Dyson is much like Apple. It sets a standard in design, and competitors follow suit. The “bent tube” hairdryer from Yoose is one example, and I am pretty sure competitors will soon pick up the HushJet design too. But not the Chinese maker of personal grooming products, Laifen. When it comes to handheld fans, Laifen really thinks outside the box.
Where a bunch of companies are making Jisulife-style fans, Laifen takes the road less traveled: the folding fan.
What makes the AirFold [CH], as it is called, unique is how it has a large dual-blade rotor and a somewhat minimal protective mesh cage. Laifen chose a large dual-blade setup to create strong, natural wind, with wide coverage, as opposed to the forced wind with narrow coverage that other brands offer. The rotor measures 11 cm (4.3 inches) from tip to tip, so it is pretty large, and theoretically, it should offer the cooling effect without feeling like putting an air jet at your face.
Thanks to a unique folding solution, it managed to do so while maintaining portability—or should I say pocketability. A clever mechanism enables the large-diameter fan to collapse into a small stick. Laifen says this innovative design reduces the volume by an astounding 79.5 percent in folded form when compared to the unfolded form.
To use it, all you need to do is unfurl it like a traditional hand fan, but in the opposite direction, and all the way through to form the circular fan cage. The so-called mesh cover frame, which is composed of stainless steel and fabric to allow it to collapse, features a magnetic closure. A nifty cover keeps the folded fan in place when stowed away.
When folded, the propeller-style fan blades also collapse, and when unfurled, powering up the fan automatically extends the blades. As part of the safety features, the fan can only be powered up after the mesh cage is securely closed.
Moreover, the blades, which are user-removable and replaceable, are composed of two materials. Each blade features a softer silicone-like material around its edge and hard plastic for the main body, thus ensuring rigidity while offering some level of safety in the event it does come into contact with something. But in the event the blades do come into contact with something, the built-in Hall sensor will stop the fan instantly.
It is powered by a self-developed axial flux motor that is incredibly thin and powerful. The AirFold offers four levels of wind strength: 1, 2, 3, and a Turbo mode. Packed inside the handle is a custom-designed 21700 battery with 5,000 mAh of juice, which is good for up to 14 hours of operation.
Around the back is a USB-C interface for charging—which also supports charging while in use (excluding Turbo mode, for obvious reasons)—as well as an LED power indicator light for at-a-glance battery status. There is also a set of three LEDs around the front to indicate the level it is at. When Turbo mode is activated, all three LEDs light up in orange instead of white.
As far as noise level goes, it is not harsh at low settings, though exact dB figures were not provided.
The fan not only addresses your on-the-go cooling needs; it should also satisfy style-conscious users thanks to the clean, minimalistic design paired with Morandi-inspired colors. The device promises a tactile feel through a double-layer spraying process featuring a colored topcoat and matte UV coating. It is resistant to fingerprints and sweat corrosion, and promises to remain colorfast over long-term use.
Rounding out the design is a stainless steel lanyard hole for attaching a wristlet or lanyard.
When collapsed, the fan measures 184.4 mm (7.3 inches) tall, 32 mm (1.3 inches) wide, and 35.7 mm (1.4 inches) thick. When unfolded, it measures 231.6 mm (9.1 inches) tall, 123.7 mm (4.9 inches) wide, and 35.7 mm (1.4 inches) thick. It weighs just 183.7 grams (6.5 ounces).
The Laifen AirFold Foldable Small Fan has launched in China for 399 yuan [CH], which is about US$59 at the time of this article.
Images: Laifen [CH].
