Evapolar Evachill Portable Air Cooler Review 2022: This Tiny Device Makes At

By Malia Griggs

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Like many who work remotely, I can't say I miss much about corporate office life—least of all how damn cold the buildings I worked in always seemed to be. I’d bundle myself in sweaters and socks in the middle of summer, muttering darkly about "overcooling." But now that my dining table is my desk and my apartment lacks central air conditioning, I find myself sweating and constantly struggling to find a comfortable temperature.

AC on, AC off. Fan on, fan off. Window up, window down. During my two years of at-home work, I’ve spent many, many days throwing on and ripping off layers and fiddling with my various cooling devices. I find many fans just blow around warm air ineffectively and dry out my skin, while air conditioning units are often too cold (and costly) for my tastes. By chance, I noticed that something called an Evapolar Evachill personal cooler was an often-bought product by SELF shoppers (I’m a commerce editor here, hence my insider knowledge). Curious, I asked to sample one and was very pleasantly surprised by its results.

Shaped like a small cube that reminds me of a Bluetooth speaker, the Evapolar Evachill is an evaporative cooler that uses water to cool, humidify, and purify the space around you. It functions a lot like a diffuser; inside the cube is a filter and a reservoir for water, which you fill using about 800 mL (about 3.3 cups) of water and a clever little funnel that you can keep inside the cube itself.

Now for the science, which I’m paraphrasing from Best Buy's blog: Once you turn on the cooler, the water saturates the filter, and as it evaporates, the water molecules turn from liquid into gas. These molecules then draw heat from the air, cool it down, and add moisture to the air. The Evachill pushes that cooled-down air toward you using its internal fan.

The cooler also cleans the air. Its replaceable cartridge (which looks like a mini air purifier cartridge) is made from biodegradable basalt fibers which filter dust out of the air—one more trick a fan doesn't usually pull out. This filter ($29) needs to be swapped out every three to six months, depending on how much you use the device (notably, there's no signal to remind you to replace so, so that's something you’ll need to keep track of yourself). The cooler runs for nine hours on one tank—or a full work day.

The cooler lives on my desk, next to my monitor, which also powers it via USB cable. On days when it's muggy but turning on an AC seems like overkill, I turn to the Evachill.

To control the three levels of airflow intensity, I just push the single button on top of the cube. The lightest level feels like a refreshing whisper, while the most powerful of the three is like a strong, soothing breeze. All settings are very quiet and not at all distracting. On the front of the cooler are flaps that look like a car's air vents, which I can adjust so that the air hits where I need it to (in my case, the sweet spot is usually right around my forehead or around my chest).

Because the device technically cools with water, it's actually moisturizing (unlike your normal fan). I especially love this because fans usually dry out my contacts, but not the Evachill. Sometimes, I even put a few drops of lavender essential oil into the reservoir so that it dispenses into the air. I’m not sure that I’m supposed to do that, so if you follow suit, it's at your own risk!

Another major perk of water-cooling is that the cooler doesn't use the same Freon-like liquids and chemicals that air conditioning units do. Plus, they save me from spending more than necessary on my electricity bills. The cooler uses 7.5 watts of energy, which is up to 100 times less than what the average AC unit eats up, according to the company.

A few more features: The Evachill's body lights up blue can like a night light. Functionally, that allows you to keep an eye on how much water is left in the tank, but it's also just calming to look at from the corner of my eye while I type. The top of the Evachill has a built-in handle, which makes it easy to carry to and from my kitchen to refill it (though sometimes I get lazy and just bring the water to it).

The Evachill is not meant to be a replacement for your main air conditioner unit, but it's really great to have for the times of the year when a nearby breeze would be welcome, in winter for a bit of hydration for your skin, or if you live in warmer areas. The company says the Evachill can decrease the temperature around you by about 63 degrees Fahrenheit. I can't say how accurate this is, but it does drop the temperature enough to leave me feeling comfy, refreshed, and focused on my tasks at hand. And, as a perpetually too cold or too hot person, well, that's just what I need.

Courtesy of the brand