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 eliminating the bird flu virus known as H5N1.

Every now and then, the press reminds us that bird flu is the prime suspect to cause mankind’s next pandemic. Pandemic does not just sound terrifying. It is. That’s when a highly contagious virus goes global, in a very negative sense. The 1918 Spanish Flu that killed 50 million people worldwide is the worst pandemic in human history! World Health Organization (WHO) confirmed on 5 October 2005 that the 1918 Spanish flu was caused by H1N1, a bird flu virus.

If fear is gripping you right now, is it time to PANIC?

Not now. Statistically, as recorded by WHO as at 10 Sep 2008, “only” 245 people have died from the H5N1 virus. This is since 1996 when the virus 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 today, there has been only one probable case of human-to-human transmission recorded in Thailand in September 2004. But if the dreaded virus mutation takes place, you can expect pandemonium on a global scale.

As the threat grows day by day, countries around the globe are conscientiously preparing for the worse (more on this in a later post). At our individual level, 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 ionic air purifier? It is ordinary in that it performs the usual functions of the run-of-the-mill air purifier by getting rid of 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”? Per Sharp, not a penny more! Sharp contends that it is cheaper than any other competing ionic air purifier when measured over 5 years. Great value for our hard-earned money! How is it possible in this nothing-is-for-free world?

Well, in promotional materials, using the Plasmacluster Ionic Air Purifier Model FP-N40CX as the basis, Sharp contends that it is much better value for money as there is no filter replacement costs for the first 5 years. At US$399, the Sharp model compares favourably against a typical competitor’s ionic air purifier that may cost US$160 upfront but over 5 years cost a total of US$560 due to annual filter replacement costs of US$100 each.

I would greatly appreciate any feedback on both sets of numbers above. Feel free to drop me a note if you have actual numbers.

Meanwhile, I’m going to seriously investigate this Sharp Plasmacluster IonTechnology. Especially since bird flu is still not quite at pandemic proportions.

Don’t let other things in life lead you to procrastinate. Personal panic does not fade. Like a horror movie, pandemic fears spread across Asia for months. People shunned crowded places like shopping centres, some stayed away from work, others became unofficial health “authorities” passing decrees on hygiene standards. Anyone who sneezed in public without a N95 face mask found himself standing alone in a split second. For the uninitiated, it was the year 2003. The SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome) virus originated in Asia, infected 8,096 people around the world before finally resulting in 774 fatalities. As always, being 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.

To easily receive updates on new articles, subscribe to The Ionic Air Purifier Blog today.

New! We've just starting a message board and discussion forum over on the Toxic Byte Pets Forum. It's a bit lonely over there at the moment, but feel free to join in and participate!

This entry was posted on Thursday, November 6th, 2008 at 8:18 pm and is filed under General. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.