I ordered the 12" fan mainly for the lower price tag as I have used full metal 20" fans in the past. Now while this fan is not labeled as "industrial" it definitely fits the bill because of its build quality is much higher than those cheaper retail big box fans. And for 12" it works almost as well as a 20" equivalent and beats out those plastic ones.
Ive seen reviews of others having issues with the motor locking up out of the box and Im not sure how it could be that bad but I suppose defects do sometimes slip out. Mine the blades spin freely and I can also tell its ball bearing as when I was testing the fan and turned it off I watched the slowdown. The blades took a good while to come slow down to what I thought would be its stop point but instead then by physics rotated in the other direction slowly but smoothly before stopping. That was a wonderful sign meaning it was not binding and had zero friction. Just looking over the entire build just shows the care this manufacturer has taken with this fan. The control panel for instance is mounted to the back guard with a very short sleeved wiring harness going straight to the motor on the outside casing. The outer shell of the control panel is remarkably made of metal too but the back side that is pressed against the guard is plastic which means it doesn't rattle metal to metal.
Even the smallest touches like including rubber end cap covers for the nuts on the sides that you can tighten or loosen to adjust the fan how you wish. First time Ive seen that honestly they are a nice inclusion. Cleaning the fan will be a breeze too as it has only one small bolt and but on the bottom to remove then the rest are slide clips that you simply slide away from the joining guards allowing you to remove the front. The you can easily wipe down the blades and as I do with all my fans, add a little blue 3n1 motor oil to the fan shaft to help keep things spinning smoothly.
As long as maintenance is done to keep the fan clean it should last a very long time. It does have a replaceable fuse in the plug which is nice but there is a hidden thermal fuse on all these types of fans that is not user servicable. That is the fuse that is within the wire winding inside the motor casing and so if the motor gets too hot where its close to starting a fire, the thermal fuse pops for protection. This unfortunately means the motor is disabled indefinitely. Yes you can technically change the thermal fuse but unless you know what your doing and have all the time in the world to mess with it, its essentially considered non serviceable.
So it's very important to keep the motor clean as well with some compressed air (canned air is perfect for this too). Ive ran the fan for some time and it only gets slightly warm to the touch which is great!
Now for the fan speeds, you have your basic low, medium, high settings. Low speed on this fan honestly beats even a 20" lasko plastic fan on high. Its strong and the sound is modest so it would still be okay Id think for sleeping. Medium cranks the volume of air considerably and of definitely will notice the CFMs have become stronger. Again the sound level is just slightly higher than when it was on Low. Then finally, High speed.. this is when you'll of course feel the maximum force this fan can produce and its like a personal hurricane in your face! The sound is a bit higher but its not obnoxious but you can definitely hear the blades cutting through the air. For light sleepers it may be too much but for those of us who love white noise, its heavenly.
Ill admit since having it I mostly keep it on Low. Reason is simple, I eventually start freezing with the higher settings after some time! This fan may only be 12" but dont let its size fool you. It will hold up to even the quality built 20" fans and those plastic 20" fans cant keep up.
Oh and did I mention it also has a comfortable carry handle and cord wrap built to it just like the quality "industrial" style 20" fans?
If you're looking for a strong fan that is highly portable, easy to maintain, and works in small spaces then I highly recommend this fan. Heck if you dont want to spend over double for a 20" even Id recommend this one instead!