Molekule Air Large-Room Air Purifier Review - Is PECO Better Than HEPA Filter?

Before releasing the Air Pro in September 2020, the Molekule Air had been the most expensive consumer-grade air purifier for a while. At the original cost of $799, this should be a high-en product that could destroy pollutants as promised.

Disclosure: Molekule sent us the product in exchange for the review. We spent weeks testing the product to make sure this review is honest and unbiased.

Unboxing & Setup

Features & Performance

At the moment, Molekule has 4 air purifiers in the lineup. While the Air Mini and Air Mini+ are made for small spaces up to 250 sq. ft., the Air is made for rooms up to 600 sq. ft. and Air Pro is for rooms up to 1,000 sq. ft.. They all use the same technology, so the choice totally depends on your room size. As compared to the Air Mini+ I tested a few months ago, the Air is significantly larger and should be placed on the floor instead.

In terms of design and build quality, the Molekule Air is very sturdy and it actually looks more stunning than any air purifier on the market. The silver anodized aluminum exterior and leather handle brings a premium feeling everytime I touch the product. I also love that there is a power cord organizer on the base, so the purifier looks so tidy everywhere I place it.

It is fairly heavy at 18 lbs but the handle makes it easy to move the purifier around. The handle is quite convenient and I actually just need one Air purifier throughout my house because I can carry it to different rooms easily. I leave it in my bedroom/home office most of the time because that’s where I spend most of my day; When I need to get rid of uncomfortable odors in my living room or kitchen, I move the air purifier and leave it there for a few hours.

The Air lacks the particle sensor found on the Air Mini+ and Air Pro, however, this is a basic sensor that can’t give you accurate information of air quality. I’m glad that this purifier doesn’t include that sensor as it could drive the price even higher.

Setting up the air purifier is straightforward and you even don’t need to install the Molekule app on your phone. The app is only necessary when you need to reset the filter status indicator. If you don’t need the app control, you can totally disable Bluetooth and Internet connectivity. The initial setup just requires you to choose the room size (<200 sq ft, 200-400 sq ft, >400 sq ft), then the machine will calibrate to be suitable for your room. There is initial odor from the device when it starts running but it will go away after a couple of days.

Molekule uses two filters in this machine. To replace the filter, you need to push down the top and rotate the lid counterclockwise; The mechanism looks so cool as you will see the body slide up, then you can pull out the PECO filter from the top and slide out the pre-filter from the bottom. The PECO filter and pre-filter are sold separately for $80 and $60 respectively, however, you can save a huge amount by subscribing to auto-refills plan; You will receive 2 Pre-Filters and 1 PECO-Filter every 6 months for the cost of just $65. Molekule recommends replacing the pre-filter every 3 months and PECO filter every 6 months, so the total cost of $65 is very affordable.

The Molekule has a touch screen on top that allows you to select fan speed, enable dark mode, turn on/off the machine, or check the filter status. I set the fan speed at Auto all the time as it delivers optimal airflow based on my room size. The Boost mode is the most powerful one and its noise level is around 65dB. You can switch to Silent mode when you go to sleep as it has a whispering 41dB noise.

Similar to other Molekule products, the Air doesn’t use HEPA filter. Instead, it uses PECO filter which was proved to be more efficient in destroying pollutants, including viruses, bacteria, mold, allergens, and chemicals. It can destroy toxic volatile organic compounds like formaldehyde, and remove airborne viruses like MS2 bacteriophage (a proxy virus for SARS-CoV-2). You can check out more test reports here.

Although I don’t have equipments to prove the effectiveness of the Air purifier, I can see it works very well in getting rid of odors and smoke in my kitchen. Moreover, you don’t have to replace the filters regularly in this case because the PECO filter destroys instead of trapping chemicals on the surface. I’d recommend it more if you have to deal with molds, food smell, tobacco smoke, gases, etc. If it doesn’t work well, you can return for a full refund in the first 30 days.