REASONS TO BUY
Easy to move
Decent energy efficiency
REASONS TO AVOID
Poor cooling abilities
Noisy
Midea 3-in-1 Review
This is an expensive machine that is easy to move around but ultimately offers poor cooling abilities
Credit: Midea
Our Verdict
The Midea 3-in-1 is a highly portable and smart technology-enabled machine. While our testers enjoyed the ability to control this appliance from their smart devices, it is noisy and only moderately energy efficient. If portability from room to room is your main concern, the rolling wheels on the bottom of the device made this one of the easiest machines to move around on hard-surfaced floors. However, compared to other top air conditioners we tested, this one only had mediocre cooling abilities, and when considering the high price point, there are better options on the market.
Editor's Note: This product review was revised on April 21, 2022, to include advice on what we would recommend to a friend.
Our Analysis and Test Results
Performance Comparison
The Midea 3-in-1 is easy enough to move around but offers poor cooling abilities.
Credit: Laura Casner
Cooling Power
Certainly, the most crucial component of an AC unit is its ability to cool a room. The Midea offered mediocre results in our cooling power tests. Our testing room started at 78°, and after an hour of running this machine, the inside temperature only dropped 8°. While it wasn't the worst performance in our review, we were not particularly impressed by those numbers.
Portability
Portability is the one metric where this model scored some serious points. The built-in wheels worked quite well when rolling this unit from room to room. However, if you are likely to encounter stairs and need to carry this device, it is a bit unwieldy. The built-in grips are rather small and don't quite accommodate a full fingertip's worth of room. The weight is distributed unevenly, making it even tougher to lug around by hand. Overall, this model is great for wheeling around single-story buildings but tough to get up and down stairs.
The built-in wheels and window mounting system, made this unit easy to move from room to room.
Credit: Laura Casner
Noise
While almost all of the units scored similarly on our decibel reader, the actual sounds each machine produced were highly variable, with some being much more bothersome to our testers than others. The Midea emitted a high-pitched buzzing sound that we found quite obnoxious. The noise that came out of the machine wasn't a consistent hum but rattly and somewhat sporadic, adding to our dislike.
The Midea is smart device compatible.
Credit: Laura Casner
Energy Cost
One of the biggest downsides to any air conditioning unit is the relatively high cost of operation. The Midea scores reasonably well in this metric. According to our calculations, it costs around $122 per three months of daily use. These numbers put it squarely in the middle in terms of average cost.
Smart Features
With the Midea, you can set a schedule, connect to Alexa or Google Home, look at the “sleep curve”, see the indoor temperature easier and more reliably, and turn the unit on or off remotely.
Ultimately, this device struggled to cool down our testing room.
Credit: Laura Casner
Should You Buy the Midea 3-in-1?
The Midea 3-in-1 has middle-of-the-road energy efficiency and mediocre cooling abilities. We think consumers can find a better value elsewhere. If having a wheeled device that is easy to push around a single story is a high priority for you, this device might be worth it, but we'd suggest most folks look at other options.
What Other Portable Air Conditioners Should You Consider?
Our favorite unit we tested was the SereneLife SLPAC10, which does a respectable job cooling efficiently and has a lower operating and upfront cost. For those seeking max cooling power, check out the Whynter ARC-14SH.
—
Buck Yedor and Austin Palmer
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