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Guides and shortlists for vacuums and cleaning tools, compared on the figures the makers publish rather than marketing claims.
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Cordless vacuums are sold on a minutes figure measured in the mode you will not use, a suction figure most makers do not publish, and a weight that may or may not include the head. This guide explains which numbers to read, what they mean for an apartment or a house, and what the makers who publish honest figures say — with four machines as worked examples.
Shortlist · Cleaning
In an apartment a cordless stick is the only vacuum: light enough for a flight of stairs, small enough for a closet, and able to do 900 square feet on one charge — while makers quote run time in the mode you will never use. Six sticks from Dyson, Shark, Samsung, Bissell and Eureka, compared on weight, run time per mode, charge, bin and warranty as the makers publish them.
Comparison · Cleaning
The V8 is Dyson's entry stick: 5.6 lb, up to 40 minutes, a five-hour charge, no screen. The V12 Detect Slim is lighter at 5.2 lb, runs up to 60 minutes, charges in four, and adds a laser on the hard-floor head and a dust-counting display — at roughly twice the price. For a hard-floor apartment the V12 is the better vacuum; whether it is twice as good is the question.
Shortlist · Cleaning
A handheld vacuum does a ten-minute job: the counter after breakfast, the car seats, the stairs after the dog. The numbers that decide it are the ones makers bury — run time, bowl size, weight in the hand, charge time. Six handhelds from BLACK+DECKER, Shark and Bissell, compared on the makers' own figures.
Review · Cleaning
Shark's sensor stick reads edges, floor type and direction and adjusts power on its own; it also has the biggest dust cup on our list at 0.7 quarts, a HEPA post-motor filter, and a five-year limited warranty where Dyson gives two. The price is weight — 8.1 lb, the heaviest stick we have on file — and a six-hour charge. This review is about whether the bin and the warranty are worth the pounds.
