Find the Best Smart Fans & Air Purifiers for Your Smart Home in 2022

You might think of fans and air purifiers as seasonal devices, but they're helpful all year round. Air purifiers deal with allergens, smog, and other particles regardless of the time of year, and whenever it gets cold, fans can help distribute warm air around the house. The smart versions of these devices turbo-charge your home’s climate control. Want to know how? Take a look at the best fans and air purifiers you can currently get for your smart home.

When Are Smart Fans & Air Purifiers Useful?

The indoor air doesn't circulate as much as the outside air, and its low quality can negatively impact the comfort of your home. Numerous airborne pollutants gather and linger inside, and there's also the issue with too little or too much heat. This is where smart air purifiers and fans come in handy.

Smart Fans

Smart fans work similarly to their "dumb" counterparts, distributing air around any space they're placed in. Their built-in technology allows you to control them remotely and automate various things with your smart home. You can, for example, start your fans on schedule or when the indoor temperature rises above a certain point.

Fans are usually considered summer-only devices, but as you might know, they don't really cool the air. When you think about it, this isn't really a disadvantage – the functionality comes in handy when you need to distribute heated air around the house when it gets cold. You can use a smart standing fan in the winter by simply pointing it towards the ceiling where warm air gathers, and your house will instantly become cozier.

Of course, you can use ceiling fans for the same purpose. There are some ready-made smart ceiling fans available, however, the easiest solution is retrofitting an existing dumb ceiling fan. All you need for that is a smart dimmer module, such as the Fibaro Dimmer 2 or the Qubino Mini Dimmer.

When it comes to retrofitting dumb standing fans, it's possible to either use a cord dimmer, install a dimming module into the socket, or get a standalone smart plug.

Smart Air Purifiers

Similar to fans, air purifiers move the air around, but they are primarily useful for removing all sorts of dust, pollen, and toxins, keeping the home fresh and the air healthy. Air purifiers limit the adverse effects of smoke and air pollution inside. In this day and age, that's especially compelling.

Regardless of its location, an air purifier reduces the odds of medical problems caused by indoor pollutants. It can even relieve the symptoms of some people with respiratory illnesses, such as asthmatics.

When placed in the kitchen, an air purifier can be more efficient than your hood at mitigating various odors produced by cooking. That is especially true when you're frying things – no matter what you drop into the pan, your house won't smell of fried food when there's an air purifier running in the background.

Smart air purifiers can be controlled via an app or automation, but they also always contain sensors for particles present in the air. With a smart home hub like Homey, these sensors will help you keep track of the current air quality.

Top 5 Fans & Air Purifiers to Look for In 2022

Brand	Model	Price	Dimensions	Airflow	HEPA Filter	Maximum Noise Level	Protocol	Homey Pro Support	Homey Beta Support
Xiaomi	Mi Fan 1C	€49	343 x 330 x 1000 mm	1620 m3/h	No	63 dB	Wi-Fi	Yes	No
Duux	Whisper Flex	€250	340 x 340 x 1030 mm	800 m3/h	No	50 dB	Wi-Fi	Yes	No
Dyson	Cool Tower Air Purifier	€599	219 x 219 x 1131 mm	1300 m3/h	Yes	56 dB	Wi-Fi	Yes	Yes
Xiaomi	Air Purifier 3H	€159	240 x 240 x 520 mm	406 m3/h	Yes	64 dB	Wi-Fi	Yes	No
Electrolux	Pure A9	€399	315 x 315 x 590 mm	442 m3/h	Yes	57 dB	Wi-Fi	Yes	No
Philips	Air Purifier 2000	€449	359 x 240 x 558 mm	333 m3/h	Yes	55 dB	Wi-Fi	Yes	No

The Xiaomi Mi Fan 1C is a simple yet powerful model. Thanks to its built-in brushless motor and variable speed, it achieves natural air simulation. It's designed to create a gentle, quiet breeze by controlling the airflow in an elaborate way. Sleeping with this fan running in the bedroom is definitely not an issue.

Of course, the fan isn't as effective as air conditioning in the summer heat, but the cooling effect is noticeable whenever the air inside gets too warm for comfort. Simply put, the fan gets the job done. Just like the functionality, the design of this device is minimal yet elegant, and its aesthetic will fit into any modern interior.

The device itself is lightweight, so you can move it around the house as needed. Mind that you'll always need to find a plug for it, as it doesn't have a built-in battery.

The major advantage of this device is obviously its price. At €49, you'd hardly find a competitor that can do as much while staying so quiet. Moreover, once paired with Homey Pro, you can control and automate the fan speed and sleep mode in any way you prefer.

Yes, the Whisper Flex Ultimate smart fan is unusually pricey for its product category. However, as its name suggests, it's extremely quiet during its regular operation. The noise level can get as low as 13dB, which is practically imperceptible, while you can still feel the air blowing.

This model offers an outstanding design available in black or white, and it can be used either as a standing fan or as a table fan, depending on your current needs.

The best thing about this device is that it can be battery-operated. The battery pack provides a relaxing breeze anywhere in your house without the fan being plugged in. Moreover, you can get up to 12 hours of wireless usage out of the battery.

Another thing worth mentioning is that this device has 30 speed settings, allowing for extremely detailed control with the Duux App for Homey.

There's only one manufacturer that offers the golden standard of air purifiers – Dyson with its Cool Tower Air Purifier. The device is premium through and through. Packed with smart features and equipped with a HEPA filter, it can clear up to 99.97% of airborne pollutants, including smoke from wildfires as well as other toxic particles.

The device features state-of-the-art sensors able to detect harmful substances like nitrogen dioxide, formaldehyde, and benzene. And you can not only use them to trigger automatic air purification. With Homey Insights, you'll get detailed air quality, temperature, and humidity reports for any time frame you select.

This air purifier comes with a family-friendly design. In contrast to conventional fans, it has no open sharp edges or blades, so it's safe for kids and pets. As for the space the Cool Tower can handle, it's able to clean the air in a single large room.

On the downside, the Cool Tower can get quite noisy, but it features a night mode and a sleep timer as a part of its 10-speed settings, so you can let it run at any time of the day without getting disturbed. Like other Dyson appliances, the Cool Tower is pretty expensive. Still, you get a lot of bang for your buck.

The Xiaomi Air Purifier 1H is a mid-range but premium-feeling air purifier. Its design offers sleek, minimalist lines and a surprisingly sturdy build. The device is so nice to look at that it could easily be a part of the Apple device pantheon.

The 3H can handle both small and big spaces, and its 360-degree air vents effectively filter the air coming in from any direction. This also allows for a cylindrical HEPA filter to be included in the device. The built-in sensors detect pollutants quickly – whenever there's polluted air, the purifier immediately kicks in. Also, when added to Homey, the air quality information is displayed in the Homey App, and you can automate various other devices based on its value.

One advantage we need to highlight are the purifier's low noise levels during regular operation. On the auto setting, it remains mostly inaudible, and it only starts humming slightly when it detects an influx of polluted air. If you intend on keeping this device in your bedroom, you can rest assured that it won't impact your sleep in any way.

Whenever you need to quickly freshen the air, you can simply set the fan level manually to 100%, and the device will usually tackle all types of pollutants and odors in less than a few minutes.

The primary thing you'll notice about the Electrolux Pure A9 is its unusual design. It has the appearance of a fancy speaker – its pentagonal base and fabric case definitely make it stand out among other purifiers. On top of that, the A9 is portable, and thus suitable for bigger homes where it can be moved around.

The Pure A9 continually monitors the air quality and intelligently responds to the changes in the air quality. This is made possible through the Electrolux Pure Sense system, which automatically adjusts the air purification rate. There's also one unique feature – built-in ionization, making the air always smell fresh.

Electrolux offers an app for Homey which generates real-time stats and long-term Insights for your indoor air quality. Besides monitoring, Homey will let you control the Pure A9 from a distance and either change your preferences on the go or via automation with Homey Flows.

The Philips Air Purifier 2000 is a solid option for many reasons. Rocking multiple sensors, this air purifier will always keep you up-to-date on the air quality of your household.

What adds to the value of this device is that it has three separate layers of filtration called VitaShield IPS. The first layer can handle bigger debris like pet hair, while the second is a dynamic carbon filter that removes gases, smoke, and odors. Lastly, a HEPA filter takes care of allergens like pollen and dust.

When it's set to auto, it will filter the air continuously without any need for manual control. This mode can be initiated via the accompanying Homey application, Philips Air. The app also lets you control all the significant features remotely while providing insights on the air quality and humidity level.

The machine generally runs quietly, aside from the moments when it sets the fan to the highest speed. But even then, it’s hardly troublesome or annoying. The potential downside here is that the purifier's filters need frequent cleaning or replacing, based on the usage. The device is also quite pricey, and its design isn't the most aesthetic.

The Best Smart Fan and Air Purifier

A smart fan or an air purifier will keep your interior feeling fresh. While fans only move the air around the room, air purifiers also filter allergens and toxins from the air. Whatever the season, either device is handy to have around.

The final verdict on the best product in each category depends on your needs. Both Xiaomi devices are perfect for those on the lookout for budget-friendly air purifiers or fans. 

As for the most feature-packed options, if you're willing to pay extra for a gorgeous fan, get a Duux Whisper Flex. If you want a premium air purifier, then Dyson will become your love brand thanks to its Cool Tower.

Whatever you decide on, your Homey can provide combability for all of your smart home devices. Every fan and air purifier we’ve reviewed talks with Homey Pro, and Dyson is even supported by the new, cloud-based Homey. Give Homey a try and keep your smart home devices under one roof!