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Let's face it, nothing is going to keep you 100% cool on a 100 degree day while mowing except a John-Deere with an air conditioned cab. So anything that helps is a plus. The Solar hat is just such a plus. Somebody pinched my trusty "Bombay Bowler" pith helmet (made in India) out of my car a couple of years ago. Since then I've bought about ten pith helmets, hoping that one would keep my head as cool as the one that was stolen. None of them did.

I'd been wanting to try a solar powered hat for some time but the price put me off. When the Amazon price was cut in half I couldn't resist. Mine arrived today and I tested it.

Yes, the fan only runs on solar when the sun is very bright. No big deal. If you can't afford the price of an AA cell for backup you need to go on government assistance or try for some stimulus money.

The fan stirs up just enough breeze on the center of the forehead to give you evaporative cooling on a hot, still, dry, central Texas day. I have fair skin and, like many men my age, also "have a hole in my haircut," making the top of my head susceptible to sunburn and maybe future melanoma. The hat itself is made of stiff shellacked woven fiber that shades the head but also lets air in and out through the tiny open pores. It's the perfect combination of shade and ventilation, and very lightweight. The internal suspension band is velcro adjustable and will easily accommodate the largest head size. The central brow portion of the band is covered with a porous sweat absorber, a small but nice touch. The hat is also well balanced.

One reviewer suggested adding a sun shield to cover the fan opening so your nose won't sunburn. This isn't a bad idea, and is the only modification I might make. If you want a powerful miracle of personal air conditioning, this is not the hat for you. But for the price, and a good compromise between lightweight and fan powered cooling, it is about as good as you're going to get. And yes, it's made in China, so don't expect Ford after-sales service.

By the way, the hat is patterned after pith helmets in which the larger portion of the brim shades the neck and the smaller part with the "cross-strap" shades the eyes and face. It is actually being worn backwards if it is turned with the fan at the front and blowing on the front brow. With this in mind I put it on "correctly" with the fan blowing on the back of my neck. It felt great. Try it, you might like it better this way.

UPDATE:
OK, third summer of use. The fan should definitely be at the back of the head and the decorative brim strap across the upper front where it belongs. I moisten the porous area of the adjustment band (now at the back) and the slight breeze from the little fan accelerates evaporative cooling at the back of the neck nicely. The designers weren't trying to duplicate the 220 Volt 15,000 BTU of a big refrigerated home air conditioning system, as some negative reviewers seem to expect. This hat remains lightweight while providing a little bit of active solar-electric powered evaporative cooling at the brow or neck area, nothing more. But it really helps when mowing the lawn in a dry, hot area. I plan to order a second one. I'm also thinking about installing a similar system in a real Woolsey style pith helmet to improve circulation around the head and out through the top vent. I might even rig a small vial of water to drip on the porous band area to keep it moist as it evaporates. The solar cell can be mounted directly on top of the top vent hub. I'll probably make a small stand-off cover over the fan inlet area to block sunlight on the neck.