Nathan CrauseMusings of a Software Developer

Found an interesting new product from James Dyson which claims to be a "bladeless fan". The concept is interesting, and the R&D which has gone into the "ramp" (which helps "multiply" the airflow) is surely worth praise (4 years worth of work).

However, I have an issue with calling it a "bladeless fan". In reality, all that's happened is the blades have been moved and hidden.

Directly from the news article, the fan works "by drawing air into the base of the machine. The air is forced up into the loop amplifier and accelerated ..." So here's my question - how is the air drawn in and force up into the loop? I'll bet you there's a bladed fan sitting inside the base. If that is true (and I see no other way this could be otherwise), then the device contains blades.

This is a classic example of marketing over the truth. I'm not impressed. If they had simply claimed something else - a turbulence-free fan, or non-buffeting fan - then I would have been much more impressed. Saying something is "-less" a component when all you've done is reposition it is lying.

Since I do not actually own one of these, I'm still willing to give them a break, and perhaps take a peek at it again some other time.