.
Is it easy to use?
Setting up the Airmega 100 couldn’t be easier. The purifier arrives with its filter in a bag, so step one is to open the slot at the bottom, pull out the filter and reinsert it bag-free. You follow the same quick process to replace the filter annually when the replacement indicator light switches on. I was glad to see it was such a straightforward process; easy enough to remember so that I was unlikely to need to dig out the instructions every year.
The control panel has touch-controlled buttons, which allow you to scroll through the speed and timer options. Each of these settings is illustrated by a small symbol on screen, which glows when selected. I liked how clear and uncomplicated this was and was relieved that I could switch the display off completely and still see the buttons.
How I tested the Coway Airmega 100
When testing the performance of air purifiers, we use an air quality monitor and an awful lot of aerosol deodorant. After spraying the deodorant for five seconds, I timed how long it took for the air purifier to bring PM2.5 levels down to 25mg/m3. I also used a sound meter smartphone app to measure noise levels, in A-weighted decibels (dBA), for the air purifier’s various modes – including its night mode. Finally, I used a passthrough energy meter to measure energy consumption.
Does it work well?
Our tests involve dirtying the air with an aerosol and using an air quality monitor to time how quickly the purifier cleans the air. Within five seconds, the Coway Airmega 100’s automatic mode kicked into action, ramping up to its highest speed until the air quality returned to a safe level. Its filtration isn’t quite as fast as other models, but it brought pollution levels down from dangerous to low in under five minutes. The bulk of this filtration was done in the first two minutes, with the progress slowing the cleaner the air became.
That said, its PM2.5 sensor proved highly responsive and the purifier’s automatic mode typically managed to keep the air quality high on the lowest setting, which was so quiet I completely forgot it was working away in my living room.
How energy efficient is it?
I hardly noticed the purifier adding to my electricity bills, either. Using a power meter, I discovered that the purifier consumes just 2.9W in its lowest mode, ramping up to a still modest 22.6W on its highest setting.
How loud is it?
The Airmega 100 isn’t silent, but it’s quiet enough that it won’t disturb you. In my tests, it raised the ambient noise of my room by 7dBA on its lowest setting (from 45-52dBA). Of course it was much louder at higher settings – peaking at 61dBA, a normal conversation volume – but on night mode, the Airmega 100 only added 3dBA to the ambient noise level, which I found was minimal enough to be easily ignored.
What could be improved?
The biggest downside to the Airmega 100 is its marginally slower air purification times. Granted, it’s more compact than the current purifier we recommend for mid-sized rooms, the Blueair Blue Max 3250i, but it took two whole minutes longer to purify the air.
At the same time, the simple screen isn’t a suitable interface for more complex settings, like scheduling or remote controls. The main issue with this is that you won’t be able to set your purifier to work while you’re away, so you come home to clean air. Still, if you’re happy to wait an hour or so for pure air when you arrive home, this isn’t a dealbreaker.
Air purifiers aren’t the most beautiful pieces of kit, but I think this one has a particularly plasticky look. That’s not to say it isn’t sturdy – its thick plastic certainly feels like it would stand the test of time – but look elsewhere if you want something that will perfectly match your décor.
Should you buy the Coway Airmega 100?
While it doesn’t offer anything groundbreaking, the Coway Airmega has everything you might want in an air purifier, without forcing you to pay over the odds for smart features you might not use. It’s sensibly built, with easy controls and is energy efficient so you won’t feel a hit on your energy bills.
Most households would benefit from its responsive automatic mode, which can keep your air at a consistent purity, no matter what you throw at it. It’s been a huge help for my hay fever symptoms this spring, and its compact design was ideal for my small London flat.
That said, it certainly isn’t the fastest purifier in the world, and if you hate the look of white plastic in your home, you’ll have to put your blinkers on for this one. There are also more affordable options that can purify the air in your space faster, depending on the size room you have. If speed is of the essence for you, we also recommend the Blueair Blue Max 3250i.
