Honeywell HY-048BP - A Tower Fan worth buying?

After my beloved Duracraft fan went kaputs I needed to replace it with something that would help cool down my small non-air conditioned computer room. Though any small conventional fan would have sufficed, the Honeywell HY-048BP tower fan stuck out from the herd of tower/conventional fans due to its sleek design and its fancy shmancy packaging.

What is it?

The Honeywell HY-048BP Tower Fan isn't your ordinary fan: Oh contraire. In addition to being so much more stylish than any conventional fan could hope to be, the HY-048BP boasts the following....

* Electronic LCD display.
* Washable air filter
* 3 speed fan motor features High, Medium, and Low speeds.
* Breeze modes simulate an outdoor breeze.
* Programmable timer
* Programmable thermostat.
* Oscillation feature.
* Ionizer
* Remote control w/flashlight (comes with 2 AAA batteries)
* Adjustable height base.
* Dimensions: 13" W x 13" D x 41" H. Weight: 11 lbs.

Styling:

The Honeywell HY-048BP is elegantly styled and should go with most homes’ decor. This tower fan is available in two color schemes: black with chrome accents or beige (not sure if the beige model carries the same product ID #). If you don't want your tower fan to be the center of attention when you have houseguests, I highly suggest going with the more conspicuous beige color, as the black and chrome color scheme begs for attention.

Quality:

The quality of this tower fan is a mixed bag. While the unit itself is made of sturdy high quality plastics, the base and the pedestal are nothing more than paper thin snap together plastic pieces. I sometimes wonder how this thing is able to oscillate on the pedestal and not fall over or at least shake. The remote control is also not up to par; the buttons on the remote wobble around in their sockets and the shell of the remote feels like something you'd find as a toy in a kids meal.

Ease of setup/use:

The Honeywell HY-048BP already comes basically set up for you. Inside the box there are a few pieces for the base and the optional pedestal (raises the machine about 8" or so) that easily snap together and are secured by thumbscrews (included): that's it. It took me less than 10 minutes to completely set up this tower fan. Since this fan is only 13" wide with a relatively small base, it can fit virtually anywhere.

Ergonomics

Ergonomics are generally good, but I do have some rants in this department. The Good: The head of the unit features an easy-to-read digital display and easy-to-use push button gadgetry that is clearly labeled. A remote control is also included that is effective for a good 15-20 feet from the unit. The Bad: The oscillation button (on both the unit and the remote control) also acts as the Ionizer button. If you want the Ionizer to stay on without the fan oscillating, you'll have to first go through the oscillation modes. So, why is this a gripe? If the fan is strategically positioned, it will clearly need to be repositioned, as going through the oscillation modes will trigger the fan to rotate. Having said that, the Ionizer feature needs its own on/off button.

Noise level:

The Honeywell HY-048BP is definitely quieter than any conventional fan that I have owned, but it's still rather noisy when set to “max” speed. I usually just set it to the medium speed setting where it's enough to cool down a small space without all the wind/motor noise of max setting.

Cooling:

I have owned a tower fan before, and it was about as effective as waving a folded piece of paper in front of my face. While the Honeywell HY-048BP doesn't perform as a well as a high quality conventional fan, it moves enough air for a good breeze to circulate through a large room, so long as it's set to medium or max speeds (there are 3 wind speed settings total). There is also a thermostat, where you can adjust the temperature at which it will operate. For example, you can set the thermostat to 70 degrees and if it gets cooler than 70 in your home the unit will shut off and if it gets warmer than 70 it will come back on. While most people in the south will find this feature worthless, as it’s hot both day and night, it's a nice feature for people who live in the northern states or in mountainous terrain where it can be 100 degrees in the day and a chilly 45 or colder during the night and early morning hours.

The Breeze Feature:

I'm not going to beat around the bush: the breeze feature is flat out lame! While Honeywell claims that this feature will simulate a natural breeze, it's more like simulation of a skipping CD. Using the breeze feature simply shuts down the fan for a few seconds and then will dramatically kick it back on at full blast. The result is surging wind and motor noise that is more annoying than effective; it certainly doesn't feel or sound like a summer breeze.

The Filter:

While the Ionizer may provide some relief for allergy sufferers, if you expect the filter to actually help with your allergies, you’ll be disappointed. Unlike a HEPA filter that traps a lot of impurities in the air, the filter in the Honeywell HY-048BP doesn't really do anything. The filter may trap some pet hair and some dust that clings onto it, however pollen grains, dust particles, and dust mites will simply pass right on through the large gaps in the filter media. On the plus side, the screen-like filter is easily cleaned using water & soap and dries within minutes.

Reliability:

I've owned my Honeywell HY-048BP for about 3 months now and I have had no mechanical problems as of yet (knock on wood), except for that the remote control seems to running low on batteries after just 3 months. I rarely use the thing, so it's a mystery to me why the batteries would be going dead so soon. If anything does go wrong with your Honeywell HY-048BP, Honeywell backs this unit with a 5-year full coverage warranty: very nice!

Price/Availability:

I purchased my Honeywell HY-048BP for just 59 bucks from Target. While this isn't a super-high price to pay, I could have easily purchased a more effective conventional fan for less money. This tower fan can be purchased at just about any large discount store, i.e. Wal-Mart, Target, etc.. It's also available online, but I couldn't find it for less than $59 bucks after shipping, so my local Target eventually got my business.


Final Thoughts:

Recommending the Honeywell HY-048BP isn't exactly easy. It's good looking, great at moving air for being such a small fan, it's relatively quiet, and the price is right. However, there are a lot of worthless features and some aspects of its build quality are unforgivable. For now I am going to go ahead and recommend this product, however Lasko is rumored to have a better model out for about the same price, so make sure you check around before making any final buying decisions.


Thanks for reading!