Air conditioners with inverter technology consume less energy?

Question

Are air conditioners with inverter technology consuming less energy?

I am about to buy an air conditioner for my home.

Some of the air conditoners i saw in the stores have "inverter" technology and are generally more expensive than those without this "inverter" thing.

The salesmen are telling me that those with inverter tech. are consuming less energy. Is it so? Is it worth the price difference?

Answer 1

So inverters are good if you are going to have enough air conditioning.  If you will be running the a/c flat-out wide-open all you can, and still not getting cool enough, for long periods, the inverter may not help much.

Answer 2

Even with an inverter, air conditioners are power hogs.  But yes, they do use a bit less power than regular a/c units.  Here's the difference:

Regular A/C units have a compressor that switches on whenever the room gets too warm.  It runs at full power until the room is cool enough, then shuts off.  The inverter makes it possible to run the compressor continually at a lower power to maintain the room temperature.  

Inverters used like this have other benefits aside from energy savings.  They reduce wear on the A/C unit by avoiding the harsh on/off switching.