Air conditioners.(Home & Yard: More Value for Less)(Buyers guide)

Low prices and high efficiency make individual room air conditioners an inexpensive alternative to central air for cooling one or two rooms.

Room air conditioners now cost as little as $100 and often include controls with digital temperature readouts instead of vague "warmer" and "cooler" settings.

Added efficiency is also a plus. All models we tested meet the 9.7 Energy Efficiency Rating (EER) now required for air conditioners below 8,000 British thermal units per hour (Btu/hr.) and 9.8 EER for those with 8,000 to 13,999 Btu/hr. Most also meet or exceed the 10.7 EER needed to qualify for the federal Energy Star designation, a voluntary program that helps identify models at least 10 percent more efficient than the minimum allowed.

WHAT'S AVAILABLE

Fedders, Frigidaire, GE, Haier, Kenmore (Sears), and LG are the leading brands of room air conditioners. You'll find cooling capacities that range from 5,000 British thermal units per hour (Btu/hr.) to more than 30,000 Btu/hr., though most are small and midsized models from 5,000 to 9,000 Btu/hr. You'll also find large models (9,800 to 12,500 Btu/hr.) in stores.

Price: about $100 to $600 for small to midsized models based mostly on capacity, and $200 to $700 for larger models.

FEATURES THAT COUNT