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My air conditioner runs almost 365 days a year. It gets a real workout, and costs me a pretty penny in electricity bills.
Midea is hoping to help on that front with its new Athena Series air conditioner system, which promises to cut power consumption by up to 30 per cent.
Built specifically for the Australian market, the Athena Series is designed to handle everything from single digit mornings to 40 degree afternoons, without the running costs blowing out either way.
The system is built around Midea's AI ECOMASTER feature, which is trained on billions of data points to fine tune temperature control. In practice, that means fewer wild swings in output as the unit constantly recalibrates rather than overshooting and correcting.
Paired with Midea's SmartHome app, you can track energy usage in real time and adjust settings remotely, so you can pre heat or pre cool the house before you walk in the door, rather than leaving it running all day just in case.
When you need fast relief rather than gradual comfort, the CoolFlash function drops room temperature by 6 degrees in 10 minutes. Midea says the unit is also built with heavy duty Prime Guard protection to withstand harsher Australian conditions, aimed at keeping performance consistent over the long term rather than degrading after a few summers.
Air quality gets attention too. The Air Magic+ feature uses a built in negative ion generator that Midea says eliminates up to 99 per cent of viruses and bacteria, while I-Clean mode self cleans the evaporator at up to 56 degrees for sterilisation rates of up to 99.99 per cent.
It's a similar playbook to what we've seen from Midea elsewhere in the smart home space, where the dishwasher also leaned on app connected efficiency features rather than raw power alone.
| Feature | Detail |
|---|---|
| Energy saving | Up to 30%+ reduction in heating and cooling energy use via AI ECOMASTER |
| App control | SmartHome app for real time energy monitoring and remote pre heating/cooling |
| Rapid cooling | CoolFlash drops room temperature by 6°C in 10 minutes |
| Durability | Prime Guard protection for harsh Australian outdoor conditions |
| Air purification | Air Magic+ negative ion generator, eliminates up to 99% of viruses and bacteria |
| Self cleaning | I-Clean Mode sterilises evaporator at up to 56°C, up to 99.99% sterilisation |
Pricing and availability
The Midea Athena Series is available now through Midea Australia, with pricing starting from $1,399 for the 2.6kW indoor unit, though the final cost depends on your home's specific installation requirements.
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