Ron, I have been thinking about getting one of those portable units, but the only other person I know has had one, hated it.
TCB: I can't for the life of me recall the brand/model of my unit, but it looks much like the unit below. My window is regular up and down. The hose was collapsed upon receipt but expands 8 feet. Of course, it has to take a bend or two from window to back of A/C unit, so it probably won't expand beyond 5 feet from window.
You can put it anywhere you have a window. It rolls around on casters. But no, you can't just place it wherever you want and turn it on.
Some models have two hoses, but I've never read anything that said they did what the descriptions declared they did.
I went to a local ACE Hardware and asked the questions I needed answering:
1. Do you sell any other units than this model? (No)
2. Have any ever been returned, and why? (Yes. Folks didn't like the fact that they had to empty the water from the unit after running it for about a week)
3. Have you ever had one returned because it didn't cool sufficiently based on the area it was designed for? (No. We've sold these with success. We warn folks it's for a room of no more than 300 square feet -- the model I got, that is -- and no more)
That information, plus a money-back guarantee should it not perform to my satisfaction and I paid my money and took my prize.
I am NOT disappointed, thus far