There are many things that have changed within the heating and air conditioning industry.
One of the new federal EPA regulations is that air conditioning equipment must be a minimum of 13 seer. This means more efficiency.
Another new regulation is the elimination of chlorine gas (freon) to a non-chlorine gas refrigerant. This was federally mandated to take effect in 2010 in order to help the ozone layer.
Heating and air conditioning can have add-ons. For example, a humidifier. This will put moisture back into the air during the long, cold winter months.
Another add-on can be an electronic air cleaner. This will ionize the dust particles.This is an absolute must for allergy suffers.