Dyson Pure Cool HEPA Air Purifier and Fan

We all know that air purifiers are good for the air in our homes, but what if you need a little cooling action, too? The Dyson Pure Cool HEPA Air Purifier and Fan features a HEPA filter to remove super tiny pollutants—as small as up to 0.3 microns—including bacteria, dust, pollen, mould spores and other allergens, as well as an activated carbon filter to trap gases, chemicals and odours. Our Today’s Parent Approved editors and parent testers put the Dyson Pure Cool HEPA Air Purifier and Fan through its paces, and found it delivered on its promise of clean air and a powerful fan. Parents particularly enjoyed the fan’s display, remote control and app, and how well this small but mighty air purifier cleared the air and eased allergy and asthma symptoms.

The effectiveness of the Dyson Pure Cool HEPA Air Purifier and Fan is easy to see, as it sports a simple display with a graph that shows the fan speed and air quality in the room (represented by red, orange, yellow and green lines), as well as any new threat to the air, which our editors noted is useful if you are unsure of what's polluting your indoor air.

To put this to the test, we placed the air purifier in an air-tight 8- x 8- x 4-foot space along with an ultra-fine particle counter and then sprayed dry shampoo into the space. Running on the auto setting, the Dyson Pure Cool HEPA Air Purifier made quick work of cleaning the air, shifting from moderate to good quickly, and bringing the particulate levels down to under 100 particles per cubic centimetre (well below what’s considered clean air). Parent testers also noticed improved air quality, agreeing it effectively removed dust, odours and pet dander from their homes.

All of our parent testers agreed the ease of using the Dyson fan was very good, as it comes with clear instructions and assembly is minimal. As for maintenance, the filters are easy to remove and change. The screen on the device itself only displays the air quality, fan speed and chosen setting, so actually operating it requires the remote or app. And while that makes it handy to control the fan from across the room, if you lose the remote, the app is your only option. The manual includes diagrams of the remote control, breaking down the various setting options.

The Dyson Link app pairs easily with the air purifier and is clear and simple to use (even more so than the remote). It displays the room’s air quality, temperature and humidity, and you can see when it's time to change filters. Parents preferred to use the app over the remote when setting the scheduling options, and the scheduling process itself is smooth and streamlined. The only drawback our lab testers found with the app was that controlling the fan requires going into a sub menu; it would be easier if this option were accessible from the home screen.

While running on its lower speeds, the fan is quiet, but it is fairly loud on higher settings. Parents agreed, however, that even at the slower speed, it was able to clean the air quickly. Night-time Mode prevents any rude awakening by keeping fan speeds lower and dimming the display.

The 360-degree oscillating fan offers manual, scheduled or auto modes and 10 speeds, and the airflow can be directed from the front for both purification and cooling or the back for just purification, which is a really nice option in cooler months. The air speed can also be increased if desired, and the range of options for setting the oscillation makes it easy to place anywhere in a room.

Dyson products are known as much for their design as for their functionality, and this fan is no exception. Made to be perched on a desk or table, it's easy to move between rooms or reposition. It's worth noting that the plug adapter is rather bulky, so it would be difficult to plug in behind furniture or on a power bar (without covering other outlets). One parent reported it fell out of certain outlets in her home because of its weight.

FINAL WORD

Parents who tested the Dyson Pure Cool HEPA Air Purifier and Fan at home said it was very effective, but its ease of use was the big selling feature. It also earned top marks for quality and its visual appeal. Editors were impressed by the ability of a smaller-sized fan to circulate air throughout a room, and they appreciated the visual display, app connectivity and simple-to-replace filters. While Pure Cool is on the higher end of price range for air purifiers, its performance, impressive technology and sleek design make it an option well worth looking at.