Nitecore Blowerbaby BB2 Electronic Cleaning Air Blower
Nitecore Blowerbaby BB2 Electronic Cleaning Air Blower for Camera and Lens, 2.7kPa Dust Removal Wind Pressure, 80km/h Max Wind Speed, with Quick Release Brush, Lighting Function, Mode Dial
| Dimensions: | 20.2 x 12.7 x 5.6 centimetres |
| Brand: | Nitecore |
| Model: | BB2 |
| Part: | Blowerbaby BB2 |
| Batteries Included: | 1 Lithium Ion batteries required. (included) |
| Dimensions: | 20.2 x 12.7 x 5.6 centimetres |
A bit expensive but extremely portable to use and to clean the small devices. Good to have one at all time.
I am scanning tens of thousands of slides and negatives, many more than 50 years old. I had been using a handheld “rocket-style” blower, which quickly became tiresome, but the larger blowers like the DataVac seemed *too* powerful. The BB2 fit the bill perfectly, giving me fine-grain control over the speed and the option to use a brush for more stubborn dust, all in a single tool.
The BB2 is comfortable to hold (more on that later) and powerful. Having three speeds plus the built-in light makes it easy to spot stubborn dust on Kodachrome slides, which does not work with Infrared-based dust removal tools. The battery life is good, it charges quickly via a USB-C port, and performance is maintained nicely right up until the last 10% of the battery or so. The brush is soft, and can be extended to whatever length you need. The retaining magnets are strong, but not too strong – I see little risk of accidental damage provided the brush is used appropriately.
However, it’s not quite perfect.
If you’re a lefty, this device won’t work in your left hand: the air intake will be facing into the palm of your hand, which will starve the unit of air and likely burn out the motor.
The most ergonomic way to hold it is in your right hand, as if you were “shaking hands” with someone. However, held that way, your thumb is naturally going to fall onto the brush lever. But, if you want to using the device in the momentary on-off mode with that ergonomic grip, the pad of your thumb on your palm is going to cover the on-off button. If you want to use the momentary function, your grip on the device is much more awkward. I think this could be resolved if NiteCore moved the brush switch to the side of the unit, and re-positioned the power button closer to the nozzle – though that would have its own cons as well.
My final complaint is about the filter. On the original BlowerBaby, it looks like users installed paper filters the BlowerBaby 2 seems to use a fine mesh screen behind the yellow metal grille. I notice that I have some dust wedged behind that screen and the yellow metal filter that I am having some trouble removing. I would like future versions of this product to have a filter that can be more easily disassembled for cleaning.
Overall, I think this is a niche tool for scanners, camera gear (though I will not speak to its performance with sensor cleaning), and basic electronics cleaning. If you understand its strengths and weaknesses, I think you will be very pleased with the BB2.
This is a review of the Nitecore Blowerbaby BB2, with an ASIN of B0BHSVG55L.
Short version (TL;DR) – Negatives: Silent mode isn’t really silent. Limited accessory availability. Positives: Exceptionally solid. Surprising power. Good runtime. Nice filter system. Modular brushes. Useful light.
Long version
Simply put, this actually lives up to the hype. That said, remember it is just (little brush aside) a blower – personally, I found I still keep a Swiffer Duster in frequent use for getting more stuck-on dust off of objects I’m shooting. Still, in the blower role, it is amazing. Anyway, on to the breakdown
The negatives:
* Silent Mode Isn’t – so, in what’s probably a surprise to just about no one, silent mode isn’t actually silent. That said, once the fan’s spun-up, it’s about the level of a whisper.
* Accessory Availability – replacement filters, additional brushes, etc must be purchased separately, and, at the time of this writing, the availability for them is not-so-great. That’s something which may wind up being quite relevant, especially since such accessories are wear items.
The positives:
* Exceptionally Solid – the body is of stamped sheet metal, screwed all along the periphery to an inner chassis. The design of the stamping includes a number of what appear to be strengthening folds, which are also positioned to make it a bit easier to hold onto. Structurally, this is pretty nice.
* Surprising Power – this has enough power that, if you lock it on (double tap the button) and set it down on a flat surface, it will rocket along, pushed by its air blast. Still, as noted in my introduction, even that kind of enormous power (this thing isn’t light, so it really is moving a lot of air to jet around like that) sometimes isn’t enough to get stuck-on dust off, and you’ll probably want other options handy.
* Good Runtime – I found, starting from a full, fresh charge, that this can run for about 16 minutes non-stop on the Turbo (highest) setting. If you need more blower output than that on a charge, you may want to think about an Ego Leaf Blower . 😉 Also, it’s worth noting that the maximum temperature anywhere on the housing reached during that run was a mere 101F, meaning it’s not going to burn you even with extraordinarily heavy use, nor likely to burn itself out quickly.
* Nice Filtration – while I do take issue with the limited availability of replacement filters (as noted above), the filter system is quite well done. The filter media itself seems to be quite good, and the mechanism for changing it both produces quite a good seal and is easy to use, while rather safe against accidental opening.
* Modular Brushes – as I alluded already, this comes with a stock, general-cleaning brush, while lens-cleaning brushes may be purchased separately. Also, I’m generally skeptical of magnetic attachment schemes, but here it’s done well – the brush is perfectly secure until you don’t want it to be.
* Useful Light – on the other side of the nozzle from the brush is a small light, which is surprisingly useful, despite the somewhat strange mechanism for enabling it. (You have to hold the power button while turning the mode select knob.) Also, in case anyone might care, it’s a warm light – I’d guess, completely shooting from the hip, that it might be around 4500K.
In conclusion, if you’re aware of the limitations for this, want a powerful blower, and don’t mind stocking up on spares for the wear items in advance, this could be for you. It’s definitely well made and does the job with vigor and gusto.
Praktisch fr Einsatz an den ueren Teilen von Gerten. Wrde ich nicht an Sensoren einsetzen wollen.
Works exactly as advertised. Plenty powerful. Will be a staple in my camera bag.
The product works well then produces a forceful airstream for cleaning lenses and sensors safely. It has a filtration device to reduce contaminant in the airflow. It’s battery lasts a long time. It’s easier than working the hand powered rubber ball rocket instead
Geht deutlich besser als mit Balg und Pinsel, den man ja auch nicht am Sensor haben mchte. Bin hauptberuflicher Fotograf und setze ihn jetzt regelmig ein.
Great product, impressive packaging. Wish there is a info about additional filters though.
I ordered this Nitecore air blower to clean my digital SLR camera and other small electronics. So far I’ve used it about five times, and I have been quite impressed with it. It works well. I like it a lot.
I didn’t know what to expect when I ordered this blower, but I have been pleasantly surprised by it. It blows quite a bit harder than I was expecting it to given its very small size. Furthermore, the rechargeable battery lasts a long time. I can’t see anyone needing to charge more than about once a month.
So yes, I think this is a good blower. It works surprisingly well. I found it to be the blower I didn’t know I needed. It makes dusting off lenses and small electronics a breeze. It’s actually kind of fun to use. Like I said, I like it. And I am nearly certain that you will too.
If you have any questions about this Nitecore battery-powered, small electronics air blower, please feel free to ask, and I’ll try my best to answer. I hope you found this review helpful.
The product is made really well. I wanted something to clean my keyboard and other delicate electronics.This was the key to making that happen. The portability is great and the air power is more than enough. The air unit comes with a cleaning cloth for your camera lens.
I didn’t realize how badly I needed this until I had it. Since switching from DSLR’s to mirrorless cameras I have found that my sensor needs to be cleaned/dusted before every shoot (I switch lenses when I am shooting). 95% of the time it is a dust issue and a wet cleaning is not necessary. But Rubber Bulb blowers don’t really do the trick as dust can really cling to the sensor and it is annoying to wet clean just to get dust off. Using compressed air is RISKY but that’s what I had been doing the last few years, from a distance in short bursts, hoping that the nozzle straw doesn’t shoot out into the sensor or leak frozen liquid onto the sensor. Blowerbaby BB2 is much better. The optical setting feels very safe on a sensor and I suspect the turbo would be fine as well. The retractable brush is soft enough and static free for the sensor as well as lenses. The light is fantastic. The unit is a little bigger than ideal but still easy to carry and pack away in a camera bag. I am not sure abut the ergonomics of the unit: it is slippery to handle. The clicks on the rotating switch are too weak and the switch moves too easily. I found the rear placement of the blow trigger button really annoying when I thought it has to be held down to blow. Luckily, it turns out that a double click keeps the blower going and it is not necessary to keep holding the button down. Overall an extremely useful device and I would say a good value.
First of all, the packaging is fantastic, just opening it was an experience. Once I got it out and charged it, I went from cleaning my phone and lens, to an old game console, to the console in my car. Anything canned air does, this does. Between cleaning and restoring old game consoles, as well as having to clean my car a lot since I work in a dusty environment, this little guy is gonna be seeing constant use.
Highly recommended! This is the right tool when the bulb has failed. Has a filter so the air is always clean, adjustable speed and is suitable for camera equipment. A little bit loud on the highest setup but not a deal breaker for me.
Nitecore is a well-established brand that has years of experience with chargers and flashlights. They do excellent products and this one is no exception!
Is it a walkie-talkie? Is it a 15 year old cell phone? is it a bumblebee toy? No. It’s the worlds most overbuilt little air blower .
Holy moly this thing has the build quality of some thing that came from a science-fiction show. I own some little cheap plastic vacuum blowers but this thing is in a whole different league. Wow.
It’s basically all metal construction and it’s got a built-in brush at the tip and it blows air like it’s nobody’s business. USB-C you of course to charge it and you just hold down the button and it spits out air almost as good as a compressed canister. Not quite but it’ll do it for a lot longer I promise you that.
This thing is built like an expensive camera man. I’m still trying to wrap my head around it. I ordered it because it’s Nightcore and I have about 1000 other flashlights and some other camping things and I like the company and they didn’t let me down with this.
It’s a weird shape but I’m assuming it’s that way because of functionality. But I’m going to do some thing that I rarely do which is break my rule that nothing without a case gets no more than four stars. Because I love this thing so much I’m gonna give it five. Even though nothing begs for a slick custom-made nylon case like this guy, I’m gonna go ahead and be a softy and give this five stars. But Nightcore, if you’re listening, always provide a case.
I like to take my camera with me on vacation and typically that means a sandy destination. I noticed some of my pictures were not as clear as they once were. I suspected sand, dirt or some other type of debris had gotten in the when I was changing lenses. This little device helped correct all of that as I was able to get in and blow all the debris out. This also came with a wonderful white cloth that allowed me to get the smudges and everything off the lenses and it’s just like new. The box is very sturdy so you have something to store and protect the cleaner in after use.
Before getting the Nitecore airblower I had been using a little rocket blaster which I squeeze repeatedly to blow air which worked pretty good. A little tiring when used for more than small jobs though. This air blower was a little confusing for about 60 seconds before I figured it out. Initially held it like a radio with the the ‘antenna’ facing up which had my pinky finger accidentally flicking dial off a few times. Turns out it’s to be held upside down.
Some functions weren’t initially intuitive to me. To turn on the LED light you turn the dial to lock, hold the power button, then turn the dial to any on position. To operate the blower just hold the button and let go to stop. Also you can double tap the power button and it’ll stay on by itself – tap again to disable.
Product presentation is strong with this one. The outer box is custom cut with a nice slide-out action revealing a gift-box pop top then finally showing the shape cutout for the blower. I almost don’t want to throw away the packaging because it’s so nice!
The blower action is super strong. My rocket blaster was limited only but how hard I could squeeze the chamber. It’s about as strong as this blaster on “Optical” mode (2/3). When setting the blower to Turboo mode it’s just levitating stuff off my desk and sending it away. Stuff like manuals, receipts, screws, 10mm sockets (rip) starting mobilizing. It’s a bit noisy but that’s the nature of fans of portable size; it’s more about the intimidation factor.
It’s called a “Photography blower”, and I have cameras, but I’ve used it for everything but that. It has a brush at the end which I have yet to use. I’ve cleaned out keyboards, action figures, audio equipment, even my own hair. This thing is awesome.
The blower is super strong and keep the dust off my electronics device such as keyboards and camera lenses. It is equivalent to compressed air duster, but only cost you electricity instead of money.
The size of the blower is compact and the build quality is very great. The filter can be taken down for cleaning. The design team must have taken lots of consideration for the user experience.
The LED light is super helpful when inspecting the dust in the narrow areas of the devices. Highly recommended.
I am always nervous when I open my camera and expose the sensor or, in the case of a DSLR, the mirror. The last thing you want is scratches or some residue left behind. However, despite how careful you may be, you likely will get dust trapped on your sensor or the back of your lens. While it’s often not imperative that you remove this dust, it’s not always a bad idea. What *IS* a bad idea is using your mouth to blow across the sensor/mirror/lens – I guess it could work in an emergency, but you opening yourself up for other problems.
The Notecore Blowerbaby surprised me with how effective it is in cleaning my camera. the retractable brush is nice for breaking things free. I don’t use it to “sweep” across the area… I just do an occasional targeted dab to help get something broken free.
Notes-
– Good clean filtered air. You don’t have to worry (as much) about introducing new dust particles or things like moisture or (heaven help us!) oil residues.
– This thing is pretty powerful – amazingly powerful for its size. In a perfect world, I would probably wish for the airflow to be a bit more narrow, but even that would have some tradeoffs.
– The retractable brush – ok, be smart with this thing. Do not use it on surfaces other than your camera.. or if you do… don’t use it inside your camera. Again, the last thing you want is to introduce duse or some sort of oil into the inside of your camera.
– Be mindful that the dust on your sensor/mirror/lens is going *somewhere* that it might be blowing into your camera and not out of it… again, this probably won’t be a big deal, but there is a chance that this dust will reappear someplace deeper in your equipment.