BEAT THE HEAT: THE NEW AIR CONDITIONER THAT COOLS A ROOM BY 6°C IN 10 MINUTES

Photo: Unsplash

If you are already dreading the first 40-degree day of summer, you are not alone.

With the warmer months approaching, plenty of households are weighing up how to stay cool without copping a nasty power bill at the end of the season.

Home appliance giant Midea has just launched a new air conditioner range designed to do both, and it is available now.

The new Edith Series is a range of six reverse cycle split systems, built to cool rooms quickly and keep running costs under control.

How fast does the new air conditioner cool a room?

The headline feature is something Midea calls Cool Flash, which the company says drops a room's temperature by 6°C in just 10 minutes.

That could be a game changer when you walk into a stuffy house after work, or when the afternoon sun hits the lounge room.

The range is also built on Midea's Prime Guard platform, which the company says delivers cooling capability up to 50°C outside, with features such as a graphene coating, auto-restart and refrigerant leak detection.

Keeping a lid on the power bill

For many of us, the real worry about running an air conditioner all summer is what turns up in the letterbox afterwards.

The Edith Series includes a mode called AI ECOMASTER, which Midea says is trained on billions of data points to hold temperatures steady and cut wasted energy.

There is also a SmartHome app that lets you track how much energy you are using, so there are fewer surprises when the bill arrives.

The units work with Wi-Fi and voice control through Google Home and Alexa, so you can switch the cooling on before you get home.

Comfort for the whole family

One thoughtful feature is called Wind Avoid Me, which directs the airflow away from people at the widest possible angle.

That means no icy blast hitting you in the face while you sleep, which Midea says is particularly handy for children and babies.

The remote control has its own built-in temperature sensor, and a Follow Me setting uses it to adjust the temperature where you are actually sitting.

There is also an Outdoor Silent mode, which Midea says reduces noise from the outdoor unit by 3 to 7 decibels, good news for light sleepers and close neighbours.

A cleaner air conditioner, too

With more time spent indoors when the mercury climbs, the air you breathe matters.

The Edith Series includes a self-cleaning process called I-Clean Pro, which runs a six-step clean of the indoor unit followed by high-temperature steam sterilisation.

Midea says testing by UL Solutions found it reduces coil-trapped bacteria by 99.9 per cent after two cleaning cycles.

John Milonas from Midea ANZ said the company had been adapting its technology for tough Australian conditions for more than 40 years.

"A reliable air conditioner is an essential addition to every Australian household," he said.

How much does it cost?

The Edith Series is available now from The Good Guys, in six sizes.

Prices start at RRP $899 for the smallest 2.1kW model and go up to RRP $2,399 for the largest 8.0kW unit.

Measured by cooling capacity, the full range is: 2.1kW for RRP $899, 2.5kW for RRP $999, 3.5kW for RRP $1,299, 5.2kW for RRP $1,699, 7.0kW for RRP $1,899 and 8.0kW for RRP $2,399.

Our tips before you buy

Get the size right, because a unit that is too small will run flat out and cost more, while one that is too big wastes money upfront.

Ask about installation costs, which are usually on top of the unit price.

Set your cooling to around 24°C to 25°C rather than as cold as it will go, as every degree makes a difference to running costs.

Close blinds and curtains on hot afternoons to give your air conditioner a head start.

And check whether your state offers any energy rebates before you hand over your money.

Here's to a cool, calm summer.