We had been considering for very long whether to buy an air purifier. This was partly due to the arrival of our baby, as well as the ongoing HIP works in our area.
It took us very long to evaluate and consider the different options in the market, before we eventually decided to go with the Philips 3000i Series Air Purifier – AC3033/30.
When we first posted about it on Instagram, we got some requests to do a review on this air purifier. It seems many homeowners are also considering this purchase! Hence, we decided to pen down our review of the Philips air purifier after 1 month+ of usage.
To do this review, we referred to the comprehensive criteria that Seth Lui used in his evaluation of the best air purifiers in Singapore.
Size and weight
This would be a concern if you’re planning to move the air purifier around the house, especially across the different rooms.
The Philips 3000i Series Air Purifier – AC3033/30 weights in at 6.8kg.
We didn’t see a need to move it around so the weight works fine for us, but you may want to take note of this if you don’t want to lug nearly 7kg around everyday!
Room size
The second thing to look for is an air purifier that’s built for the size of your room. If you put an air purifier built for a small room into a large one, it won’t be able to filter air as well.
We bought the Philips 3000i Series Air Purifier – AC3033/30 specifically because we wanted to keep one in our bigger-than-usual living room. It is said to be designed for XL rooms!
Filter type
The type of filter in the air purifier is important and depends primarily on what you’re using the air purifier for.
High Efficiency Particular Air (HEPA) filters are industrially recognised as the most effective at removing pollutants from the air. They can remove more than 99.97% of 0.3-micron particles, which include PM 10 and PM2.5.
For some context, PM10 particles can be trapped by your nose or throat. However, PM2.5 particles are so small that they can slip through and lodge in your lungs, causing all sorts of health problems.
Philips 3000i Series Air Purifier – AC3033/30 is equipped with a 3-layer filtration with NanoProtect HEPA, active carbon and pre-filter. Their NanoProtect HEPA technology is not only said to trap pollutants, but also uses an electrostatic charge to attract them. This cleans up to 2x more air than traditional HEPA H13 filtration with higher energy efficiency.
Note: Beware of air purifiers claiming to be “HEPA-type,” “HEPA-like,” or “99% HEPA,” which are not true HEPA filters and not as effective.
Air quality needs
This links back to your room size and filter type!
If you have certain pollutants you need to remove due to e.g. allergies, the ideal air purifier should be designed to remove allergens like pollen and dust.
For us, our main concern was the dust and filth coming in from the works around the neighbourhood. We also wanted it to be good enough to filter any other possible pollutants that could affect our health (especially our baby!) in the future.
So far it’s been working pretty well for us as we haven’t suffered any onslaught of allergies from the construction. This is especially so for Tofu V, who unfortunately found her respiratory system and skin a lot more sensitive during her pregnancy.
CADR rating
It’s essential to review the number called CADR, which stands for Clean Air Delivery Rate. The number measures for tobacco smoke, pollen, and dust filtration. The higher the CADR number, the more air it filters per minute for that particle.
As a rule of thumb, the ideal CADR of an air purifier should be equal to at least two-thirds of the room’s area.
Our Philips 3000i Series Air Purifier – AC3033/30 has a CADR of 520m³/h, which more than sufficiently covers our living room. Hence, we considered this a good fit for us!
Note: CADR doesn’t measure the effectiveness of the size of particles being filtered.
Noise level
We’ve found that the Philips 3000i Series Air Purifier – AC3033/30 is generally pretty quiet. Sometimes it even produces less noise than our Dyson fan!
If you’re using this in your bedroom, you can turn on Sleep mode. This causes the purifier to operate in near silence (15 dB), as well as dims the display lights.
The maximum sound level at Turbo mode is 56 dB. It’s unlikely you’ll use this though, unless your house is in dire need of purifying!
Energy efficiency
This could be quite a dealbreaker if you’re planning to leave your air purifier turned on 24/7.
The energy specifications for the Philips 3000i Series Air Purifier – AC3033/30 are as follows:
- Max power consumption: 55 W
- Stand-by power consumption: <2 W
- Voltage: 230 V
Most air purifiers generally consume less than 100W, with 20 – 50 W as the average range.
This Philips air purifier falls squarely in the average range (or a bit higher). It’s equivalent to one standard light bulb – not the best, but certainly not the worst!
Price
At SGD759, the Philips 3000i Series Air Purifier – AC3033/30 is definitely not the cheapest in the market.
However, we did consider that we were only investing in one for the whole house. It also came with better features than some others on the cheaper end. Hence, we decided that the price was worth it in the long run.
Smart capabilities
The Philips 3000i Series Air Purifier – AC3033/30 is connected by the Air+ app.
This smartphone app keeps track of all indoor and outdoor pollutants and automatically adjust your devices performance.
You can also control the air at home with your voice if you have Amazon Alexa or Google Home.
This Philips air purifier also supposedly comes with Self-Adaptive Technology powered by Artificial Intelligence. It not only reacts to the sensors but also considers room size, outdoor data and behavioural patterns.
We haven’t really observed this Self-Adaptive Technology in action, but it is quite a nifty feature!
Maintenance
We’re on the fence with this one because we’ve had to clean out our filter after just one month, but we realise that it’s most likely because our area is simply so dirty from the renovation works!
On the flip side, it seems that Philips is not exaggerating when they say that their NanoProtect HEPA filters help save money in the long term, compared to other leading air purifiers. Its recommended filter change is 3 years, which is in line with what we’ve observed after about a month.
We also find it very helpful that we can check the filter lifetime indicator in the Air+ app!
Final thoughts
Our neighbour recently told us that she found dust on her bed thanks to the HIP, what with all the hacking, painting, and other construction works.
We’ve not encountered this problem to such a serious extent. Yes, the windows get dirty, but other than that our rooms are generally pretty clean!
We’d like to think that all due credits go to our Philips 3000i Series Air Purifier – AC3033/30. Hence the glowing review we’ve written!
You can purchase the Philips 3000i Series Air Purifier – AC3033/30 from Shopee, Lazada, or any home furniture stores in Singapore.
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