Oh ok maybe I'll click buy and see if it comes with that option to upgrade. Why is it so much better?
It has to do with how the filter 'loads' or starts to plug. Radial filters (cones) filter across the thickness of the filter media (from the outside in all along the outer surface area).
The PowerCore is made up of a bunch of permeable (air can pass through them) straws that are laid side by side. Only half of the straws are open on the inlet end (those that are open at the inlet are plugged on the outlet end). So, for each straw that's open at the inlet, it is surrounded by straws that are closed at the inlet. What this means for the air flow is as it travels down an open straw and comes to the plugged end, it has to cross over (read 'be filtered') into an adjacent straw which is open at the outlet end (or closed on the inlet end, however you choose to look at it). The air is still being filtered through (2) straw thicknesses which is fairly close to the same thickness as radial foam and paper filters as far as efficiency.
The real benefits lie in how the PowerCore loads or behaves when it is partially plugged. When a radial filter gets 'dirty' the dirt plugs air path in the fitler media and it gets harder to force air through it (read 'less air flow') because there's no place else for the air to go. This leads to a bigger pressure drop across the filter for a given flow rate. As the PowerCore gets dirty the dirt is forced to the bottom of the first straws near their blocked end. The only difference between a clean PowerCore and a dirty PowerCore is how far the air travels down the first set of straws before it crosses over, or gets filtered. It doesn't have to fight its way through all the previously deposited dirt on the filter in order to get to the outlet of the filter like a radial filter. The pressure drops remains the same because the air still only has to go through (2) straw membranes (same as a clean filter). It simply does it sooner in the first straw and travels the rest of the way to the outlet end in the second straw.
This is the second time I've tried to explain the PowerCore without a picture (I purposely didn't reference my last post to see if I did any better). I hope this helps and I didn't just confuse the issue. Let me know if any of it isn't clear.
