Rabbit Air A3

It’s no stretch to assert that, for the average cigar enthusiast, Rabbit Air is the solution when confronting the need for air purification in home lounges. The Los Angeles-based company was founded in 2004, though it wasn’t until 2007 that they introduced the ubiquitous MinusA2 line known by cigar hobbyists. While not directly intended for smoke purification, the unit set itself apart from the competition with customizable filter packs—one of which included an odor remover filter that was geared toward smoke filtration.

In 2021, the company introduced the Rabbit Air A3 as the followup to the MinusA2, boasting an all-new design, sleek touch-button panel, and full control through the Rabbit Air app (as well as voice control through Amazon Alexa-compatible devices).

Rabbit Air A3 Breakdown

Key Features

Logically, the first thing you will notice when unboxing the Rabbit Air A3 is its new form. If the MinusA2 was the PlayStation 3 (who’s with me on this?), then the A3 is more along the lines of the Xbox Series X. This means that the glossy, rounded shape has been replaced with cleaner lines and a matte finish. The removable front panel is now more distinguishable from the body of unit, with an added intake running down the center. The LED light has been upgraded, and is now the only feature that will draw attention—with the rest of the unit seeking to blend into the background. This ties into the new touch panel, which replaces mechanical buttons with touch-style buttons and associated LED indicators.

Currently, the device arrives in five finishes: Black, Cherry Blossom, Great Wave, Starry Night, and Vase of Flowers. Essentially, there is only the Black model, with the others (dubbed the Artists Series) featuring classic artwork on the front panel. Additionally, the Artists Series models are priced $20 higher than the Black model, and their statistics are slightly less impressive (a decrease of 40 sq. ft. coverage area, etc.).

For those new to Rabbit Air, their purifiers feature customizable six-stage filter packs under the hood. This allows them to target germs, toxins, pet allergies, or odors, depending on the filter option you select. This customizable filter is joined by the pre-filter, medium filter, AC filter, HEPA filter, and negative ions filter. The filter packs are priced at $115.95, and are recommended to be replaced once per year (they are a different size than the MinusA2 filters, so don’t attempt to shoehorn your old setup into the A3). One caveat is the pre-filter, which can be manually washed or vacuumed (recommended every three months). This filter does not come with the filter pack replacements (it is included with new A3 purchases), but it can be replaced for $19.95, if necessary.

Rabbit Air makes this process extremely easy. Simply remove the magnetically attached front panel and you are presented with an interior tray containing each of the filters. With replacements, I find it easiest to wash the pre-filter in the sink and let it dry for a few hours. Each of the other filters are clearly labelled as to which direction to place them, and in what order. There’s also an LED indicator on the device’s button panel that’ll let you know when it’s time to replace the filters. Better yet, the Rabbit Air app has this information presented in a convenient bar graph.

This brings us to one of the biggest upgrades over the MinusA2: the app. For most people, the purifier is either mounted to a wall or placed somewhere out of the way. With the MinusA2, this meant that you were constantly searching for the remote when you needed that turbo mode to kick in. The A3 solves this (and more) with the app / Alexa integration. The app handles all functionality of the A3, including:

• On / off
• Air quality information
• Fan speed
• Auto mode
• LED light
• Negative ions
• Timer
• Schedule
• Filter life

There are basically two sections of the app: quick controls and full controls. Quick controls allow you to check the air quality at a glance, change the fan speed, turn the LED light on/off, switch to schedule or auto mode, and turn on/off the negative ion generator. Meanwhile, the full control area of the app allows for all of the settings mentioned above.

In terms of the air quality indicator, this is significantly improved from the MinusA2, which only displays the air quality as different light colors on the front of the unit (red=bad, green=good, etc.). But the app allows for more of a breakdown, showing the air quality on a scale of 1 (not good) to 4 (excellent). It displays odor levels on a similar scale, as well as specific particles and their densities in the room environment. Cigar Dojo’s unit showed the lowest quality when smoking (predictable), but would often move to the best setting overnight.

The app’s fan speed is straightforward, with an associated Auto Mode that allows you to select its sensitivity on a scale of 1 to 3. Next is the mood light, which allows you to predetermine three colors, as well as an automated setting that shifts between all available colors. This is a nice change over the MinusA2, which essentially only had two colors. There’s also a Night Light setting, turning on when the room is dark (remember, these things aren’t just for cigar lounges).

You can also set a timer for the unit to run, as well as a full-fledged schedule for every hour of the day. This allows you to set the unit at either off, silent, low, medium, high, turbo, or auto. There are not settings to control each day of the week individually.

Finally, you can turn on or off the negative ions generator. This is not to be confused with ozone generator air purifiers, which can only be used when the space is vacant. Negative ions are “molecules that have become negatively charged due to strong natural forces such as sunlight, wind, or churning water.” Rabbit Air’s negative ions generator infuses the air with negatively charged molecules, which essentially attach themselves to air particles, making them easier for the air purifier to pick up. There seems to be some debate as to whether this feature (found on many air purifiers on the market) is effective or harmful, etc. This was somewhat out of the scope of my testing capabilities… I couldn’t tell the difference between the setting being on or off.

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Purchase Recommendation

Is it pricey? Somewhat. Is it sexy? About as sexy as an air puffer could be. Does it get the job done? Depends on your situation.

Here’s the Dojo’s situation: we’re in a 400 sq. ft. studio with about a 14 ft. vaulted ceiling. With one person smoking, the unit does fantastic. With two people, it’s good, but you start to notice some lingering smoke. Three people is doable but uncomfortable for anyone that’s not used to being bombarded by smoke. That’s as far as I’d go. Realistically, we have two MinusA2 units, the A3, a grow-house-grade ventilation system, and a window vent unit… and it’s still smoky. We also smoke A LOT, and have five-plus people on a regular basis.

I think a more ideal scenario is a 100–200 sq. ft. room with one or two people. If this is your setup, this beauty will get the job done, no problem. Again, toss a third or fourth person into the mix and you might be alright—just don’t make it the norm.

We’ve found that placement is pretty huge. The closer you can get to the unit the better. It may not look as aesthetically pleasing having the A3 sitting smack dab in the middle of your table, but it does the trick. Slightly less ideal is having it against the nearest wall, and worst case is mounting it up high (as we did with our former MinusA2s).

If you’re the average enthusiast with a modest smoke dungeon, enjoying smoking sessions with the spouse or a buddy, I’ll give the Rabbit Air A3 the stamp of approval—no problem.

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