I wanted to cool a room without an air conditioner that had to be placed in a windowsill or be connected to a vent to one (much less without the energy costs). So I opted for this, what is also known as a "swamp cooler." It is not super huge, the fan on it is strong, and it can oscillate, which is nice. Adding water to it makes a slight difference, but not much. Adding ice increases the slight difference just a bit. It is pretty loud for what it is, so if you want to use it when you are sleeping, that might be a problem. I have not been able to try it when it is really hot as I received it at the tail end of the recent heat wave. The price is decent when you can get it on sale, the energy consumption is good, and it can be used outside as well. It would have been great if it had a heating element to it as well so it can be used in the winter like other devices. If you really want to cool down and maybe feel a little cold, this is not the device for you.

Thought this would cool a little better. It is loud and helps cool a little.

It was great blowing cool air but the back of the machine was blowing warm air so I returned it