USB LED Programmable Fan Review

[Xanthe_2871]

Today we will be looking at an interesting gadget from China, unbranded and cheaply available online. 

 

Brand: Generic/Not Branded

Price: $6

Available from: Bang good

TL;DR: Buy at your own risk, I do not recommend it.

 

So what is this gadget supposed to do? It's supposed to be programmable so you can have a fan on your desk with cute messages like "I <3 you" or "Kill all humans". In practice, it's a poorly made fan which may not accept programming and doesn't even work well as a fan. 

 

When I first received the fan it came with a software CD, but the included software did not recognize my fan when plugged into the computer. I searched around Google and found several other programs but most were the same as what was on the CD with minor changes. All programs I tried reported that the fan was not connected to the computer. I tried multiple cables and even tried a different computer but nothing worked. When I contacted the seller he sent me a replacement fan free of charge, but this replacement also did not work with the programming software. And on a side note, the fan gets it's programming from a port under the blades on the fan head, not the USB port on the bottom of the stem that plugs into the computer. I guess they couldn't find a cheap way to make that work. Bottom line, since the fan can only be programmed via a port on the fan head (assuming someone could find a fan and program that worked properly) it would not be possible to program the fan's text on the fly with some custom software or hack, since the fan can not be in operation and in programming mode simultaneously. 

 

There are multiple reviews on the product page that more or less tell the same story, so it seems either the software is poorly written or the hardware in some fans is faulty. 

 

Ok, so the fan can't be used as a LED sign. How does it do as a fan? Not great. As a fan it's ok, but for $6 you can get much better USB fans. Take this fan here, it's only 75 cents with free shipping yet it has about the same strength as the LED fan. Maybe I'll review the 75 cent fan some time. 

 

Is there anything good about this fan? Well, if you can find one for free, or dirt cheap at a Goodwill, maybe pick it up and hope you'll have better luck than I did with programming it. It's not a terrible fan, but with the competition being less than a buck, it can't be this faulty. I can't justify six whole dollars on something so cheaply made that two different fans failed to communicate with the computer. Honestly, with the plethora of cheap, generic Chinese goods with free shipping available on Bang good, Aliexpress, eBay and many more, $6 is just too much to ask. I have seen other listings for as little as $4 on Aliexpress, but those are not the exact same model, maybe they are better or maybe they are somehow even worse. 

 

At the end of the day this fan seemed pretty cool but was a total disappointment. What do you think? Do you have one of these that works? If so, how long have you had it, and do you agree the fan is poorly designed?