Meaco MeacoFAN 1056P review: Worth putting on a pedestal

It might not have the brand recognition of a Dyson, Dimplex or De’Longhi, but Meaco’s range of fans is among the best around and includes such stalwarts of our Best fans roundup as the MeacoFAN 360 and the MeacoFAN 1056AC.

As the name suggests, the MeacoFAN 1056P reviewed here is the pedestal stand version of the latter, giving you one of the most powerful, yet quietest, fans around in a taller form factor that’s ideal for everything from a large living room to a sweltering hot garden room or conservatory.

Meaco MeacoFAN 1056P review: What do you get for your money?

This is Meaco’s largest and most powerful fan, only with a pedestal stand and a different control layout. The 1056AC has been the recipient of numerous awards, and it’s not hard to work out why. Thanks to some clever engineering and a DC motor, it’s impressively powerful yet simultaneously energy-efficient and quiet. The 1056P is essentially the same fan on a pedestal.

That pedestal design is worth talking about, though. The design is a bit chunky in order to manage the size and weight of the main fan unit, but it’s nicely sculpted to reduce the bulk and leave a shape that looks pretty good.

The base is big enough to hold the fan stable, even at higher power levels, and you can adjust the height by pressing a button at the back and pushing the fan unit up and down. At its lowest, the top of the fan sits 82cm off the ground, while at its highest it’s nearly a metre tall.

We’ve seen taller pedestal fans, but this is perfectly fine, unless you need to blow currents of air at a boy band as they stand up for their final key change, and that kind of thing died out with The X Factor.

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Meaco MeacoFAN 1056P review: What features and settings does it have?

The main controls are on the base, surrounding a digital temperature display with handy icons to show the current status of the other settings.

One button turns it on and switches between modes, while others cycle through the 12 available speeds, toggle horizontal and vertical oscillation on and off and set the timer, which can be set to turn the fan both on and off over a 12-hour period in one-hour increments.

In Standard mode, the fan runs constantly at whatever speed you’ve set, but the 1056P also has three other options. Natural mode varies the fan speed to give you a pseudo-random wind effect, while Eco mode varies the fan speed according to the current temperature; as the room gets hotter, the fan gets faster.

Finally, Sleep mode runs the fan at the current speed but drops the speed by one notch every 30 minutes until it reaches the minimum level. This is pretty handy if you need to cool things down at bedtime but don’t want a gale howling throughout the night. There’s also a manual control to turn the display off, so that won’t wake you up either.

If you’re not keen on bending down to tweak the settings, don’t worry. Meaco also supplies a neat circular remote control that clips magnetically to the centre of the fan, where it’s easy to reach. This has all the same controls as the fan itself, and in fact, we found the buttons were more responsive and the layout slightly more intuitive.

Meaco MeacoFAN 1056P review: How well does it perform?

Hold onto your paperwork, hats, lightweight snacks and poorly secured toupees, because the 1056P can be something of a hooligan. At its maximum speed setting we recorded air speeds of 3.8m/sec at a distance of 1m, putting it right in the top tier of fans for power. It’s beefier than the fairly mighty Dimplex 360 (3.5m/sec) and the Duux Whisper Flex (3.7m/sec), and the only thing we’ve tested that goes higher is the Meaco 1056AC itself, which registered 4m/sec.

It’s unlikely you’ll use it much at full power, but even at its lowest settings – where many fans are so weak as to be pointless – the Meaco still hits air speeds of just under 2m/sec, which makes for a nice breeze. Drop it into Natural mode and the feel of the varying speeds is surprisingly effective, giving you a nice, relaxing airflow with the occasional light gust of wind. Combine this with oscillation (60° vertical and 80° horizontal) and you can have that tropical holiday feeling in the comfort of your own bedroom.

Crucially, the 1056P can do all this without making a semblance of a racket. We can only measure fan noise inside a living room with a smartphone app, but the sound from the fan at a 1m distance was around 45.9dB with the fan running at full tilt, falling to 37dB at medium speed settings and 31dB at low. At this point it’s impossible to hear the sound above the ambient noise in the room, which is good news for sleepers given that the fan still has some cooling power at that level.

You can forget any worries about power consumption, too. Even at full power, our meter read just 18.3W, where less powerful fans read north of 30W. At low speed, we measured consumption at a mere 3.3W. This thing really isn’t going to break the bank, especially in the average British summer.

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Meaco MeacoFAN 1056P review: Is there anything we didn’t like?

There are no smart features, but these aren’t currently a must-have on a fan and the only real reason not to get the 1056P is that the 1056AC is around £30 to £40 cheaper. Personally, I think the more versatile pedestal stand and an improved control layout make the extra worthwhile, but if you’re happy with a fan on a table or at floor level, then the 1056AC remains an all-time great.

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Meaco MeacoFAN 1056P review: Should you buy it?

True, it may not be the most stylish or elegant pedestal fan, and you’ll need to look elsewhere if you want a retro vibe. And in smaller spaces, its sheer power is overkill.

Yet this is an astonishingly powerful, versatile and quiet fan that will help you keep your cool all summer long. There’s nothing better for a good-sized living room or larger bedroom.