Winix 5300-2 Review: The Best Budget Air Purifier under 130?

Last updated on April 19th, 2021

The starters

Beautiful in every aspect, Winix 5300-2 exterior is a big leap from its previous model. There are updated vertical strips elements, controls, and black housing. Retaining similar size and weight as 5300 (15 x 23.6 x 8.2 in/ 15.4 lb), moving the residential HEPA air purifier from room to room is still possible but required some effort. Build quality is again sturdy with no loosed parts and off-gassing even though no premium materials are used. Everything you see and touch is plasticky as expected from the price point. No surprise on the air ventilation location with its bottom-to-top airflow system. You have the air inlet tucked behind the front cover and the air outlet pushed to the top. Like every other Winix air purifiers, there is a standard handle slot to grip on.

What’s in the control panel space is five round buttons (On/ Off, Mode, PlasmaWave, Fan Speed, and Timer). Right at the center, there is an air quality indicator bar, light/ odor sensor, and a small filter reset button. Operating Winix 5300-2 air purifier could not be any easier, so let’s cover the main function first. On/ Off button is what it is, the Mode button will switch between Auto mode and Sleep mode. The dedicated PlasmaWave button activates/ deactivates the Hydroxyls purifying function. Fan speed button cycle between the four speeds; timer button will cycle between 1, 4, 8 hours, and off. There is also a small reset button that you would use to reset the indicator after a filter change. The front air quality indicator light will remain in blue color when the surrounding air quality is good. When air quality is fair, the bar will change to yellow and red when air quality is poor. A good thing to note that the LED light brightness level will automatically be reduced based on the ambient light. Like 5500-2, the controls are nicely labeled and angled for better standpoint visibility. We do miss the classic clicky button type more than the touch button here.

When operating Winix 5300-2, make sure your hands are not wet and never attempt to block or insert your fingers into the air inlet/ outlet. This is especially true if you have children at home. Basic safety tips such as avoid outdoor use or direct exposure to sunlight. Never place it next to flammable items such as insecticides, lighter, or fragrances. Plug Winix 5300-2 air purifier’s to a local power voltage without relying on a step-up/ step-down transformer. Do not use the air purifier if the power plug is damaged as it might cause a fire risk. Send it to an authorized service center for repair or replacement instead.

To recap what’s in the box, 5300-2 is powered by the familiar 4-stage filtration with PlasmaWave Technology. There are AQ indicator, 4 fan speeds with auto/ sleep mode, and dual smart sensors (odor + light) to measure the room air quality. A timer (1, 4, 8 hours) can be set to turn off the machine at the desired time, and a filter change indicator reminding you to replace the filter when necessary.

Finally, Winix 5300-2 is AHAM tested on its efficiency in removing smoke, dust, and pollen, CARB certified to be ozone-safe, government symbol ENERGY STAR verified on its energy-efficiency, and UL recognized for meeting the requirements of safety standards. The improved 2-year warranty on non-removable parts is assuring. The remote control is sadly not included in the package.

Airflow, speed, and CADR

A tiny improvement over its predecessor, Winix 5300-2 comes with a small bump in coverage at 360 sq. ft. at 5 air changes per hour (lowest air charges). Impressive figures to say the least. Fan speed retains at four (low, medium, high to turbo) with a minimum 35.3 to maximum 240.1 cfm airflow delivery rate. The Auto mode (enabled by default) automatically adjusts the fan speed to deal with the surrounding particles. Then there is the automatic Sleep mode that activates automatically when there is no light source. In Sleep mode, the fan speed will set to low and dim all indicator lights to prevent glaring disturbance. When there is a presence of light, it will switch back to auto mode.

The air purifier official CADR is equally impressive as airflow. Low speed performance is sluggish but at maximum speed (turbo), Winix 5300-2 will swiftly remove allergens in the room. Dust CADR is up slightly at 243 cfm (VS Winix 5300). Pollen CADR is at 246 cfm, and smoke CADR is at 232 cfm. Safe to say that anything that passes the 200 cfm benchmarks will do well against irritants. In other words, Winix 5300-2 will not disappoint you in airflow performance. Ideal for medium to large room purifying e.g. bedroom, living room, kitchen, dining room, basement garage, walk-in wardrobe, office, or studio.

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What’s inside count

Winix 5300-2 filter kept the same dependable advanced 4-stage filtration with PlasmaWave Technology. When air is drawn in via the motor fan, the first-stage fine mesh pre-filter traps the largest airborne particles like dust, hair, and debris. Next, the activated carbon filter removes household odors from cooking, pets, insecticide, and hazardous fumes like VOCs, asbestos, formaldehyde, benzene, tobacco smoke. Besides removing smoke particles, it can prolong the HEPA filter lifespan. The True HEPA filter removes 99.97% of tiny allergens down to 0.3 micron size including dust mites, pet dander, mold spore, and pollen. PlasmaWave Technology creates Hydroxyls (OH) to break apart and sanitize bacteria and viruses like Influenza A. Through the bonding between water vapor and oxygen ion, the hydroxyls process is safe, natural, and does no harm to our body.

Do note that PlasmaWave does produce a very insignificant amount of ozone that is safe and ignorable. It is way below the ozone limit set by the California Air Resources Board (CARB) thus will not aggravate any lung issue. If you are an asthmatic person and are not comfortable with it, simply turn off the PlasmaWave function.

Overall, the filter size is spot on and we are happy with True HEPA filtration quality. The carbon filter is a little bit of a mixed bag as it is not the AOC grade found in 5500-2. Against hazard fumes, the deodorization falls a little bit behind. You will have to change the carbon filter every quarterly or 3 months, VS HEPA filter that only needs changing annually. The permanent pre-filter is washable and you can reuse it over and over again. For quick cleaning, rinse it with water or light vacuuming rather than applying soap and detergent. We recommend washing the filter every 2 to 3 weeks depending on how clean your indoor air is. Just make sure when you are washing the filter, the air purifier is switched off. Remember to remove the plastic wrap on the new replacement filter set before installation.

Keep it down

Winix 5300-2 generate a modest 27.8 - 60+ dB noise level. Generally silent in low, medium speed, and bearable white noise at Turbo speed. You can leave the air purifier running at low/ medium speed during work or leisure time. Most people will leave it in auto mode for all-day purification. For uninterrupted sleep at night, Sleep mode is just a click away.

As for power consumption, Winix 5300-2 is ENERGY STAR rated so it will not use much electricity compared with other household appliances. In fact, energy usage is at 5 watts at low speed and up to 70+ watts at turbo speed. With a standard 12 operation hours, the average electric cost will be $0.05 dollars per day, $1.6 dollars a month, or 19 dollars a year. Auto mode plays a key role in energy management and reasonable airflow capacity.

At what cost

Winix 5300-2 online price is surprisingly cheaper than 5300 given the all-around improvement. Within its mid-range category, it is an absolute bargain and a "genuine" best bang for the buck air purifier. Filter availability is plentiful, and the annual replacement cost is not overly high but not cheap either (80 dollars). The Filter A package does comes with 4 carbon sheets with 1 HEPA filter. The same old, nitty-gritty complaint we have is the carbon sheet short 3 months lifespan. It makes more sense to put it a better carbon filter that can last throughout the year, like the one in 5500-2.

Winix 5300-2 VS the challengers

Other Winix Air Purifiers