Introduction

Dyson’s certainly not new to the world of purification, but for homes, it’s largely focused on multi-purpose purifying fans. The Dyson HushJet Purifier Compact HJ10 is different, as it’s a single-purpose purifier-only device.

Shaped like a jet engine, this compact purifier sits out of the way and gently cleans the air of pollutants. It’s a touch more expensive than much of the competition, but its quiet operation, powerful performance and smart app make it a cut above some of the best air purifiers on the market.

Design and Features

• Jet engine design
• Simple controls
• Works with the MyDyson app

While Dyson’s multi-purpose fan-purifiers (or even fan-heater-purifiers, as with the Dyson Purifier Hot+Cool HP1) are very good, not everyone wants the extra features and would prefer a dedicated purifier only, which is where the Dyson HushJet Purifier Compact HJ10.

Although it’s built with Dyson’s usual quality and attention to detail (and available in both white and the black/teal version that I have on review here), the Dyson HushJet Purifier Compact HJ10 is largely designed to be tucked out of the way, and can be placed in the corner of a room or next to furniture.

Attractive as it is, then, this is a product that can be hidden, doing its job of cleaning the air while sitting out of sight.

The reason that the Dyson HushJet Purifier Compact HJ10 can be tucked out of the way is because of its design. Air is drawn in through the sides, and through the filters, and then clean air is blown straight up, so you don’t get a cold draft.

You’ll notice that the top of the purifier looks like a jet engine, which is exactly where the inspiration came from. It’s not just about looks, as the cone helps the purifier expel air quietly.

Dyson says that this purifier can deal with rooms up to 100m², which is a considerably larger space than most purifiers of this physical size, such as the Levoit Core 600S. Effectively, you can use the Dyson HushJet Purifier Compact HJ10 in pretty much any space in a regular home.

Inside the purifier are two filters: a 360 electrostatic air purifier filter and a 360 activated carbon gas + odour air filter. The latter is for gases and odours, and should be replaced yearly (£35). Impressively, the electrostatic filter is designed to last for five years (£50 for a replacement), lasting much longer than traditional filters while still able to suck up 99.97% of particles as small as 0.3 microns – that’s everything from mould spores and dust to pet dander.

While Dyson’s fans are all controlled via a remote, the Dyson HushJet Purifier Compact HJ10 has physical buttons on the front, reflecting its straightforward job. In most cases, you probably won’t even need to touch the controls, as you can leave the purifier on auto mode, where it uses its PM2.5 and PM10 sensors to detect the level of small particles in the room, and adjust fan speed accordingly.

Buy a more expensive Dyson purifier fan, such as the Dyson Purifier Hot+Cool Formaldehyde, and you get a wider range of sensors, including NO₂ and formaldehyde, so the purifier can react to a wider range of pollutants.

Using particulate sensors only saves on cost, and a lot of home pollutants are carried through small particles, which this purifier will sense. And, while it’s running, it will deal with odours and even gases, such as NO₂.

From the front control panel, there’s a power button to turn the machine on and off. Next to this is the fan speed button, which cycles between three available fan speeds (low, mid and high) and the auto mode.

In addition, press this button and leave it when the moon icon appears, and the purifier will switch between normal operation and the quiet nighttime mode. 

There’s also the ‘I’ button that cycles the screen between the information screens, showing the general air quality graph, plus detailed information for PM2.5 and PM10.

Connect the Dyson HushJet Purifier Compact HJ10 to the MyDyson app, and you can remote control the device and schedule it, plus get Alexa voice control. While the app largely replicates what’s available through the controls on the front, it gives a wider set of fan speeds (10 in total), plus a sleep timer.

The app also shows the current air quality, and I could turn on continuous monitoring, which lets the purifier keep tabs on air quality even when it’s turned off.

Performance

• Quiet
• Sensitive sensors
• Cleans quickly

I had the Dyson HushJet Purifier Compact HJ10 running in my office for a few weeks to see how it reacted to a regular environment. As I’ve found with previous Dyson purifiers, the HushJet Purifier Compact HJ10’s sensors are excellent, picking up changes in the atmosphere and fine-tuning fan speed.

For example, my long-haired cat came strolling into the office, and a few seconds later, the Dyson HushJet Purifier Compact HJ10 increased its fan speed slightly to deal with the particulate matter in the air.

It shows that the Dyson HushJet Purifier Compact HJ10 can be left to do its job automatically, and that you don’t have to set the fan speed manually.

On its lowest fan speed, I measured the Dyson HushJet Purifier Compact HJ10 at 34.8d to 37.9dB, so I couldn’t hear it over the regular background noise. At the middle speed, the 37.9dB that I registered was from just a gentle background hum. On the highest speed, at 53.3dB, the fan is loud enough to be heard but certainly quiet enough that the Dyson HushJet Purifier Compact HJ10 isn’t annoying to be in the same room as.

To test performance, I lit a smoke pellet, which burns for 60 seconds and is a source of particulate matter. It didn’t take long for the Dyson HushJet Purifier Compact HJ10’s sensors to pick up the change and increase the fan speed to maximum.

I timed how long it took for the X-Sense alarm to state that the level of smoke was safe. This took a speedy 9m 15s. It took a further 4m 13s (13m 28s in total) for the Dyson HushJet Purifier Compact HJ10 to register normal air quality again, which is exceptionally fast.

Should you buy it?