This smart portable air con guessed when I was too hot – it cooled me and not just the room with its smart remote

Delonghi makes very decent appliances across all its areas of expertise. I am a dedicated user of one of its automatic bean-to-cup coffee machines, so I was keen to see how its high quality and modern functionality translated into some of the best portable air conditioners.

The Pinguino Care4Me EL112, RRP £979.99, is a new entry into Delonghi’s air comfort range. It offers plenty of functions to make it easy to operate and fit around modern lives. And it has a price tag that reflects this bang-up-to-date technology.

The features include a smart-sensing remote, which it uses to adapt its functionality based on the air near you rather than around the machine. There’s also geofencing, so it can fire up or power down depending on whether you’re at home or away. And there’s also a connected app, which allows you to tweak the cooling to suit your needs.

It’s all very clever, and complemented by brilliant cooling power that leaves you feeling chilled yet not refrigerated. And it’s quiet when working too.

In a nutshell

This Delonghi Pinguino Care4Me EL112 impressed me in terms of cooling power and functionality. It’s easy to use and offers adaptive cooling based on your needs. I loved that there were four ways to control it: via an app, a smart remote, on the unit itself or via a voice assistant.

During operation, the Delonghi Pinguino Care4Me EL112 is whisper quiet and works hard to cool reasonably large areas in a short space of time.

The window kits are flexible and mercifully easy to fit. However, it is an expensive unit, the portability is relative (I wouldn’t fancy lugging it about often), and the venting hose could do with being longer.

Specifications

• Dimensions: 450x410x750mm
• Recommended room size: 110m3
• Cooling capacity: 11,000BTU/h
• Cable length: 1.5m
• Number of functions: 3
• Power consumption: 0.9W (on standby)
• Water tank capacity: N/A
• Noise levels: 63dB (max)
• Weight: 33kg
• Other features: Smart sensing remote, voice-assistant enabled, geofencing, personalised settings
• Window kit included: Yes
• RRP: £979.99

How I tested

Zoë Phillimore

Zoe is a freelance journalist and content strategist with almost – gulp – 20 years of experience. She's worked for the BBC, STYLIST, Marie Claire, heat, Wallpaper*, InStyle, The Sunday Times Style, Ocado, Christie's and more. Zoe started product reviewing in 2021, and has since tested around 1,000 products to find the best. She now regularly writes about home appliances, interiors and sleep – what she doesn't know about gadgets and mattresses isn't worth knowing. In her spare time Zoe can be found trying to entertain her three active children, and documenting her journey on social media.

Zoe spent a month testing the Delonghi Pinguino Care4Me EL112 at home - mainly in her living room and dining room, which is also where she works. Zoe monitored noise levels, how responsive the cooling is, how easy the unit is to use and also considered how realistic it would be to move the Delonghi Pinguino Care4Me EL112 from room to room. While the unit was sent to Zoe, this did not influence her review in any way.

Unboxing, setting up and first impressions

The Delonghi Pinguino Care4Me EL112 comes in a big box, and is extremely heavy; it took two delivery drivers to bring it to my front door. I’d really recommend calling in backup from friends or family if you’re having it delivered and plan to lug it up any stairs yourself.

Once inside my house, it was pretty easy to unbox. It had a bit of plastic/styrofoam packaging, but a lot of it was cardboard and therefore easy to recycle. Inside there’s venting, a window kit, a hefty bunch of instructions, a remote and the unit itself.

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The unit feels very robust, and I was immediately impressed with the quality of the Delonghi Pinguino Care4Me EL112. It has handles on the side to help lift it (this is still very much a two-man job though). There are coasters on the bottom, and it was easy to glide it around on my hardwood floors. Carpets were a bit more tricky. But everything on the unit feels built to last, including the odd-looking remote – which took me an embarrassingly long time to realise is meant to slot into the top of the unit itself.

This smart remote actually uses smart sensing to monitor temperature and humidity and adjust both to keep you comfortable. Delonghi advise you to keep the remote near you for most-accurate monitoring.

The cable could do with being slightly longer, if we’re looking for fault here. However, when plugged in it was easy to pair with the app I was instructed to download on my phone. This allowed me the flexibility to control the Delonghi Pinguino Care4Me EL112 from my phone, the remote or using the LED control panel on the unit itself.

I like that in the app I could tell the unit what I was up to, choosing from a range of options including quiet relaxing or working out. The unit would then adapt its functions to suit my activity.

There is also a silent mode here, a timer and a way to schedule the Delonghi Pinguino Care4Me EL112 to work around your life. You can also use the geofencing technology, and set it to power off when you leave the house, or power on when you arrive (it will use your phone to track your location). You can set the radius of what it judges to be “at home” and “leave home” ranges – so if you’re just popping to the shop down the road, it won’t switch itself off.

Ease of use and performance

Easy to control

I found the Delonghi Pinguino Care4Me EL112 so easy to control. The four options are all intuitive: the remote, voice assistant, the control panel on the unit and the app. My personal preference is the app, as you can use this as a command centre and easily review all your settings from here.

The Delonghi Pinguino Care4Me EL112 might be a bit more complex to use if you don’t want to use the app, and you might miss out on some of the functions such as being able to tell your unit what activities you’re doing. Certainly the geofencing wouldn’t work without the app.

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I hate installing a/c window kits - I find it a massive stress for some reason (will it fit? Will it actually seal the windows etc). But actually the Delonghi Pinguino Care4Me EL112 was simple to set up and use. There is also guidance of how to permanently install it by creating a hole in your wall. I liked that it included caps, which you can screw over the ducting hole when the unit isn’t in use.

The Delonghi Pinguino Care4Me EL112 was responsive, whirring quietly into action as soon as I tapped the unit, remote or my phone. There are not a huge amount of settings if you’re intimidated by operating an a/c unit - you can adjust the fan speed and cooling temperature. To be honest, I found leaving it on auto worked best unless you want a short, sharp shock of cool air. I also liked that you could set a schedule, and pre cool rooms before you entered them. This was such a win for me, as I could precool my son’s bedroom (which is usually stiflingly hot) before bedtime and it was the perfect temperature for him when he went to bed.

Most of the key functions are one tap away: silent mode, changing the swing mode, fan speed and timers. I was really impressed with how simple Delonghi have made it to use.

Powerful cooling

I tested the Delonghi Pinguino Care4Me EL112 through an unusually hot May in my living room/dining room mostly. It cooled the room impressively quickly, and maintained that temperature consistently during testing. The fan is powerful – when you’re stood directly infront of it, it’s akin to standing in the chiller aisles at the supermarket; absolute bliss on searingly hot days.

Personal comfort

Delonghi says that the Delonghi Pinguino Care4Me EL112 offers “personal comfort” via its MyEcoRealFeel technology. What that actually relates to is you can set in the app what activity you’re doing, or what your preferences are with regards to cooling, and the Delonghi Pinguino Care4Me EL112 will adapt its function accordingly.

DeLonghi claims this saves 30 per cent on energy consumption. This saving is quite hard for me to measure during testing, but I would say the Delonghi Pinguino Care4Me EL112 is fiercer than other a/c units I’ve tested – it definitely is going to keep you temperate whether you’re working or working out.

Smart sensing

This is another function of Delonghi Pinguino Care4Me EL112 that is perhaps a “nice to have” rather than strictly necessary, and probably explains the higher price point of the unit in part at least. The “smart sensing” function monitors the temperature and humidity of the air around the remote constantly, and adapts how it's working to make the environment comfortable.

I really liked this feature, as it meant it was working with the air near me on the sofa, rather than monitoring the air right by the unit. It’s useful if you want to take the guesswork out of how cold to set the unit by the window if you want it to be cold by your desk, say. It’s also handy as you don’t have to get up and down constantly. You can monitor how its working via your app, too.

Quiet operation

I was incredibly impressed with how quiet the Delonghi Pinguino Care4Me EL112 is. The quiet mode was 46.8dB on my decibel meter. This is the same as a whisper.

Even when it was actively cooling, it only got up to 52.7db – around the volume of a quiet fridge. There were no complaints of not being able to hear the TV over it, or that people were struggling to concentrate on work over the hum of the unit (this has happened when I’ve used other units). Two thumbs up here.

Easy to move

Now, Delonghi says the Delonghi Pinguino Care4Me EL112 is easy to move. And I think you need to apply the knowledge of it still being an a/c unit here. A/c units are heavy - this one is 33kg, and cumbersome. There are handles near the top to help you carry it, and there are casters on the bottom.

This is great for moving it across a smooth, single-level floor - but moving it on carpet, rugs or up and downstairs and you’re going to find it tricky. Having said that, everything is of great quality here.

It feels robust enough to move about, and the casters are good enough quality that I didn’t feel they were going to buckle or get jammed after a few turns around my living space.

Cleaning

Day-to-day, all you’re going to need to do is wipe down the Delonghi Pinguino Care4Me EL112 with a damp cloth once in a while. After prolonged use, you need to remove the filters and gently vacuum them and then rinse and air dry them before reinserting them.

You will also need to drain the water out of the back of the unit, which might well be a two-man job as the outlet is near the bottom, and you don’t have a vast amount of room to get a container under it – I’d recommend going for a tray rather than a box.

Storage and maintenance

If you’re based in the UK, chances are you’re not going to need this a/c unit all the time. So, make plans for its storage. It is large and heavy – you’d probably want to avoid taking up ladders to a loft space, for example. And if you plan on storing it in a cupboard, you’re going to need to plan to sacrifice a considerable amount of space to accommodate it.

However, there’s not a huge amount of maintenance with the Delonghi Pinguino Care4Me EL112 other than the cleaning mentioned above.

How does it compare to similar models?

DeLonghi makes a range of portable air conditioning units. The Delonghi Pinguino Care4Me EL112 compares well to the Pinguino Care4Me PACEX130, the latter of which is a bit more expensive and offers less dehumidifying capacity but slightly more cooling capacity at 13,000BTU/hour.

Otherwise, it’s very similar in all functionality. DeLonghi’s Pinguino PACEL110 Portable WIFI Air Conditioner is just under £800, so a touch cheaper. But for this it doesn’t have remote sensing and a slightly lower dehumidifying capacity, but if you’re just after cooling, this is a more affordable option as the cooling capacity is exactly the same as the EL112.

I tested the Meaco Cool MC Series Pro 9000 [insert link when available], and I would say the Delonghi Pinguino Care4Me EL112 is easier to use, and has some useful features that the Meaco Cool doesn’t offer. However, the Meaco unit is considerably cheaper, although it offers a less impressive cooling capacity.

How does it rate online?

The Delonghi Pinguino Care4Me EL112 fares well in the brutal world of online customer reviews. There’s a lot of chatter about how powerful the cooling is and how energy efficient it is compared to customers’ older units. Many people love the smart sensing technology and remark at how clever it is at cooling you down without leaving you feeling like you’re sitting in a fridge.

A consistent gripe of users is that the vent hose is too short, and I can see this would be an issue for some users. You do have to have the unit fairly close to the window opening. Some others seem taken aback by how much the Delonghi Pinguino Care4Me EL112 costs.

Verdict: Should you buy the Delonghi Pinguino Care4Me EL112?

If you have the budget and are suffering in the searing heat, then I’d definitely buy the Delonghi Pinguino Care4Me EL112. It has loads of brilliant features, and is powerful enough to cool most single rooms in a house, or a smaller office.

It’s quiet, easy to use and flexible to fit. I’d recommend it to hot sleepers and those who are wilting in the heat in a heartbeat. However, it’s expensive and you’d do well to shop around and weigh up whether the extra features are really worth the extra spend to you.