HoMedics TotalComfort Deluxe vs HoMedics TotalComfort Deluxe Warm & Cool

In short: The HoMedics TotalComfort Deluxe costs $20 less; the HoMedics TotalComfort Deluxe genuinely holds a larger room (123 sq ft against 96 sq ft); they are different mechanisms entirely — ultrasonic against hybrid; the HoMedics TotalComfort Deluxe costs about $66 less a year in wicks and watts.

SpecHoMedics TotalComfort DeluxeHoMedics TotalComfort Deluxe Warm & Cool
Approx. price~$80~$100
TypeUltrasonicHybrid
MistcoolWarm and cool
Rated output0.5 gal/day0.39 gal/day
Output standardComputed from the tank and the maker's longest runtime claim — the lowest settingComputed from the tank and the maker's longest runtime claim — the lowest setting
Honest room size123 sq ft96 sq ft
Claimed coverage426 sq ft521 sq ft
Claim vs physics3.46×5.43×
Tank size1.47 gal1.38 gal
Runtime at the claimed room20 hr16 hr
Real runtime at full output——
Yearly running cost~$39~$105
Replaceable mediaDemineralisation cartridgeDemineralisation cartridge
White dust riskNoNo
HumidistatYesYes
Noise on low——
Top fillYesYes
Dishwasher-safe tankNoNo
App controlNoNo
Power30 W260 W

Highlighted cells are the better number in that row, and only where a direction is unambiguous — more output and more supported room, less noise, cost and price. Honest room size and runtime are computed from each maker’s own published figures; here is the calculation.

Pros and cons

HoMedics TotalComfort Deluxe

  • Demineralisation cartridge and a real humidistat together at $80 is genuinely good value
  • Tower shape takes almost no floor area for the water it holds
  • The 426 sq ft claim is at least specific enough to look calculated rather than invented
  • Filter reminder actually prompts the cartridge change, which is otherwise easy to forget
  • About half a gallon a day at the 70-hour setting - the runtime headline and the coverage headline are very far apart
  • Cartridges every month or two at roughly $7.50 each
  • The tall narrow tank is hard to clean inside despite the top fill
  • No app or scheduling, so the filter reminder is the only thing it will ever tell you

HoMedics TotalComfort Deluxe Warm & Cool

  • Two tanks split the refill and let you run overnight on half the water
  • Warm mist, demineralisation and a humidistat together at $100
  • Programmable timer is unusual at this price
  • The humidistat and timer together will hold a set humidity through a night without attention
  • The 85-hour runtime and the 521 sq ft coverage differ by roughly a factor of ten in the output they imply - the widest gap in this catalog
  • 260W on the warm side, which is nearly the whole of its running cost; the cool tank is pennies
  • Two tanks means two sets of seams to keep clean
  • Cartridge replacement every month or two