In a study a few year ago, an international team of scientists modelled the health benefits of cycling and walking against the negative effects of air pollution. They looked at air quality through average annual levels of PM2.5s and calculated a tipping point – the length of time after which exercising becomes harmful as a result of inhaling fine particulates. Researchers found that in a number of cities such as Delhi in India or Zabol in Iran, cycling for just 30 minutes can start to damage your health!

“If you are beyond the break-even point, you may be doing yourself more harm than good,” said Audrey de Nazelle, a lecturer at Imperial College’s Centre for Environmental Policy, and one of the authors of the study.

When air quality makes exercise harmful

Air pollution in major cities is of increasing concern. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), more than 80% of people living in urban areas that monitor air pollution are exposed to air quality levels that exceed the WHO limit of 10μg/m3. While all regions of the world are affected, populations in low-income cities are at most risk.

Short-term air pollution can aggravate the medical conditions of individuals with asthma and emphysema. Long-term health effects can include chronic respiratory disease, lung cancer, heart disease, and even damage to the brain, nerves, liver, or kidneys.

The good news is that only 1% of cities in the world have consistent high levels of air pollution that cycling or walking could be detrimental to a person’s health. The study found people in western cities such as New York (9 μg/m3), Chicago (12μg/m3), Los Angeles (11μg/m3), London (15μg/m3) or Paris (18μg/m3), would never reach the point where air pollution’s negatives outweigh exercise’s positives in the long term. For info the global average urban background PM concentration is 22 μg/m3.

You have to go above 100 μg/m3 to get into the detrimental effects. At that level harms would exceed benefits after 1 hour 30 minutes of cycling per day or more than 10 hours of walking per day!

How the Air Quality Index can guide you

What the research does not take into account, however, is the occasional spike in air pollution levels. In London for example, the annual average PM2.5 pollution is estimated at 15μg/m3 by the WHO. But in certain months, the British capital’s pollution levels can rise in excess of 100μg/m3.

This only goes to show the importance of monitoring pollution levels if you live in a urban area, even if the city is generally considered to be safe. Particularly if you have a habit of cycling to and from work every day.

An easy way to keep an eye on things is the Air Quality Index (AQI). It offers a clear guide. AQI measures air quality on a scale from 0 to 500, with higher numbers indicating worse pollution. Each range of AQI values corresponds to a level of health concern:

Our takeaway

There you have it folks. Running and exercise in general may not always be as healthy as it seems.

In periods where you suspect there may be detrimental air quality, keep an eye on the AQI index. If you must exercise in less-than-ideal conditions, time your exercise to coincide with periods of better air quality—such as early mornings or after rain. Additionally, tools like N95 masks or exercising indoors during high pollution days can help mitigate exposure risks.

We haven’t seen fitness trackers with built-in air quality features just yet, but there are plenty of personal environmental monitors. On top of that, some smartwatches and sports watches, like those from Apple and Garmin, let you install air quality monitoring apps to keep tabs on the air you’re breathing.  Exercising might be good for your health, but don’t let poor air quality take that away from you.

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The brand is one of the best known names in the smart thermostat space and have been at this for a while. Today they introduced two new devices, Smart Thermostat Premium and Smart Thermostat Enhanced. Both offer substantial upgrades on predecessor models.

Ecobee Smart Thermostat Premium

The more high-tech of the two is the $249 Smart Thermostat Premium (check current price on Amazon). That’s around $30 more than the model it replaces – which may now be discontinued. Check the Ecobee website and you’ll notice that it is out of stock.

In terms of looks, Ecobee sticks to the tried and tested overall appearance of its range. But with the added benefit of a new glass screen with a waterfall effect around the edges, along with zinc housing. Predecessor models have a more looking plain plastic build.

The screen has also been upgraded. Now it is 50% bigger as the company is using an internally-housed radar sensor. Also, the infrared sensor is gone, freeing up some more space. Needless to say, the much larger display makes everything easier to read and enhances the user experience. All of this is combined with a refreshed user interface, better responsiveness and simpler navigation.

Under the hood, there are also some improvements. Ecobee says the new sensors improve accuracy of temperature measurements, occupancy and motion.

Another major upgrade is that for the first time on a Ecobee smart thermometer, you can find air quality information. It comes courtesy of a sensor which is capable of measuring VOCs (volatile organic compounds), Co2 (carbone dioxide) and relative humidity.

You can also set up alerts if air quality deteriorates beyond a certain point. This is accompanied with some tips on how to improve it. Although generally, opening a window and letting some fresh air into your home should be enough!

Along with the main unit, you also get a tiny SmartSensor. This used for montion detection and temperature measurements. You can place it anywhere in your home, helping you secure your belongings and manage hot or cold spots.

The motion detection actually allows the device to double-up as a security system. You can even take this up a notch with professional monitoring availabe at a cost of $10 per month in the US.

Essential reading: Best fitness trackers and health gadgets

The gear is fully compatible with other Ecobee products such as security cameras and sensors for doors and windows. Everything is also smart assistant-enabled and you can control the product with Siri or Alexa courtesy of the built-in speaker. This allows you to, for example, send “Hey Siri” voice commands for certain tasks. Everything is also compatible with Apple HomeKit and you can link up the device to automation platform IFTTT.

Ecobee Smart Thermostat Enhanced

The less pricey of the two new models is the $189 Smart Thermostat Enhanced (check price on Amazon). That one has a slightly less premium build as it lacks the zinc enclosure. But it does have a large, easy to read screen.

This iteration comes with most of the internals of its big brother. What it lacks is the air quality sensor and smart speaker. While the letter probably won’t make a difference to most, the first is very useful. Knowing the air quality in your home is important as we spend most of our times indoors.

The other difference is that you don’t get the SmartSensor. Mind you, Smart Thermostat Enhanced is compatible with it. So you could, in theory, purchase the smart sensor for an additional $50. But then you may as well purchase the Smart Thermostat Premium as the difference in price will be neglegable.

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In this review I look at Airthings View Plus, a device which tracks a wide variety of air quality stats in your home. It comes from one of Norway’s fastest growing tech companies.

Oslo-based Airthings was established in 2008 and it launched its first consumer product three years later. Now with more than 100 employees and four offices, its range of air quality monitors for home use consists of Wave Mini, Wave Radon, Wave Plus and top of the line View Plus. There’s also a House Kit and a few other monitors that you can purchase.

One of the things which distinguishes Airthings products from the competition is their ability to track radon levels. For those not in the know, this is a colourless, odourless radioactive gas. It is formed naturally in the earth as radioactive decay of tiny amounts of uranium.

Needless to say, exposure to this type of radiation is a risk to health. Radon is considered to be the leading cause of lung cancer amongst the non-smoking population. Shockingly, it kills six times more people than home fires and carbon monoxide poisoning combined.

Essential reading: Top fitness trackers and health gadgets

You are unlikely to find many devices for home use that have the ability to track radon levels. Which means your options are either to pay for a professional to come in and test for radon levels, or to purchase a charcoal test which you’d then need to send to a lab for results. But both of these are one-off measurements.

In addition to radon, View Plus tracks particulate matter, carbon dioxide, VOC (airborne chemicals), humidity, temperature, air pressure and more. It certainly sounds like a complete air quality monitor.

But how does it work in real life and is it worth the $299.99 price tag (check price on Amazon)? Here’s my review.

Jump to

Design & hardware
How to use
Data and insights
Airthings products comparison
The verdict

Airthings View Plus review: Design & hardware

• Looks attractive, streamlined design
• Works with battery or connected to power
• Portable, can mount it to a wall
• A display that never goes dark

The air quality in your home matters. In fact it matters a lot. Did you know that indoor air is five times more polluted than the fresh stuff outside? That’s a pretty big deal considering the average person spends around 90% of their times indoors. The World Health Organisation says that 9 out of 10 people breathe unhealthy air on a regular basis.

Hence the importance of home air quality monitors. They represent a solution that is meant to alert you to any air quality issues before they become actual problems.

Airthings View Plus comes with a simple but elegant design. You could say that it looks a bit Applesque. The dimensions of the device come in at 17 x 9 x 3.3 cm, so about the size of an average person’s hand. With a weight of 360 grams, this is a fairly lightweight device.

There are no colour options – you can only purchase the thing in White. Which is fine as this is a neutral colour that fits in pretty much any surroundings.

Battery-operated or connected to power via USB

I have tested out a few air quality monitors over the years. What I really like about View Plus is that you have a lot of freedom on how to use it. This is because you get the option of choosing whether to plug it into an electricity outlet or use 6 AA 1.5V alkaline (LR6) batteries (included with purchase) to keep it going for up to 2 years.

I prefer the second option as this allows me to move it easily to different parts of the room or other areas of the house. With batteries the device is completely wireless, so you can even mount it on a wall where it will sit quietly out of the way doing its thing. This for me is definitely one of the highlights of the device. Many air quality monitors need to be plugged into an electricity outlet at all times which is severely limiting.

For best results, you should leave the monitor in a place where you spend the majority of your time at home. Preferably, at approximate breathing height. Don’t place it outside, in direct sunlight or in a place that is very damp.

Airthings View Plus Gadgets & Wearables may get a commission

Beautiful Calm Tech e-paper display

Another highlight of View Plus is its display. This is a calm tech screen that is always on. It is large, at night you don’t see it so it doesn’t disturb.

The reason it can stay on at all times without depleting the battery is that this is an e-paper display. It is similar to technology that is used on Kindle devices. The screen updates every 2.5 minutes or more often if you trigger an action.

Interestingly, if you remove the batteries and unplug any power cables – the screen will still keep showing the data. That’s because the Calm Tech e-paper tech does not require power to show an image. Of course, the stats will not update but the last readings when the loss of power occurred will remain visible.

Above the display is an LED light which can shine in one of three colours. Green is an indicator of good air quality, yellow indicates average air quality and red poor air quality. Simple and to the point.

Airthings View Plus review: How to use

• Uploads data via WiFi rather than Bluetooth
• Requires an initial calibration period
• Wave across the screen for more detailed info

Initial setup

There isn’t really that much you need to know about setup. Download the Airthings smartphone app and create an account. Then pull the battery tab from the back of the View Plus in order to activate the batteries inside its compartment. After that simply follow the app instructions to set up the device and pair it. I think it took me no more than 10-15 minutes to complete everything.

View Plus requires Bluetooth for the initial setup and to change and view certain information in the app. But the uploading of air quality stats to the cloud works over WiFi (2.4GHz). Which means that you will be asked to connect the device to your network and enter your WiFi password during setup.

If there’s a problem with your WiFi connection data will not be uploaded. To deal with temporary disconnects Airthings has enabled its device to save the last two hours of sensor data on the device itself. Once the connection is reestablished, this will be synced to the app and dashboard.

I did encounter a hitch when initially setting up WiFi. It took about five or six tries before the app would finally accept the password and connect to the internet. I’m not sure why. But once that initial connection was established, from that point on everything worked seamlessly.

Calibration period

View Plus will start churning out stats right away. However, the company notes there’s an initial 7 day calibration period. The sensors which do not need this are particulate matter, temperature, humidity and air pressure. They are accurate from the start. But the CO2 and VOC tech needs about a week to gather enough data in order to adjust properly to the environment.

For radon measurements, this can take up to a month. The company, therefore suggests, not to perform any radon mitigation action until this calibration period is up. The longer View Plus sits in your home the more accurate the radon measurements.

Display can be customised, wave to find out more

Beyond that there is not really that much to know. You’ll get a reading on the display which shows two metrics. These can be customised in the smartphone app or the website dashboard. I picked a view that at all times shows the temperature and CO2 levels as they are of most interest to me.

Having said that, I would have preferred to be able to see all the metrics the device is capable of producing on View Plus itself. You need to pick two which are of most interest to you.

But what you can do is wave your hand in front of the thing. This will transition into a second (third, etc) display which will either say “Good Air Quality”, or it will spit out metrics which are not currently in the healthy range. You will be able to see their value and a colour-coded assessment on how far off the ideal mark the measurements are.

To make your life easier, View Plus will show a black notification dot at the top of the home page display whenever there’s an air quality issue. The number of dots shows how many readings are outside the ideal threshold. Then you can wave in front of the thing to get more detail.

So if you look at the picture above and below, you can see one black dot on the home display. Wave in front of View Plus and a second screen will open showing that humidity has fallen to 24%, which is significantly below where it ideally should be.

Airthings View Plus review: Data and insight

Data captured, sampling rate

The Airthings View Plus excels as far as the wealth of information captured. I doubt that there is another home device on the market that is capable of producing this amount of data. And all of this seems very accurate.

You will get info on:

• VOCs – these can cause long and short term health effects. They are compounds resulting from human-made chemicals that can irritate the eyes, nose and throat. They can also cause difficulty breathing and nausea and cause damage to internal organs.
• CO2 – while harmless in small quantities it can effect productivity and sleep. The more people there are in a room, the higher the CO2 levels. Ventilation and other factors can also influence readings.
• Radon – already discussed earlier in this article. Make sure to let View Plus capture data for at least a month (preferably longer) in order for proper calibration to be done.
• PM or particulate matter. You will get a combined reading and two separate values (in the website dashboard) based on the size of the particles – PM1 and PM2.5. Both are harmful and inhalable and can be a detriment to your health. Air purifiers, cleaning, opening or closing the windows (depending on outdoor pollution) can all reduce PM levels.
• Temperature
• Relative humidity
• Air pressure

As far as the sensors sampling rate, temperature and humidity measurements are captured every 2.5 minutes. Air pressure, VOCs and CO2 readings are taken every 5 minutes, while radon is captured hourly. Some of this can be configured with the app.

It is also worth noting that while the data will always be up-to-date on the device screen, cloud uploads may take a few minutes to update. For the highest updating frequency plug View Plus into an electricity outlet. If it is operating with batteries, the upload frequency depends on the chosen settings. Lower frequency updates (every hour) will keep the batteries going for up to 24 months, higher frequency (every 10 minutes) for around 8 months.

Another option is to plug the device into a power outlet from time to time. This will not charge the batteries, but it will preserve their battery life. As soon as you plug it in, the View monitor will automatically switch to being battery-operated.

I’m actually planning to purchase a set of rechargeable AA batteries. That way, when they run out I’ll just refuel them with an external charger.

Smartphone app

The place you can go to for a detailed report on air quality is the Airthings Wave smartphone app. The software shows a summary view, in addition to 48 hour, week, month and annual charts. Each individual metric shows quite a bit of detail and it is interesting to go back and understand how the air quality has changed.

The app also houses a link that takes you through to a website – simply type your location and you will get today’s and tomorrow’s pollen levels. This is separated into sources: Tree, Grass and Weed. Our environment needs pollen as it is the male fertilising agent of flooring plants, but for up to 30% of the population it can cause hay fever. So those people will want to stay informed.

The app also allows you to tweak settings, change location, room and more. You can even set it to alert you if certain readings reach a unhealthy levels so you know when it is time to take action.

Website dashboard

Of more use than the app is the website dashboard. Although the data is largely the same, it provides you with a much larger display which you can use to sift through the data.

You do get some additional options such as a 12 hour view and the ability to specify a custom period. Another benefit of using the website is that it can often be quicker to simply open a website dashboard than hunt around for one of hundreds of apps you may have installed on your phone.

Below are some screenshots of the website dashboard. The interface allows you quite a bit of customisation. You can play around and rearrange tiles – and there’s a detailed section on outside weather quality. This displays the Air Quality Index or AQI in addition to a wealth of other data – all of it powered by Breezometer.

That way you can directly compare whether the air indoors will benefit from opening the window and how safe it is to go out. For example, if you live in a big city there may be times when you can do more damage than good by exercising outside. It sounds bizarre but it is true. There have been a few occasions in the past in my country when the official government recommendations were to avoid outdoor exercise.

Airthings View Plus review: Products comparison

It is worth noting that View Plus does not need to be connected to an Airthings Hub in order to work. Not only that, but it functions as a Hub itself when connected to an electricity outlet. This means you can add other monitors to View Plus and they will function from that one central hub.

There are various product options to choose from, including some lower-spec, lower-cost solutions. The table below illustrates some of the products in the range and shows what air quality metrics they spit out. You can expand your system to cover your whole home.

All of these can be placed on a flat surface or mounted on a wall – and work with the same app and website dashboard. They are all battery operated but only View Plus can also work with the power cable option.

The View series also offers a few different choices. There’s View Plus which is the subject of this review. In addition you also have the View Pollution which tracks temperature, humidity and particulate matter and the View Radon. That one keeps tabs on Radon, Temperature and Humidity.

All three devices look and function exactly the same. The difference is to do with the sensors inside. For the full monty, you want View Plus. It is a complete solution and the only product with all seven sensors. It is also the most expensive of the lot.

Finally, also worth a mention are integration options. You can connect View Plus to your smart home by linking it up with Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant and/or IFTTT. That way you’ll always stay on top of the air quality in your home.

Airthings View Plus review: The verdict

I really like Airthings View Plus. Having gone through a number of air quality monitors, this has become my favourite.

The device is easy to set up, the app is simple to use and doesn’t push you to fork out extra money for subscriptions. The website dashboard is also useful as it provides more detailed info. The fact that the device works over WiFi means you can check the air quality of your home where ever in the world you find yourself to be.

I also like that View Plus can be battery powered or plugged in. This makes it portable, and you can move it and place it anywhere in the house or mount it on a wall.

But this is not where the pros end. The e-paper display is great and I wish more products would tap into that kind of tech. It has the benefit of staying always on.

Most importantly, View Plus captures a long list of air quality metrics and they seem to be accurate. You will struggle to find another device that captures that much information.

One thing I don’t like is that you have the option to display readings from only two of the sensors on the front display. I wish that you could cycle through all the readings without reaching for the app or website dashboard. Having said that, the e-paper display will let you see any sensor data that is outside the ideal threshold.

Another negative is the price. Normally retailing for $299, View Plus is not cheap.

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Your health and your family’s health are important. This device is probably the most complete solution to keep indoor air pollution at bay. View Plus will find out levels of Radon, particle matters, Co2, VoC and much more. It is an ideal tool to help you better manage your home.

*We are a review site that receives a small commission from sales of certain items, but the price is the same for you. Purchasing items by clicking on links in this article allows us to run this website. We are independently owned and all opinions expressed here are our own. See our affiliate disclosure page for more details.

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The retail tech giant is slowly expanding its range of Alexa connected devices. The latest one to join the fun is Amazon’s first indoor air quality monitor. This is all the more important with health challenges of the past two years and the increasing amount of time spent by people working from home.

Most of us don’t realise how much time we spend indoors. Official figures estimate this at around 90%. We read so much these days about outdoor pollution, but indoor pollution can be many times worse.

We’ve reviewed a number of air quality monitors over the years. These devices sit quietly at your bedside or in the living room and at a glance let you know when it is time to open the window and air out your surroundings. Such small tweaks in your daily life can help greatly with your long-term health.

This is exactly what Amazon Smart Air Quality Monitor does. It reports on the level of indoor allergens and toxins, i.e. dust, volatile organic compounds, carbon monoxide, in addition to temperature and humidity. This is pretty much on par with other such devices.

However, Amazon’s product is cheaper than most air quality monitors on the market – it retails for only around $70 (check current price on Amazon). Pre-orders are open now with shipping starting early next month.

Essential reading: Improve the air in your home with one of these devices

The device itself is fairly small measuring just 65 x 65 x 45 mm and weighing a mere 120 grams. There is no display so you’ll need to use the multicolor LED status indicator to understand the quality of air around you.

The other option is to use the Echo Family Devices or Alexa App. All of these connect to the air quality monitor. And that is an advantage over other such devices – the seamless integration with Alexa.

If the air quality is poor, you’ll immediately get an alert or hear an announcement on your Echo device. The app will also allow you to view a historical timeline of what you are breathing, including an easy to understand air quality score.

Amazon says the setup of its air quality monitor couldn’t be simpler. Simply plug it into a power outlet and follow the instructions in the Alexa app.

If you don’t have an air quality monitor we feel you are missing a trick. It’s a small investment and the inherent value of such a product is abundantly clear.

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Essential reading: Top fitness trackers and health gadgets

But indoor air quality is just as important, especially when you consider that we spend up to 90% of our time inside closed doors. Most people don’t know that the air they breathe in their homes can be up to five times worse than outdoors!

The quality of air you breathe can deteriorate with activities such as cooking, cleaning and painting to name a few. These activities can introduce Volatile Organic Chemicals (VOCs). Home building materials and furniture may also release these particles. In the process of trying to secure your home by locking doors and keeping the windows shut, you may also inadvertently seal in unhealthy air.

The concentration of CO2 (carbon dioxide) has long been used as an indicator for indoor air quality and can be measured by low-cost sensors. However, there is more than just CO2 that should be measured.

Luckily, there is an increasing range of connected devices that allow you to monitor your home for air quality and alert you to take action when necessary.

Jump to

Awair | Netatmo Healthy Home Coach | Eve Room 2 | Atmotube | AirVisual | Wynd Plus | Flow

Awair 2nd Edition (Awair Element)

The Awair Smart Air Quality Monitor keeps track of the air around you, measuring temperature, humidity, carbon dioxide, toxic chemicals, and dust. You tell the app what’s important to you — allergy concerns, sleep quality, or productivity— and it will make recommendations based on its readings and learn your preferences as you interact. The LED display offers a quick snapshot of your current air quality and can be set to multiple modes, including an optional clock feature.

Awair’s TrueSense technology uses dedicated monitoring and complex analytics to achieve greater accuracy and control. TrueSense analyzes data from sensors integrated into the device to individually measure temperature/humidity, dust, VOC levels, and CO2. The Awair Score (0 to 100 scale) and colors communicate like a stop light. Green is for Good, yellow for Fair and red for Poor.

For those that care about the quality of air they and their families breathe, Awair is a complete solution. In our review we found it was exactly the experience we had hoped for inside a lovely, unobtrusive package. There’s also a cheaper edition that comes in the form of Awair Element.

Amazon*

Netatmo Healthy Home Coach

The French company Netatmo sells a fully featured air quality monitor. Its Healthy Home Coach measures the air quality level, humidity, temperature, noise of your home and alerts you when things start to get out of hand. All of your data is recorded online and made permanently accessible to you, on your smartphone, tablet or PC.

The gizmo comes with a simple to use app which lets you know at a glance if the air in your home is healthy or not. Plus you’ll get advice on how to fix any potential problems. If you want to track multiple rooms, the app lets you connect several Health Home coach devices from one central location.

You can also check the health environment without using the app. Just tap on the top and Healthy Home Coach will light up to give you immediate insight into the air quality of your home. The sleek and elegant device also works with Apple HomeKit.

Amazon*

Eve Room

Eve Room 2 comes with significant improvements over the original. It looks more modern, its much smaller, there’s a new e-ink display on the front and it’s now rechargeable via USB.

The upgraded MEMS sensor detects and measures VOCs such as alcohol, aldehydes, ketones, organic acids, amines, as well as aliphatic and aromatic hydrocarbons. Organic compounds are not only byproducts of human metabolism, but high concentrations of VOCs can be found in everyday objects and remain hidden to CO2 sensors.

Eve Room 2 takes these measurements and presents them as a star rating giving you a simple way of understanding your home’s air quality. This is in addition to getting the exact parts-per-million value of the air quality in the smartphone app. The device also measures humidity and temperature.

The gizmo connects directly to your iPhone or iPad using Bluetooth Smart technology, without requiring a hub, gateway or bridge. The device is HomeKit enabled and works with Siri.

Amazon*

Atmotube Plus

Atmotube is another crowdfunded device. We were one of the first ones to receive and test the product, and can say that this is one of those rare crowdfunded projects that has delivered on (nearly) everything it promised.

The device was created to raise awareness about both indoor and outdoor air quality, so you can make the right choices every day and live healthier. It is especially helpful to asthmatics and lung disease sufferers, but is also useful for parents of young children and the elderly.

Atmotube goes with you wherever you go, and monitors VOC, carbon monoxide, humidity and temperature. The major problem with the first generation device is that battery life lasts only about 6-7 hours. This has been extended to around 7 days on Atmotube Plus.

All real-time measurements are accessible from the app on your mobile phone – together with your personal Air Score that motivates you to avoid the most polluted places and live healthier. The app also displays a map with all your readings and readings from other Atmotube users around the world.

Read more

Amazon*

AirVisual

One of the problems with smart air quality monitors is that users typically need to open up an accompanying smartphone app to view the readings. AirVisual does away with that, and instead provides a built-in, always-on 5-inch color display which you can use to check the readings at a glance.

Detecting everything from bacteria to, humidity, temperature, PM2.5 concentration and CO2, you’ll also receive real-time alerts right on your smartphone. AirVisual was designed according to medical-grade standards to specially benefit those who suffer from asthma, COPD, lung cancer and high blood pressure.

The air outside your home is just as important. This is why AirVisual provides detailed figures on six key pollutants for over 8,000 locations in more than 35 countries. The display compares indoor readings with outdoor data from the nearest official station, so you know when to ventilate, go outside or stay inside.

Amazon*

Wynd Plus

Wynd Plus is different from the competition in that it doesn’t purify all air, just the air around your head. It does this by using a clever combination of a detachable particulate matter sensor, bottle sized purification unit and accompanying smartphone app.

The entire device is 17cm tall and 7.1cm wide at the base. Despite its relatively small form factor, the company says Wynd Plus can deliver over 8 liters of clean air per second. While the device is marketed as portable, it works best when set up in a small, enclosed space.

The medical-grade filter removes particulates, cat dander, mold, bacteria, and pollution in a matter of minutes. The detachable particulate matter sensor monitors the quality of air around you, and automatically adjusts the purification level as needed.

In our review, we found Wynd Plus to be a really well thought out product. A lot of work has clearly gone into packing lots of great functionality into a small package.

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Amazon*

Flow 2

Plume Lab’s Flow is another portable air quality monitor. Similar to Atmotube, it monitors the full spectrum of pollutants indoors and out. This includes PM2.5 (particulate matter and dust), NOx (exhaust fumes), Ozone (irritating gas), VOCs (household chemicals), temperature and humidity.

Use the accompanying leather strap to attach it onto your bag and let it warn you whenever you are breathing in unhealthy air. Users can then learn how to avoid exposure while mapping their city to find clean air hotspots. You can also share the air quality data you collect to help others avoid polluted areas.

Read more

Amazon*

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The post Improve the air in your home with one of these smart gadgets appeared first on Gadgets & Wearables.

Breathing clean air makes us healthier and happier. Unfortunately billions of people around the world are exposed to dangerous particles. Although it varies across different regions, those that live in cities are typically most effected. Research has shown that the positive effects of walking or exercising outdoors can even be cancelled out by breathing in unhealthy air.

Essential reading: Top fitness trackers and health gadgets

The good news is it has never been easier to keep tabs on air quality thanks to a flurry of new products. Most of these function inside your home or office but Breathe|Smart is one of the few that you can use both indoors and out.

I’ve been testing the little gadget over the past month. Here’s what I made of it.

Design

Breathe|Smart has its origins on Indiegogo. At the start of this year it raised over $30,000 to fund production. We’ve all heard of spectacular crowdfunding fails but this was actually a product that delivered everything it promised. It’s 200+ backers received their Breathe|Smart on time and the gizmo is now available to all.

Out of the box the thing comes with the main unit, a charging dock, a USB-C charging cable, a wall charger and strap. The main unit has a stylish, fairly compact design. Measuring just 68 x 40 x 27mm it fits easily in the palm of your hand. At 75 grams it’s a bit heavier than it looks, though.

The great thing about Breathe|Smart is that it’s very portable. When at home, rest it in its charging dock. It will measure air quality from there and show it on the 1.54″ TFT capacitive touch display, while charging the  battery at the same time.

When on the go simply lift it from the cradle and it will continue to monitor the quality of air around you. There’s a handle on the back which you can use to attach Breathe|Smart to straps of your handbag or your rucksack. You can also use the strap that’s in the box to clip it to your bike, pram or stroller.

You don’t want to attach it as a fixed installation outside, though. The monitor was not designed for that and is not waterproof.

Dominating the main unit is the large display. This shows particular matter in the air, specifically PM2.5. These are particles less than 2.5 micrometers in diameter or 3% the diameter of a human hair.

They are best avoided and are considered one of the the deadliest form of air pollution due to their ability to penetrate into the lungs and blood stream. The fact that these particles are so small means they tend to stay in the air longer than heavier particles. Some examples include dust, ash, vehicle emissions, smoking cigarettes, factories and construction sites.

If you bring Breathe|Smart right next to your ear, you’ll hear a very faint whooshing sound. This is because the thing works by drawing air into the device through the side vents. The air comes in contact with the sensor which uses laser scattering technology to calculate the number and size of microscopic air pollutants each and every second.

This makes it very responsive to even the smallest oscillations in air quality. It was interesting to watch the numbers go sharply up or down as circumstances changed.

Battery life is not bad. The gizmo has a 850mAh Lithium-ion Polymer that can keep going for around 8 hours when lifted out of its cradle. This might not seem like much but when you are in the home or office, Breathe|Smart is best left in the charging stand from where it can work indefinitely. The other option is to plug the charging cable directly into the device. There’s a battery indicator on the display which will signal when charging.

The screen is always on in this case. Outside of the cradle the display switches off after a while to preserve battery life. It wakes up when you press the physical button on the front. There are also color-coded LED lights on the sides which illuminate so you can see the air quality even when the main display is off.

How to use

This is one of the simplest devices I can remember testing. There’s no need to read the instructions. Simply rest it in the cradle so the battery starts to charge, switch it on after a few minutes and you will see a readout of air quality. No calibration is needed, everything works out of the box. Because BREATHE|Smart is self-cleaning, no maintenance is required.

Most smart technology these days comes with some sort of smartphone app. It’s refreshing to see that Breathe|Smart doesn’t. My smartphone is littered with dozens and dozens of apps which have gone unopened for ages. With Breathe|Smart there is no need to download anything, no need to register your details or open an account, no need to pick up your smartphone to access readings. Brilliant!

The gizmo is designed to help you make lifestyle choices so you can breathe cleaner air, not just in your home but outside as well. It is a little known fact that you can reduce your exposure by as much as 50% simply by taking alternative routes. And sometimes, opening the window in your home to let some air in might not be a good idea.

As mentioned, the main unit has a single physical button on the front. Click on this and a menu will open up consisting of Air Quality, History, the Breathe|Score and Settings. Then simply tap on the touchscreen to navigate your way around.

Air Quality takes you to the main display, which is also the default display. Everything is color coded so you know at a glance whether there’s any need for concern. The display also spits out advice on reducing exposure when air pollution levels increase, which I didn’t really find that useful. The air quality score is all that I needed and I know if the air is bad to open the windows or leave the area.

The first time you use Breathe|Smart you will want to tweak the settings. This allows you to set the time/date, language, display brightness and timeout, alarm volume and activation level and more. Once that’s done, you’re set to go.

Another option worth mentioning is Night Mode. With this activated the LED side lights are switched off and the display is dimmed. The setting can be activated via the touchscreen or by pressing the physical button three times.

What impressed me most is how easy it is to use the device. And the fact that it simply works. I think this is partly due to the fact that there is no smartphone software, or need for a Bluetooth connection or WiFi.

Data and insights

Breathe|Smart uses values that mirror the Environmental Protection Agency Air Quality Index (AOI) to let you know the level of pollution around you is. The higher the number the higher the level of PM2.5 in the air. Everything is shown right on the display, color coded.

PM2.5 is not the only indicator of pollution, but it is a very important one. Statistics show that exposure to these types of particles is the fifth leading cause of death worldwide. They bring about more illness than all other environmental exposures combined and can lead to heart attack, irregular heartbeat, aggravated asthma, decreased lung function and other conditions. Children and the elderly are particularly at risk.

Everything is shown in real-time on the display and the air quality monitor is very responsive. Simple things such as cleaning your flat with chemicals will effect the readings.

At times I even found the little gizmo could be over-dramatic. If the message to leave the area immediately because the air is hazardous after you’ve cooked something in the oven doesn’t get you to open the windows, nothing will. Do this and watch the values come down quickly as the air quality stabilizes.

There’s also an option on the display which takes you through to exposure history. This shows a summary and graph of the pollution levels you were exposed to during the past 24 hours, past 5 days and past month.

In my case it told me that I was exposed to good air 79% of the time over the past month, a moderate air 21% of the time. The level of my exposure to unhealthy and extremely unhealthy air was too small to show in the statistics.

There’s also something called Breathe|Score. This updates every hour with an average of your previous 12 hours exposure. The score starts out at 50. Your aim should be to try and get it up to 100, and keep it there. This is a rolling value and you can see a graph of the past 24 hours along with a summary.

Overview

The verdict

I was very impressed with Breathe|Smart. The unit is very simple to use, lightweight and quick to respond to changes in air quality. There’s no smartphone app because you don’t need one. Everything you need to know can be seen on the display.

When at home, rest it in its charging dock from where it will do its thing. When on the go, remove it. The thing is very portable and can be attached to bags, bicycles, prams and strollers. You’ll always know the level of particulate matter in the air (PM2.5) as the laser sensor takes measurements constantly.

Breathe|Smart Air pollution monitor Gadgets & Wearables may get a commission

I do wish, though, Breathe|Smart could do a bit more. Perhaps keeps tabs on CO2, other toxic chemicals, temperature and humidity. Maybe we’ll see that in version 2. But what it promises, it fully delivers. All in all Breathe|Smart is an informative little device that will have you breathing cleaner air.

For every product sold, the company donates a portion of the sales to aid permanent reforestation projects in Madagascar, Indonesia, Mozambique, Haiti and Nepal.

We are a review site that receives a small commission from sales of certain items, but the price is the same for you. Purchasing items by clicking on links in this article allows us to run this website. We are independently owned and all opinions expressed here are our own. See our affiliate disclosure page for more details.

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As access to education and research continues to grow, people are becoming more and more health conscious. They try to exercise, avoid fast food but the one thing they typically don’t think about are the unhealthy natural and man-made substances in the air they breathe.

Air pollution is literally destroying our health. According to the World Health Association statistics, it causes one third of deaths from stroke, lung cancer and heart disease. This is particularly an issue for those living in large urban areas.

But while you have little control over pollution outside there is much you can do about the air inside your home. After all, a typical person spends up to 90% inside closed doors. Most people don’t know that the air they breathe indoors can be up to five times worse than outdoors! In the process of trying to secure your home by locking doors and keeping the windows shut, you may also inadvertently seal in unhealthy air.

Essential reading: Improve the air in your home with these smart gadgets

Luckily, there is an increasing range of connected devices that allow you to monitor your home for air quality and alert you to take action when necessary. Awair is one of the pioneers in this market.

The company’s first generation product offers a convenient way to track various types of air pollutants including chemicals, CO2, temperature and humidity. Launched about a year after the original, Awair 2nd Edition slaps on dangerous-dust sensing abilities along with other smaller improvements.

I’ve been using the second generation product for the past few weeks. Here’s what I made of it.

Design

In terms of design, Awair 2nd Edition looks very much like its predecessor. Probably a good move as there’s a certain visual charm and homely, old-school look about it. It actually reminds a little of those retro-radios that were so popular a few decades ago. Some might compare its look to a small bluetooth speaker.

The visually pleasing device has a dark wooden enclosure made from handcrafted high quality North American walnut timber. It measures just 6.3 x 2 x 3.5 inches so is ideally sized for a desk, bedside table, kitchen counter or bookshelf.

When positioning the device, you want to make sure to avoid overly dusty areas with minimal air flows such as floors or corners of rooms. This is because Awair sucks in air to analyze its quality. In fact, if you were to place your ear right next to it, you would the faint sound of its internal fan. That’s why it is recommended you give the device at least two inches of clearance from walls and other objects. Otherwise your data might be skewed.

I’ve tested similar devices in the past and they typically use lights to indicate air quality. Awair goes a step further with a set of white LEDs that shine through grid holes in the device’s front panel. These group to form numbers, letters and charts. Their brightness can be adjusted via the app or left to automatic. The convenience of having detailed information on the device itself cannot be overstated as it means you don’t have to keep referring to the app.

By default, the gizmo displays the overall air quality score on a scale of 0 to 100. The higher the score, the better your air. A stacked bar chart to the left indicates whether your readings on temperature, humidity, carbon dioxide (CO2), chemicals and dust fall within healthy ranges. Awair has been designed to cover up to 1,000 square feet.

The second generation product has a toggle switch in the back which allows you to cycle through individual metrics. You can also do this via the companion app by choosing between the Score/Clock/Each air quality factors modes.

A nice touch is that if you knock twice on the top of the Awair it will change the display mode. So if score is your default display it will switch over to time. The secondary display will show for 10 seconds before reverting back to the original.

There is also a single, multi-colored LED in the top right corner that operates as a stop light. If it’s green you’re in the clear, amber is not so good, red means go and open your windows. The light also has other functions. For example blue shows Bluetooth pairing mode, purple Wi-Fi pairing mode, white that it is reconnecting to Wi-Fi or updating its firmware, etc.

The biggest difference between the original and Awair 2nd Edition is that the upgraded version tracks PM2.5. This stands for Fine Dust or particulate matter where each particle has a diameter of less than 2.5 micrometers. Such dust is dangerous as it is invisible and can cause major health issues such as asthma and heart disease.

The VOC (volatile organic compound) sensing technology has also been improved. The company says with proper care, the sensors should last up to 5 years.

You’ll be happy to know that this is one less device you’ll need to charge. But you will need to plug it into an electricity outlet. The second generation unit is powered by USB type C instead of the proprietary power connection of its predecessor.

Setup and data

The process of setting up Awair 2nd edition is very simple. Unlike the first version there is no passcode required for the procedure. Simply download and open up the accompanying iOS/Android smartphone app, register an account and pair with the device.

The app will then ask for the password to your Wi-Fi. For convenience, once a successful connection is established the Bluetooth pairing with your phone will be automatically disabled. The whole set-up procedure is very smooth and takes only a few minutes.

If you’re traveling (as I was during testing) or want to move Awair to another location with a different Wi-Fi connection, you will need to go through a brief set up when you arrive. Press and hold the reset button for 15 seconds, until you see blue LED light on the front display. All preferences previously saved will be deleted, but your account information and historical readings will remain. You will then need to go through the setup again to define the new Wi-Fi connection, etc.

The other alternative is to move Awair to the new location but just use it as a standalone air quality monitor. You won’t need to set it up and connect to Wi-Fi, but it will not save historical data to the app.

Awair keeps track of the air in its surroundings. You tell the app what’s important to you — allergy concerns, sleep quality, productivity or elements that keep your baby healthy — and it will make recommendations based on its readings and learn your preferences as you interact.

The gizmo analyzes data from sensors integrated into the device to individually measure five key factors of air quality: temperature, humidity, dust, toxic chemicals (Volatile Organic Chemicals – VOCs) and CO2. All of these are important.

The temperature and level of humidity in your home can impact your overall health and comfort. Low humidity can aggravate pre-existing conditions such as asthma or bronchitis. It can also cause problems such as dry, cracked skin, bloody noses and dry sinuses. High humidity allows microorganisms such as dust mites, bacteria and mold to thrive.

The quality of air you breathe can also deteriorate with activities such as cooking, cleaning and painting to name a few. These activities introduce VOCs. Home building materials and furniture may release these particles, too.

Awair also detects CO2. Homes accumulate carbon dioxide because humans and animals breathe out the gas. Opening a window and ventilating your home is a simple way to reduce CO2 levels. Having a few plants around the house is another option.

Finally, the second generation product also detects dust levels via laser-based light scattering particle sensing technology. As mentioned, airborne particular matter can be very dangerous when breathed in. Common indoor activities which emit these particles include cooking, tobacco smoking, burning candles and more.

Performance and app

The LED display is excellent at giving you information on current air quality. I chose the screen that shows the overall score along with the stacked bar-chart of individual indicators. This provided me with everything I needed know so there was almost no need to interact with the device.

I was very impressed with how quick Aware was to react to changes in its surroundings. Simply sitting next to it will start to increase the levels of CO2. Switch on the oven in your kitchen and you will quickly see a spike in the PM2.5 value. It doesn’t matter if the oven is in another room. Open up the windows and watch it all fall back to healthy levels. It quickly teaches you which factors influence the quality of air in your home.

There is an optional audio alert that warns when significant changes occur. You’ll also get notifications on your smartphone and smartwatch/fitness tracker. These appear the moment the air quality needs attention. The settings allow you to control which air quality factors you’d like to be notified about.

While the device is good at providing you with at-a-glance information, the smartphone app is the place to go to for more details. You can use it to view a detailed breakdown of current air quality, review historical trends, receive notifications and look at recommendations. If you have more than one device, the app will act as a central repository for all information.

The app’s default screen shows your air quality score in a colored circle. Beneath this are values and dot graphs for each air quality factor. They use the same (green, amber and red) color-coding. Tap on any value to view an explanation and the optimum range for that particular metric.

The trends section shows a historical overview of your data. You can view the daily average and line graph of the overall score as well as all the individual metrics. The colors of the line will change as your air quality changed. Turning your smartphone to landscape lets you see weekly trends (for up to 6 weeks).

This works well. I do wish, though, the app had a monthly view and longer historical timeline. Perhaps something that will come via a software update.

If you add your city when setting up the device, you’ll also be able to view the current outside temperature and a three day weather forecast (from TWC). For a complete picture the app will also tap in AQI to display the air quality outside your home. For the US, AQI is provided by airnow.gov. For most the rest of the world, the AQI is provided by aqicn.org.

The app also spits out tips on keeping your air quality healthy. These are typically general in nature although you will get some that are particularly tailored to your situation. The notifications tab keeps a timeline of all significant air quality events in your home.

Finally the Awair app also provides smart home integration. You can integrate with Google Assistant, Nest and Alexa. There is also an option for setting up IFTTT. Awair has a dedicated channel that allows you to do all sorts of cool things like control other devices such as humidifiers, fans, purifiers and more. With a bit of effort and investment, you could even come up with an integration that automatically keeps your air clean and healthy.

Overview

The verdict

Awair is a great looking product, super easy to set-up and use. The air quality monitor provides timely and interesting feedback via its dot display and smartphone app. It sends alerts and suggestions when something is amiss and comes with lots of customization options and smart home integrations. There is actually very little not to like.

What impressed me the most, though, is its responsiveness to momentary shifts in air quality. You’ll be able to see changes when cooking, cleaning, having people in the house and more. These will be reflected almost immediately allowing you to take prompt action.

My only slight gripe with the product is that the fan makes a very faint sound. It’s one of those things where you either notice it or not. From a few feet away it’s impossible to hear anything.

Awair 2.0 Gadgets & Wearables may get a commission

For those that care about the quality of air they and their families breathe, Awair is a complete solution. It’s exactly the experience I had hoped for inside a lovely, unobtrusive package.

We are a review site that receives a small commission from sales of certain items, but the price is the same for you. Purchasing items by clicking on links in this article allows us to run this website. We are independently owned and all opinions expressed here are our own. See our affiliate disclosure page for more details.

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There’s a common problem with air purifiers – you don’t actually know if they are working. Their manufacturers say they are but you can’t really be sure.

Step in Aura Air. Touted as an all-in-one indoor air purification and quality intelligence system, Aura filters and disinfects the air around you while vigilantly monitoring its quality in real-time.

Essential reading: Improve the air in your home with these smart gadgets

The cleaning is done through a unique 5 stage purification process. This includes a Pre-Filter, Ray Filter (with 3 layers – HEPA, Carbon & Copper), UV LEDs and Sterionizer. The combination of these gets rid of formaldehyde, viruses, bacteria, sold, fungus, PM 2.5, PM10, VOCs and bad odour particles.

The multi-purpose device also functions as a carbon monoxide and smoke detector unit. It can detect and display info on gas leaks, carbon dioxide, VOCs, temperature, humidity, along with an on-going air quality profile.

All of the info is displayed in the accompanying smartphone app. The gadget will even let you know the air quality outside your home thanks to integration with Breezometer’s worldwide air quality index API.

When hazards are detected, Aura alerts you immediately. This ranges from real-time air quality recommendations (such as opening a window), to notifications if evacuation is required.

Best of all, Aura Air measures only 293 x 293 mm so you can hang it discreetly on the wall. From there it can monitor and clean around 65 square metres of space. You can control it manually or with voice controls. It plays nice with both Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant.

This certainly sound like the total air solution. With 26 days to go, some $174,000 has been raised on Kickstarter, many times over the rather modest $15,000 goal. If you want in, a unit will set you back $229. Backers should expect to receive their units in June.

Price: $229 and up

Funding open:

$174,443 raised out of $15,000 goal
26 days to go

Estimated delivery: June 2019

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Much has been written on our site about the detrimental effect air pollution can have on your health. This is a particular public health concern in areas that are close to roadways. It’s sometimes said that roadways are the smokestacks of the 21st century. If you think staying indoors is the solution, think again. The air in your home can often be much worse than the air outside.

Essential reading: Top fitness trackers and health gadgets

Huma-i wants to be your personal air quality guardian. The pocket sized device measures fine and ultra fine particulate matter in the air (PM10, PM2.5), CO2 levels, and other gasses and volatile organic compounds. To provide you with a complete picture of your surroundings, it also dishes out temperature and humidity readings.

Best of all, all this is viewable on the device itself, so no need to fumble around with your smartphone. In addition to a status LED which lets you know at a glance the level of pollution around you, pressing the physical button will activate the display mode which spits out detailed measurements and an air quality graph.

Huma-i has been available in its home market of South Korea for the past month 6 months. Apparently it’s been flying off the shelves.

This version on Indiegogo is the beginning of the company’s international model that includes additional sensor readings. And it’s doing pretty well. With 26 days remaining, the campaign is well above its modest $5,000 goal. Delivery to backers is set for February 2019.

Price: $89 and up

Funding open:

$25,931 raised out of $5,000 goal
26 days left

Estimated delivery: February 2019

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The interior of your car may seem like a safe haven from air pollution, but that’s not the case. The Roidmi P8S is a new type of air purifier designed to solve this problem. It comes equipped with an integrated nanoscale filter and powerful centrifugal fan that can quickly and throughly purify the air inside your vehicle.

Essential reading: Top fitness trackers and health gadgets

While most of us are aware of pollution in big cities, there is the false feeling of being in a safe haven while in your car. Being inside does offer some protection to particulate matter and dust, but it does not offer protection from exhaust fumes from cars around you. Your air conditioning does not remove this – it brings it into your car!

Roidmi P8S is a bluetooth enabled car air purifier that remove allergens, dust, micro particles, bacteria and lingering odor such as smoke and formaldehyde. It fits on the rear seat of a car, turning on when you start the engine. From there, it sucks in air and pushes it through three layers: a steel mesh filter, a HEPA filter, and a “nanoscale carbon filter”.

The manufacturer says P8S can clean the air inside of your car in only 2 minutes making it the world’s fastest and highest-performance smart car air purifier. Plus, the whole thing is virtually noise free at the lower of its two speed settings.

The gizmo is so quick because it comes equipped with dual centrifugal fans that clean air at a delivery rate (CADR) of up to 70m3/h. Its four independent air ducts distribute purified air to every corner of your car.

Unlike most of its competition P8S has laser detection with an LED display which shows the air condition in real-time. This can also be viewed on the accompanying smartphone app which allows you to control P8S remotely and know when the filter needs changing.

With 12 days remaining, the Indiegogo campaign to make the air purifier a reality is three times above its $10,000 goal. The wait should not be too long. Delivery to backers is set for February 2019.

Price: $169 and up

Funding open:

$30,783 raised out of $10,000 goal
12 days left

Estimated delivery: February 2019

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