Has anyone used a Dyson handheld vacuum?

blizeH

I contacted Dyson recently about fixing/replacing my (very old) vacuum, they said as a trade in they can offer me £70 off their vacuum range, or £100 off one of their new ball vacuum range - I use my old Dyson exclusively for cleaning the car so it lives in the garage, and am getting fed up of having to drag my Miele vacuum out every day (or twice a day sometimes) to get the cat fur off the sofa, so figured a handheld one would be perfect for both cases!

Even their cheapest one I'm looking at £60 after discount, but would probably go for the DC34 animal, so £100!

I'm just wondering if they're worth the extra over regular handheld really - they seem to get fantastic reviews, but in some cases cost 5x as much!

penrhyn

A handheld would be useless for pet hair, you need the turbo brush, or failing that use a rubber glove to consolidate the fur then pick it up.

Slinky_Malinky

I have this one...the Dyson DC35 with the long pipe...and I find it great. It picks up far better than I expected, though I have to say I have not yet cleaned the filters so cannot comment on how fiddly this is going to be. It is so easy to have a quick wizz around with this in between dragging out the main vac. The only thing I would moan about is that the charge does not last that long and it takes three hours to charge back up. But I can live with that for the convenience of having a lightweight tool that works so well. I never thought I`d be recommending a Dyson as a Miele fan of many years standing but I do really like it.

I will wait and see how long it lasts though compared to the Miele.

Edited to say, no pets here so can`t comment on picking up hairs. But mine does pick up a hell of a lot of dust!

Kiran

I know you're asking about Dyson's and sorry for going slightly off topic, but we have got an electrolux corded hand held which we use for the car/stairs etc. It has a turbo brush and it picks up the hair brilliantly from our spaniel. I think it was about £40

HTH

Kevie192

Hi,

No first hand experience here but a colleague at work has just bought the Dyson Handheld (Animal version) and says its one of the best appliances he's ever bought.

The have a dog and a newborn baby so his wife loves it for hoovering up small areas rather than getting the big vacuum out. Also says it is brilliant for the car and less hassle due to it being rechargeable and there's no cable!

He's gone on about it so much I'm thinking of treating myself! Now I just need to find an old Dyson to 'acquire' so I can call them up and get £70 off it! Failing that, Dyson have some in their eBay recon outlet...

HTH

Kevin

grizzly1911

6 mins max power run time or 15 mins on min power for 3.5 hours charge seems a bit thin.

I like the older dysons, 3years ish ago or earlier but these handhelds do seem expensive.

kayl

I bought one about 2 months ago, and abolutely love it! I previously had a Dirt Devil, and there is simply no comparison.
I have 3 sets of stairs in my house( approx 40 in total), and it has made my life so much easier. As mentioned, it's also great for cleaning your car.

I had read all the reviews before buying it, and was aware of the limitations of the charge, but have had no problems at all. With the carpet attachment, I can clean all the stairs twice before it needs re-charged.

I got it from an ebay shop for £144 with free postage - I think that this is about £20 less than the RRP

Tea_Pea_Dee

Yep me, but it has gone to hoover heaven now. It had very good suction but the battery life was poor. In it's last days on earth I was getting about 6 seconds usage from a full charge. The battery was too expensive to replace, so it met it's maker. I would not recommend it.

penrhyn

Amazing how expensive Dyson' products are as he now gets them knocked out in a Chinese sweat shop having closed down his UK manufacturing operation some years ago. To my mind the advantage of the bagless design is completely negated when you empty the thing in a cloud of dust.

blizeH

Thank you all so much for the responses - I see your point penrhyn but unfortunately after reading this thread, and having read up on reviews etc (as well as the gadget show review) it seems that the Dyson is by far the best option for a handheld vacuum, and I have to say I'm really starting to see the potential benefits of having something that's so convenient to get out and quickly vacuum the sofa or the car.

Anyhow, just a few questions for those that own these:

1) Are the 'animal' versions worth the extra? Our cats do moult quite a lot, and can be a little mucky, but I've never once had a problem getting everything up with just one pass of our Miele vacuum. That has a 'turbo' (or animal) attachment that we've never even used.

2) Is the DC35 worth the extra over the DC34? The main difference seems to be the dock (which we wouldn't use, would much rather store it away in the cupboard under the stairs!) and the fact it has a long vacuum attachment, though I'm not sure if that's really necessary when we already have the Meile that we're happy with.

Thanks!

penrhyn

I dumped my Dyson some years ago which was replaced by a Meile Cat and Dog, would not go back. I do have Electrolux dust buster that I picked up in the local Ikea bargain corner, OK for fluff, but not the stuff that seems to stick to the carpets and upholstery.