Extractor fan advice?

[GervaseFen]

Can you have an effective extractor without a hood?
And does anyone have one of those extractor fans that pulls down instead of up and do they actually work?
I have been looking at too many kitchen ideas and I see a lot of designs that have no top cabinets and no hood so I am wondering how it is done.

The countertop vents sort-of work if the flow rate is good, & the ducting is all the right size (usually isn't due to being in the floor), but they're still a compromise & will never be as good as a hood. They also become horribly greasy/smelly.

Really depends on how you typically cook, how much escaping smell you're willing to put up with, how much you're willing to prioritize aesthetics over function!

Thanks Furier! We cook a lot and in our current house have a big vent (thanks to reading advice on here) which works well.

Does anyone know well it can work if the vent isn't in a hood? I remember from my days of working in kitchens that this was common but they were powerful noisy beasts.