Dyson. It makes you think of the creepy dude in the commercials that claims to have reinvented everything. He’s pompous. But he’s sort of right. Dyson has been king of the vacuum space for over a decade now. Some of that can be chalked up to hype and marketing. I for one have scoffed at their vacuums many times (including on this site). But I have given in. When Dyson announced their V8 cordless line I got excited. A cordless vacuum with all of the power and a battery life that can actually last until you have finished the job? Is it possible? I would argue not only is it possible, but I think Dyson has actually just created the best vacuum cleaner available (cordless or otherwise).
Pros:
- Great design
- Awesome ergonomics that make it simple to navigate
- Insanely powerful
- Great attachments
- Better dirt drum design that makes it easier to empty
- 40 minute battery life (for real)
Cons:
- Expensive (like… quite expensive)
- Can sometimes be too powerful and launch little particles when you roll over them
- Have to hold down on the trigger while vacuuming
First off: this review is on the Dyson V8 Animal model. This is the middle of the road model with the grey design as opposed to the orange Dyson V8 Absolute which is pretty much the same but with an additional motor head.
When Dyson announced these new vacuums I was pretty skeptical. Could it actually deliver 40 minutes of vacuuming power? Well, let’s get down to the nitty gritty details…
First off is the design. I would say that they took the “if it ain’t broke don’t fix it” approach here. It is largely the same design language that everyone loved in the V6 line. It still has the aggressive-looking digital motor design on the handle and a slick looking aluminum tube that connects the main motor head to the unit. Overall I’d say it looks great. In terms of just straight looks I would say that the Dyson V8 Animal is nicer looking than the more expensive V8 Absolute which has a bright orange pipe instead of the more understated grey on the Animal.
But what about how the design functions? Well, I have to say, this is probably the most maneuverable vacuum I have ever used. The large motor head can swivel on a dime and the whole unit easily reaches under couches with little effort. Compare that to my old Miele canister and it is night and day. You do have to depress the trigger on the unit at all times while vacuuming which could be seen as annoying, but it makes sense for a vacuum that has lithium ion batteries powering it. Once the trigger is depressed you see bright blue LED’s on the side light up. These also double as a battery read-out which shows you how much juice you have left.
The cordless nature of this vacuum is what drew me to it in the first place. Now I will never be able to go back to a corded vacuum ever again. I am now spoiled. And the best part is that I’m not missing out on anything by going cordless anymore.
Here is the main motor head attached to the digital motor. Sleek and stylish.
You see, cordless vacuums have always been a trade-off between convenience and battery life (and to some degree power). With the V8 Animal, Dyson has broken free from that issue. The Dyson V8 is quoted at getting 40 minutes on a single charge. In my tests I got just a few minutes less than 40 minutes so that estimate is pretty much bang on. When you have a larger mess you can switch the V8 onto it’s “MAX” or Turbo mode. This drains the battery significantly faster (probably about 7-10 minutes) so obviously you shouldn’t be using this all of the time.
From my experience the suction power on even the normal mode is more than enough for most jobs. I have had no problem with: dust, kitty litter, glass shards, and of course Cheerios. The motor head is well-design and can suck up objects that are butted right up against baseboards. I have never used a vacuum that can do this. It pulled so much cat hair out of what I thought was a well-vacuumed carpet that I felt bad for my old Miele. The Dyson V8 is a couple notches above everyone else in the industry at this point in terms of power. And did I mention it’s cordless?
In terms of what you get in the box, the Dyson V8 Animal is fully tricked out. It comes with a whopping seven attachments (including a full size and mini powered motor head) as well as a handy wall-mountable charging dock.
The Dyson V8 comes with these six attachments as well as the full-size motor head
The wall-mounted charging dock is very handy
Attachments are easily removed and replaced with a simple red button mechanism that you can see below. It’s super easy and makes me actually want to use the attachments. My personal favorite is the rounded brush attachment seen below which is awesome for getting in crevices and vacuuming slightly more delicate surfaces. The only issue I can see with the attachments is that there is only room on the wall-dock for two of them. The rest I had to stow away in a rubber container under the couch. It’s not a big deal but it does take away from the convenience factor.
The unit comes with two filters. One on the back exhaust port and one that pulls out from the middle of the digital motor. Dyson says that you need to wash these with water once every month and I would say that is about right. I’ve cleaned my a couple times and there was noticeable gunk on both (which I think is a sign that they are doing their job very well). Both filters are super easy to pull out of the unit for cleaning which is a testament to the careful design by the team at Dyson.
What about noise? Well, I can compare this to my Miele S2 and this is much quieter. It’s not something you want to use next to someone who is sleeping, but it is in the quieter range for a vacuum of its power.
The next big change this year with the Dyson V8 is the dirt drum. For years people have complained about previous models not ejecting dirt properly and having to dig their hands in to pull out everything. Luckily that is no longer the case. The redesigned dirt drum successfully ejects dirt now! I haven’t had to put my hand in the drum at all thanks to the built in mechanism that pulls the dirt out and snaps to eject it with force. Check out it in action below:
I have had the Dyson V8 Animal for about two months now and haven’t really found anything to complain about. I use it daily in my apartment and can easily get through the entire place on a single charge. In fact, I think I have only gotten down to 1 power bar (out of 3) on the unit once and that was when I was using it to clean my car (which it is superb at by the way). I’ve never had a cleaner car…
Overall, I would say that we finally have a vacuum that is cordless but doesn’t settle. Everything that annoys you about corded vacuums simply doesn’t exist here. Everything that was nagging with previous Dyson cordless models has been addressed. Superb battery life, excellent design, better dirt drum… Dare I say that I have found the perfect vacuum? I think so. If you can stomach the high price I would say pick this vacuum up in a heartbeat. Even consider replacing your current corded model with this amazing vacuum.
Dyson V8 Absolute Cordless Vacuum
4 used from $229.99
Features
| Part Number | 214744-01 |
| Model | 214744-01 |
| Color | Blue and Yellow |
Dyson V8 Animal+ Cordfree Rechargeable Stick Vacuum
$298.90 in stock
Features
| Part Number | 2200022 |
Dyson V11 Torque Drive Cordless Vacuum Cleaner, Blue
2 used from $419.99
Features
- Twice the suction of any cord-free vacuum. Up to 60 minute run time in Eco mode with full charge.
- High Torque cleaner head intelligently adapts to different floor types in Auto mode
- LCD screen displays run time countdown and machine performance in real time
- Dyson Digital motor V11 helps deliver 40% more suction power than the Dyson V8 cord-free
- Whole-machine filtration captures 99.97% of microscopic dust particles as small as 0.3 microns
Everywhere or everytime I heard Dyson v6 model vacuum cleaner. Today I heard that it has another related vacuum cleaner product v8. The product looks like amazing and high smart features. Customer or user like latest product and specification…I hope Dyson V8 fulfill their demand easily.