Dreo Smart Air Conditioner AC516S Review: Simple Installation, Smart Control

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The Dreo Smart Air Conditioner AC516S is a mobile (on wheels) simple-to-install air conditioner that's smart. This is an air conditioner that does not need to hang out your window, and you won't need to throw your back out every Spring and Fall to install it or store it. This is an air conditioner that requires only that you open your window, place a window install kit (for all sorts of shapes and sizes of window), and turn it on.

The Dreo store on Amazon has this device available for $499.99 (list price) or for a temporary (in early April 2025) sale price of $449.99. This air conditioner rolls with 14,000 BTU ASHRAE cooling power and the company suggests it'll push air up to 14 ft — and we've gone ahead and tested that as well as its smart connectivity, its dedicated remote control, and its claimed quiet-ness at approximately 46dB "for minimal noise."

Dreo provided this air conditioner to us to give it a spin as the seasons change and the heat starts to flow. As this device also has a dehumidifying feature, we'll see how well it does when it starts to get muggy, too.

Installation was relatively painless — as far as window-dependent air conditioner units go. I needed to open my window, place a foam strip along the frame, the base, and the bottom of the opened window, and place a plastic panel (that expands in parts according to the size of the window). A 4'9" expanding tube connects the air conditioner unit to the window panel system, and it's good to go.

Chris Burns/SlashGear

The only drawback in the installation process is having to make sure every bit of your window is sealed once the panel is installed — especially if you live in a region where the warmer seasons bring bugs. Dreo includes plenty of foam stripping to block a window off for the first install — maybe the next season's install too — but eventually this type of AC will need replacement stripping. This is not an expensive endeavor, but it can be a pain to remove and re-install each season.

Chris Burns/SlashGear

That said, I've installed quite a few different types movable/replaceable air conditioner units over the years in both apartments and homes — this might very well have been the easiest experience I've had yet.

The unit can be controlled three different ways — and you can choose to use one or all of the three to control this AC. One option for control comes in a set of buttons on the front of the unit — large and touch-sensitive buttons. These buttons are just above a large LED display that'll tell you the status of the unit, too.

You can also use the AC's included remote control. This remote has its own readout display (with info similar to that of the display on the front of the unit), and it has big friendly simple buttons. This controller magnetically connects to the AC unit for simple storage when not in use.

You can also connect this AC to your phone via Bluetooth, then connect your AC to your wifi system via your phone. Once connected, you can either use the simple button system in your phone's Dreo app or you can further connect to Amazon's Alexa voice assistant system or to Google Assistant — with "Hey Google" voice commands, and so forth.

Voice control allows you to call upon the device by its device name or by saying "Air Conditioner." Control can be as simple as "Hey Google, turn on Air Conditioner," or you can have it set the device to any of its various modes. The control app also has a simple On/Off switch, mode select, "mute" for control switching, display (on/off), fan speed, and oscillation (up/down panel movement).

It's important to note here that control is as simple or as complicated as it needs to be, here — if you only want to cool your room, it's a single button. If you want granular control, you can have that too — it's here if you want it.

The company suggests that this unit can cover 450 square feet of space for cooling — and in testing we've found that to be quite accurate. It has moving slats (louvers) at its head where the air is directed upward all the way to nearly straight forward, automatically swinging periodically — oscillation is automatic, but it can be switched off entirely.

It gets chilly quick. This unit's been tested in our 400-square-foot living room that's connected to our hallway and kitchen and it's done its job with aplomb. While I always wish an air conditioner (any movable air conditioner, really) could be entirely silent, this one's been significantly quieter than any of the window-install units we've used over the past decade.

Chris Burns/SlashGear

This unit also has a Dry mode that works to dehumidify a room. For that, it includes a water collection tray that can be drained periodically. If humidity levels are below 85%, standard air conditioning with this unit should not require water drainage — and we've found that to be true in testing. We will be testing this unit through the Spring and Summer of 2025 and will update if this unit does not perform as well as it does here in initial testing.

As a bit of an aside: The only significant weakness of a window-dependent AC system, in general, is its lack of coverage options for a room without windows. While the AC516S does a lovely job of cooling large areas in a home, Dreo also sent along their MC706 2-in-1 Tower Fan & Heater to cover the rest. (This section of this review will not figure in to the final score for the main AC we're looking at, but it's worth noting.) 

The MC706 isn't something we'd generally review on SlashGear if only because it isn't Wi-Fi connected, it doesn't have an app — it's really a self-contained piece of hardware. There IS a remote control, to be fair, but still — it's not an Internet Of Things sort of device.

But that's fine if you're only planning on using this device as a sort of compliment to a larger AC — like the one we've reviewed above. If you have a workroom in your home with no windows — or you're attempting to cool or heat a room in your deep dark basement — the Dreo MC706 works as a great single-room environment-changing all-season piece of hardware.

This isn't your cheap tower fan that'll last you a year or two — the Dreo MC706 (available on Amazon for about $140) is a heavy-duty heating and cooling tower that'll last for years, heating or cooling any room you have with ease. As it is with the AC in the main review above, we'll be updating this section with any relevant changes in performance through the upcoming heated seasons. 

The Dreo Smart Air Conditioner AC516S (as reviewed here) is available for sale in the Dreo Store on Amazon. You'll find this air conditioner there for a list price of $499.99 — temporarily on sale for $449.99 as of early April 2025. You can get this device in black or white (we've reviewed the white version here).

This air conditioner is worth its purchase price so long as you're looking for everything it is ready to offer. If you're looking for a simple window-based air conditioner that's a monster to install in the Spring and store in the Fall and hangs out your window so you need to give it an extreme clean every year, go ahead — there are plenty of options. If you're looking for something that's smart and simple, this Dreo device might be just the ticket.

I need to emphasize, here, again, that the folks that designed this AC seem to understand that they're not only attending to one sort of user, here. You can integrate this unit with your Smart Home system if you want, but you could also install this at your elderly relatives' house, too — they'll have no trouble pressing the big buttons. It's as simple as you need it to be, if you need it to be simple.

We'll be using this air conditioner for a while beyond the initial review period to see how well it handles the transition of seasons and will update this review if anything serious comes up (in the Spring and Summer of 2025). If this is the end of the review, chances are it's good to go!