Others say...

"Nice A/C, but kinda chincy"
I recently moved into an old house with no central air. The summers here are mighty humid and hot, with temps of 100 degrees during the worst of it. I purchased this 12,000 BTU window unit because it's affordable and easy to install.

I wish this unit was offered with mechanical controls because I do NOT like the electronics (one more thing to break), but alas, it's only offered with the electronics. However, I was impressed with their ease of use. They are fairly user-friendly, but you may need a magnifying glass to see the little tiny printing on the displays.

As to the chilling details, I was surpised and pleased with the cooling power of this unit. I also have the 5,000 and 6,000 BTU a/c's and those units never can pedal fast enough to keep up with the hottest days of summer. This unit (which has a much, much higher efficiency rating than its 5,000 and 6,000 BTU cousins) seems to be stronger, quieter and better built.

I'm currently using this unit it to cool a 500+ square foot area with 16 massive windows (and a southern exposure) and 10' ceilings and thus far, it's doing very, very well.

However, it is noisy. I don't mind some white noise but I have to turn the television way, way up just to hear anything.

This unit arrives partially disassembled (which surprised me). The top bar and side pleats have to be installed. The styrofoam shipping blocks in the side vents are nearly impossible to get out. Ick. And the vents (where the air blows out) had to be installed. I had to use my bowling words and lots of upper body strength to get those &^%$ things popped into place.

The accordian pleats on the side can't possibly last more than a couple years. They're thin and light and I was afraid of breaking them whilst doing the install! (Pass the duct tape, please.) The shroud inside the unit (where the cold air blows) is lined with chincy-looking plastic and styrofoam.

I bought three of these units so I could survive the summer, so I guess I've voted with my wallet. Window units are never as good as central air, but these little sweeties will keep me from going stark-raving mad when the temps start to climb.

"FAC124P1A"
1. Unit arrived a week earlier than expected--great for prepping.
2. Unit received by apartment security which did not see front lower right corner damage--resulted in cracked upper right front bezel--I'll take care of this later.
3. All components neatly packaged.
4. Installation instructions short and clear.
5. Too early to tell about use yet--summer is coming and now I'm ready

"Not much cooling for 12,000 BTUs"
I bought this for my parents who live in a 1 bedroom in-law apartment. I thought 12,000 BTUs would be a big improvement over the 5,000 BTU they had. But it is not. The fan blows harder (and louder) but even after running all day it cant cool off the apartment which is only a livingroom kitchen combined and a bedroom. Even with ceiling fans on it isn't much better than the 5,000 BTU unit.

The louvers for air direction are really cheap. They are either center or 1 click up or 1 click down. And since there is a big gap under and over the louver the air pretty much always just pushes straight out no matter what direction you place them in.

The air filter sits flimsily in the front. And the front of the unit does not open all the way down for easy removal and installation of the filter.

I was pleased with the side sliders that block the extra space in the window. They fit tightly against the unit and had ample length to reach the edges of the window.

The remote control is about the same surface area as other AC remotes I've seen but, for some reason is almost 1" thick.

"Way Cool!"
I ordered this unit from Amazon during the two week plus heat wave here in southern California when it remained at over 110 degrees during the day and 85 degrees at night. During this time our old 10,000 BTU Sears unit died and you couldn't buy, beg, borrow or steal a suitable replacement in SoCal. When we received this Frigidaire, I immediately installed it and ran it nonstop for almost two weeks. The installation was easy and the Frigidaire easily outperformed the Sears on its best day. The continually variable fan speed which resets as needed during the "auto cool" setting is really effective at cooling a room.

Probably the best feature of this a/c, besides its outstanding performance, is its compact size. We live in an ancient house and only have 21 3/8 inches of window opening space. The Frigidaire is only 19 1/8 inches wide, an inch less than the 10,000 BTU Sears a/c it replaced. I am aware that there are "casement" style a/c units available for narrow window openings. Unfortunately, after extensive investigation of these units, it seems that they are less fully featured than the non casement a/c units.

If this Frigidaire is ever available on Amazon again, I'll buy a spare. I might even buy two.