Xiaomi recently launched the Mi Air Purifier 2C, a cheaper version of its popular Mi Air Purifier 2S. Although cheaper, Mi Air Purifier 2C has a higher CADR value compare to the previous generation 2S. So, what’s the catch? Well, for starters, the 2C doesn’t have a display and neither the Mi Home app support. But, the bigger picture is – is it still worth your money. To talk more about it, here’s a short side by side comparison of the Mi Air Purifier 2S and Mi Air Purifier 2C.
Xiaomi Mi Air Purifier 2S vs Mi Air Purifier 2C
Rather than beating around the bush, we will list down the key differences in points and elaborate it further.
1. Xiaomi Mi Air Purifier 2C has higher CADR
The Xiaomi Mi Air Purifier 2C has a higher CADR value of 350 m3/hr as compared to 310 m3/hr in 2S. The newly released Mi Air 2C also covers a slightly larger area of 452 sq.ft whereas the older Mi Air 2S cover 400 sq.ft. In a nutshell, if you place both the air purifiers in a similar room with a similar amount of pollutants, the Mi Air 2C would do a slightly better job in cleaning the environment.
On a side note, CADR values are often cherry-picked and should be taken with a pinch of salt. We have previously covered CADR and other values extensively in our article best Air Purifier to buy in India, have a look at it for better understanding.
2. Mi Air 2C has 2-layer air filtration
Both the Mi Air 2S and Mi Air 2C have a true HEPA filter. However, the one that comes pre-installed with the Mi Air 2C is slightly different. It lacks the activated carbon filter which was present in Mi Air 2S. This carbon filter helps to tackle gas emissions and bad odor.
Surprisingly, the Mi Air 2S filter even works with the Mi Air 2C. So, I suppose, it just another cost-cutting measure from Xiaomi’s side. In addition to this, the replacement filter available on the Xiaomi website is the one with the three-layer air filtration. That really leaves me clueless as to why install the 2-layer air filter when you ain’t even selling those.
3. Mi Air 2C doesn’t support the Mi Home app
Mi Air 2C lacks Wi-Fi and so does the Mi Home app support. But, the question is what do you lose with the app omission? Well, you cannot remotely power ON/OFF the Air Purifier, neither can you control it with a voice assistant like Echo.
Another smart feature that I used a lot with the Mi Air 2S was the scheduled power on/off function. It is easy to set up and I used it to make sure that it runs only for 4-6 hours in the night. More of like the AC so when the air cleaning is done, it can rest. Additionally, the Mi Air 2C doesn’t have a display so you have to resort to the buttons to switch fan modes.
4. Mi Air 2C doesn’t have a display
Mi Air 2C gets rid of the OLED screen and that’s the only change you will notice between the looks of Mi Air 2S and Mi Air 2C. The OLED screen acted as the real-time Air Quality Index(AQI) and displayed the current PM 2.5 value. So now, the Mi Air 2C uses a colored LED light to notify the AQI. Wherein, green notifies heathier pollution levels and red signifies an alarming pollution level.
Moreover, the display cannot show air filter health. So, you would rely on the LED light to blink red to notify you about the filter replacement.
5. Mi Air 2C is affordable
The Mi Air Purifier 2C is accessible to more users in India. Currently, the price is set to Rs. 6,499 while the 2S, which was initially launched at 12999 a year ago, is now available at a discounted price of Rs 8999.
Closing words
While the design and HEPA filter is pretty much the same, Mi Air 2C has been stripped off the display on the front and comes with no WiFi support. Yet, on the practical side, it has higher CADR and costs significantly less than previous generation Mi Air 2S. For most people, I recommend the Mi Air 2C. It’s not only affordable but also offer higher CADR. However, if you need smart options like real-time AQI on the display, App integration, then go with Mi Air 2S. Â
