How about a two-word review of the $300 bladeless table fan from Dyson? It blows.

If you found yourself shopping for a new fan during last week's early heat wave, you might have seen the Dyson Air Multiplier fan featured in last Sunday's Target circular. I'll bet you did a double take on the price. At $300, you might have thought it must be a portable air conditioner. It's not. It's another "state of the art" appliance from Dyson, the company that also sells high-priced vacuums.

The fan works by sucking in air from the base and enhancing its force as it is pushed through an opening around the ring. Like conventional fans, it also has an oscillation button, variable speeds, and a tilt feature.

In the July issue of Consumer Reports, out this week, the magazine liked everything about the fan except its price. Blindfolded testers couldn't feel a difference between Dyson's "smooth uninterrupted air flow with no buffeting" and the plain Jane air flow from conventional table fans costing $17 to $35.

Online reviews have been mixed. While some praise its sleek design, others compare it to a salon hair dryer or Rosie the robot from "The Jetsons." I expected it to be quieter than a conventional fan, and it is slightly quieter than a small Allaire fan I purchased at Restoration Hardware for $80. But at higher speeds, the Dyson is not whisper quiet.

I didn't see any takers or gawkers when I saw the fan on display at Target last week. A Target spokesman did not comment on sales of the fan, and no comments about the product have been left at Target.com, even though the product has been on the site since its release in March. Employees at a couple of Bed, Bath & Beyond stores said that they have sold a few and that none has been returned. Dyson wouldn't release sales figures on the fan.

The Dyson comes in two sizes, a 10-inch model ($300) and a 12-inch ($330), and two color combinations, blue/silver and white/silver. It's available at Bed, Bath & Beyond, Best Buy and Target. It has not been on sale yet, although you can get a 20 percent discount if you have a coupon from BB&B. Dyson has patented the bladeless technology, so don't expect any similar products at a lower price, at least until the patent expires.

Overall, the Air Multiplier doesn't look like a typical fan, but its performance is about the same. They all move air. If you have kids or pets that can't keep their paws out of moving blades, put the fan out of reach -- or splurge on a Dyson.

John Ewoldt • 612-673-7633 or jewoldt@startribune.com. If you spot a deal, share it at www.startribune.com/blogs/dealspotter.