The V8 Absolute vacuum cleaner is the second of the three interesting products from Dyson that we will be covering here. Earlier we looked at the Supersonic hair dryer, a device that looks like no other and is focussed on preventing heat damage to the hair. Although we don’t cover products in these categories as a rule, sticking to internet connected ones, we’re making an exception for these award winning and innovative items.

The Dyson hair dryer cost a whole ₹27,900. And the vacuum cleaner is ₹39,900, a price for which you can get about four regular and pretty good vacuum cleaners. The price tag is the first thing people visiting my nice clean house ask me about: just why is it so expensive? After a few weeks of use, this is what I’d say as I find myself seriously tempted to buy the machine...

Always at hand

These past few days, I found that whenever something was dropped or whenever I felt dust and dirt under my feet or it occurred to me to clean under some piece of furniture, all I had to do was grab the vacuum cleaner and go. Within a few minutes, it would be done and dusted. The V8 Absolute is cordless. That may be no magic, except that other battery operated vacuum cleaners are flimsy and low powered. The Absolute is neither. It’s made out of solid aircraft grade material and is powerful enough to do the job in minutes. It comes with a dock which fits on to a power socket and all you have to do it pull it out, snap the correct tool on, and swoosh.

An arsenal of tools

The unit sent to me for review included ten attachments, including extenders and the basic wand. The Dyson executive encouraged me to ‘play’ with these and see what seemed to suit best for different surfaces. There are tools for hard wood floors, upholstery, carpets, crevices and corners, leather, and some all-purpose ones just for dusting or picking up different sizes of dirt and debris particles. I’m assured that the various rollers and soft foam material in some of the tools isn’t designed to need changing or to go bad, but if a tool needs replacement, it can be ordered from Dyson. These tools are easier than usual to clip into the wand or directory into the vacuum cleaner. This doesn’t sound like an important detail, but in fact it is because it adds to the ease of use in a huge way.

Although the lot of the tools were in a bag, it didn’t look as it was made for them. I think what Dyson should have done is to design an elongated bag with pockets specifically for the attachments because if there’s one cumbersome task it’s pulling the tools out of the bag again and again when looking for a specific one.

One of the best features of this vacuum cleaner is the way you empty out its dirt bucket. You pull on a handle and the bucket drops down with its door open. You have to be positioned properly close to a dustbin or the dirt will fall on your own feet. The whole thing just empties out after which you push the bucket back in and snap the door shut. That’s it. The bucket however is the least sturdy looking part of the product. If that’s dropped or knocked hard against something, you’ll probably need a replacement. But since I didn’t damage it, thankfully, I can’t say or sure.

I found the Absolute’s performance totally satisfactory, though I can’t vouch for the product’s longevity and durability. It looks very well built and different from any other vacuum cleaner, using as it does, its own ‘cyclone’ technology to create a powerful suction of air. There’s a hepa filter inside the vacuum (and it’s changeable) so that the air that comes out of the cleaner is clean. In fact, Dyson says it’s cleaner than the the air around to breathe. The cleaner creates no heat as it works, which is another nice thing, and it’s very quiet so that you can easily hold a conversation while cleaning up. It’s actually usable even by a child.

Many people believe that vacuum cleaners aren’t meant for Indian homes. There’s too much dust and dirt to be handled by a vacuum cleaner. But as I’ve used it for some weeks, I’ve found it gets used often enough and the house is overall cleaner because I just rush and get it when something needs a quick clean. It’s overall battery life is 40 minutes, if you avoid using the extra blast button meant for specially resistant dirt, but I find I’ve never had to use it for that long at one go because of the frequency of cleaning having gone up. You don’t need to set aside a day to clean the whole house — the battery will definitely run out in any case — but the cleanliness builds up just the way dirt tends to. Allowing the domestic help to use was also no problem. Mine got used to it very rapidly and began to ask for it every now and then.

The Absolute takes some five hours to charge, which is really a lot. It’s recommended to leave it in its dock, plugged in and always ready to use when pulled out. You can’t use it when it is plugged into the electricity at all, so it’s truly cordless. It’s also truly expensive, as almost anyone would agree.

Price: ₹39,990

Pros: Well designed with tough materials, has HEPA filter for outgoing air, great dirt expelling process, very handy, light, quietand easy to use. A good number of tools that are easy to switch and clamp on.

Cons: Long charging time, can’t be used on electricity, very expensive, bag not really customised and designed for all the tools

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