Duux Whisper Ultimate Smart Black (without battery)

This fan is clearly presented by the manufacturer as a design luxury product. When you unpack the box, everything is nicely packed in numbered bags, and with a QR code to a clear installation video you can put it together yourself. Once done it will look beautiful. But does it also work so beautifully?

First of all, he is quiet. Very quiet. In the first 6 to 8 positions of the 26 that are on it, the sound of the fan is barely audible from a few meters away. And that is in a quiet room. The 26 positions are also nice, so you can find exactly your preference.

If you have the battery version, you can take it with you wherever you go. For example, you can put it next to your desk, or take it with you to the bedroom in the evening, without having to mess around with cables. It can run a little less on battery (maximum setting 18) but that's hard enough for me and no problem.

It has all the features you need. At least I'm not missing anything. It can rotate, horizontally and vertically. There is a timer, a natural wind mode, and a night mode where the display goes out faster.

But then. Operating these functions leaves a lot to be desired. For a product that calls itself smart, it's very stupid. For starters, the device does not have a physical power button. If you want to turn it off (or actually on standby) you will have to use the remote control. Small point, but a strange design choice.

If you then start using the remote control, you will notice that this has not been well thought out. You have to press a button 2 or 3 times before the fan does what you ask of it. An example. The fan is on, and you want it to spin horizontally. You press the button. The fan responds with a beep that the command has come in, and the screen on the foot turns on. But nothing else happens. Apparently the fan must first wake up with the 1st button press, because if you press a 2nd time while the screen is on, the action will be performed. At least if you're lucky. I had to press a third time several times before something happened. And every time the fan responded with a beep, so something was definitely coming in. It takes some getting used to, but convenient is different.
The funny thing is that it applies to all functions, but not to switch on. Then the fan will respond with 1 push of a button. So it seems to be a conscious design choice.

And the above problem creates more problems. If you have purchased the fan for its "smart" functions, you will be disappointed. The only thing you can do via Google Home is turn the fan on and off. And that only works half way. Turning it on works, but when turning it off it only works the 2nd time. Feels pretty stupid to have to say "hey Google, turn off the fan" twice in a row.

In addition, if you turn it off and on via Google Home, it won't remember if you had the spin function turned on. It does that if you turn the fan off and on with the remote control. When operated via Google, it always starts from a standstill.

Oh yes, then you have the mobile app. At least it responds immediately to input, but also forgets whether the spin function was on. All very logical.

These are minor points of criticism, but all added together it still gives the feeling that the user experience has been poorly thought out when operating the device. If the product didn't have a premium price it might be justifiable, but now I can't help but be critical.