June 26 update: This post, first published on Tuesday, June 23, was updated to add more details of the new product, and reactions to it from early users.
Summer has arrived — with a vengeance, you might say, in some places. Europe is sweltering and the U.K has hit its highest-ever recorded temperature for June on Wednesday, June 24. Sony’s portable aircon unit is now available for pre-order in the U.S., and the price is keener than expected.
Mind you, there’s a sting in the tail: those sweltering in the summer temperatures may feel that it really can’t arrive soon enough, but although pre-orders are live, it won’t be in users’ hands until next month.
In the meantime, the device is causing strong reactions in some of the people who have used it. More on that below.
How The Sony Wearable Aircon Works Without Blowing Air
The Reon Pocket Pro Plus is a curious device, which I previewed in May. Unlike portable fans, it aims to cool you down in a different way, with no movement of air that you can feel.
Instead, it has a cooling plate which is placed on your skin, on the back of your neck and top of your spine. It’s designed to sit under your clothing to be reasonably unobtrusive, save for two elements.
The first is an adjustable neckband of flexible tubing which holds the rear plate in place, though this could sit under your shirt collar as well to make it less obvious.
The second is a vent which pokes out above your clothes, to move warm air away from you. if you have a collared shirt on, it has an extension to go the extra inch or two. The vent means that hot air is moved away from your body, rather than heating you further.
Additionally, it has a separate tag which you can attach to clothing or to your bag, for instance. This measures the ambient temperature in a way that something in your clothing wouldn’t be able to, and the tag on this model is smaller than on previous iterations of the device. Additionally, it is designed to measure humidity as well as temperature.
Improved Performance: 20% Stronger Cooling And App Integration
In practice, the temperature change of the nape of your neck is said to have a disproportionately good effect in cooling you down all over.
You can control the temperature from buttons on the device or through a smartphone app, which allows for more granular control and extra features.
The latest model goes 20% cooler than the last-generation Reon. If you don’t turn it up to the coldest temperature it will last up to ten hours (and if the heat in London right now is anything to go by, you may need all of that).
The performance also includes a system which automatically shuts the Reon Pocket Pro Plus down if it comes close to overheating (which would warm you up instead of cooling you down, obviously).
In winter, it can be used to warm you up instead of cooling you, but such a prospect is almost unimaginable right now.
As well as the physical buttons, which are rubberized and textured to make them more convenient to use, the new model also has a Smart Mode which is designed to adjust the temperature automatically.
U.S. Pricing And Release Date Schedule
Pricing in the States is lower than expected: $259.99, better than the $270 plus sticker which had been predicted. In the U.K., where it went on sale in May, the price is £199. Pre-orders are open at electronics.sony.com with shipping estimated to start in late July.
Early Reports Show An Appetite For The Device
Compared to earlier versions of air conditioner unit from Sony, the new model has been found to be more comfortable and more effective. That’s according to Trusted Reviews, though the same post adds that while the price hasn’t increased, it’s quite expensive (it’s true that you could buy a basic hand fan for much less).
“For 2026, Sony has revised the neckband design and employed clever new algorithms to potentially get two degrees lower than its predecessor,” the writer noted.
The new neckband means the unit “actually stays on your back properly,” feeling more secure and, as a result making the cooling effect better.
Though the new model is a touch heavier than the last model, the weight distribution prevented it from becoming fatiguing to wear for long periods, the article said.
The response wasn’t universally positive, though. “The only area where I’m a little disappointed is that the charging speeds via USB-C are quite slow. Sony says it can take around 200 minutes to get back to 100% from empty, and while it took closer to three hours in my experience, that’s still quite a time to wait,” the article pointed out.
Meanwhile, Max Freeman-Mills at T3 described the unit at “the biggest U.K. heatwave hack,” and it’s worth remembering that Britain has just confirmed its highest-ever recorded June temperature, for the third day running.
Freeman-Mill explained that “This isn’t a device that’ll instantly bring your body temperature down steeply in a minute, but it is one that can help you feel less hot when worn over a longer period of time.”
Freeman-Mills also noted the high price, however, and seemed pleased, but not won over by it.
“Sony might have been a little early with the Reon, though, and even this flagship new version feels like it’s a little too gimmicky to really be a mainstream success,” he concluded.
