Crane USA Humidifiers - Penguin Adorable Ultrasonic Cool Mist Humidifier - 1 Gallon Adjustable Mist Output, Automatic Shut-Off, Whisper-Quiet Operation, for Home Bedroom Office Kids and Baby Nursery

We have a two year-old and about a year ago when she got her first really nasty cold I ran out minutes before the drugstore closed (the one with the abbreviated name like CBS). Ehem. When I lugged the Vick's brand humidifier to the counter they all but held me by my ankles and shook every last coin out of my purse. That was fine -- my daughter was sick -- so if this is what a really good humidifier cost to help her sleep well then I was happy to pay whatever they were asking. I forked over the pirate's ransom (three times what this penguin one costs) to help my child sleep better. When I got it home the disappointed started immediately. It was bulky, heavy, and awkwardly shaped. The lights were so bright my daughter's room may as well have been on the Vegas strip. It made very loud "glugging" noises throughout the night that made my light-sleeper child stir or wake (which is the ultimate in upsetting when we took painstaking efforts to get her asleep while sick). Imagine sleeping next to a busy office water cooler with the big air bubble that goes up and makes the glugging sound after each use; that's what the Vick's is like. To combat the light problem I had to duct tape a black sock to it and then use half a roll of duct tape to cover all of the tank walls where the light shone through the water and lit the thing up like a Christmas tree. It wasn't my brightest MacGyver moment but I had a sick, tired two year-old so I used what I had in front of me. The Vicks one got stinky often (and not from the sock!) plus it was hard to clean. Finally, one day a year later I stumbled across this lovely penguin. I read all the wonderful reviews and wondered what it would be like to have a properly working humidifier. At this price I figured it was high time we found out. WHOA NELLY! This thing is silent as falling snow! I stand there and stare at it in disbelief that it's even on but the steady stream of "clouds" (what my daughter calls the mist) is pouring out nonstop to assure me it's indeed working like a charm. It does have a green light that glows a tad bright for our liking so I doubled up two bandaids and stuck them over the light to cover it -- voila -- dark as night. There seems to be some conflicting info on the size. The box says it's a two gallon tank. Whatever size it is -- I fill it around 9p.m. and it's still half full when it gets shut off around 9 a.m. after being set at full throttle/highest speed all night. You will not be disappointed with this sucker. My only complaint would be that the tank handle could be sturdier so you could actually carry it by the handle when full. That's small potatoes when you consider what I lived through with the Vicks beast and how well much this penguin shames that Vick's model.Bravo Crane.

good

Works GREAT!!! The summary: Easy set up (fill, turn on, presto), more than enough volume of humidification, super simple care (empty, let dry, done) all make this one awesome penguin! Irritating night light that can't be turned off results in the loss of one star. The story: Coming from a bottle top type humidifier (looking for something small but effective) that didn't put out anything more than a whisper of mist, I was seeking something more substantial. Enter Mr. Puffington (yes, ahaha, they gave him a name, and put it right on the box) and his misty beak. Although larger than I'd hoped (about the girth of an official-size basketball, with a penguin head on top) he sits nicely atop a surface, taking up just slightly more table space than the average toaster, and the payoff in performance is more than worth it. I was likely dreaming, thinking that any small solution would pump out serious humidity, so I'm happy to have the volume from this device, despite needing to clear some space to find a place to put it, both when using it, and when allowing it to dry out the next morning. Why the penguin? Hours of reading Amazon reviews! And, thanks reviewers for all the great information! Among the available choices, this humidifier is very well reviewed, set-up and operation is super straight forward, it has no filters to mess with, has minimal cleaning needs, produces lots of humidity, and, while the "penguin" design might seem trivial, it's actually the wide mouth beak that is responsible for the nice spread of mist -- as opposed to the "non-animal" version from Crane, which just has a round spout, which seems less effective than this handy "diffuser" type opening provided by the "beak" design. And, hey, it's humidifier that doubles as a conversational pop-art piece, ahaha, so how cool is that.... So, it accomplishes all I was looking for, and works flawlessly! The only drawback, and I have no idea why manufacturers don't think of this, since it seems a common theme these days, is the overly bright function light which, in the case of Mr. Puffington, blazes a green glow into the room, indicating that the device is on -- which seems obvious due to the plume of mist shooting out of Mr. Puffington's beak, as well as due to the fact that, more than just plugging it in, you actually have to turn it on, to operate it. So thanks Green Lantern, but I know my humidifier is on, and I don't need you. Unless I am shopping for a night light, when I purchase devices, I am not looking for a night light -- why is that not understood? Seems so many things now just have to have a small sun illuminating the room -- I get that there is an intent to let us know when a device is "on" but, really, the light could be dialed down in intensity, or placed more out of direct view. I suppose the point, in this case, is to let you know it's on, in case you DON'T see mist coming out, which would tell you to troubleshoot, but, then again, it has a dial (for how much mist you want) with a very noticeable "click" when rotating it from the off, to the on position, so, again, not sure why the light needs to be so obtrusive, especially for a device that many folks, like me, will obviously use at night. Plus, it has a red light to tell you if it is "on" but out of water (in which case it shuts down the humidifier function anyway), so it seems just that warning light, if even needed, would have been fine, without the additional light telling you what you already know, when it's working. So, I will need to pull out the black electrical tape, yet again, which is always annoying since it gets gloopy over time from the tape's adhesive, and it seems a shame to muck up Mr. Puffington's flawless penguin suit. But it really is annoying at night, so...not much choice. The dial, it should be noted, works great, and definitely adjusts the amount of mist produced. The penguin runs very nearly silent, with only the occasional faint gurgle or glub from his "tummy." The slight noises are not disruptive, although, as I say, the bright green light is -- seems odd they would promote the quietness of the device, yet put such an irritatingly bright light right dead center, facing out to the room. Yes, I'm still griping about the light, ahaha, because it really is so pointless. I guess I could consider turning his body around, since his head freely rotates, but then it would just back-light the wall in a kryptonite glow and I don't know if it will function as effectively with the head backwards, although it really is just a collection kind of lid -- the head sits over the main misting tube, the mist filling the head and flowing out the beak, so I guess any head angle would work about the same. I'll probably just settle for the black tape. So, overall, I do love it, and such love would be worth five stars, but, the ridiculousness of such a disruptive light that serves little purpose (and could be less annoyingly done even for what purpose it serves) is what lost a star for my review. If they ever fix the light issue, I'd be in for ten stars! If you're looking for a great humidifier, and don't mind a green sun in your room, or have a roll of electrical tape handy, grab this penguin fellow, because it really is an epically terrific humidifier! Despite the light issue, I'm gladly keeping him, and will use him daily, although he'll sport a black belt at his waistline now. Against everything else on the market, Mr. Puffington is easily a hands down winner. I highly recommend!

1/10/13 UPDATE: In lieu of my original review below when I received my first humidifier in the shape of the lovely blue penguin, I decided to order another one which I received a few weeks ago.. This second time, I wasn't lucky compared to my first one. The second one did not work AT ALL when I plugged it in. I checked the manual that came with the product to make sure something has been added/updated compared to the one I already owned. No difference. So then, I thought maybe that outlet was just bad but that couldn't be true considering I had just used that same outlet earlier with a table lamp and that was fine. Anyways, doesn't hurt to try. Tried another outlet and same thing happened - so I contacted Crane as their manual stated if the product is experiencing issues. I am aware other Amazon folks have had similar issues with their products as well, of course, I didn't encountered this with my first one... Anyways, Crane Operator tells me after a 30 minute hold I should cut 4 inches off the cord and send it to them for examination to prove it's their product and not something else before they will provide a replacement which will be another 7-10 business day BTW. Now that is the most stupidest thing I've ever heard. If I do that, the humidifier is useless (not to mention I can't ask for a refund with Amazon - my next option). I told the Operator "That's the most ridiculous suggestion a manufacturer can ask of their customer on a defective product - not to mention the hilarity of what you're telling me to do." And *clicked* I went with the phone. Screw that - I'll go to someone with more common and business sense instead. Amazon - do you hear me now? Yes. Good - I need you. *POOF* out comes my Amazon fairy. ........and 5 seconds later, return label in my email and refund reflected in my account. None of that useless BS of telling me to cut part of the cord to prove the product's defectiveness etc. Amazon once again have come through and continues to be the ruler (at least in my book), of customer service. I'll keep my star rating the same because my first two humidifiers both are awesome and I experienced no issues at all to date. All I have to say is, if you order this, you definitely want to try it out because you really don't know if yours will turn out to be a lemon! <(^.^)> ================================ 1/16/12 Review: Another product from my registry I received and boy am I glad my husband forced me to add this to our registry! I personally have never used or have much knowledge of what a humidifier does but my husband - being the more knowledgeable one *surprise!* where health and safety is involved insisted that we needed it for our baby especially during the winter months and we start using our heaters etc. Because the item itself is new to me, I read the instruction manual it came with cover to cover to make sure I understood how to operate and maintenance it later on. I have not experienced any of the problems mentioned from some reviewers (i.e. leaking, cracking, extreme moisture etc) and I credit spending the time reading and understanding the instructions for not experiencing those things. We use the penguin in my daughter's nursery as when our heater is on, her room warms up the quickest and we also have the cow version in the playroom. Both versions have been wonderful and it definitely does the job in keeping moisture levels during winter seasons or during extremely dry conditions as doctors and other parents have informed me that certain weather conditions can cause nose bleeds etc (apparently, my daughter have not experienced this but I DID before I had these humidifiers!!). The machines are user friendly and really easy to operate - again, assuming you have spent the time to read the instructions, this product is extremely easy to use. The size for water is right for us and it lasts well into next day (depending on the level of moisture you have set it to) so we don't need to constantly refill etc like some other models out there. I do want to credit the reviewer who did the video review for this product as if it wasn't for his video, I would not have been convinced this was the right product for my family so thank you!! <(^.^)>

I bought two of these humidifiers, the Penguin and the Frog, each for an equivalently sized bedrooms. After the first night of usage I realized that the Penguin didn't put out as much steam as the Frog did. My hygrometers clearly showed the difference in room humidity levels. To verify my findings I swapped the two humidifiers, the same thing happened. Penguin put out less steam in the new room. I also noticed that after the same usage, Frog was close to emptying it's reservoir, while Penguin used only 1/3 of it's capacity. Frog will run on full steam for about 24 hours before running out of water. I returned the Penguin and ordered the Leopard, as it is the same construction (two outlets for the steam) as the Frog. Now both rooms have the same humidity level. My theory is that even though the steam generating mechanism is the same, the number of outlets makes a difference in the steam output. It doesn't make sense to an engineering mind, but facts are tough to ignore. As others mentioned the green light (On/Off indicator) is bright enough to bother people at night. Dark tape over it takes care of the issue. I thought these humidifiers were quite, that is until I experienced Air-O-Swiss 32838 Ultrasonic Humidifier. While I can't speak to it's ability to put out steam, I can say that it is 99.9% silent. It does make a difference at night. I'm contemplating buying Air-O-Swiss AOS Ultrasonic Humidifier - 7135, as it's truly silent AND provides warm steam. One a different note. I currently have another humidifier (not AOS 7135), which puts out hot (warm) steam. Comparing the two types of humidifiers I would have to go with the hot steam type over the cold. Here is why. Cold: A - As soon as the steam comes out of the vents it drops down, cool air is denser than hot air. This causes condensation to accumulate on the surface where the humidifier is positioned. I have to use a Bounty paper towel to prevent water from pulling on the surface. B - Because of this effect I have to keep the humidifier on a reasonably high surface. Anything lower than 3 feet and the carpet in the bedroom starts getting moist. C - Cold steam noticeably cools the room. Through the night I get a reading of about 5 degrees cooler than without the humidifier. All in all, I'm keeping the Frog and the Leopard. $40+ is a fair value, as long as you know what you're getting into. {Edit on Jan. 6th 2011}: About two weeks ago the Leopard broke. The base of the water tank is leaking. The water overflowed the bottom part of the humidifier onto my dresser, ruining it. I couldn't find the hole/crack. I'm assuming it's a hairline crack that can't be seen, it took about 4 hours for the water to leak out. As a test I put the humidifier into a bucket to see if it happens again and it did. I send it back and ordered the Dragon. Yesterday, I noticed that the Frog is leaking from the screw-on cap for the water tank. I'm going to exchange it for another one. Stay tuned...