LOL. You sound like my grandmother complaining about a cheap window AC.
Nothing is changed about the chemical make-up. It simply passes near a cold piece of metal that cools and dries the air. No chemicals are used to dry it. The metal simply “sweats” and the excess water drips down. Just like a cold pint of beer.
Aside from the temperature and moisture content, this air is identical to unconditioned air. There is nothing unnatural about it. Even if it is different from the air currently outside, there is somewhere on the planet that currently has the identical temp/moisture of your ideal conditioned air. We condition because the optimal human comfort zone is fairly narrow. About 70-80 degrees F and 30-50% humidity. Outside that zone is survivable but not optimal.
It sounds like you only have experience with cheap or poorly maintained HVAC systems. People have misconceptions about conditioning mainly for these reasons:
-Cheap materials can leech chemicals into the air. This is why the air can smell like chemicals and make you think conditioned air is unnatural. Cheap window ACs are nearly always guilty of this. A good system will not leech any detectable amount of chemicals.
-Poorly maintained filters, ducts and coils give off dust and mold smells. Maintaining a cheap AC is hard but there are advanced systems today that virtually eliminate this type of maintenance.
-A poorly designed system is loud and creates drafts. A properly designed system should be quieter than ambient noise in the room and shall not create drafts noticeable by anyone in the space. You shouldn't even know the unit is on. Some advanced systems don't even have indoor fans but instead rely on natural air currents. Very expensive but completely silent.
I'm an engineer with years of HVAC experience. I hope you someday see a system that changes your mind. But yes; properly designed, installed and maintained systems are rare.
What the other poster may be complaining about with “fake” air is just that clean, air-conditioned air doesn’t have the smell of freshly-mown grass, of trees and fallen leaves and a coming rain; you can’t hear the birds and crickets. I’m grateful for cool when the temperatures are still in the high nineties late at night, but if I can avoid using the air-conditioners, I do. I don’t like feeling cut off from nature and trapped behind glass and steel. No offense. I’m sure you’re right that the outdoor air is full of mold and what-not.
And it makes me CRAZY that on a blissful 72-degree day, modern offices make it impossible to open the windows and enjoy the balmy air! We have to use the machinery and burn up electricity (and money). This is beyond stupid.