I tested Blueair's new budget-friendly mini air purifier every day for two weeks and will never cook bacon without it again

When the Blueair Blue Pure Mini Max Air Purifier crossed my desk I was instantly intrigued. Blueair is a major player in the air purifier market and is regularly awarded the title of best air purifier. The new 'mini' version is the brand's most compact and affordable air purifier to date, so I was keen to find out if it could deliver the same impressive results as the Blue Max 3260i Air Purifier currently residing in the top spot of our air purifier buying guide.

Air purifiers are designed to cleanse our homes of airborne contaminants, including smoke, dust, pollen, pet fluff, and even Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs), which can come from numerous household items. However, they can be bulky so a mini version featuring Blueair technology to clean the air sounds like a dream come true for small homes.

I put the Mini Max Air Purifier through a series of tests used on all the air purifiers we test at Ideal Home, and also used it every day for two weeks to see if this mini air purifier could deliver big results.

Specifications

• Recommended room size: 20m2
• Air change per hour: 2 per hour based on recommended room size
• CADR: particle/ dust/ smoke: 100 m³/h
• Noise levels: 20-44dB
• Filter type: HEPASilent Filter
• Dimensions: H28.9 x W17.2 x D17.2cm
• Weight: 1.4kg
• Wattage: 2-10W
• Smart App connectivity: No 
• Timer: No
• Auto mode: No

How I tested

Katie Sims

I'm Katie, one of Ideal Home's regular digital contributors. I've been writing ecommerce and informative content related to interiors for a couple of years now, and in that time I've reviewed a range of products, including fire pits, coffee machines, and dehumidifiers. Over the past couple of weeks I've been using the Blueair Blue Pure Mini Max Air Purifier daily in my home, testing how well it performed at removing smoke, VOCs, and cooking fumes.

Unboxing

Because of its compact size, the Mini Max Air Purifier is super lightweight and easy to carry around. The packaging is mostly recyclable, though there was a couple of pieces of single-use plastic in the box. Not a huge deal, but given that Blueair is a B-corp brand with a focus on sustainability, it would have been nice to see only recyclable materials in the box.

Assembly and set up

If you prefer low-fuss and easy to use devices, you'll likely be a fan of the Blueair Pure Mini Max Air Purifier. There's no assembly involved, simply remove the machine from its packaging, attach the correct plug, and it's ready to use.

Design

I love the design of the Blue Mini Max Air Purifier, Blue air has carried the design of its other air purifiers through into this mini version. With a height of 29cm, it's small enough to sit on top of surfaces without looking like an eyesore, thanks to its sleek aesthetic. I've got quite used to how it looks on my desk, and it's about as attractive as air purifiers can get.

Like its larger predecessor, the Mini Max Purifier comes with a removable fabric knit cover which is available in two colourways. The Stockholm Fog that comes as standard is a simple, neutral grey that's unlikely to clash with any decor, but you can purchase the cover in Limestone Beige if you prefer.

The control panel lets you turn the device on and adjust the fan setting, which can be set to low, medium or high. There aren't any Smart features, meaning there's no option to control the purifier using your phone or voice-activated devices.

Though the Mini Max Purifier is super easy to use, it's lacking in any advanced features. There aren't any modes to switch between, and there's no visual display showing the air quality, meaning it's difficult to know how effective the machine actually is. The top-rated Blue Max 3250i Air Purifier from Blueair has a light that changes colour in line with the air quality, so it would have been nice to see this on the Mini version as well.

Performance

The Mini Max is Blueair's most affordable air purifier yet, which does mean that it's pretty basic in its functions. As mentioned, there is no air quality indicator light, so it's difficult to have a clear measure of how quickly the device is cleaning the air. This meant that when testing the Mini Max - following the tests laid out in our guide to how we test air purifiers - I had to rely on my sense of smell to decipher how well the device was performing.

The Mini Max also lacks an automatic mode, whereby air purifiers adjust their fan speed based on the air quality in the room. This means that it's up to you to manually adjust the fan setting. An Auto mode is preferrable, because it takes the guesswork out of using an air purifier; the machine simply increases its fan speed whenever it registers a dip in air quality.

Unfortunately we can't rely on our noses to detect this dip, as many airborne pollutants are odourless.

That being said, I was able to get a good idea of how well the Mini Max can remove smoke from the room, given that smoke is pretty easy to detect with our noses. After using a match to light a candle next to the air purifier, I left the device running on the high setting and shut the door.

It only took around 7 minutes for the smell of smoke to fully dissipate. I thought this was pretty impressive for a smaller, budget-friendly air purifier, given that more powerful devices like the AEG Connected Air Purifier take around 4 and a half minutes to return the air quality to normal. I also performed the match test with the device running on the lowest fan setting, where it took around 20 minutes to get rid of the smokey smell - not bad considering the Mini Max only uses 2W of energy on this setting.

It was a similar story when I sprayed aerosol deodorant in the vicinity of the Mini Max, to test how well it could remove VOCs. After spraying the deodorant, I set the air purifier to high, closed the door of the room, and in just under 10 minutes, the smell had pretty much vanished.

The last test I performed with the Pure Mini Max Air Purifier was the bacon test. I popped two rashers of bacon on the hob and let them sizzle away while I plugged the air purifier in. When they were finished, I set the fan to high and left the kitchen to enjoy my bacon bagel, closing the door behind me.

I was super impressed with how quickly the Mini Max performed here. Before I switched it on, the kitchen was the full of the very distinct smell of frying bacon, but in less than 10 minutes, the scent had gone. For such a small machine, the Blueair Blue Pure Mini Max Air Purifier packs a pretty powerful punch.

Ease of use

The Mini Max's limited functionality is a shame, but this does mean that it's really easy to use. With only two buttons on the control panel, it would be difficult to not get the air purifier running smoothly.

I also like how there's a light to indicate what fan speed the machine is running on, though this does only show when you tap the fan button - it would have been nice to see the speed at a glance.

The buttons are touch-sensitive, so they only need to be tapped rather than pressed. Sometimes I did have to tap them a couple of times in order for them to respond, but this wasn't a major inconvenience.

Noise levels

On the low fan setting, the Pure Mini Max Air Purifier is so quiet I struggled to know that it was even on; only when I put my ear next to the machine could I hear the gentle whirring. This makes it perfect for those of us that prefer quiet home appliances, and even on the medium setting, the volume isn't loud or distracting.

On the high setting, the Mini Max does amp up a fair bit, and I didn't use this setting when working from home or watching TV. But the sound itself isn't annoying, and I didn't mind using the high setting when performing the match or bacon tests - the louder volume was a good indication that the machine was working hard to remove the smells.

Portability

As its name suggests, the Blueair Blue Pure Mini Max Air Purifier was designed for portability. It's the brand's most compact air purifier yet - smaller even that the Blue Pure 511 Air Purifier which we put to the test earlier this year - meaning it's perfect for keeping on top of bedside cabinets, tables, or desks (where mine is currently living).

With a weight of just 1.4kg, you'll have no trouble carrying it around, and its compact size means that it never makes a space feel overcrowded or cluttered. So while it lacks an Auto mode and air quality light display, it does tick all the boxes for someone that's looking for a small, budget-friendly air purifier.

Energy use

Fortunately, the Blueair Blue Pure Mini Max is super cheap to run. Using only 2W of energy on the lowest setting, and 10W on the highest, it costs less than 1p to run per hour. In terms of the average cost to run an air purifier, the Mini Max is at the lower end.

The only downside is that because the Mini Max doesn't have an automatic mode, it won't automatically switch off when the air quality has reached an acceptable level. You'll also need to manually change the settings between low, medium, and high, meaning you may wind up having it running on high more than if there was an Auto mode to decide for you.

Though leaving the device on for long periods of time will start to add up, the Mini Max is still considered a cheap appliance to run.

Filter replacement

Given that the Mini Max's affordability is one of its big selling points, it's worth remembering the ongoing cost of replacement filters after you buy, as with any air purifier.

The HEPA filters have a lifetime of 6 months, after which point it's recommended to replace them in order for the air purifier to keep working efficiently. No purifier is going to cleanse the air very well if its filter is clogged, and the Blue Pure Mini Max is no exception. Replacement filters are available to buy at £18, which is nice and affordable compared to a lot of other air purifiers - Blueair's second most affordable model (the Pure 511) has replacement filters that cost £25.

The fabric knit cover also acts as a pre-filter, trapping larger particles of dust before they can reach the HEPA filter. This doesn't need to be replaced, because it is washable, which makes maintaining the Mini Max nice and easy.

Verdict

Overall, the Blueair Blue Pure Mini Max Air Purifier is an affordable, easy to use device that gets the job done. Our testing process has shown that it's more than capable at removing smells from the air, at an impressive rate for a machine of its size. One of its best features is its portability, which aside from making it easy to carry around, means it can sit on top of surfaces without making the space feel cluttered.

But, there are some drawbacks - mainly that it doesn't have an air quality indicator, so there's no real way to tell how much the air quality is improving while it's on. This also means that the Mini Max lacks an Auto mode, so it won't automatically amp up the power when the air quality dips. This could be a dealbreaker if you're someone who would prefer an air purifier that takes the guesswork of how hard it should be working.

With 3 fan settings of low, medium and high, the Mini Max offers pretty basic functionality compared to other air purifiers on the market, including Blueair's more advanced models like the Blue Max 3260i and Dust Magnet 5440i. But this does mean that the Mini Max has a compact, lightweight design, as well as an affordable price point.

I'd say it's a good option for anyone that wants to improve their home's air quality, without splashing out on a fancy machine.