| Research date: 2026-09-23 | Worker C | DESK RESEARCH — no hands-on testing. All accuracy statements are attributed ("manufacturer claims…", "owner reports…", "independent study found…"), never our findings. Prices observed 2026-09-23 unless noted stale; all price observations in this pass are search-index-derived unless marked DIRECT. |
|---|
Head-to-head
| PurpleAir Classic | PurpleAir Flex | PurpleAir Zen | AirGradient ONE (I-9PSL) | AirGradient Open Air (O-1PST) | Airthings 2960 View Plus | Airthings 2930 Wave Plus | Temtop S1 | Temtop M10+ | IKEA VINDSTYRKA | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Price (observed 2026-09-23) | $229 | $289 | $299 | $138 kit / $230 assembled | $125 kit / $190–225 assembled | ~$280–300 | ~$170–250 | $28–33 | $129.99 | ~$49–60 (launch-era; current UNVERIFIED) |
| PM2.5 | Yes (2× PMS5003) | Yes (2× PMS6003) | Yes (2× PMS6003) | Yes (PMS5003) | Yes (PMS5003T) | Yes (laser) | No | Yes (laser) | Yes (laser) | Yes (SEN54) |
| PM10 | Estimated — maker says don't use | Estimated — don't use | Estimated — don't use | Yes (lower accuracy) | Yes | No | No | No | No | Raw only |
| CO2 | No | No | No | Yes (NDIR S8/S88) | Yes (NDIR S8) | Yes (NDIR) | Yes | No | Yes (NDIR) | No |
| VOC | No | Index (experimental) | Index (experimental) | Index (SGP41) | Index (SGP41) | Yes (index likely) | Yes (index likely) | No | TVOC | Index (unvalidated) |
| Radon | No | No | No | No | No | Yes | Yes | No | No | No |
| Temp / humidity / pressure | No | T/H/P (BME688) | T/H/P (BME688) | T/H (SHT40) | T/H (in PM module) | T/H/P | T/H/P | T/H | T/H | T/H |
| NOx | No | No | No | Index | Index | No | No | No | No | No |
| Display | None | RGB LED | LED (AQI) | OLED + LEDs | None | ePaper | Wave-gesture light | LCD | E-ink | LCD |
| Connectivity | WiFi → map | WiFi → map, SD | WiFi → map | WiFi 2.4, BLE, HA | WiFi (cellular option) | WiFi, SmartLink, BLE | BT only (hub for WiFi) | None | BT / Wi-Fi variant | Zigbee |
| App / cloud / account | PurpleAir map (free); API priced | Same | Same | Dashboard (cloud-default); open API | Same, OpenAQ | Airthings app (account required) | Airthings app | None | Temtop app, data export | IKEA app / HA |
| Subscription risk | API pricing exists — details UNVERIFIED | Same | Same | Dashboard "free for now" (stale) — UNVERIFIED | Same | Community table claims tiers limit data — UNVERIFIED, verify before buying | Same | None | None observed | None |
| Power | USB 5V (adaptor not incl.) | USB 5V | USB 5V | USB-C (plug not incl.) | USB | 6× AA (2yr claim) or USB-C | 2× AA (~1yr) | 800mAh / variants | 2200mAh (60d claim) | USB-C, no battery, no adaptor |
| Indoor / outdoor | Both | Both (outdoor-rated) | Both (flagship) | Indoor | Outdoor | Indoor | Indoor | Indoor | Indoor | Indoor |
| Social validation | Tier 2 | Tier 2 | Tier 2 | Tier 2 | Tier 2 | Tier 2 | Tier 2 | Tier 3 | Tier 2 | Tier 2 |
Buyer guidance (neutral — no product is "the best" overall)
- Outdoor PM on a map: PurpleAir Classic ($229) buys the biggest crowdsourced network; Flex ($289) adds environmental sensing; Zen ($299) adds the LED. All three are PM-first instruments — no CO2 anywhere in the line, and the maker itself says to ignore PM10 and treat VOC as experimental.
- Outdoor PM on a budget, open data: AirGradient Open Air O-1PST ($125 kit) adds true NDIR CO2 the PurpleAirs lack, at roughly half the price — traded against a weaker map/app and a small vendor.
- Indoor all-rounder with CO2: AirGradient ONE kit ($138) is the most sensor-complete under ~$200 and carries the strongest independent PM-accuracy signal found (2026 Changchun study), but the kit has no warranty/certifications; assembled ($230) fixes that.
- Radon: Only Airthings. View Plus (~$300) if you also want PM2.5 + display + WiFi; Wave Plus (~$170–250) if radon + CO2 suffice — but it has NO PM sensor, so wildfire-smoke buyers must not pick it. Verify Airthings' current subscription terms before buying (single community source claims tiers limit data access).
- Budget / simple: Temtop S1 ($28–33) shows PM2.5 on an LCD and nothing else — no app, no gases, no connectivity. M10+ ($129.99) is the connected step-up with true NDIR CO2; check Bluetooth vs Wi-Fi variant before ordering.
- Smart-home (Zigbee/Home Assistant): IKEA VINDSTYRKA (~$50–60) is the insider pick with independent AQMD evaluation, but no CO2, no radon, mains-only, audible fan, unvalidated VOC index.
Traps to avoid
- Buying any PurpleAir for CO2 — the entire line lacks it.
- Trusting PM10 on PurpleAir — the manufacturer says not to.
- Buying Wave Plus as a smoke monitor — no PM sensor.
- Buying the M10+ without checking Bluetooth vs Wi-Fi variant.
- Buying AirGradient kits expecting a warranty — kits have none.
- Buying VINDSTYRKA expecting CO2 or battery operation — neither.
- Treating VOC "indexes" (BME688, SGP41, SEN54) as lab-grade concentrations — none are validated as such; AQMD could not calculate error metrics for the SEN54 VOC index.
Owner-sentiment caveats
- Owner evidence in this corpus is thin and mostly search-index-derived: two genuine owner/integrator write-ups (thehomeassistantblog 6-month AirGradient ONE review; workswellfor.me VINDSTYRKA/HA article), one independent tester covering six products (BreatheSafeAir — with a disclosed AirGradient employment relationship on the M10+ page), retailer rating footprints (Airthings), and two dated lab/field programs (AQMD: PurpleAir Flex 2022, VINDSTYRKA; Changchun 2026: PurpleAir/AirGradient/IQAir).
- Seed-file Facebook leads (PurpleAir Users Group threads: May 2026 buyer question, Aug 2026 Zen LED fault, Sept 2026 poll/giveaway) are UNRECOVERED — cited nowhere as fact. Group posts read is pending security review.
- No directly observed owner quotes for Temtop S1, M10+, Airthings models, or Open Air in this pass.
Comparison-gap note
Two partial comparisons were recovered: (1) AirGradient's own PurpleAir-vs-AirGradient page (https://www-int.airgradient.com/blog/airgradient-vs-purple-air/, stale ~May 2024, manufacturer bias — covers only Classic/Flex/Open Air); (2) the community-maintained terkea table (https://github.com/terkea/air-quality-monitor — covers VINDSTYRKA, ONE, Airthings, omits PurpleAir/Temtop, undated prices, no owner-evidence dimension).
In the documented sample searched on 2026-09-23, no neutral current table was found that covers this full 10-model field while combining sensor specifications, dated prices, and attributed owner/community evidence.
Evidence gaps (Stage 2)
- Current 2026-09-23 manufacturer-direct prices for PurpleAir line, AirGradient Open Air assembled ($190 vs $225 conflict), IKEA VINDSTYRKA.
- Airthings subscription/data-access terms (verify directly).
- Facebook group owner posts (pending); Threads AirGradient ONE search (pending); Instagram CLI unavailable (access limitation).
- Images: 0 downloaded (egress down 2026-09-23); 160 locators banked per product set (16 each) at ../locators/<slug>-locators.json — locators are not images and are never counted as such.
Private: per-claim citation recovery log in _source-ledger.md (never ships).