Mitsubishi Mr Slim is Move Eye feature worth it?

[kimamey]

I want to put aircon in our bedroom which is 3 x 3.5 metres and 3 metres high so I'm looking at a 9000 BTU unit. As always it's difficult to decide which unit to have as most are recommended by someone but Mitsubishi seem to get the thumbs up more often so that's my choice now. The Mr Slim range (no idea who thought that was a good name) can be had with Move Eye function which as far as I can tell adjusts the aircon based on the sensors reading of the environment.

Of course looking at the advertising if I was living in the Arctic it would be well worth having aircon just for the improvement Move Eye would make to my life and all those around me but for a slightly more meaningful view has anyone had any experience with Move Eye?

I will probably fit another larger unit at a later date for the main living area so it would be good to know it's suitability depends on the size of room.

[IMHO]

Not so sure that move eye really makes much difference in a bedroom where all it's going to see is sleeping people, but the move eye has better filtering than the econo model - so that might make it worth the extra. For the "move eye" money you might want to consider the inverter model instead, with uses ~25% less electricity.

[kimamey]

Not so sure that move eye really makes much difference in a bedroom where all it's going to see is sleeping people, but the move eye has better filtering than the econo model - so that might make it worth the extra. For the "move eye" money you might want to consider the inverter model instead, with uses ~25% less electricity.

I do use the bedroom at other times as well. In the evenings I use it to watch stuff on the computer away from the family watching Thai TV so it may be worth it for that. I use it in the afternoon as well although I'm not sure why as i could move my laptop elsewhere. I suppose it's because it's only used by myself and the wife so it's my personal space and of course with aircon it will be better and a smaller space to keep cool.

I didn't make it clear in my OP but I'll be having the inverter version as that seems to be worthwhile.

Thanks for taking the time to reply.

Love the avatar by the way.

[saakura]

I strongly doubt if an inverter aircon can reduce electricity use by 25% as claimed in the post above. If indeed it does, there should be a law to phase out other types. A friend who rents out condo units to make a living fitted inverter units in one of his condo (he has 5 similar units in the same building) and electric usage pattern was similar with working couples using normal electric gadgets and aircon use 7hrs at night. The electric bill for condo fitted with inverter units was consistently averaging about 200baht less per month. Thats about 1200baht a year. But initial cost and maintenance cost was very high, payback will be after 8yrs. Would like to know other peoples experiences with inverter units.

[harrry]

We have the one with the eye function in our bedroom. what it does is move the airflow to where it detects people. As it is mounted on the wall above our bed it is not much unless we hold a hand up in front of it and wave.

[kimamey]

I strongly doubt if an inverter aircon can reduce electricity use by 25% as claimed in the post above. If indeed it does, there should be a law to phase out other types. A friend who rents out condo units to make a living fitted inverter units in one of his condo (he has 5 similar units in the same building) and electric usage pattern was similar with working couples using normal electric gadgets and aircon use 7hrs at night. The electric bill for condo fitted with inverter units was consistently averaging about 200baht less per month. Thats about 1200baht a year. But initial cost and maintenance cost was very high, payback will be after 8yrs. Would like to know other peoples experiences with inverter units.

I'm not sure that 25% is realistic but it should even out the temperature instead of raising and falling as the aircon condenser turns on and off and I believe it should help by not making a big draw on power as it starts up which with Thai electrics has to be good. Inverters seem to be the way to go now but I don't know if there are any reputable figures for the costs involved.

[kimamey]

We have the one with the eye function in our bedroom. what it does is move the airflow to where it detects people. As it is mounted on the wall above our bed it is not much unless we hold a hand up in front of it and wave.

So what are you trying to tell me? Should I spend my time waving at my aircon? If I get someone to video that I may get something on You Tube and Facebook that goes viral.

Actually on a more serious note I wouldn't necessarily want it to point straight at me as it's better to cool the room I'm in rather than just me. I believe it takes note of things like hotspots so if for instance an outside wall is warm or even hot from exposure to the sun it directs more to that point.

As a matter of interest can the Move Eye function be turned of?

The Move Eye name is not used everywhere. In Canada it's i See as far as I know.

Edited July 14, 2013 by kimamey

[harrry]

We have the one with the eye function in our bedroom. what it does is move the airflow to where it detects people. As it is mounted on the wall above our bed it is not much unless we hold a hand up in front of it and wave.

So what are you trying to tell me? Should I spend my time waving at my aircon? If I get someone to video that I may get something on You Tube and Facebook that goes viral.

Actually on a more serious note when I wouldn't necessarily want it to point straight at me as it's better to cool the room I'm in rather than just me.

The inverter is a great airconditioner. Very very quiet and works well. The idea of the eye is it gives a blast of cool air as you enter a room as inverter airconditioners just maintain a fairly constant temp unlike normal ones and the blast of cool air makes you feel more comfortable quicker. In a loungeroom it may help in a bedroom not so much. I can recomend the Mitsu Mr Slim inverter though.

[lopburi3]

We had an MSZ SGH09 VA T1 installed during July last year in 26 square meter grandchildren ground floor room and have been very happy with it and cost of service is no more than normal air conditioner. In fact had my service man buy and install for less than shop price (paid 24k total). They like a lot cooler temperature than our normal 27-28 and have been very happy with it. It replaced a 13k Saijo-Denki.

[JoePai]

There also seems to be another range of Mitsu A/C's called Mitsu Heavy Duty - and they are cheaper from what I can tell

[lopburi3]

Not the same maker or dependability from what I have seen reported.

[JoePai]

Just fould this LINK which seems to show the Mitsu Heavy Duty they are the real A/C's from Mitsubishi ? Maybe the Mr Slims are the lighter duty domestic brand ?

[kimamey]

There also seems to be another range of Mitsu A/C's called Mitsu Heavy Duty - and they are cheaper from what I can tell

I've seen those as well. I assume they're more basic in terms of features but good for commercial premises maybe. I don't know about prices though.

[JimSiam]

Inverters do not really fix the main problem of gas flow issues in compressor off time, there is a product Central Air offer as an option and you can fit also buy it and have it fitted to any air con, called 5 plus, I fitted it to a AC in a rented unit I had, its saved 30%, we did before and after calculations with temp indoor/outdoor and power usage, it was designed here in Thailand and works well, pm me if you want details on it, i have copies of the test they did at Harrow international School showing the same savings, the tests were done by an independent body.

After working with Car AC for 14 years plus, it uses understandable technology to resolve a lot of the issues a little black box cant fix by just throttling a compressor and calling it an inverter, but those black boxes are only a few 100 baht to make, the 5 plus is a bit more but has as 12-15 month ROI and increases compressor life and reduces indoor unit gas noise.

[JimSiam]

After saying all that, I am getting a Trane for my current place after doing some research, they seem to be very good and have good service. Daikin and Mitsu seem to not be the #1 pic anymore.

[IMHO]

I strongly doubt if an inverter aircon can reduce electricity use by 25% as claimed in the post above. If indeed it does, there should be a law to phase out other types. A friend who rents out condo units to make a living fitted inverter units in one of his condo (he has 5 similar units in the same building) and electric usage pattern was similar with working couples using normal electric gadgets and aircon use 7hrs at night. The electric bill for condo fitted with inverter units was consistently averaging about 200baht less per month. Thats about 1200baht a year. But initial cost and maintenance cost was very high, payback will be after 8yrs. Would like to know other peoples experiences with inverter units.

There in indeed laws regarding minimum EER (Energy Efficiency Rating) - 11.5 is the latest min EER for domestic units, set in 2012, at which time the star ratings were also updated to make 11.5 the minimum for a 5 star rating..

EER = BTU / Watts

You could also look at it like this:

BTU / EER = Watts

Both BTU and EER are calculated using a standard test cycle, so one can't be right and the other wrong, and they are directly comparable from brand-to-brand.

The bottom line is, a higher EER unit will produce more BTU of cooling power Watt of electricity consumed . So long as you don't have a woefully under-spec'd AC for the area, or don't think that you can magically leave windows and doors open now that you have an high EER Inverter AC, or that it still save you money with a target temp 4 degrees less. Higher EER AC's *will* use less electricity to achieve the same result as lower EER machines, simple as that

As for your friend's experience with Inverters, I bet i was an early Daikin inverter? They were released back when most AC's only hit EER's in the 10's and 11's, and only managed in the 12's themselves. Nowadays, practically everything achieves 12+ and the best inverters (Saijo Denki) achieve EER's over 19(!)

All of that said, you have to be a heavy AC user to get pay-back on these things - all AC's lose efficiency with time (around 5% per year), and if you're only using them for an hour or two per day, you probably won't get your money back in savings over the life of unit. However, if you're using a top-end inverter (costing around 2.5x of a bottom end unit), you can hit payback in 1-2 years if using it 10+ hours/day.

Edited July 14, 2013 by IMHO

[kyrre]

Today i would only install a invert-er type as it keeps the room at a steady cold without the on/off features as the old ones.. I just installed myself 2 Mitsubishi MSZ-SGH13VA and opted out for the "move eye" function as it is not needed in a bedroom.

They are in 20m2 rooms and they have no problem keeping the room cold. They are quiet and after the initial down cooling period you hardly can hear them as the go on lowest fan speed.

[Naam]

Inverters do not really fix the main problem of gas flow issues in compressor off time, there is a product Central Air offer as an option and you can fit also buy it and have it fitted to any air con, called 5 plus, I fitted it to a AC in a rented unit I had, its saved 30%, we did before and after calculations with temp indoor/outdoor and power usage, it was designed here in Thailand and works well, pm me if you want details on it, i have copies of the test they did at Harrow international School showing the same savings, the tests were done by an independent body.

After working with Car AC for 14 years plus, it uses understandable technology to resolve a lot of the issues a little black box cant fix by just throttling a compressor and calling it an inverter, but those black boxes are only a few 100 baht to make, the 5 plus is a bit more but has as 12-15 month ROI and increases compressor life and reduces indoor unit gas noise.

i assume this black box you describe can also make breakfast for two and serve cocktails?

[Naam]

Today i would only install a invert-er type as it keeps the room at a steady cold without the on/off features as the old ones.. I just installed myself 2 Mitsubishi MSZ-SGH13VA and opted out for the "move eye" function as it is not needed in a bedroom.

They are in 20m2 rooms and they have no problem keeping the room cold. They are quiet and after the initial down cooling period you hardly can hear them as the go on lowest fan speed.

another excellent example of "no idea" what the advantages of an inverter type aircon are, under which conditions it can save 20-30% energy and under which conditions the electricity bill will not be lower by a single Satang, i.e. paying a considerably higher price and the potentially much higher repair cost is money poured down the drain.

no offence meant, just stating facts!

[IMHO]

Today i would only install a invert-er type as it keeps the room at a steady cold without the on/off features as the old ones.. I just installed myself 2 Mitsubishi MSZ-SGH13VA and opted out for the "move eye" function as it is not needed in a bedroom.

They are in 20m2 rooms and they have no problem keeping the room cold. They are quiet and after the initial down cooling period you hardly can hear them as the go on lowest fan speed.

another excellent example of "no idea" what the advantages of an inverter type aircon are, under which conditions it can save 20-30% energy and under which conditions the electricity bill will not be lower by a single Satang, i.e. paying a considerably higher price and the potentially much higher repair cost is money poured down the drain.

no offence meant, just stating facts!

Yep, Inverters only make sense if they're not under-spec'd for the room, and you're a heavy AC user.

An "Inverter" label on the box doesn't automatically make it more energy effecient though - early Daikin, Mitsu inverters are worse than some current 1Baht/BTU cheapies - you have to look at EER's.

[Naam]

IMHO

Nowadays, practically everything achieves 12+ and the best inverters (Saijo Denki) achieve EER's over 19(!)

EER19 = a typical japanese marketing bluff that is based mainly on an ambient operating temperature of 30ºC not to mention it's a hybrid unit with a water screen to cool down ambient air forced through the condenser fins. that the water heats up in no time is not mentioned and should fresh water supply be used the cost of water is not mentioned.

if Saijo Denki would use international standards for capacity rating (ambient temperature 35ºC) their 18,000btu/h unit would suddenly have 20-25% less capacity which would even drop more if ambient relative humidity drops below 65%.

note: capacity and efficiency ratings are only honest when measured under conditions as specified hereafter and published accordingly:

indoor temp

indoor rel hum

outdoor temp

outdoor rel hum

[Naam]

Yep, Inverters only make sense if they're not under-spec'd for the room, and you're a heavy AC user.

An "Inverter" label on the box doesn't automatically make it more energy effecient though - early Daikin, Mitsu inverters are worse than some current 1Baht/BTU cheapies - you have to look at EER's.

you forgot the "not" in

and you're a heavy AC user

[kyrre]

Today i would only install a invert-er type as it keeps the room at a steady cold without the on/off features as the old ones.. I just installed myself 2 Mitsubishi MSZ-SGH13VA and opted out for the "move eye" function as it is not needed in a bedroom.

They are in 20m2 rooms and they have no problem keeping the room cold. They are quiet and after the initial down cooling period you hardly can hear them as the go on lowest fan speed.

another excellent example of "no idea" what the advantages of an inverter type aircon are, under which conditions it can save 20-30% energy and under which conditions the electricity bill will not be lower by a single Satang, i.e. paying a considerably higher price and the potentially much higher repair cost is money poured down the drain.

no offence meant, just stating facts!

Well i did not mention energy saving, and that's because most new models with a reasonable EER is is cost effective enough for the average user. The main advantage i mention is that it keep the room cold with low noise compared to other on/off units. It gives you a steady cold flow instead of x min on x min off with maybe a temp different off 2 degree depending on the different or time delay between stops. As long as the unit has capacity enough to go into "inverted mode" then it will save energy, but if it is to small it will be running worse that an on/off model as it will be running at 100% all the time. The start stop cycles use high power consumption.

But the comfort gain is also important for my part and maybe the 1 satang not so important.

And if installed and maintained correctly it is a very good product and will last for many years... I have been working with air con of many brands for many years and the most important ting to keep the cost down regardless off witch make or model you choose is a proper and good installation. That's why i install the air con myself instead of a self trained Thai worker.

- No leakage (In Thailand everyone say that you have to refill gas at every 3 or 6 month service, shitty install i call it)

- Units are leveled up, especially indoor where the fan bearings is worn in no time without.

- Good electric installation with proper earthing.

Then the only thing you are left with is a easy clean at regular intervals with a THB 80 cleaning solution who last for many cleaning cycles.

[kimamey]

Well I went for the Move Eye version but as I don't have anything to compare it to I can't say what difference it makes. Unfortunately it was only fitted yesterday and I'm leaving for BKK tomorrow for a flight back to the UK so until I get back I won't be able to see how well it works. As it is at the moment it's set at 29 degrees and it feels fine. I'm not sweating, it feels comfortable and I can hardly hear it now it's cooled the room. I haven't got a thermometer so I can't check the actual temperature and I know they're not that accurate.

I do need to get something done about the outside wall which faces east and has little shade which means it gets hot. I'm sure that will help as it's like a 9 sq. metre radiator. The west facing side which was partially shaded is now completely out of the sun and the walls are cool.

[kyrre]

Well I went for the Move Eye version but as I don't have anything to compare it to I can't say what difference it makes. Unfortunately it was only fitted yesterday and I'm leaving for BKK tomorrow for a flight back to the UK so until I get back I won't be able to see how well it works. As it is at the moment it's set at 29 degrees and it feels fine. I'm not sweating, it feels comfortable and I can hardly hear it now it's cooled the room. I haven't got a thermometer so I can't check the actual temperature and I know they're not that accurate.

I do need to get something done about the outside wall which faces east and has little shade which means it gets hot. I'm sure that will help as it's like a 9 sq. metre radiator. The west facing side which was partially shaded is now completely out of the sun and the walls are cool.

You can fit cementboard or other structure om the outsidere wall as a decoration and to prevent direct sun to the wall.