Is this "Airing" maskless CPAP and website legit?

May 3, 2023 11:28 AM

I saw a Facebook ad for this tiny maskless CPAP. It's cheap. It has a long list of seemingly reputable supporters. But the website it's listed on seems a bit sketch. Does anyone know if this is a real product and if it's actually ordered here, or do I find it elsewhere? Seems too good to be true.

That's it. That's the post.

posted by crunchy potato to Shopping (10 answers total)

I tried that. They're not readily apparent. I found some descriptive and/or marketing articles, and a link to an Amazon listing which might or might not have decent reviews. No in-depth, critical, first-person use reports.
posted by amtho at 11:37 AM on May 3, 2023 [1 favorite]

Do not buy one of these. They're a scam. I bought one. It was absolutely useless.
posted by RedEmma at 11:41 AM on May 3, 2023 [4 favorites]

My first google, with highlighted portions mentioning that these micro CPAPs are not FDA approved.
posted by cgg at 11:43 AM on May 3, 2023 [2 favorites]

They don't work.
posted by kingdead at 11:46 AM on May 3, 2023 [1 favorite]

Well, the top hit (at least for me) is the indiegogo. Maybe I'm an old-fashioned crank, but I don't put much stock in crowdfunded medical devices. And then all over the place is the statement that it's not FDA-approved. So...that's a no-go. It'd be a no-go for me even if there were rave reviews, which I wouldn't trust. Even though, God knows, we have got to come up with an improvement on the CPAP!!!
posted by praemunire at 12:25 PM on May 3, 2023

Sorry, it would've been helpful to include the indiegogo link!
posted by praemunire at 12:36 PM on May 3, 2023

If you hit up one of the CPAP forums (I know CPAPTalk is one, and there are several others), I have no doubt you'll find detailed reviews of and information about this. I'd start there. This is the kind of thing those folks love to try out and chat about.
posted by Stacey at 1:31 PM on May 3, 2023 [1 favorite]

Just google "airing cpap scam". It's a scam. The device is literally nothing.
posted by dmd at 1:57 PM on May 3, 2023

I took a quick look at CPAPTalk, and there's wide agreement it's at best "still-in-development" vaporware but more likely an outright indiegogo scam.

Also note from cgg's link:

"The single-use micro CPAP device is designed to be battery powered, with an intended battery life of eight hours."

"Most CPAP machines have pressure settings ranging from 4 to 20 cm H2O, though some go higher.

It is unclear if micro CPAP devices will be able to deliver this same range of pressure. The company developing the technology claims that it will be capable of reaching more than 20 cm H2O. However, the last technical update from the company, released in February 2020, showed that the microblowers had been demonstrated to blow air at around 5 cm H2O — far below the level needed to bring the product to market. No public updates have been provided since, leaving the status of the technology uncertain."

That doesn't sound like a functional replacement for a CPAP.

The actual Airing website has a banner across the top stating, "The Airing micro-CPAP device is currently in development and not yet available."

The last entry on their blog page is from Sept 2020, asking for more funding.

So, no, I'm sorry to say that there's pretty strong evidence that not only is it not a real functional product but that the website the FB ads led you to isn't even really selling them - you might receive some kind of fancy nose plug, but I'd bet they take your money and then ghost you.
posted by soundguy99 at 4:13 PM on May 3, 2023

To run a device like this, even at moderate pressure for, say, 6 hours would require just the battery to be larger than this entire device.

Just FYI.
posted by flug at 11:09 PM on May 3, 2023 [2 favorites]