Vacuum Cleaners Discussions

Having another topic mentioned some new vax machines on a Littlewoods website, I had a look around to see what else might be new and came across the 'new' Dyson DC27 Upright, see link below:

http://www.littlewoods.com/rf/s.do?Np=1&Ns=&Ntk=littlewoods_search&Ntt=dyson&Ntx=mode+matchallpartial&Nty=1&Nu=this_product&pageSize=12&Nao=0&cmEvent=page_navigation

They have 2 Models on their website 'Animal' and 'All Floors', first look suggests an update version of the US DC17 but for the UK\Europe markets.  This will be the replacement for the popular DC14.  I thought a separate motor for the brush bar like the DC17 would have been standard, but looks like it uses the DC04\DC07\DC14 clutch setup!   Not sure as the website doesn't say if it just has a slim root cyclone technology or the core is included!   It does look like it has more small cyclones than the current DC14 and DC15 and DC25 models.  See picture of DC27 All Floors model below!  DC18

 

Trilobite wrote:

Trilobite - are you vacuuming an elephant house!? And if it doesn't 'Beat as it Sweeps as it Cleans', it's not an agitator, it's a brush-roll!

Model2 wrote:

And if it's a dyson, it's a brush bar!

Carmine D.

As promised, I've tracked down Which? Magazine's findings for the two current Dyson Ball models. Compare them with Consumer Report's findings, and draw your own conclusions:

DC25 Animal

Test criteria	Rating
Cleaning
Carpet
Laminate floors
Floorboards
Walls and corners
Performance
Allergen retention
Pet hair
Noise
Ease of use
General use
Emptying
Cleaning stairs
Manoeuvrability

DC24 All Floors

Test criteria	Rating
Cleaning
Carpet
Laminate floors
Floorboards
Walls and corners
Performance
Allergen retention
Pet hair
Noise
Ease of use
General use
Emptying
Cleaning stairs
Manoeuvrability

So, quite a marked difference to CR's results. Both models, coincidentally, achieve Which?'s 'Best Buy' certificate of recommendation.

Model2  I took the liberty to post side by side.  The test categories/criteria are not the same.  I matched the CR to Which?.  But it's "subjective." CR has not rated the DC25 yet.  Probably, in the March 2009 edition.  The ratings of a DC24 by CR and Which? are not markedly different.  CR's DC24 ratings are not necessarily bad.  Just a plethera of other US brand vacuums that perform as good and better.  WRT noise, Which? may be a more conservative grader than CR?

DC24 All Floors       Which?                        Consumer Reports

Test criteria	Rating
Carpet	Carpet       Good
Laminate floors	Barefloor  Excellent
Floorboards
Walls and corners
Allergen retention	Emissions     Excellent
Pet hair	Pat Hair          Fair
Noise	Noise              Very Good
General use	Handling         Very Good
Emptying
Cleaning stairs	Tool Airflow    Poor
Manoeuvrability

Carmine D.

CarmineD wrote:

Which? describe their sound-test thus: 'Noise levels are tested by placing vacuum cleaners in specially-configured sound chambers, surrounding them with carefully placed microphones to measure decibels reached.'

My guess would be that perhaps the average European cleaner is quieter than the average American cleaner. So a Dyson might seem quiet when compared to others in the US, but louder than others in the UK. In my own experience, I wouldn't say I find any Dyson - with the possible exception of the DC03 - quiet, but nor do I find them loud, and certainly not uncomfortably so.

Hi gang,

"Walls and corners" refers to edge cleaning doesn't it?  Which, by the way, is a term I haven't heard in a month of Sundays.  Has its importance in sales pitches dimished?

Venson

I notice 5 stars on Allergen retention. My question being...How was this determined? Was a particle meter used? With 5 or more seals that leak before the dust even gets to the HEPA filter how is a 5 star rating possibly achieved? On machines that have true sealed HEPA filtration systems, do they get lumped into a lesser efficient group of 5 star machines, thus negating their superior technology? Seems misleading and a dis-service to the consumer if that is true.

Venson wrote:

Hi Venson:

Interestingly, the HSN Julie HOOVER demo today keyed in on the walls and corners aka edge cleaning.  She used both sides of the nozzle head to show equidistant suction power all around.  One of the tenets of WT technology.

Carmine D.

Model2 wrote:
Wow!!  Sir James and his engineers invent a radical and new way to vacuum over the 120 (or so) year old standard, only to get a rubbish and/or unfair review.  I wonder what vacuum Which claims out-maneuvers the DC24 or the DC25? If lying prone is a criteria, then there should be a separate measurement for this. Readers, paying readers would benefit if Which could be more honest and clear. Not everybody can use a vacuum that lays prone (vacuums lay prone and not flat). Not to mention, that Dyson uprights all have a hose and wand (for a floor tool).

  If the Which Magazine’s editors and so-called technicians, judged the world’s first jet engine airplane they would rate it poorly because jet planes require a higher rate of speed to stay aloft - it would fail their maneuverability test.  These editors [at times] are idiots!

 Below is an example demonstrating how stupid and/or bias consumer magazines (Consumer Reports) can be.  Unfortunately those who work hard to engineer innovations for a tired appliance are not given the proper respect by way of a fair and comprehensive review and/or comparisons.

CR on stairs:  http://www.viddler.com/explore/InventBig/videos/40/?secreturl=64584337


DIB

DIB - both machines were awarded  prestigious 'Best Buys', and of all the 'Best Buy' uprights currently on sale,  the DC25 achieved the highest overall test score (70%). That's not rubbish by any stretch of the imagination. The Ball's innovative, but not perfect - yet. Think how many times Sir James had to redesign his dual cyclone system before he found the one which worked best...and think how many more times it's been reworked since then.

Addressing your point about Which? being honest, out of their 8 current 'Best Buy'  uprights, 7 of them are Dysons. I don't think you can accuse them in any way of an anti-Dyson bias!