Midea Duo Smart Inverter Portable Air Conditioner Review 2023

Aug 29, 2023

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Summers in the Midwest mean being constantly hot and wet. To make matters worse, my 115-year-old house doesn't have an HVAC system. Instead, I rely on a combination of four air conditioners to keep the 4,000 square feet cool. I've tested dozens of the best air conditioners over the last five years, and the only portable air conditioner I regularly use in my home is the Midea Duo Smart Inverter Portable Air Conditioner.

Window air conditioners don't fit in my bedroom window, but the Midea Duo does. In my tests, it was among the best at cooling, runs quietly, and features a user-friendly app, earning it the top smart pick in our guide to the best portable air conditioners.

The Midea Duo has two design features you don't find in most portable air conditioners. First, it has an inverter compressor. Instead of turning on and off, an inverter compressor has a variable-speed motor that makes slight adjustments to keep your room at its target temperature. Inverter compressors tend to be more efficient than traditional motors.

Whereas most portable air conditioners just have one hose for exhaust, the Midea Duo has a unique hose-in-hose design. While it looks like there's just one large hose, the Midea actually has two hoses in one, so it can expel hot air while drawing in more air to equalize the room's pressure. This keeps hot outside air from seeping in to equalize the pressure.

Installing the Midea portable air conditioner was easy and didn't require any tools, but I hit a few snags along the way. Within half an hour of opening the box, I had the unit running. Five minutes of that was installing and connecting to the Midea Air app.

To set up the AC, you just assemble and install the window slider and attach the hose. However, this is easier said than done. The slider is loosely held at your custom length with plastic pins. If you need to move or adjust the slider, the whole setup falls apart, and you have to reassemble it.

If you have a hung window, attaching the hose is a breeze, but I have a slider window, which requires using the included attachment. The pieces don't fit perfectly, so you have to get it just right to keep the hose attached.

Once installed, the Midea comes with foam seals and insulation for improved efficiency and a security bracket to keep intruders from entering.

I test all portable air conditioners in the same 550-square-foot room. I run them on high for two hours and compare before and after temperature readings to see how well it cools the room. The Midea Duo reduced the temp by 3.3 degrees Fahrenheit in two hours, the second-best performance I've seen and better than the top pick in our portable air conditioner guide.

I've used the Midea Duo in my bedroom for two years. Since I often just want to decrease the humidity in my house, I mainly use the Midea in dehumidify mode. This is enough to keep my room comfortable most nights. If we're going through a heat wave, I switch to AC mode. If you live in a particularly humid region, using the Midea Duo as a dehumidifier is an excellent option.

If you want your bedroom as quiet as possible, this is the portable AC to get. On low, the Midea Duo was 43 decibels, a little louder than ambient noise and five decibels quieter than any other unit I've tested. I got my readings using a decibel meter positioned 6 feet from the AC. On high, it was still only 56 decibels, quieter than a normal conversation.

I live on a busy city street where having a loud vehicle is a status symbol. So, at times, I almost wish the Midea's white noise was louder to drown out the "performance" mufflers and rib cage-rattling woofers.

To me, there are two key aspects to any "smart" device: features and reliability. I'd argue reliability is more important than flashy features. What's the point of having all the latest features if the AC never seems to stay connected to your phone?

This isn't a problem with the Midea Duo. I haven't had problems connecting to or using features. I have little patience for malfunctioning apps, and the Midea app has been a breath of fresh air. I live in an Alexa home, and the Midea paired with it for voice control. It also works with Google Assistant.

The app is user-friendly and full of features. Want to turn off the LED lights while sleeping? Press the LED button. Don't want the buttons to beep when you press them? Press the Sound button. These are on top of standard scheduling, mode adjustments (fan, dehumidify, cool, auto), and fan speed functions. I use the scheduling function to turn off the Midea during the hours my utility company charges more for electricity.

The app lets you know when it's time to clean the filter, a task you should complete every two weeks. Just vacuum the filter or wash it with water and allow it to dry completely before reinstalling it.

While the inverter compressor is supposed to be more efficient, my smart plug told a different tale. It was the biggest energy user I tested, using 0.4 kWh more than the top overall pick in our guide. Over a summer, that extra energy use will cost you an extra $66 on average. I thought using the unit in dehumidify mode would save energy, but it used the same amount as AC mode.

Despite their name, portable air conditioners aren't all that portable. This is especially true with the Midea Duo. At 75 pounds, it's a pain to move from one floor to another, even if it does have handles. I was able to uninstall and reinstall it in a different room on the same floor in about two minutes, but it was slower than most portable ACs because of how loosely the window slider is held together.

The sliding window attachment doesn't do a good job of keeping the hose attached to the window slider. It's crucial that they stay attached if you want to cool your room. I had to resort to duct tape to keep it in place. If you have a hung window, there's no need for the sliding window attachment.

The Midea Duo is similar to the LG LP1419IVSM Smart Wi-Fi Portable Air Conditioner, the top pick in our guide to the best portable air conditioners. They both have inverter compressors, are close in price, and have useful apps. The Midea Duo did a little better job of cooling and ran quieter. However, we made the LG our top pick because it's much more energy efficient. If you want to save on energy costs, choose the LG. Read our full LG portable air conditioner review.

If your window can accommodate a window air conditioner, get a window air conditioner. Window ACs are better at cooling, cost less, and are more energy efficient. If you need more convincing, see our article on portable air conditioners vs. window air conditioners. Also, check out our guide to the best air conditioners.

Though it uses a lot of electricity, the Midea Duo Smart Inverter Portable Air Conditioner works well. It's among the best at cooling, operates quietly, can handle larger spaces, and has a unique hose-in-hose design that keeps warm air from rushing back into the room. Plus, the app is packed with features that work reliably. If you want a powerful yet quiet smart portable AC, this is the one to get.

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