4 Best Fans To Buy
1. Honeywell HO-1100RE Oscillating Tower Fan review - smaller than the norm
The Honeywell HO-1100RE is more compact than its many siblings but it's a bit noisy for our liking
Not all tower fans are the height of a tall child. Not unreasonably, some people who want powerful cooling would prefer it not to come in the form of an immense grey monolith, making their living room or bedroom appear more like an industrial estate.
It's for these people that the Honeywell HO-1100RE exists. If other tower fans are like intimidating looking battle droids, the 1100RE is far more R2-D2 – considerably more approachable looking in imitation metal, and around half the height. It does, however feel a bit more cheaply constructed than its rivals, despite costing around the same price.
I did encounter some oddness switching it on, mistaking the timer button for a power button and eventually working out that the power button is also the fan speed button, it simply cycles through the three speeds before turning off again. Still, once I'd grasped that, despite its diminutive frame, it manages to put out a decent blast of air.
Performance
Measured immediately next to the fan, it registered a speed of 4.4m/s on our anemometer, dropping to 1.9m/s one metre away and 0.8m/s two metres away. That is – unsurprisingly – not as high as your average tall tower fan, but a little ahead of Honeywell's new dedicated quiet fan, which averaged 3.6m/s up close. The pay off – as the name suggests – is noise-level, and on that score the 1100RE punches above its weight again, but this time in a less positive way. At full blast, I measured a sound level of 75.8db, reducing to 48.9db two metres away.
Like its larger Honeywell brother, the 5500RE, it has a holder for its remote control - this time on top, making it easier to get to than most. It too has a strange idea of how a night-time mode should work – it oscillates between high and low blasts in a manner that not only seems quite inefficient, but quite distracting for someone looking for some restful shut-eye. Still, in the quiet phases, it is indeed peaceful, registering a noise-level of 68.4db. It also produces a generous 70 degrees of cooling before you even take it 75-degree oscillation (rotation) into account.
Conclusion
The Honeywell 1100RE isn't a bad choice for those looking for something a touch more discreet than the full-height tower fans, and it puts out a reasonable blast despite its small frame. It's quite noisy, and the night mode is probably best completely ignored, but it delivers its core functions pretty well at an appealing price, despite its lack of bells and whistles. A better choice for most would be the slightly more expensive Honeywell Quietset HY254E1 but if the small size appeals the 1100RE is still a sound buy.
Learn More About Honeywell HO-1100RE Oscillating Tower Fan with Remote Control - Chrome Click Here.
2. Bionaire BTF001 Ultra Slim Tower Fan review - a little too slender?
The Bionaire BTF001 is pleasingly slim but a lack of a power and no remote mean there's better options at this price
The Bionaire BTF001 is one of the most stylish tower fans I tested, mainly due to its tall, slender appearance. In appealing black and grey plastic, its thin cylindrical design is simultaneously understated and visually appealing, contrasting with some of the chunkier designs seen elsewhere.
This has a couple of drawbacks. The first is that there’s no remote, and we can’t help but wonder if that’s partly because there’s no space to store it. The other problem with it being both tall and thin is that it’s pretty wobbly, especially when on full blast and rotating. Presumably, that’s why it has such a big base, making its slenderness more of a benefit to appearance than practicality.
Performance
On top of that, the thin design does come at the expense of raw power. Measuring with the anemometer right next to the air vents recorded a flow of 4.1m/s, dropping to 0.5m/s two metres away - that’s lower than all its competitors except the Honeywell Quiet HY254E1, which obviously has deliberately made a trade off between power and sound. The Bionaire BTF001, on the other hand, has made no such pact, and reaches the pretty noisy heights of 77.1db when measured up close, dropping to 50.5db two metres away.
It does have a night mode, but I’m not entirely convinced it’s one that offers a restful night’s sleep, as with some of the Honeywell models I've looked at, night mode cycles through the fan’s three speeds rather than offering a consistent background hum. Nonetheless, at its quietest in night mode, it measured 71.8db immediately next to the fan, dropping to 44.5db two metres away - still louder than the other fans we compared, but not too much in it. It oscillates, allowing the whole room to get cooled, and the angle of air flow from the vents themselves is a good 70 degrees - higher than average.
Conclusion
It’s amongst the most stylish of the fans I've seen, but in terms of cooling power, it’s relatively weak, and counterintuitively it’s also amongst the noisiest. Whether these are concessions made to its attractive design is debatable, but it probably isn’t a sacrifice worth making - especially when you consider the space saved with the thin cylindrical design is cancelled out by the wide base it needs to prevent it falling over.
Find Here To Read More About Bionaire Ultra Slim Tower Fan, Silver
3. Q Connect Tower Fan & Igenix DF0030 review - when two become one
Two identical fans under different brand names but both are good budget options
Why am I reviewing two tower fans from rival companies in the same review? Is this a mistake? If it is, it goes higher than me: upon unpacking both the review samples from Q Connect and Igenix, I discovered these fans are exactly the same. Generic white plastic towers with different company badges on them. They're externally identical, right down to the mechanical click-in buttons and screw-cap base assembly.
As such, neither are likely to win any design awards, targeting the overheated office environment rather than the smart home of the future: they’re generic looking blocks of white plastic. There’s no remote control, so should you find the cooling insufficient, you’ll have to peel yourself off the chair and press the buttons to switch between the three speeds. There’s no night mode, maybe because these are more intended for office use, and you’re not supposed to be sleeping there, even if you are.
Performance
I saw some very small differences during my testing, but in practice they were essentially identical. Both produced a strong 4.5m/s wind speed measured next to the fan - not quite up there with the Dyson Pure Cool, and a way behind the Honeywell HI-5500RE, but solid enough. Moving a metre away dropped the power to around 1.7m/s, which dropped to 1m/s a further metre away.
Volume wise, they weren’t too bad either, with both scoring around 74db - just a tad higher than the Honeywell Quietset HY254E1, which as the name suggests is intended to make as little noise as possible. There's no night mode, as mentioned previously, but dropping them to the lowest setting reduces the volume to around 70db for both - a little louder than those with dedicated night modes, but not obnoxiously so. Sadly, the angle of cooling is a little slimmer than some of the fans I've seen before, and although you can set it to rotate up to 120 degrees using the twistable dial on top of it, the breeze only spreads around 60 degrees from the air vent.
Conclusion
Amazon is selling both for under £30, the Q Connect is usually a few quid cheaper but Igenix has a UK office and offers a two-year warranty with its fan so I'd go with that model personally. These are basic, but quite reasonable tower fans with neither bells nor whistles - but decent cooling power nonetheless.
To See More About Igenix DF0030 Tower Fan 30 Inches 45 W - White Click Here
4. Honeywell HO-5500RE tower fan review - big and powerful
Among the most powerful fans we've seen but it's not without one or two minor niggles
Honeywell is one of the big players in the world of tower fans, and the HO-5500RE is a good example of why, with a decent design and a powerful blast of air at the top end.
It's easy to build (though a touch wobbly when done), and it's nice and tall, so it should deliver air at a height that's useful. Despite this, it manages to remain reasonably understated as tower fans go: a simple tube of dark grey plastic. Rather than the whole tower rotating, the centre section only turns, this looks very neat but does limit the angle of rotation to around 55 degrees, less than the 70 degrees that most models offer. However, this is offset by the fairly wide 68-degree cone of air it expels even when stationary.
It's easy to use, though not quite as idiot-proof as the new Quiet model I've seen, as there are some control icons you'll have to work out by trial and error. The dinky remote control slots right into the back when not in use, but should you lose it, you can set up Honeywell fans on universal remotes like the Logitech Harmony.
One note for people who value a good night's sleep above all else: the angled top on the 5500RE means that the buttons face outwards, and the backlighting can't be turned off, meaning the fan stays illuminated all night long. If you're a really light sleeper, you might want to put some gaffer tape over the top of the controls, which isn't ideal.
Performance
The HO-5500RE offers an extremely powerful blast on its top setting, putting out a whopping 5.1m/s when measured right next to the tower itself, dropping to 2.2m/s at one metre and 1.2m/s at two metres. That's a stronger performance than every other fan I've seen, even bettering the Dyson Pure Cool, which, lest we forget, retails for around £380 more.
How it manages this impressive level of cooling is unsurprising however: it's loud. On the top setting, measured right next to the fan, the sound level meter measured a volume of 79.1db, dropping to 50.5db two metres away. There are only three fan power levels, and although the fan does have a 'night-time mode', it's really strangely implemented: the power of the fan is alternated between whisper quiet and jet-engine every few seconds. Truthfully it's anything other than restful, and most people would be better off just switching it to the lowest setting, where it hits a far more manageable 68.5db – which isn't too far off the Quiet model.
Conclusion
It's not without its faults, but despite this the Honeywell 5500RE remains a decent fan at a respectable price. It's powerful, pretty discreet for something so large and ticks the majority of the boxes of what you should look for in a tower fan. The payoff is that it's loud, has somewhat limited rotation, and might frustrate light sleepers due to some pretty baffling design features. If you really want something for during the day, and don't care too much about noise you won't regret picking the Honeywell HO-5500RE.
Learn More About Honeywell HO-5500RE Oscillating Tower Fan with Remote Control and Gliding Grill Function - Black Find Here.
