Shark BreatheClear Air Purifier Max with NeverChange HP362 Review

Design and features

• Bulky design
• Detailed controls
• Display panel is inconveniently located

The Shark BreatheClearAir Purifier Max with NeverChange (that’s a mouthful to say and a handful to type) arrived in a brown, branded cardboard box, and inside of that, another branded box. It arrived completely assembled, with a quick start guide and a user guide.

After taking the air purifier out of the boxes, the next step was to remove the plastic surrounding the air purifier and then the plastic around the air purifier’s HEPA filter. It’s a good thing that the HEPA filter only needs to be replaced every six years, because the air purifier is rather cumbersome (at 13.65 pounds) to be turning upside down on a regular basis. I placed a paper towel underneath to avoid scratching the control panel. 

Compared to the IQAir Atem Earth Air Purifier, which is also large, but has a more streamlined design – and a carry handle – the Shark BreatheClearAir Purifier Max with NeverChange is bulky. It’s also big enough that I wouldn’t place it on my night stand, like the Blueair Blue Signature Air Purifier. The Shark BreatheClearAir Purifier Max with NeverChange isn’t unattractive, it’s just a surprising design, considering that most companies are moving toward sleeker models. Usually, visitors to my home are intrigued by the appliances I’m testing, and often point to an air purifier and ask, “What’s that?” but everyone who looked at the Shark BreatheClearAir Purifier Max with NeverChange immediately said some variation of, “Yeah, that’s an air purifier.”

The Shark BreatheClearAir Purifier Max with NeverChange is available in two colors: dove, and charcoal. In this particular series, Shark also makes a smaller BreatheClear Air Purifier with NeverChange that covers 750 square feet per hour, as well as an even smaller model that covers 300 square feet per hour. 

Back to the model I’m testing: I love the easy-to-read controls on the top. From left to right, they are as follows: Power, Settings, My Air IQ, BreathClear auto mode, and Speed Control and Navigation.

The Settings button includes 4 functions to select from: Sleep Mode, Brightness (for the screen), Device Settings (date, time and so on), and More Settings (sound and motion sensor features.

My Air IQ provides detailed data and information on your home, and you can see data for the week. You can also get readings for temperature, humidity, plus pollutant information (the purifier has PM1, PM2.5, PM10 and VOC sensors).

Filter Status lets me know how long I have before the filters need to be replaced and/or cleaned. The HEPA filter lasts for six years before it needs to be replaced. The two pre-filters need to be cleaned – but not replaced.

The up and down arrows are used to manually change the fan speed. When I’m using the Settings or My Air IQ, this panel is used to navigate through different areas, and the check mark is pressed to confirm each selection.

The BreatheClear button in the middle of the panel is used to auto-adjust the fan speed. 

The controls are quite thorough and informative. My only complaint is that the display panel is located on the front side of the air purifier (instead of the top), so I have to bend over to view it. And there’s no remote control or app integration to use as an alternative means to view and control it.

Performance

• Color-coded air quality is easy to view
• Motion detect senses movement of allergens
• Removes polluted air quickly

Although I’ve been complaining about the location of the display panel, the color-coded air quality indicator is large, taking up the entire screen. It has vivid colors, making it easy to notice air quality changes – even from across the room. The panel is dark blue when the air quality is excellent (defined as 95% to 100% clean), light blue when the air quality is good (clean air level between 85% to 94%), yellow when the air quality is fair (clean air level is 60%to 84%). When the panel is orange, the air quality is moderate (30% to 59% clean air level), and when it’s red, the clean air level is 0% to 29%.

I have a smoking neighbor, and depending on which type of tobacco products she’s dispersing into the air, my air quality might degrade to the orange level. When this happens, the fan speed is automatically adjusted to respond to the changes in air quality. 

The air purifier also has a motion detect feature that boosts speed when motion is detected. I don’t have a pet, but I would imagine that if a pet walked by, the air purifier would be reacting to the movement of pet dander and other potential allergens. In fact, the air purifier also detects my movements, and while it doesn’t boost speeds, it does indicate that the air purifier is updating the air quality information. According to Shark, the presence of motion means there’s the potential for movement of dust and particles as well. 

The Shark BreatheClearAir Purifier Max with NeverChange doesn’t provide CADRs (clean air delivery rates), but it quickly clears polluted air in my home. Exactly how quickly it works depends on whether the pollutants have ceased or are ongoing. As a general rule, it clears a room in less than 15 minutes. I have an open concept living and kitchen area, and the combination of the advanced motion detection, along with VOC and odor sensors, work hard to keep my air clean. 

According to Shark, the sensors scan 3600 times an hour, reacting to any changes. There are five speeds and the air purifier is quiet in both auto mode and in speeds one and two. At speed three, you can hear the air purifier, and at speeds four and five, it’s much louder.  However, I tend to use auto mode, and let the air purifier determine when the fan speed needs to be increased.

The air purifier also does an air quality rescan if the air quality has been over 95% for 30 minutes or more. The rescan is designed to double-check the air quality and ensure that the reading is accurate.

Maintenance is almost non-existent. The air purifier displays a notice when it’s time to clean the pre-filter. Cleaning consists of taking the pre-filters out of the sides of the air purifier and using a vacuum cleaner attachment or a cloth to remove dust and dirt.

The pre-filter can also be rinsed when necessary. Usually, the pre-filters only need to be cleaned every 2 months. When the reminder appears, there are also options to view directions on cleaning the pre-filters, resetting the reminder when the filter has been cleaned, and there’s even a snooze option – which will reappear in 72 hours. 

The main filter only needs to be replaced every six years. There’s also a filter maintenance alert at the six-year mark, and I can choose to check the existing filter life as well to see exactly how much time is left.

Otherwise, I wipe down the air purifier’s exterior with a damp cloth and vacuum the interior with a vacuum attachment (or you can use a microfiber cloth) every two months. 

Should you buy it?