Shark FlexBreeze FA200ANZ will blow you away (fan review)

The Shark FlexBreeze is a rechargeable, weather-resistant, oscillating pedestal or desktop fan that can run continuously off mains power or for up to 24 hours on batteries.

Before we start, I get hot under the collar when I see dopey, amateur reviews that claim fans cool. They do not.

They circulate the air and, at best, encourage sweat to evaporate, providing a personal cool feeling. To test this assertion, we use a Kestrel Drop D2 temperature and humidity meter and place it 1m from the fan in an isolated, temperature-stable room. Not one degree of cooling occurs.

Interestingly, Shark also offers a model with a water-misting attachment that provides a small degree of evaporative cooling. We did not receive that model to review.

The best way to measure a fan’s effectiveness is to use an Anemometer to measure metres per second airspeed at 1m and 10m. Despite claims, most fans have no velocity at 10m.

Australian Review: Shark FlexBreeze FA200ANZ at 24/01/25

WebsiteShark Clean Company site
Product page
Manual
Price$249.99
Misting version $299.88
FromShark Online, Harvey Norman, JB Hi-Fi, Appliances Online, Appliance Central, Costco,
WarrantyTwo years
CompanySharkNinja is a pioneer in small household appliances and cleaning. Its headquarters are in Needham, Massachusetts, just outside of Boston. Mann&Noble is the exclusive distributor for SharkNinja in Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, and Malaysia.
MoreCyberShack fan news and reviews

We use Fail (below expectations), Pass (meets expectations) and Exceed (surpasses expectations or is the class leader) against many of the items below. We occasionally give a Pass(able) rating that is not as good as it should be and a Pass ‘+’ rating to show it is good but does not quite make it to Exceed. You can click on most images for an enlargement.

First Impression – not whelmed!

Not whelmed because the website says it has a 20-meter range (most huge pedestal fans don’t have that range), and it is much smaller than you think.

It is a 30cm round fan and 30cm deep. It needs to be deep to increase the angle of the blades, which increases and focuses the airstream beyond its size.

It can sit on a 93cm high pedestal with a 36cm base. It cleverly converts to a desktop fan, with the 4-legged tripod taking up 40cm square of space—few desks have that area available.

There are three buttons on top for manual control. The IR remote controls fan speed (three), oscillation (45/90/180), Boost, and horizontal direction (vertical is manual). The remote attaches magnetically to the back of the fan. One interesting thing is that our Sony TV remote switches it off.

It appears well made despite being 100% plastic with Steel Grey and Rose Gold accents.

Our review unit also came with a weather cover, perhaps to emphasise that it is rain-resistant, although no IP rating is given. The manual’s fine print states that it is light-rain resistant.

Battery, airspeed and noise tests

It has a 14.4V/4A/58W Lithium-ion battery, which is within the safe 100W limits of home charging. Charge time with the 12V/3A/36W brick is approx. 5 hours.

SpeedFanFan and Oscillation (uses more battery)Airspeed meters per second a 1mNoise dB
1Claimed 24 hours Test 20+9-10 hours.8m/s50
26 hours4 hours2.4m/s60
32 hours1.5 hours3.6m/s67
Boost1.51.25.6m/s76

The charger has a 4.5m cord and must not be used outside in wet weather. Harvey Norman sells an optional 12V cigarette lighter adapter. It can charge in pedestal and desktop modes (the desktop socket is under its legs).

Shark FlexBreeze

Best Use

  • On speed one, it is quiet and does not interrupt sleep. Speed two is perceptible and may affect light sleepers.
  • On speed three or Boost, it whips up a gale and gets noisy. To be fair, it is no noisier than any other 30cm fan.
  • Its airflow is quite directional when not oscillating.

I think it is well-suited for outdoor use. Being battery-operated, it could be suitable for grey nomads and campers who carry power banks. As the maximum draw is 36W, you could get a day or so of use from a small portable power station.

CyberShack’s view: Shark FlexBreeze FA200ANZ is a quality, portable, rechargeable fan

After testing, my ‘not whelmed’ turned to quiet respect. It is not an elegant fan but precisely what you need for outdoor and casual use. There are better mains power options for indoor use.

Compared to more conventional fans, it is pretty chunky and heavy with a larger plastic fan head than others, making it a little unwieldy to place on smaller tables or surfaces.

It has a unique design for pedestal and desktop use and is backed by Shark Ninja.

Shark FlexBreeze rating

We won’t formally allocate rating scores as we don’t really have benchmarks to compare this to. It would undoubtedly exceed the pass mark for such devices.

  • Features: Pedestal and desktop is cleaver. Rechargeable battery for portability. Remote control.
  • Value: At the top end of rechargeable 30cm fans
  • Performance: It performs within the expected parameters. Buyers must realise that the 24-hour runtime is nowhere near that using oscillation and higher fan speeds.
  • Ease of Use: Easy to assemble, 2-year warranty and easy to convert to desktop.
  • Design: It may be a little cylindrical for some, but that is to focus airflow. It is good to have charge points on the desktop and pedestal.

Pro

  • Focused airflow
  • Sleeping ‘quiet’ on speed 1
  • Converts from desktop to pedestal
  • Rechargeable battery convenience

Con

  • Large 36cm pedestal footprint
  • Large 40cm desktop footprint
  • No height adjustment – may not be high enough
  • Slightly heavy to move, although it has a convenient handle.

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