Senior Reporter's Tech Coverage
is a senior reporter who’s been covering and reviewing the latest gadgets and tech since 2011, but has loved all things electronic since he was a kid.
LG Artcool AI Air Air Conditioner
The Artcool AI Air doesn’t look as artsy as LG’s previous Artcool air conditioners, but it does offer improved energy efficiency by detecting the room’s layout and the position of its occupants so it can direct airflow right to them.
The company hasn’t announced pricing or availability, nor does it detail what technology the Artcool AI Air is using. Ideally it’s relying on mmWave radar sensing — similar to what Samsung may rely on to bring ambient sensing to its Smart Things devices — which is sensitive enough to even detect a person’s rate of breathing. That technology could potentially allow the Artcool AI Air to differentiate between an actual person in a room, and a plant swaying back and forth in the airflow that it can ignore.
Design and Features
Previous additions to LG’s Artcool air conditioner line featured a 27-inch LCD screen on the front that can be used to display artwork or family photos in order to camouflage the wall-mounted unit as a piece of art. The new Artcool AI Air instead features a black mirror finish with a ”multi-line grille structure” on its front outlet designed to spread out and soften its airflow.
The air conditioner’s temperature sensors can detect when a window has been opened, LG says, automatically activating an energy-saving mode so that it stops producing cold air that’s possibly escaping outside. Through the LG ThinQ app, users can also monitor the unit’s power usage and set a limit, allowing them to balance their comfort level versus how high they’re willing to see their power bill rise.