It will probably come as no surprise to see Dyson’s purifying fan at the top of this list. The British airflow experts’ products are consistently popular and an earlier model without purification (£350, Argos) was our top buy for many years.
The Dyson Purifier’s elegant design has won it a permanent place in my flat. It cools powerfully and efficiently and makes my living room feel degrees cooler in an instant by projecting over 290 litres of air a second. I could really feel the difference compared with less powerful devices. The other reason it seems to cool better than any other fan I tested is that it has 350° oscillation, so it feels as though it moves air round the room more effectively.
The second reason I liked it is the impressive air purification. Obviously, this isn’t something you can feel, but it filters 99.95 per cent of pollutants out of the air with an advanced HEPA H13 filter. It continually monitors and analyses air quality, and feeds the results to you in real time on an LCD screen or via the Dyson Link app (which also allows you to operate the fan remotely). We’re constantly warned about the poor air quality in London, so for me this is a key feature.
I also found that even the higher fan speed settings are quiet enough to use while concentrating on work or drifting off to sleep (although on the highest of the 10 settings there is a bit more noise, as you’d expect). It has an easy-to-use sleep timer and an ‘Auto’ mode that adjusts the fan speed according to the air temperature and quality in your home.
However, perhaps the reason I loved it most of all is that it’s a fan you will genuinely want to have on display. Let’s face it, fans aren’t always the most stylish of home accessories, but the Dyson’s distinctive bladeless design is a thing of beauty. Every detail is well thought out, right down to the compact remote that can be stored magnetically on top of the fan.
The only downside is that it’s a significant outlay. But its superior performance coupled with the fact that it’s the best looking means that if you are looking to spend more, this is a fan that’s worth the premium price tag.
If you want a smaller fan, the Dyson PureCool Me desk fan (£299.99, Dyson) is also worth considering.
