Plasmacluster Ions - The One & Only Reliable Ionic Air Purifier Against Bird Flu Pandemic Fears?

27 August 2008 may prove to be a pivotal point in mankind’s war against the much-feared bird flu pandemic. On that day, Sharp Corporation unveiled its latest technological weapon against the unseen enemy! Incorporated in its ionic air purifier, the Plasmacluster Ion Technology (more on this in a later post) has just been scientifically proven to be 99.9% effective in destroying the bird flu virus known as H5N1.

As we have been constantly reminded by the press, bird flu is the prime suspect to cause mankind’s next pandemic. Pandemic sounds terrifying. It is. That’s when a highly contagious and deadly virus goes global, in a very negative sense. History records for us that 50 million people may have died during the 1918 Spanish Flu pandemic! That deadly killer flu was confirmed on 5 October 2005 by the World Health Organization (WHO) to be caused by H1N1, a bird flu virus.

Now that I have your attention, is it time to PANIC?

Not quite, not yet anyway. “Only” 245 people infected by the H5N1 virus, as per WHO data as at 10 Sep 2008, have died since 1996 when it first surfaced in China. So what’s the fuss? A bird flu virus that attains human-to-human transmission capability is the ultimate horror of the scientific community. As of now, there has been only one probable case of human-to-human transmission recorded in Thailand in September 2004. But if (it seems the virus has not reached the “when” stage) the dreaded virus mutation takes place, you can expect pandemonium on a global scale.

Countries around the globe are conscientiously preparing for the worse (more on this in a later post). As protectors of our families and loved ones, we should start doing some homework too.

Ok, so what has the Sharp ionic air purifier to do with all this. Is it not just another ordinary ionic air purifier? Yes, it’s ordinary in that it takes care of the usual stuff that we look for in an air purifier – dust, dirt, smoke, dander, pollen, cuisine and pet odours, pollutants, allergens etc. But if we can get protection from all these and more in one ionic air purifier, especially one that is a tested defense shield against a potentially deadly virus, why not? That’s what Sharp is claiming, get the all-in-one package with their Plasmacluster Ion Air Purifier.

Obviously, for the value-conscious, the next logical question would be “yes, that makes a whole lot of sense but at what cost”? No extra cost, Sharp claims! Sharp contends that it is cheaper than any other competing ionic air purifier when measured over 5 years. Wow, value for money sure gets my attention! But, how is this possible in this nothing-is-for-free world?

Yes, its possible, claims Sharp. For instance, in its Plasmacluster Ionic Air Purifier Model FP-N40CX, Sharp contends that it is undoubtedly better value for money as there is no filter replacement costs for the first 5 years. Upfront costs at US$399 for the Sharp model is higher than the typical competitor’s US$160. But the latter requires annual filter replacement costs of US$100, adding to a total cost of US$560 over 5 years.

Feedback on relevant data on Sharp or its competitors will be very much appreciated. Feel free to drop me a note if you have actual data.

In the meantime, I will study the Sharp Plasmacluster Ion Technology more closely. Especially since bird flu is still not quite at pandemic proportions.

Join me in my quest. Fear etches itself deep in my psyche. Imagine thousands of frantic people going from drugstore to drugstore looking for the same face mask. The N95 mask was touted as the only effective weapon as a near-pandemic scare gripped Asia. For those of you who did not hear of it, it was the SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome) virus that hit 8,096 people around the world and resulted in 774 fatalities. We all know that being well prepared is half the battle won.

Watch this space as we track exciting developments in our pursuit of safe, pure and clean air with nothing more than an ionic air purifier.

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