Highlights
  • The Dyson Pure Hot+Cool air purifier looks futuristic with its bladeless design
  • The device packs in tons of features and can double up as a heater too
  • Smart features allow you to control via an app and even your voice

While the onset of winters in North India usually marks the time one starts getting concerned about air quality, the fact that most of us are spending a lot of time indoors these days due to the ongoing pandemic is a compelling enough reason to consider an air purifier. These devices have become commonplace in recent times, and you’ll find a barrage of options scattered across price segments. Dyson, the British manufacturer of premium home appliances, has a few offerings that sit at the high end of the range, and I got a chance to try out the Pure Hot+Cool air purifier. One of the most interesting highlights of this device, apart from its design and the technology it packs in, is the fact that it can triple up as a fan and a heater when needed. Let’s check it out and see what it do.

Design

Dyson is best known for its bladeless fan designs, and that’s exactly what this device brings to the table. The Pure Hot+Cool air purifier is a compact machine that has a cylindrical base and Dyson’s signature oval-shaped bladeless air outlet on top. Since there are no visible rotating fans, the device seems extremely kid safe in comparison to the conventional air purifiers.


The White/Silver model I have looks futuristic and elegant, and can fit into the decor of any room, though a more flamboyant-looking Iron/Blue colour combination is available too.


The cylindrical base hides the filter, and sports a circular display that shows info on modes, air quality etc. There’s a single on/off button above the display, but barring that, there are no other controls on the device itself. Th display isn’t touch enabled, but is quite informative, and cycles through various pieces of real-time info on pressing the “i” button on the remote. Apart from ambient temperature and humid levels, these include PM10 levels, PM2.5 levels, Nitrogen dioxide level, Volatile Organic Compounds, filter status and Wi-Fi connection status.


The air purifier weighs about 5.7 kgs, which means it can be moved around the house easily as and when required. It can rotate 350 degrees, and the angle can be adjusted slightly as well, so you can choose to place it on the floor or on a side table if you wish. The 1.8m cord has a 15 amp plug at the end, which does limit the placement somewhat, depending upon the location and availability of these big sockets in the room.



The machine comes with a small remote that attaches magnetically to the top of the device. This is quite handy, since this makes it difficult for you to misplace it. Do note that the remote is one of the primary ways for controlling and operating the air purifier, since the device itself doesn’t have any controls. And since the Pure Hot+Cool air purifier also features built-in Wi-Fi, you also have the option of controlling it via the Dyson Link app.

Setting up the machine is quite simple, and needs you to install the included set of filters, before powering the device up. The filters go inside the mesh covering, which can be removed using the two buttons on either side of the cylindrical base.

Features and technology

Apart from the bladeless designs, Dyson is also known for the tech it packs in its appliances and the Pure Hot+Cool air purifier is crammed to the gills with tons of features. First up, the device has three on-board sensors to monitor the air quality in the room. A particulate sensor is responsible for detecting particles in the air,  a Volatile Organic Compound (VOC) sensor detects gases, while another sensor monitors temperature and humidity. If the air purifier is in auto mode, the sensors can adjust settings automatically based on the level of pollutants detected.


Then there’s the filtration. The two-part filtration system uses activated carbon to remove gases while the sealed HEPA filters capture air pollutants. Dyson says the filters are designed to draw in air from all around the machine, and since they’re sealed, capture more particles in the first pass because air can only pass through them and not around them. Dyson recommends replacing the filters about once a year, based on 12 hours of daily usage on Auto mode. Unlike most brands that use CADR (short for Clean Air Delivery Rate) to indicate the efficacy of how fast their air purifiers can spread clean air in a room, Dyson uses something called POLAR testing. This test uses a room measuring 27 square meters and nine sensors placed all around to test the air purifier, which itself is placed at one corner and the pollutants being injected into the room from the opposite corner. As per Dyson, this is a more stringent test for an air purifier as compared to conventional tests for CADR, and provides a better assessment of the air purifier’s efficacy.


The Air Multiplier tech, along with the 350-degree oscillation, projects air around the room. The device features a diffused air projection mechanism, and you can shift the air flow from the front to the back as and when required, with the rear offering a better spread of clean air throughout the room. Dyson claims this device can project up to 290 litres of air per second.


Then there are the Hot+Cool features. Basically, the Dyson Pure Hot+Cool air purifier works as a fan with controllable air speed, and is quite effective when you’re sitting directly in front. More useful perhaps are the heating capabilities, which use ceramic plates to heat up the air, and therefore, the room. This should be really handy in winters, especially since there’s a thermostat control as well and you can set the desired room temperature too. Once the desired temperature is reached, the heating cuts off automatically. Furthermore, the outer body of the device itself doesn’t heat up too much, in case you want to move it around or change the angle.


As far as the smart features are concerned, the Pure Hot+Cool air purifier features built-in Wi-Fi, and apart from the ability to control it remotely via the Dyson Link app (available for both iOS as well as Android), you can also control it using voice too, via the Alexa smart assistant Or Siri. Unfortunately though, Google Assistant support doesn’t seem to be there yet. The Dyson Link app displays the room info, provides a separate screen that emulates the physical remote control, and also allows you to set up schedules for automatically switching the device on and off. You can also view the status of the air filters and get notified if they need replacing.

In terms of performance, the Dyson Pure Hot+Cool seems quite effective, as it brought down the AQI of a large living room from 70 (very poor) to 25 (good) within just 15 minutes. To test out how it controls odours, we tried lighting incense sticks in the room, and the device was able to get rid of the smoke within a few minutes too, though the fragrance lasted a little bit longer. The device is surprisingly quiet too, and if you have a fan or air conditioner switched on in the room, you’d barely be able to hear it. There’s a Night mode option too, which reduces sound levels even further.

Verdict


The Dyson Pure Hot+Cool air purifier is priced at Rs 55,900, putting it on the premium end of the price spectrum. That’s not a small amount to pay for an air purifier. However, given how effective it is, its futuristic design, the built-in smarts, the tons of features, and the fact that it can perform additional functions, make it an option you should look at very closely if you’re considering buying an air purifier.

Editor’s rating: 4 / 5

Pros

  • Stylish, bladeless design
  • Doubles up as a heater
  • Loads of tech and features
  • Quiet operation

Cons

  • Pricey
  • Uses a 15 amp plug that limits placement
  • Doesn’t support Google Assistant