Haier Portable Air Conditioner - HPRB07XC7 Review

Silly me.  After being pampered in air conditioning for my previous 26 years of existence, I was under the impression I'd be able to stick out a single summer in a second floor apartment with cathedral ceilings (read: it gets freakin hot in here!).  Maybe it was the heat getting to my brain, or the low air quality reducing the oxygen that made it there, but either way, I should've known I was crazy.

But see, here's the thing.  I didn't want to put in a window unit, because the windows in my apartment look rather flimsy, and I didn't think they could support even a small window AC.  And I really didn't want to shell out the moolah for a portable AC.  So, I figured, what the hell, I'll beat the heat with no AC.  It can't be that hard to make it through ONE summer without AC, can it?  Uh, yeah, it can.  Maybe not when you haven't had AC all of your life, but when you have?  FORGET ABOUT IT.

But I impressed myself.  I made it until the last week of July before caving.  And so, this past weekend, I went out to Target and bought this 7,000 BTU Haier unit.

I found that installing this was relatively easy, although there was an extra piece that they don't tell you you don't need, so if you're somewhat retarded when it comes to setting things up, like me, you'll probably get frustrated before the lightbulb goes off and you say "derrrrrrrrrrrrrr."  The window kit was easy enough to figure out, except for said extra piece that they don't bother telling you is extra.  The unit itself is about 50 pounds, give or take 5 pounds.  But it comes on casters, so moving it around the house should be easy enough.  Not that I've had to move it, since it's staying in the bedroom so I can maybe catch a decent night's sleep for once.

The unit has 3 different modes: cool, fan, and dehumidify.  I've tried each one out, and so far, they all work relatively well.  With that being said, it's an AC, so "cool" is the most important and I think it works really well.  In addition, it's not hard to fix any problems that might arise, as the manual that comes with it gives a helpful listing of suggestions if  your room isn't cooling as fast as you'd like.

I've had good experience with Haier products in the past, and so far, I'm happy with my purchase here.  Granted, if this craps the bed in 2 years, I'll be ticked off beyond belief, but for now, I'm happy with my purchase.  It was easier to install than a window unit, and I think does a better job of cooling as well.  So give the Haier 07XC7 a shot.  It beats feeling like you're about to greet the devil himself in the depths of hell.  :)