Hasta La Ideas

Midwestern thrift, a penchant for unencumbered windows, energy consciousness, a pinch of masochism. These are the forces that conspire to keep UnBeige HQ free of soul-chilling air conditioning, and so at this time of year, we stock up on frozen novelties and fans. In both cases, we demand the best, and James Dyson has created the air-blasting equivalent of a creamsicle with his new Air Multiplier, a bladeless wonder that does for blowing what his streamlined vaccuums did for sucking.

We’ve put our table-top model—a cobalt ring mounted on a cylindrical base—through its paces and today are braving 101-degree temperatures from a fifth-floor perch. How does it work? Magic. Magic and loop amplifiers. Air is drawn into the base of the fan and then forced through the amplifier and accelerated through the annular aperture, creating a jet of air. “While exiting the loop amplifier, the jet pulls air from behind the fan into the airflow,” explains the company. “At the same time, the surrounding air from the front and sides of the machine are forced into the air stream, amplifying the flow to create a constant smooth stream.” The superfan is also sturdy, adjustable, and (suprisingly for its jet engine-derived technology) quiet. Dyson has just introduced larger versions: a tower model that resembles the eye of a giant needle and a pedestal version that could be mistaken for a mammoth, air-spewing magnifying glass.

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