Carrying around a handheld fan never really used to be a thing in the UK. We’d just wave around a bit of cardboard and call it a day. But hotter summers and the growing popularity of portable fans and neck fans in East Asia have helped push them into the mainstream.
A few years ago, it would’ve been hard to imagine brands like Dyson or Shark touching something as traditionally tacky as a handheld fan. They were the sort of thing you impulsively bought on holiday in Thailand when you got too hot. Could you really make a handheld fan premium?
That’s what Dyson hoped to do with the hushjet mini cool, a handheld fan that claims it can deliver airflow speeds of up to 25m/s, potentially making it one of the most powerful handheld fans on the market. But at £99, can Dyson justify the price tag? I tested it on the hottest day of the year.
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Dyson hushjet mini cool handheld fan
Rating: 3.5/5
Why we love it
- Incredibly powerful airflow, especially on boost mode
- Quiet operation at higher speeds compared with rivals
- Premium design with wearable lanyard
Take note
- Very expensive for a handheld fan
- Cheaper fans deliver similar cooling performance
Dyson’s handheld fan doesn’t look like a regular bladed model. Tall and cylindrical, it doesn’t have spinning blades but a precision nozzle with a honeycomb mesh liner that can be rotated 360 degrees so you can point it whichever direction you like.
You can place it on your desk or attach the included lanyard and wear it around your neck – and it’s probably the best wearable implementation I’ve seen on a handheld fan so far.
Coming in ink/cobalt, carnelian/sky and stone/blush – I’ve been testing the latter, a delicate pink colour that matches Dyson’s other vibrantly-coloured gear. A doddle to set up, it charges via USB-C at the base of the fan. Flick the switch up to turn it on and out comes a nice, strong airflow.
What’s special about Dyson’s handheld fan compared to most is the sheer power it delivers – not a surprise, given Dyson’s cooling heritage and its range of fans for the home. There are six different fan speeds. The sixth (boost mode) can only be activated by holding down the plus button. Dyson obviously doesn’t want you to use it all the time.
Inside the fan is a brushless DC motor that Dyson says spins up to 65,000RPM, and on boost mode, that delivers wind speeds of 55mph. It’s really impressive. Boost mode is so intense and actually gives me a little shiver whenever I used it. Most of the time, level five has been sufficient enough to keep me adequately cool.
It does get quite loud on level five and boost mode, but I’ve tested a lot of handheld fans for The Independent, and the hushjet mini cool is one of the quietest I’ve tested at its high airflow speeds.
You get six hours on a single charge when using the lowest fan speed – a setting I barely touched in the heatwave. On the higher settings, it’ll only last an hour. You can charge the fan and use it at the same time, but annoyingly, it won’t let you use it beyond level one. It takes roughly three hours to charge to full once depleted. It’s an impressive bit of machinery, but worth the price?
At £99, I’m not too sure. My favourite handheld fan (the Commem turbo fan) costs a tenner and delivers what feels to me like a similar amount of airflow on the highest setting. Although it’s significantly louder than the Dyson hushjet mini cool, I don’t really mind the noise. If you do, then the Dyson might be the better choice, but it’s just as powerful and doesn’t cost nearly as much.
When comparing the Dyson hushjet mini cool to Shark’s £130 three-in-one chillpill, I found that, while it isn’t as powerful as the Dyson in terms of raw fan speed, it actually made me feel cooler. That’s largely down to the misting feature, which sprays a fine mist of water at your face. The Dyson hushjet mini cool is more of a traditional handheld fan – the airflow is incredibly strong, but when the air itself is hot, it sometimes feels as though I was simply having warm air blown back at me.
That doesn’t make the hushjet mini cool bad – far from it. It has excellent build quality, powerful airflow and quiet operation at higher speeds. But it’s very expensive for what it is. If you just want something to keep you cool, cheaper options will do the same job, making the Dyson a tricky handheld fan to recommend.
Key specifications
Buy now £99.99, Dyson.co.uk
How I tested
I tested the Dyson hushjet mini cool during the recent UK heatwave, using it both indoors and while out and about to see how well it coped. I tested the different airflow levels, wore it around my neck using the included lanyard and used it handheld to judge comfort, noise levels and practicality.
I also compared it against other handheld fans I’ve tested for The Independent, including Shark’s chillpill and cheaper Amazon alternatives, to see whether Dyson’s premium price translated into better cooling performance.
Why you can trust IndyBest reviews
Alex Lee is The Independent’s senior tech critic. Alongside reviewing the latest launches from the likes of Apple and Nintendo, he’s also been reviewing everything to do with cooling your home down and air treatment since 2021.
He’s got particular expertise when it comes to cooling devices, having tried and tested everything from Sony’s wearable fan and Dyson’s best fans to the best portable air conditioners and air coolers. Beyond his experience in real-world testing, Alex is the perfect candidate for this test since he runs warm, making him a harsh critic.
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