Here are 5 indoor air quality monitors for homes in China

China suffers from some serious air pollution problems, and the reality is that it’s going to get worse before it gets better. China’s health-conscious population is growing accustomed to donning face masks when outdoors, but indoor air pollution is also a fast-emerging concern. We’ve already seen the trend expand toward cheap DIY air filters to help remove damaging particulate matter indoors, but there’s not been an equally cheap way to monitor air quality in the home.

Hardware startups have been sprouting up with their own solutions to this problem. These budget indoor air quality monitors cost far less than their professional counterparts. Luckily, this new wave of devices designed for home use is quickly driving prices downward, and it won’t be long before they become a staple of every urban dweller’s living room in China and other polluted regions.

Airnut

The Airnut. Image by Airnut.com

Although this company’s name sounds a bit dumb, it’s one of the most advanced devices on this list. A full-featured climate monitoring station, Airnut measures temperature, humidity, carbon dioxide, and particles in the air smaller than 2.5 micrometers in diameter (PM2.5). The slick-looking sphere was created by Moji China, which also makes a popular weather app. Airnut’s display is gesture-controlled – just swipe your hand in front of it to change the reading. All the data syncs with an app on your smartphone. Airnut also makes a compatible outdoor version so you can compare indoor and outdoor weather and air quality. Airnut’s device is available from its online store for a modest RMB 999 (US$152).

Air.Air!

Air.Air! isn’t as feature-rich as Airnut, but it’s portable and comes at just a fraction of the cost. After failing to meet its crowdfunding target on China’s Demohour, the device surpassed its US$20,000 goal on Kickstarter. The Shenzhen-based company placed heavy emphasis on simplicity, both in looks and functionality. Air.Air! measures temperature and PM2.5, which is sent to the smartphone app. Unfortunately, there’s no readout on the actual device, but Air.Air! is a steal at just US$59 on Maker Studio.

See: Crowdfunded in China: tablet assault rifles, smart cooking pots, Roomba’s Chinese nephew, and more

Foobot

This sexy cylinder from France was formerly known as Alima, and was a crowdfunding darling back in 2014. Foobot measures a wide range of data: VOC (including gases such as formaldehyde, benzene, ethylene glycol and acetone), PM2.5, carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, temperature, and humidity. The device looks great, but lacks an external display. All the data is synced with an app on the user’s smartphone. One useful feature is Foobot’s predictive analytics, which can forecast pollution trends. In terms of breadth of information, Foobot might well be the most sophisticated of the bunch, but it comes with a higher price tag than the rest: you can buy from the company’s website for US$199.

uHoo

Another sexy cylinder here, too. The Singapore-based uHoo was announced in 2014 and got a splash of seed funding from East Ventures last year, and is eyeing a product launch soon. The water-bottle-sized device is sleek and stylish, and has the ability to detect carbon dioxide, dust levels, airborne chemicals, humidity, and more. It is marketed for both people concerned with pollution and for those with allergies. Like most other devices on this list, the sensor itself doesn’t have a screen, but syncs with a user’s phone. The uHoo isn’t on sale just yet, but those who pre-order from the uHoo website can get a 40 percent discount off the final retail price (which isn’t yet disclosed).

LaserEgg