The summer’s most talked about fan seems to be the Shark ChillPill 3 in 1 handheld fan. I had seen this all over my social media… but it will set you back a whopping £129! This led me to search for a cheaper alternative that still had some of the same qualities and I landed on the Wrischan handheld fan. Let’s get into it!
Honest Review
Bought & tested ourselves
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Overview
Shark ChillPill
Let’s begin with what Shark promises about its own product:
The first 3-in-1 fan, mist, and InstaChill System. This customisable, portable cooling system combines a high-speed fan, evaporative ultra-fine mist for indoor and outdoor use, and InstaChill Cooling Plate to instantly reduce your skin’s temperature on contact. Wear it, attach it, or twist it for hands-free tabletop mode.
The fan comes in seven colours and costs £129.
Wrischan Fan
The Wrischan fan we chose to compare has two of the three features that the Shark has – a fan with five speeds, and the water mister. You don’t need to attach anything on though, it’s all built in. It comes in a few different colourways (black, blue and pink) and will set you back the much more affordable price of £25.99.
How long does the battery last?
Shark ChillPill
You charge the ChillPill with a USB-C cable and it’ll take around 3.5 hours to fully charge. Shark says it should last around 11 hours on the lowest setting, and 1.5 hours on the highest. You can use the ChillPill whilst it’s charging, but only for the fan function.
Wrischan Fan
The Wrischan is also charged with a USB-C and will fully charge in around 3 hours – and will last from 4 to 17 hours depending on mode. You can use the fan whilst it’s plugged in.
What do they come with?
Shark ChillPill
Inside the box was the fan itself, the other two attachments, a USB-C charging cable and three replacement wicks which are required for the mister.
There are numerous accessories including wrist strap, clip attachment, lanyard and a carry case. However, these don’t come with the product – you’ll have to buy them separately.
Wrischan Fan
Inside the box for the Wrischan fan, you get the fan, a lanyard to carry the fan around your neck, a USB-C charging cable, and a small bottle to refill the mister compartment.
My Honest Review
Testing the fans
Shark ChillPill
The fan attachment is already on when you receive your fan. To turn the fan on, you press the black digital display and then twist the outside rim to change the speed levels, of which there are ten. On speed level one, there’s not much to write home about but then I cranked it up to ten. Whilst it was pretty noisy, it was powerful and I was impressed by how much range it had across my whole face. Having tested many portable fans over the years, I wasn’t – pardon the pun – blown away. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a very good fan, but it’s a quality you could easily find from fans for more than half the price.
However, we do have to remember that the fan isn’t all you’re paying for here.
Wrischan Fan
The fan is already attached to this product – it’s all in one piece so no need to remove or replace anything for any of the features. Simply press the on button and there are five different speeds for the fan. One didn’t do a whole lot but by five, it felt comparable to a lot of other fans I’ve tested before at a similar price point.
I do have to mention that by level five, the noise was quite high pitched, which I didn’t enjoy.
Testing the misters
Shark ChillPill
On a hot day, surely there’s nothing better than misting yourself in a fine cloud of water.
After removing the fan attachment (you simply twist it off) I was ready to attach the mister. However, before doing so, I needed to fill the little reservoir up with water. After spending a few seconds struggling to open it up (it requires a bit of force which terrified me that I was about to snap something off!) I was finally able to peer in. Inside, there is an area for the water which also has a wick pre-installed to purify it. Inside the box, there are 3 replacements which you’re instructed to change after 30 days of use.
After that, you’re expected to replace them yourselves which costs £6.99 for another pack of 3 from Shark. Or an alternative 50 pack for £8.99.
Finally, I was ready to fill with water. Now, I was actually surprised that there wasn’t anything to assist with this, but after making a bit of a mess, I was finally ready to test the mister. After pressing the black digital display as I had done for the fan function, I was dismayed to find it doing… nothing. The fan was blowing but there was no misting action to be seen (or felt). After playing around with it for a few minutes, I discovered that pressing the button again would activate the water. Now this was lush! It’s almost like a dry mist so it doesn’t leave you feeling drenched and it hits all of your face perfectly. This was my favourite part of the fan.
Wrischan Fan
Now the Wrischan fan comes with a little bottle to pour the water into the top of the fan. The top of the fan is translucent, so you can see when you’ve filled up the water to the top. Simply close the lid and there’s a separate button with a water droplet graphic on it. That sprays the water alone, but press the normal fan button too and they work together (which is the nicer experience overall).
I will say that even though I found the misting elements similar, the Wrischan one did leave me feeling slightly wetter. This may be a plus on a very hot day though, so that’s down to personal preference.
Testing the cooling plate
Shark ChillPill
I twisted the mister attachment off and attached the cooling plate which is essentially a round disc which can be used to press against the pulse points of your body. I was initially sceptical about this metal circle but within a few seconds, it got super cold and I can appreciate how nice that would feel on your pulse points. As a migraine sufferer, I did think how helpful it would be for that situation, but also as the plate is quite small it’s probably not as effective as using a cool strip across my head.
Overall, I did quite like this as it’s not something I’ve really seen elsewhere, but it’s a shame that in using this you’re then not able to use the fan.
Wrischan Fan
The Wrischan doesn’t have a cooling plate, making it more of a 2 in 1 than a 3 in 1. I guess it all depends on which feature you’re most looking to replicate from the Shark ChillPill, which for me was definitely the water mister.
Functionality
Shark ChillPill
The Shark ChillPill has a double-barrelled design where one column is the actual fan and the other is the part you can hold on to. However you can twist these to create an X shape and prop it up to use as a desk fan. There are also multiple accessories you can use with the fan like a wrist strap, lanyard or clip attachment but these are sold separately.
Wrischan Fan
The Wrischan fan is one straight column and you can push it forward or back to be used as a desk fan depending on where you want the direction of air to go. I liked that there was no faffing about with attaching different elements (the mister is simply built in) and that you get a lanyard included.
Who are they for?
Shark ChillPill
Whilst I don’t think it’s great value for money, I do appreciate that it’s a lovely bit of kit and so if money is no object, or you’re just looking to treat yourself to a fan that helps cool you down and looks good at the same time, then please don’t let me stop you!
Wrischan Fan
This fan was decent in my opinion, but it made a much higher pitched noise than the Shark which I didn’t love. I really enjoyed the mister on both of these fans so if that’s your main concern, you can get that element with the Wrischan fan for much cheaper.
My Final Verdict
Shark ChillPill
I know I’ve been a little sceptical but I do think this is a good product – it just has some flaws which I wouldn’t expect at this price. It feels a bit clunky to me, with too many attachments and I don’t like that you have to buy a carry case separately. Otherwise, I think the attachments would scratch up against the fan in your bag, and that you could easily damage it. Plus, if you wanted to use the mister you’d have to carry water to refill it and also buy more wicks to keep it working well.
Basically, there’s just too much to have to think about to justify the price. I don’t mind paying up for a premium product, but I want it to make my life better and easier!
Wrischan Fan
I did like the Wrischan fan, although the look of it is quite cheap in my opinion. The noise of the fan felt screechy to me, but the misting abilities were similar enough in my opinion that I would favour the Wrischan for that element purely, based on the difference in the price. I mean it’s almost 80% cheaper than the Shark ChillPill!
Both are decent options for different people with different budgets but I can’t help feeling like there must be more fans in the middle ground that may be more similar to the ChillPill – even if this means paying a bit more money! If you’ve seen any good suggestions to a true dupe then let me know over on my Instagram and maybe we’ll test that one out next.
