Indiegogo staffers are putting crowdfunded products to the test in our new series of honest reviews. In this review, our very own marketing specialist Karisa Hunt provides a review of Tempo-X Submarine, a new humidifier for your desk that comes with a cute design and a surprising fun feature. So how does it work? Read on as we put it to the test!

I live in a desert climate, so it’s safe to say that I’m always searching for a good humidifier. I’ve been through several of them in the past few years, and while I’ve found a few that are solid and work very well, none of them are very fun. As soon as I saw the Tempo-X Submarine, I knew I had to give it a try.

Packaging and Unboxing

My first impression of the Tempo-X was its packaging. It’s very sleek and futuristic, which fits with their image very well – the company has a line of products centered around MIX, the little alien who’s piloting the submarine.

The packaging is easy to get into, and once you’re inside, there’s no wasted space or extra packaging where it doesn’t need to be – there’s a space for everything, and it fits together really well..

The only qualm I have with the way the product is packaged is that a couple of items were shipped tucked inside the water reservoir. While this isn’t a problem, it did lead to a little confusion as to where the cord was, because it had gotten lodged in the side of the reservoir and didn’t come right out when I tipped it over. I did end up finding it, but it would have been easier to find if there had been a space for the cord inside the foam insert instead of just putting it into the reservoir.

Setup

The setup instructions are illustrated, which makes it fairly easy to follow. It’s a very simple process, too, which meant that I was able to get it set up in under five minutes. All you have to do is put water in the reservoir base, click the submarine topper onto the base, put the small MIX figurine into the submarine cockpit, plug it in, and turn it on.

The only real issue I had with the directions is that they barely mentioned the two replacement water-conducting cotton sticks that were sent in the box. As it turns out, there’s already a set pre-installed in the submarine unit, and the separate ones are replacements. However, I didn’t know that until I read about how to replace them, attempted to do so, and found a set already installed. It would help to have those more clearly labeled as replacements, rather than having a user trying to figure out where they’re supposed to go during setup.

Testing the Humidifier Feature

There’s a small button to press to get the mist started, and that’s all you have to do. Turning it on puts it into slow mode, hitting it again puts it into fast mode, and hitting it a third time activates my favorite feature of this little sub humidifier: voice control.

There’s a small sensor or microphone in the front of the device, and it will send out puffs of mist based on what it hears. It’s fun to clap or talk at it, but where I had the most fun was getting it to merrily puff along to my latest playlist.

Another fun feature is that you can change the color of the light that blinks in time to the music. This is done by removing the MIX figurine from his seat in the cockpit and setting him back into it. Sadly, there’s no “make it a rainbow” feature, but it’s still fun to theme the light to the kind of playlist I’ve got going.

It’s very easy to remove the submarine top from the reservoir base to refill the humidifier, which is nice. I’ve used several humidifiers in the past where getting the pieces apart felt like it required a PHD and a power tool, but this one just pops apart and then back together.

The deepest drawback to this little humidifier is how lightweight it is. There are grips on the base to prevent it from moving around, and while they’re enough to keep it still when I jostle my desk or when the music gets particularly thump-y, it’s not enough to keep my cats from moving it just by rubbing their faces up against it.

It hasn’t tumbled off the desk yet, but honestly, it’s probably just a matter of time in my house… and I don’t have high hopes for it surviving the 28-inch drop to the floor more than once. It’s not fragile, but it’s not built to take an impact, either.

Conclusion

All told, this is a very fun little humidifier. You can just turn it on and let it do its job, which it does admirably, or you can put it on the voice control mode and enjoy having it keep the beat for you with its cheery little mist puffs. This is a great desk gadget for anyone who wants to add a little fun to their workday, and it would be very cute in a kid’s room.

Just consider using sticky tack or an adhesive strip to secure it in place if you’ve got little hands (or paws!) around.

To learn more, check out the campaign for Tempo-X Submarine, now in InDemand.