The Honeywell CS10XE is a great pick for small rooms as it is capable of cooling the air by up to 30 degrees across spaces up to 175 square feet in size, while also offering a nice selection of controls, like oscillation and fan speed, which can be controlled remotely.
It’s also made for easy maneuverability, while the 6-foot power cord makes it easy to position in any room. The Honeywell CS10XE is also one of the most affordable options on the market. To compare with others we’ve reviewed, don’t miss our guide to the best portable swamp coolers.
Honeywell CS10XE portable swamp cooler: Pricing and value
The Honeywell CS10XE portable swamp cooler sits between the budget and middle-range of the evaporative cooler market at $200. It’s more expensive than the NewAir AF-310, which it is quite similar to in terms of being more suited to smaller spaces and including remote control, but the Honeywell CS10XE does offer more power.
The Honeywell CS10XE is good value for money and while it doesn’t offer as much power as many of the others in our roundup of swamp coolers, it’s also significantly cheaper than most on our list.
Honeywell CS10XE portable swamp cooler: Features
The CS10XE’s fan has a maximum airflow of 300 cubic feet per minute (CFM), so it works best in small spaces. According to Honeywell, the unit can cool a room of up to 175 square feet. However, it can also spot cool in larger rooms. It has four fan speeds and oscillating louvers, allowing the Honeywell CS10XE to evenly distribute cool air through its honeycomb cooling media.
This cooler doesn’t use much power, which is a great benefit. On its lowest setting, it uses only 100 watts of power. As such, it costs about $9 to run over the course of three months. While running the evaporative cooler at its highest setting during peak temperatures requires more energy, even at its max, it’s far cheaper to run the CS10XE than a traditional air conditioner.
Its 2.6-gallon water reservoir is a bit larger than those on some similarly priced models, including the NewAir AF-310, so the Honeywell CS10XE can run longer between refills. However, the full water tank weighs almost 21 pounds, which may be too heavy to carry for some people.
The Honeywell CS10EX also includes a remote control, a carbon dust filter, and a low water alarm. The carbon dust filter captures particles and cleans the air as the cooler blows, and the remote control lets you adjust all the same settings you can on the cooler’s display. In addition, you can turn off the CS10EX’s cooler pump and run it as a fan. The LED display and control panel is easy to use and angled to allow you to see operation settings easily. Honeywell covers this cooler with a one-year warranty.
Honeywell CS10XE portable swamp cooler: User reviews
The Honeywell CS10XE scores an average rating of 3.5 out of 5 on Walmart's website. Opinion on this cooler is pretty divided, a number of reviewers love this cooler while quite a few reviews commented that it didn’t cool enough for them.
Those who liked it commented that it worked best as a spot cooler and, like most swamp coolers, it was less effective on humid days. They found it a great alternative to keeping the A/C on and felt it cooled their space effectively. One reviewer commented that it was quiet enough to allow them to use it while sleeping and while they did have to refill it during the day, they found it lasted through the night without needing to be refilled.
Those who didn’t like it often commented that it worked as more of a humidifier than a cooler for them. One reviewer noted that it made the room muggy without noticeably reducing the temperature.
Should you buy the Honeywell CS10XE portable swamp cooler?
The Honeywell CS10XE is a good choice if you’re looking to cool specific areas, whether that’s your desk in a home office or keeping your sleeping area cool at night. It has good control functionality and decent cooling power considering the price point. It’s also a good option if you’re looking to use your A/C a little less.
It’s not the best choice for environments that are at all humid and, if you’re looking for something that can powerfully cool larger spaces, you need to splash out a bit more and take a closer look at the Honeywell CO610PM or Frigidaire FEC1K7GA00.
