The Pure Ion is *not* inconspicuous. It's larger than other air purifiers, but it is effective. Once i plugged it in, it cleaned the air in my master bedroom in a matter of minutes.

The Pure Ion uses a fan to circulate the air in the room. But i take issue with Brookstone saying that the Pure Ion has a "whisper quiet" fan. There are four fan settings but even in whisper mode the fan noise is noticable.

You can set the timer to turn the Pure Ion on and off and have it run for a specific amount of time, or you can just let it run constantly.

The Pure Ion has two stainless steel filter grids that trap all the dust, dirt and other pollutants. You can clean them by washing them in the sink or the dishwasher. I tried the dishwasher and still had to let the grids air dry before reinstalling them. So i was without a working air purifier for more than a few hours.

I was impressed with how clean the air was in the room with the Pure Ion. But I was not impressed with the fan's noise or the lack of ease in cleaning the filters.

Do your eyes hurt after being in front of a computer all day, then watching TV at night? According to the American Optometric Association, "Computer Vision Syndrome" affects more than 10 million Americans. So how do you protect your eyes? Eye doctor Robert Maloney told me the low-tech way is the 20/20/20 method.

"Every 20 minutes," Maloney says, "look away from whatever you're staring at for 20 seconds at least 20 feet away to relax your eye muscles."

Dr. Maloney also recommends an anti-glare filter for your computer screen. A backlit TV like Philips' Ambilight is also easier on your eyes.