Dyson has launched a brand new flagship cordless vacuum, and on paper it is extraordinarily spectacular. The V16 packs 315 AW of suction, making it formally essentially the most highly effective Dyson cordless vacuum.
After testing most of the greatest vacuum cleaners in the marketplace, nonetheless, I’ve discovered that it is not all the time all about suction. A number of components play into how effectively a vacuum cleans, together with the design of the floorhead and the way in which the totally different settings operate.
Once I was making an attempt Dyson’s latest addition out for my V16 Piston Animal assessment, I felt prefer it was doing a very good cleansing job, nevertheless it did not really feel noticeably extra highly effective than its predecessor, the Gen5detect. Actually, it additionally felt fairly just like the mannequin earlier than that, the V15 Detect (confused about Dyson’s naming construction? I hear you).
So I made a decision to conduct some side-by-side suction checks to see how the three vacuums carried out relative to one another. And I used to be shocked by the outcomes. Quick model: the V16 was the worst of the three, in all elements of the take a look at.
The suction checks
For my checks, I sprinkled piles of oats (to characterize chunky particles) and dry tea (to characterize wonderful particles) on a carpeted ground. I then vacuumed the oats and one pile of tea with every vacuum in Auto mode (the place the vacuum ought to intelligently alter based mostly on ground kind and grime ranges). I vacuumed the ultimate pile in Increase mode.
Under from left to proper on display screen are the V15 Detect > Gen5detect > V16 Detect Animal. You possibly can see how every vacuum handles totally different sorts of spillages.
The V15 Detect and Gen5detect each cleared the oats and visual tea on first move in Auto mode, and carried out equally effectively in Increase mode. The V16 Piston Animal would not fare practically as effectively. It scatters the oats within the first forwards move, catching most (however not all) on the return stroke. In each Auto and Increase modes, a strip of tea is left the place the middle of the floorhead has handed over it.
For the sake of thoroughness, I repeated the take a look at, with very related outcomes. You possibly can watch the video beneath. Right here, the vacuums are within the reverse order (left to proper on display screen: V16 Pistol Animal, Gen5detect, V15 Detect). You possibly can inform which one the V16 is from the otherwise formed floorhead.
Why did the V16 carry out the worst?
I’ve a robust suspicion that the weaker efficiency of the V16 Piston Animal is not all the way down to a scarcity of energy, however as a substitute a results of the brand new floorhead. Dyson fully redesigned its essential floorhead for this mannequin, swapping the Digital Motorbar head for the All Flooring Cones Sense head, which not solely has a silly title, however is – for my part – a downgrade all spherical.
The brand new floorhead swaps normal rollers for conical ones which might be designed to forestall hair tangling. It follows the identical precept as the favored Hair Screw mini device: lengthy hair naturally makes its strategy to the smaller finish of the cone, the place it may be whisked away into the suction tube.
In idea, it is not a foul concept. The sensible utility is the place all of it falls down. There is a hole between the 2 conical rollers, which implies a niche in suction – therefore the strip of tea left in my suction checks.
The border part across the curler additionally appears wider and grippier on the brand new floorhead, creating extra of a suction seal. That may assist with pickup within the curler space, however it could possibly additionally trigger points when making an attempt to clear up chunky particles. That is the explanation I believe this floorhead tends to push issues like oats round somewhat than sucking them up.
(By the way Shark has an ingenious resolution to this. It has added a flap to its PowerDetect Cordless vacuum, which mechanically lifts to permit giant particles to move below it when the floorhead is pulled again over the spillage, and flips again all the way down to retain the suction seal when the floorhead is pushed forwards.)
These aren’t my solely points with the All Flooring Cones Sense floorhead. The angled entrance facet makes cleansing as much as the sides of rooms way more difficult than it must be, particularly if you cannot strategy the world from the facet.
Total, it’s kind of of a disgrace, as a result of there are such a lot of different good issues concerning the V16 Piston Animal. However finally, if the cleansing powers aren’t as sturdy as on the cheaper, older fashions, it is tough to advocate.
