You remember the original Ionic Breeze air purifier, don't you? They were all over the TV with infomercials, and made brief appearances at Radio Shacks as well as The Sharper Image's retail stores, if you could find one. Then they were suddenly gone, and it seemed as if The Sharper Image went with them. Search the web and you'll find tons of negative commentary about how The Sharper Image supposedly lied in their claims about the Ionic Breeze. Yet, if you can actually find any reviews written by people that used them, they all have good things to say about the Ionic Breeze. We'll take a look at both sides of the coin and get to the truth of the Ionic Breeze air purifier.
The Ionic Breeze Air Purifier Is Not As Effective As a HEPA Air Purifier
The Sharper Image made no claims that their Ionic Breeze could clean polluted air as effectively as a True HEPA purifier. They avoided that subject, actually, just as all good business people do with stats that don't really benefit their product. It was Consumer Reports who first mentioned the efficiency of the product, saying that it only cleaned 30% of the air pollution. They neglected, however, to take into consideration the fact that the unit was intended to be run 24/7, therefore cleaning the same air repeatedly. No, it would never reach 100%, but then neither does any other air purifier. They're not as efficient as a True HEPA air purifier, but after time, it will get the job done. Ionic purifiers are also much less expensive to maintain, as well as to operate and purchase in the first place. It's also worth mentioning that Consumer Reports compared the ionic air purifier to True HEPA air purifiers, not the more common, and much cheaper HEPA-type air purifiers. HEPA-type purifiers don't have to adhere to any specific rules, but True HEPA machines aren't affordable to all.
The Ionic Breeze Actually Makes The Air Unhealthy
The theory is that ionic air purifiers release a ton of ozone when cleaning the air. But that's just not the case. The best explanation for this misconception is that people don't know the difference between ionic air purifiers and ozone generators, which are somewhat similar, but do use ozone to clean the air. There is no factual data stating that ionic air purifiers put out unsafe amounts of ozone, and Consumer Reports even said that the Ionic Breeze air purifier passes HEPA guidelines in regards to ozone. Actually, the Ionic Breeze silent air purifier passes every HEPA guideline except for efficiency.
Some Say The Ionic Breeze Air Purifier Killed The Sharper Image
The Sharper Image did end up filing for bankruptcy in 2008, but not due to lack of sales. The reason they went under is because The Sharper Image was a publicly traded company, and their reputation had been so badly damaged that the price of their stock plummeted to well under a dollar per share. Even at the time of bankruptcy, the company actually had over $50 million equity, not including liquid cash. They simply couldn't overcome the bad publicity, regardless of the quality of their products.
Have Ionic Air Purifiers Improved Since Then?
Newer ionic air purifiers aren't significantly different from the original as the concept behind was not only simple, but effective, and wouldn't be easy to improve. Simply put, ionic air purifiers effectively, though slowly, clean air pollution just fine, and they do it quite cheaply. The original Ionic Breeze itself might be hard to find, but newer versions of it as well as the Ionic Pro air purifier and various generics are still easily obtainable. - 30286
The Ionic Breeze Air Purifier Is Not As Effective As a HEPA Air Purifier
The Sharper Image made no claims that their Ionic Breeze could clean polluted air as effectively as a True HEPA purifier. They avoided that subject, actually, just as all good business people do with stats that don't really benefit their product. It was Consumer Reports who first mentioned the efficiency of the product, saying that it only cleaned 30% of the air pollution. They neglected, however, to take into consideration the fact that the unit was intended to be run 24/7, therefore cleaning the same air repeatedly. No, it would never reach 100%, but then neither does any other air purifier. They're not as efficient as a True HEPA air purifier, but after time, it will get the job done. Ionic purifiers are also much less expensive to maintain, as well as to operate and purchase in the first place. It's also worth mentioning that Consumer Reports compared the ionic air purifier to True HEPA air purifiers, not the more common, and much cheaper HEPA-type air purifiers. HEPA-type purifiers don't have to adhere to any specific rules, but True HEPA machines aren't affordable to all.
The Ionic Breeze Actually Makes The Air Unhealthy
The theory is that ionic air purifiers release a ton of ozone when cleaning the air. But that's just not the case. The best explanation for this misconception is that people don't know the difference between ionic air purifiers and ozone generators, which are somewhat similar, but do use ozone to clean the air. There is no factual data stating that ionic air purifiers put out unsafe amounts of ozone, and Consumer Reports even said that the Ionic Breeze air purifier passes HEPA guidelines in regards to ozone. Actually, the Ionic Breeze silent air purifier passes every HEPA guideline except for efficiency.
Some Say The Ionic Breeze Air Purifier Killed The Sharper Image
The Sharper Image did end up filing for bankruptcy in 2008, but not due to lack of sales. The reason they went under is because The Sharper Image was a publicly traded company, and their reputation had been so badly damaged that the price of their stock plummeted to well under a dollar per share. Even at the time of bankruptcy, the company actually had over $50 million equity, not including liquid cash. They simply couldn't overcome the bad publicity, regardless of the quality of their products.
Have Ionic Air Purifiers Improved Since Then?
Newer ionic air purifiers aren't significantly different from the original as the concept behind was not only simple, but effective, and wouldn't be easy to improve. Simply put, ionic air purifiers effectively, though slowly, clean air pollution just fine, and they do it quite cheaply. The original Ionic Breeze itself might be hard to find, but newer versions of it as well as the Ionic Pro air purifier and various generics are still easily obtainable. - 30286
