This is my first review in MS. It was a long pending plan to buy an AC. As very recently, Bangalore climate has changed a lot in last few years. Its summer and I badly needed an AC. I did a lot of research and comparison between ONIDA, LG, SAMSUNG, VOLTAS & HITACHI. Few things that I considered while buying Hitachi are as follows
BTU / Hr. - British Thermal Unit. Btu measures the amount of heat an AC unit can remove from the room per Hour.
Total Power Input - Watts Consumed by AC
Star Rating - Number of BEE Star Rating
EER - Energy Efficiency Ratio - Calculated as BTU/Hr divided by Total Power Input in watts
The more the EER. less unit your AC consumes. It only makes a difference or you rather see the difference in your power bill when you use it for more then 8-10Hrs. per day.
For me budget was not a concern. Lot of my friend suggested me to buy ONIDA & LG. Few also told me to buy Voltas. But I compared their pricing with Star Rating and Energy Effeciency Ratio. The price difference between LG, SAMSUNG & ONIDA is not much. But, Hitachi is on the higher side. I decided to buy HITACHI because of after sales service(in Bangalore) is very good. My friend has HITACHI & things are peaceful so far with him. Do not expect good customer service from any company be it HITACHI, LG or ONIDA. So, dont make your buying decision based on after sales Customer service.
Build Quality: Build quality of the Indoor Unit is good, nothing fancy though. Outdoor unit is heavy with good build quality. Noise level(Sound Level in dB) of the Indoor unit as per my comparison is a bit high but I did not feel anything unusual while using it.
Performance: As far as cooling and performance is concerned, there is no complain so far. Cooling is pretty fast. I normally use the AUTO mode which adjusts everything accordingly to room temperature. Remote control buttons with icons are pretty user friendly.
Installation was pretty good and neat. I paid a little extra for the AC because I wanted a good stabilizer and brackets(L-Brackets) for the Outdoor Unit. I personally prefer less LED lights on the indoor unit because it disturbs me at night. HITACHI KAZE+ does not show you the Temperature on the AC Indoor Unit. It has a big bright LCD Display on the Remote Control(Hitachi calls it as REMOCON).
While doing my research for these brands, most of the people are inclined either towards ONIDA or HITACHI. Because ONIDA Specifications are pretty much at PAR with Good Brands like Hitachi and their pricing is pretty competitive. HITACHI has a brand value and has lot of customized modes like ACT(Auto Climate Technology) based on the state you reside.
So, to conclude, if you are looking for an AC and price is not a factor, then I would recommend HITACHI . If you think budget is on the tighter side, then go with ONIDA. I do not know about LG/Samsung. They are leaders in Audio, Video and Mobiles. Always consider buying AC with high EER and Star Rating. Also look at the Watts consumed by the AC. This are the things which is written on sticker either towards the Right or the Left Side of the AC Indoor Unit.
Do not listen to Sales guys! Make your decision based on your budget and brand. In India, be it HITACHI or LG or ONIDA, do not expect good Customer Service until and unless you keep following up and make calls after calls after calls. After you buy the product, you are not more a CUSTOMER, you become CUST - SE - MAR.
Thank you and Happy Shopping!
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Update on HITACHI KAZE PLUS Dated - 25th Mar, 2015.
From past few days I have had issues with inefficient cooling. I was really unhappy. After preliminary checks and few google searches, I came to a conclusion that I needed to call up the AC technicians. I immediately got the relevant details of the AC technicians. They came in, checked and found that the R22 Refrigerant has exhausted. So, they did the refill and within no time my AC came back in action. Again, it these many years, I have had no problems with my HITACHI AC. Needless to say, I clean my AC Air Filter regularly with mild detergent.
I would soon write a review on the repair guys and their company for the wonderful job they have done.(No. I did not get paid by them but truly they are amazing.)
Thank you! Have a Cool summer. Keep coming back.