Side by Side Comparison of: Smart for Life vs Duraflame

Living in a small, stick-built old cottage on a lake, I'm always looking for useful products that fit my budget, are useful and add to the ambiance! This lovely, quiet heater is just the ticket! The living and dining area are one large room, 12 x 27 in area, and this heater quietly and charmingly keeps it warm and keeps my propane bill down. The remote is a nice feature. I would suggest setting this up a bit higher off the floor; I used a large cedar window box turned upside down for this purpose, but you could set it on decorative blocks or a low shelf instead.

Excellent and unreal how much heat it blows out.I have a big basement and a garage. I put it in my garage in dead of winter while working on my bike and I usually have to shut it off after an hour. The wheels are great. When I'm done I push it rt back into finished side of basement and it's great!Not too loud at all and it is silent if you are just using the flames. My dogs love it! 3 of my friends have exact model. I looked for 3 months so trust me if you can get it under $200 grab it!

I love this fireplace!!! Adds ton of ambiance to our living room!

Had just moved into my home and froze in the den (15 x 13) with open doorways -- this is now the favorite room in the house. Super efficient and looks amazingly real. A great buy, you will not regret this purchase. Very quiet, cool to the touch, my yorkie thinks it is a real fireplace and I had to move her little bed to in front of the unit.

I did a lot of research and read many reviews. I was really glad that I ended up buying this one. The cabinet is very nice (though small - I had a friend make a wooden base for it to raise it up) and the "fire" is fairly realistic-looking. I like the fact that it has a remote and you can view the flames without using the heating part of it. You can set the thermostat for whatever temperature you want and the heat cuts off when it reaches that temp. Nice for looks AND nice for space-heating. A good value.

This was a great buy - don't believe that this product is not in stock - I ordered it when it was supposedly not in stock and it shipped the next day - I ordered it on 1/6/2013 and it arrived on my doorstep on 1/9/2013 (and the shipping was free from Amazon - which is nothing short of incredible since the shipping weight is 68 pounds!!!). The flames are extremely realistic and the only part that gets hot is the little grill in front where the heat comes out. I have had mine running for 6 hours straight and the back didn't even get hot. I can keep my house thermostat at 62 and still be toasty warm in my living room when this is running. This is one of the best products I have ever gotten - I am thrilled with it. It looks beautiful when it's on and the heat is great. The only negative comment I have is that the picture does not match the item's color - the actual item has wood that is much darker than what is pictured.

I purchased this for my son in law and daughter and they really like it. I think it heats the small room very well where they have put it. It adds a cozy factor too. I have one in my back bedroom and it definitely adds cozy and heats up well, although it is a different brand.

I ordered this little "woodstove" for a small room in the house that tends to be a bit chilly in the winter. I wanted something functional and decorative - this fits the bill perfectly!

The only negative (if it's even an issue) is the heating portion of the stove is on the bottom. This version of the Duraflame stove is very compact and the box almost touched the carpet fibers. I wasn't sure if this would be a safety hazard or not. To solve this simple problem, I added two extra tiles we had left over from a bathroom re-model underneath the stove. Not only does it protect the floor from any possible heat damage, it adds to the "feel" of a real woodstove.

I love this little electric stove; I purchased mine on Warehouse deals, had some Amazon credit card points so this stove cost me little. The stove puts out a great deal of heat and a 30 by 10 foot room is easily heated. Love the pretty glow of the artificial flame and log--it adds such a nice touch, especially on cold snowy days! Highly recommend!

I bought this little stove for extra heat in my bedroom this winter, since I live in a historical cottage in the Tennessee mountains. But my main heater isn't online yet, and this morning its 47 degrees out. This is definitely taking the chill out of the air in my large, high ceilinged living room! Its small enough to fit anywhere, is easily portable from room to room,and is working really well. The "fireplace" lights are hysterically tacky, but they are growing on me. It has a blower at the base that makes minimal noise, came completely assembled, and after about the first 10 minutes, the new heater odor is completely gone. They had this model at my local Lowes for 99.00, but with shipping and everything, I got this model at Amazon for 84.00. It is well worth the price.

This is the sweetest little stove that you could ever want! It is all that it says and the "show" is great! It really is very impressive.
The quality of the workmanship is good. It heats up a room 10x15 in about 15 minutes, at which point you can turn the heat down to almost
nothing or turn it off and just leave the "flames burning". I do like the fact that it does heat quickly, it saves a lot of money in the
long run because you can turn it down or off. The odor that many spoke of when you first turn it on is minimal and burns off quickly, by the second use, there was none at all.There is a big notice on the box that there will be a slight smell when first turned on, so the manufacturer is up front about it. I can really recommend this product for the ambiance that it gives to a room and for its quick heat up of a room. I actually used this for a Christmas party, the room was chilly, I heated the room and by the time my guests did arrive, everyone commented about the adorable little stove! Since I live in an NYC apartment and have no access to a fireplace,this really does
make the place warm and friendly. A great buy at a really great price. I have seen other such products at much more and not halfway as nice.

I bought this as a gift for my mother and she likes it. It's a lot smaller than it looks and while it says that it heats 1000 square feet, it can take a few hours to heat up a large room. The flame, however, looks very realistic and it has wheels which makes it very easy to move if needed. This would be better used in a bedroom or a small enclosed room.

Works great, warms the area we needed nicely. Our only minor grumble is the sound that is made when the 'flames' are on. It's not terrible, but it can seem loud & does get on my husbands nerves after a bit, especially when the house is on the quiet side. Definitely not a deal breaker, the flames can be turned off anyway and it's a nice and affordable little fireplace heater.

This is definitely an attractive addition to our living room. It helps keep our open-floor plan home warm, though it doesn't really heat the whole space. The fan is pretty powerful and as long as you are sitting in any kind of direct line from the front of the heater, you will feel the warm air blowing on you, even from across the room. I LOVE it.The only reasons I am not giving 5 stars are minor: 1. the way the vents are situated, it is difficult to read what temperature the unit is set to without squatting down. Not that big of a deal really. The other thing is that the fan can be kind of loud. If you're watching TV or something it's not really distracting, but if I'm on a conference call on speaker phone, I basically need to turn the whole unit off in order to hear what people are saying, or else go into another room, which defeats the purpose of a space heater. That said, my hearing isn't great to begin with, so it might not matter as much to other people.

I am very happy with this purchase. We live in an old drafty house and when it was time to replace a portable heater, I thought I would give this a shot because I like that it is pretty in addition to being functional. My only real complaint is that the fan is louder than I expected. We have it in the living room, and it is loud enough that we have to adjust the TV volume when it is on. Not a deal breaker, but I wish it would be more quiet. The flames are very nice. We leave them on all the time. I've seen other fireplaces when I've been out that cost far more and don't look nearly as nice. I'm very happy with my purchase.

Looks great! It is small. I like the wood paneling around it. It is a nice brown stained wood color. Mine arrived broken, but I believe that to be the work of UPS. When the box arrived it looked like it had been kicked down a football field.As far as heat goes, it can really put out some heat. I love it.In the dark the fire place gives off a nice ombionce. In the daylight the logs look fake.Overall 4 out of 5.Once winter gets here I'll post about its performance during the ice storms.

Sometimes the fireplace makes a ticking noise that's annoying when you're trying to sleep, but sometimes it doesn't so I can't figure out what's going on. Other than that, I love this fireplace. It's so pretty to look at and it heats very well. I have it in my bedroom and it keeps me warm and toasty all night. You can set it to different temps and it'll turn itself off when that temp is reached and then on when the room temp goes below what you set it for. It's so much more economical than leaving our central heat on all night, heating rooms that don't need it. I have one in my living room too. You can't go wrong with this adorable and functional little fireplace.

This was a breeze to set up...just take it out of the box and plug it in. I thought I'd at least have to install the feet, but they were already in place. I plugged it in and it fired right up and put off immediate heat. I only had to leave it one for about 20 minutes to heat up my family room, which is downstairs and it is always cold. The imitation flame is a nice touch. It is very small, but the measurements were clearly defined so I wasn't taken off guard. I've only used it once, but so far, so good. I will update if I have any issues.

Has that element of faux/fake to it, but still looks okay and has a whimsical element to it. I got it for the basement. I'd probably go for something a bit higher in quality for living area/bedroom, but if this blends in with existing furnishings, would be just fine. It's easy to move around and gives a warm cozy feel when running that you can't get from a regular heater. It's when its turned off that you can see the still image of the fire that it feels more fake.

We are happy with the Duraflame Electric Stove overall and would recommend it to others. We've only purchased it since the 2015 winter season but it's holding up nicely with no issues.

The good:
1) It heats up quickly (best for a small/medium area) - not a substitute to heat your entire house
2) Despite the outside being plastic, the body doesn't get hot or overheated, so you can quickly move it to another area of the house if needed
3) It's really cute versus other tower heater options

Features to improve:
1) No timer, so it runs until you stop it
2) It's a little bit loud, but definitely not overly so - just makes a whirring sound as others have mentioned

This heater is so adorable. I live in a single wide mobile home so of course I have very little square footage. The heater/ac unit didn't work to well in heating up the rooms. So I bought this back in December to help out. Well it worked so well to heat 3/4's of the house that I used it instead of the heater for the rest of the winter. I really liked the fake flame look, it gives a cozy feeling. The light bulb rotates to give that flame rising look, but the back of my unit wasn't completely sealed so you can see the light coming out of the back. The one I got had a warped section on the inside by the fake wood, but that's no biggie. No one can see it with the cover closed. Still and all it worked well for me.

Very pleased with this purchase. The heater has to be kept on low or my bedroom overheats quickly. The fireplace effect is nice and I enjoy the flickering lights as I go to sleep. Got one for my mother for her sunroom in the winter and she loves it.

One of my best friends also purchased this on my recommendation and she loves hers as well. She lives in a 100 year old farm house and it really goes well with the architecture of the place.

Complaints: With this latest model you have to have the lights on to run the heater and the lights are NOT adjustable as with earlier models. Can be a little noisy, but not too bad. And yes, it is made with too much plastic. It would be sturdier with a slightly thicker material.

The unit heats well but the size advertised did not match the product. The width is actually 23 inches, not 29 inches, the height is 19 inches, not 23 inches, and the depth is 10 1/2 inches, not 11 inches. It may not make a difference when placing it next to a wall, but this unit was ordered to place in a fireplace opening measuring 30 x 24 inches, which would have worked well with the advertised dimensions of 29 x 23. The unit looks dwarfed in the large opening.

I have mixed emotions about this one. The fake fire logs are 3D realistic looking, but the fire is not. The fire is created on a 2D background. The fire kind of resembles a real fire if you don't stare at it. But I like to look at the logs which ruins the fire affect. I like it enough to keep it. The heater is good. I thought the whole thing was going to heat up when you have the heater on, but it doesn't which I'm thankful for cause I have furniture that rest within 2" of both sides of the fireplace. There's one little heat rod just inside the front vent that creates the heat and an internal fan blows the heat out.

I've used this heater regularly through the past winter to thoroughly test it out, and 'Large Room' is greatly exaggerated, even in cool temperatures (40F-50F). In a small 100 sq ft bedroom it didn't seem to heat it up any faster or efficiently than a regular electric space heater, with the fan only being marginally quieter. The fire has a realistic flicker but the flat color (which is orange with no yellow) and the dim glow even on the brightest setting was disappointing. Personally I like more glow, but if you don't like a lot of light in the room (like for sleeping) the fire gives off barely any light and isn't distracting. On the positive side, it does look great as a piece of furniture, so I keep it around as decor; but if function is more important than appearance, I suggest getting a cheaper, fireless infared space heater.

We bought this to replace a heat surge fireplace that went bad and was too expensive to repair.The Lifesmart arrived in good shape except for a small crush on one corner of the top of the cabinet [not very noticeable].The flames look as nice as the heat surge and the fireplace puts out more heat than the surge did.The only complaint is the thermostat seems to be somewhat inaccurate and does not cycle like it should-I have to bump up the temp to get the heat to come on again after it cycles off.All in all,we are happy with it and it looks nice at half the price of a heat surge.Update-We used this for 3 months and it worked fine then we stored it for the season.Now we tried to use it again during a cold spell and the unit does NOTHING.I contacted Life Zone for warranty service and they said they will replace with comparable unit-we will see!

Received in a few days. This unit is SMALL. Looks small and a tad on the cheap side, I got what I paid for and no more. It does work well, puts out heat and the remote is easy to use. You need your own AAA battteries. I wish I had measured more carefully the area it was to occupy. This unit would be good in a spare room but not living or family room. I will have to build it up somehow like another poster said. It needs a good 12" on the bottom or some kind of cabinet. Would not put TV on top of this, it's only 10 1/2" deep, 28 1/2" wide.Would not buy again but too hard to return. Will put it somewhere!

This product is not as tall as I would like. I purchased a different product a couple of years ago and loved it so much. As I started shopping the other product was no longer available so after reading reviews I select this one. It arrived fast and no damages; box was heavy 50lbs. However, once unloaded from box it's very easy to push and set up in room.Cons: Power cord short in length, remote control is very poor made "buttons stick"Pros: Heats room in minutes, easy to wheel on floor, PRICE

Noisy little heater. With just the flames, it makes a rhythmic racket like a distant woodpecker. When you turn on the heater, it sounds like a vacuum. Much louder than expected. But it puts out some heat.

I purchased this heater after admiring my close friend's heater for several months. It always worked extremely well and was adorable. After using it a month as recommended by the manufacturer's instructions, the flame stopped working. I sucked it up knowing it's still nice and it heats my room. However today, just 2 months, it doesn't work at all except to light up (without the animated flame visuals of course).

That being said, my friend has had hers well over a year and it is working perfectly. I'm repurchased as I'm sure it's a one off situation.

This keeps popping my circuit breakers. Need to do further research to figure out what the problem is. Didn't notice any odor and the fan doesn't bother me. The "flame effect is a little cheesy, but hey my dog likes to sleep in front of it.

Nice for heating small areas. The look creates a bit of a cozy feeling. Be aware, however; this is an electric heater. It will increase your electric bill considerably if used much. I watched my meter dial spin around the moment I turned it on. The concept of decreasing your home heating costs by using this where you spend most of your time is only true if you heat your home with electric. If you have a gas furnace, you're probably better to leave it on and have the whole house heated for probably the same cost. Because it's electric heat, it's also drying to the air. I use it only when bitter cold, and then turn it off as soon as I'm able. For what it's supposed to do, it's fine. Just realize electric heat is very expensive.

As soon as I opened the package I noted one of the plastic legs broken. Next, the door was off its hinge and I was unable to pop it back in. The unit looks attractive in the picture, however in real life it leaves you wanting for better quality. I am not sure how long the units life expectancy is, but it does put out a fair amount of heat. Nothing too strong, but enough to warm a small to medium size room. The actual blower sits very close to the floor, so I would not recommend to people with thick carpets just in case of emergency. The bottom is not hot to the touch so It would be safe enough.

All in all its a decent little unit, but I would probably go with an Infrared Heater that uses less wattage and covers a greater area and one that has a more sturdy exterior. Also the price dropped immediately after purchasing the item. Amazon agreed to refund me the price difference. :)

This showed up at my door completely beat up. There are scuffs all over one side of it, and I even found a piece of the wood at the bottom of the box. It also had no remote with it. I contacted LifeSmart to let them know and received an email back that they basically didn't care. I would recommend buying from a different company. Rated 2 stars because the flame looks nice, otherwise, it is garbage.

The box it came in had such big holes in it you could see the fireplace, and the wood on the top front has four big dents in it. I stained the dents to cover them up as much as possible, it is just too big to return.Jay

This came with some minor damage to the wood which I would have overlooked, but this unit just does not heat the way described. It was nice to look at but did not "heat" the living room in which it was placed. (15 x 18). Disappointed b./c the "fire" was pretty to have in the room, although much smaller than I imagined, but the dimensions were clearly listed. The seller did agree to a return without any hassle.

Does not heat the amount of space specified in the description. It heats a 400 sq ft room but I would not recommend it for larger rooms in chilly weather. Outside temperatures have been ranging between 30 and 45 degrees Fahrenheit. I have the heater placed in my living room near my thermostat. The furnace in my small duplex (850 sq ft) is very inefficient to run so I bought this portable heater to supplement it. I am disappointed that this portable heater doesn't help maintain the temperature even with the assistance of my home furnace. If I take the heater into my bedroom and shut the door, it works fine, but the portable heater is ineffective in any room larger than that. Also, the heater's thermostat is not accurate because it will not turn on when it's set for a specific temperature. For example, when it is set at 68 degrees, it won't turn on until it's 64 degrees in the house.

I was looking forward to receiving this electric fireplace. I recently moved into an older home on the northern California coast... the first time I have owned a home that used propane, so I wanted a way to not have to run my heater all the time during this cold time of year. (Why this home didn't have a fireplace or wood-burning stove puzzles me. Eventually, I'll have one installed.) In the meantime I thought the LARGE ROOM Infrared Quartz Fireplace would do the job. It arrived quickly, and I loved the woodwork and look of the unit. The fire and logs looked good enough. I read through the information and instructions provided (Yes. I'm one of those.) This unit is very easy to understand and use. Unfortunately, it just didn't heat my living room, as promised. I used it for several days (per instructions), giving it a chance to redeem itself - and hopefully, give me a reason to keep it. When I found myself (dressed in layers, as usual) trying to push myself deeper into the sofa, and shoving my feet under the dog in an attempt to stave off shivering, while sitting just a few feet from the infrared unit (which was on), I knew I just had to send it back. I took a small Stanley space heater I had been using in my bedroom. Sat it next to the Lifesmart (box says Life Zone) unit (which I turned off), turned on (the Stanley) and within several minutes, the chill was out of the air. That was my expectation. Just keep the chill down enough to keep me from having to put on a puffy coat, and the home heating unit from coming on so often. I think I'll check to see if Stanley makes an electric fireplace or wood burning stove.

I usually adore Amazon and have perfectly fine experiences with the sellers, so when it came to making a large and expensive purchase, I was less apprehensive than I normally would be. This fireplace has potential. As it works when I plug it in and turn it on, but that is not all that matters with a $200-$300 piece. For the cost, it was poorly constructed. It arrived three days later than promised, and is noticeably very damaged. I don't know if the damage occurred during shipping, or if it was sent out this way. The poor and hasty construction may be an indicator of poor quality control, so it is perfectly possible that it was sent out damaged. Who knows, but I am disappointed. For the cost I know I should send it back and demand a replacement, but what a headache, and it will cost me to send it back! Or I can put even more time and money into trying to repair it. This is such a shame. I aim to update this and attach pictures of the damage as well.

This is a great heater and the display is very nice. However, the dial control is basically worthless. Yes, it turns the heat on and off... whenever it wants no matter the ambient temperature. On a nice day, it will randomly turn itself on at 75 and on chilly days it will cut off at 62. I got it to use it as a wood stove back up but it requires manual operation too.

Two months of use, display is inoperable.

It was great in the beginning, for the first week maybe two. Then all the sudden I have it cranked up and doesn't put out any heat. I could put my hand directly on the bottom and it just keeps my hands warm. I have a 20 square foot room and it doesn't heat for crap!!!!

It's cute but I didn't find it functional at all. I had to sit really close to feel the heat. The air only blew from the bottom, so it only warmed mostly your feet. Sometimes the air coming out wasn't warm at all. And I received a high electric bill afterwards. Had to return it.

So far this stove is a bit of a bummer. I like that it's small and lightweight. Also, for an electric it's pretty quiet (it hums on high but not loudly like some fan/ceramic heaters). However, it doesn't actually seem to heat up the space. I'm using it in a reception room that's pretty small, maybe ~250sq ft. It's rated for 400sq ft. Yet, on high it barely takes the chill out of the room. It seems to only produce heat under the unit, so a good amount of the heat is absorbed by the unit itself (which remains cool to the touch). I can slide my feet underneath and it makes a good foot warmer, but not for the whole room. The fireplace effect is pretty, despite it being obviously fake, but with the price-point I really don't care that it doesn't look fancy. I have a feeling I'll be having to replace this guy since I'm running it continuously on high and my clients are still describing the reception area as chilly.

Bought this during fall (November 2013) thought it would make a great addition to our bedroom so we don't have to heat the entire house (since it's just the two of us and the furkids)- It did, for 3 months...THREE MONTHS!!!!!!! The screen portion with the flame still works but the heater...Nope. Won't turn on. I'm writing a very strongly worded letter to the company and Amazon! Paid decent money for this heater to just stop working after a few months. 5 Stars for 3 months.

The first one I received had a cracked cabinet and only half of the logs were lit. I received a replacement yesterday and the cabinet was busted worse than the first. I never took it out of the packing.

The product came broken and not working. Was very disappointed and returned it.

Loud. Super loud. Can't hear yourself think when this thing is running. Cheap craftsmanship, high electric cost/heat benefit. Very disappointed.

Stopped working less than a month of having it

This fireplace could be nice but they are cheaply made and prone to all types of issues. I received my new heater yesterday and was excited. This was shortly lived as the second I set the temp I had to push it all the way up to 78 degrees just to get the hater to start. It was not 77 degrees (closer to 72) inside my home at the time. The heating part of of this product will not and does not shut down automatically. Basiaclly there is tow setting on my unit; ON of OFF.I am so disappointed because I got this right before the price went up 30-40% and I now have a nice looking fake fire without any other function. The amount of time and effort I am going to have to make just to get my money back makes me feel like I was cheated.

Defective. We had to send it back, which was a HUGE hassle. It would run for 1-2 minutes and then shut off. We had an electrician friend look at it, and he said the fan wasn't operating. Hugely disappointed.

Product arrived late with a damaged door hinge (it was popped out of the hole). Due to the way the hole and post are designed and molded, there's no way to pop it back into place without significant screwdriver work, which I'm not comfortable doing on a space heater. Filed for a return the same day I received it.

Arrived yesterday and I was excited to use it. As soon as I turned the flame effect on with no heat, I noticed the never ending cracking/rotaing sound. Even with the heater on, I hear it and bothers the heck out of me. It's going back today.

This is terrible doesn't heat a 200 sf room cheap plastic and they won't take it back

Purchased two of the 550 duralflame over 3 years ago and they work fine. This one doesn't seem to have enough of heat blowing out . The 450 I guess isn't big enough for the 400 square foot area I am using it in. One of my 550 does have a loud noise when the blower is on, been like that for over a year but it still heats good.

Cheesy plastic stove with a loud fan; there is nothing realistic about this and it produces little heat. I sent it back

Junk. Broke after 11 months. Under warranty, they sent a part, spent an hour installing it, still broken. Avoid like the plague.