*This review is a type of sponsored post in that I received this air purifier as a gift. However I did not receive any other forms of payment and all opinions here are my own.
When Okaysou, an air purifier company asked me if I’d like a free air purifier during the 3rd week of smoky air due to wildfires in California, I didn’t hesitate. Yes, I already have 5 air purifiers (the ones featured in this air purifier comparison review). But I don’t think you can have too many air purifiers when living in wildfire-prone California and two very furry dogs (and I’m slightly allergic). Plus the Okaysou AirMax8L can filter up to a 800 sq ft space (at 1.5x air exchange rater per hour), which makes it the highest capacity air purifier in my collection. And since we’ve moved into an old ranch-style house that lets smoke seep in (we think it’s the old windows and old fireplace—something we didn’t know when we bought the house last year and only now know thanks to apocalyptic wildfires), I need as much air purifying power as I can get.
The first thing I noticed when unboxing the AirMax8L was the filters. It comes as a set of two filters, but each set is composed of multiple layers. One set holds the pre-filter, HEPA filter, and the anti-bacterial filter. The second set holds the activated carbon and a cold catalyst filter. Now I consider myself a bit of a pro when it comes to air purifiers (I mean I’ve purchased so many!) but this is the first time I’ve seen a cold catalyst filter so I had to do some research. On the Amazon listing, it says the cold catalyst filters out formaldehyde and VOCs (volatile organic compounds). And with further internet research I learned that the cold catalyst filter can filter out viruses. Hello perfect pandemic air purifier. This is the only air purifier I’ve seen with this added special metal mesh (I think it might be copper) cold catalyst filter.
I also noticed that the AirMax8L draws in air from the back (via a cool geometric designed plastic backing) compared to some of my other air purifiers that draws air in from the sides (what they call flank air inlet). This definitely is an improvement since the air purifier with the flank air inlet tends to get clogged with dust and fur on the sides of the filter (where the air comes in), leaving the middle part of the filter less used. On air filters with the flank air inlet, I tend to vacuum and clean the filters more often.
As for the main functions, it has all the basics. It has 3 fan speeds and a 1,2,4,8 hour timer (though I tend to run my air filters 24/7, especially during fire season). There’s a sleep mode (that’s suuuuper quiet, 22db to be exact) and a child lock mode which is a must when you have a toddler. And lastly there’s a filter change indicator light.
For all the extra filters and it’s high capacity air filtration I expected the AirMax8L to be at least $200+, but I was pleasantly surprised to find it to be $118. Yes, that may seem pricey but as far as air purifiers goes, that’s a great value IMHO. Overall, I definitely recommend this air purifier for those who need one for a larger room and for those who are especially concerned about filtering out viral particles from the air.