Infrared heaters have a markedly different effect to fan or convection heaters. The latter heat a room by circulating warm air which, over time, heats the room and everything in it. They also radiate heat, which is chiefly why it feels particularly warm when you stand directly in front of them. Infrared heaters, on the other hand, focus on this second method of heating. They directly warm up any people, surfaces or pets that their infrared light falls on. If you want to feel the benefit, you need to be reasonably close to the heater. Out of the box, the panel heater can either be wall-mounted or it can have feet screwed into place so that it can be free-standing. With the latter, the feet are fiddly to screw into place and the instruction manual doesn’t tell you which way round they should go; it just says that if the heater is tilting, you’ve got them on incorrectly. For instance, where a typical 1.2kW fan heater could cost upwards of 50p per hour to run, an infrared heater will typically cost a fraction of that sum, around 15p at today’s higher energy prices. Regular heaters make the air feel dense, which makes you feel drowsy unless you ventilate often for some fresh air. This cycle of letting warm and cold air in your room can be a waste of energy. While heated air dissipates easily in a ventilated area, infrared heaters do not rely on heating the air around you. Instead, in the same way the sun warms up the earth, infrared only heats the surface within direct range of the heater. Infrared heaters consume less energy because they don’t have to heat up an entire room, only the people and surfaces in it. This means the air remains cool and fresh, so you can continue focusing on your work or hobbies.

Given that the Kiasa is often mounted out of arm’s reach, you will be pleased to learn that it comes with a remote control. Alternatively, use the excellent SmartLife app to lower or raise the temperature or set a 24-hour timer. The best infrared heaters you can buy in 2023 1. Klarstein HeatPal Marble Infrared Heater: Best infrared heater for extended use This Princess smart infrared panel heater is part of a wide range of smart home items that can be controlled with your smartphone. Interested in other smart products or more information? Visit www.princesshome.eu/smart-products.From the app, you can set the heat mode (high or low), temperature target and toggle standby mode. The app also gives you schedules, so you can set the Princess Glass Smart Panel Heater up to work much like a smart thermostat. Foibles aside, this is an exceptional heater that’s marginally more energy-efficient and much more capable of distributing heat than an oil-filled model. Therefore, we have no compunction in giving it a solid recommendation. that need to be heated. The panel heater has a carbon crystal heating element. The quality of carbon crystal is very stable and has accurate heating temperatures and power settings. Carbon crystal has a very even heat distribution across the product and so with the same size unit, less carbon crystal is needed meaning lower energy consumption. The Princess is a great option that won’t break the bank – and, at just 350 watts, it’s cheap to run, too.

The Princess Smart Panel Heater has a luxurious appearance because of the glass housing and the LED indicators. Via the display or the app on your smartphone you can choose two different heating settings and set the timer. With the timer you can decide how long you want the heater to be on for and when it automatically shuts off. The panel heater has an adjustable thermostat and can heat from from 15⁰ to 35⁰. Princess’ app makes it easy to add and configure the heater, although on Android it nags you for Bluetooth and Location permissions every time you use it thereafter. I grumpily refused to grant them other than during setup, but the app still worked fine. If you’ve ever been to the Alps in winter, you will have experienced the sudden warmth on your body when the sun peeks through the clouds. One minute it’s freezing cold, the next you’re unzipping your skiing clothes because it almost feels like a summer’s day on the Costa del Sol. That, in a nutshell, best describes how infrared heating works. With the Princess Glass Smart Panel Heater on maximum setting, I measured the middle of the panel at 58C and the top at 78C, with the controls sub 25C. That’s good, as you won’t burn yourself if you need to adjust the temperature and don’t want to use the app.

Keep toasty and warm, without your bills skyrocketing, with our pick of the best infrared heaters

If you’re after an infrared heater that retains and emits a certain amount of heat once it’s been turned off, try the Klarstein HeatPal for size. The HeatPal works just like an oil-filled model, only it’s much more energy-efficient – and, in many ways, more effective. This is because it has a very heavy slab of unpolished Mongolian marble sitting behind the grille, which is heated by the element behind it to produce an amazing amount of heat that’s pushed outward and upward.

The Princess Smart Panel Heater is the perfect addition to your smart home. With the iOS or Android HomeWizard Climate app you can control your panel heater from anywhere you want. In the app you can turn the heater on/off and adjust the temperature. Set time schedules or start heating your bedroom while you are doing some cleaning up. This way you never have to sleep in a cold bedroom. On the other hand, halogen-equipped infrared heaters are much better at producing noticeable warmth almost immediately, since the halogen tubes glow red hot the moment you turn them on. This is the reason halogen is one of the most popular choices for patio heating. How we test infrared heaters The heater can shut off automatically by setting time schedules in the app or using the timer functionThis means removing and refitting two screws, but on my sample one of them was seized – I stripped the head trying to remove it, and ultimately had to make do with simply resting the heater in one of the feet. There’s no handle to help move it around, although this is a light heater and my sample never got too hot to touch during use. First, we examine each product’s overall design, its build quality and any special features such as app connectivity and thermostat controls.