We test Dyson and Dunelm handheld vacuums against cheaper Aldi version

14 July 2023 , 15:53
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These three popular brands are head to head for our favoured handheld vacuum- and the results shocked us
These three popular brands are head to head for our favoured handheld vacuum- and the results shocked us

Every household could do with a good handheld vacuum to get in all the hard to reach spots. For those with pets or small children, the mess can get quite on top of you if not kept up.

We wanted to make sure that for a good quality vacuum we are getting value for money, so we compared the most affordable and one of the most expensive on the market.

The market has a real range of products, with some costing as little as £20 , and the likes of Dysons and Shark costing, in some cases, anything upto £200.

It can be hard to justify the leap in price point without pinpointing exactly what you want a handheld vacuum for, and whether the extra money is worth it for you personally. The Dyson V7 Handheld Vacuum , for example, comes with a series of attachments for all different uses, and has a more powerful, maximum suction option.

Others have much more energy efficient usage, with less noise, less power, but can be used for longer and are better for those who like to block out a day for spring cleaning. Some also come with anti-hair wrap technology and some are engineered for homes with pets .

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To help you make a decision on whether you need to splurge or if the £20 option will do everything you want it to do, I put three handheld vacuum cleaners to the test. I tested Aldi’s Easy Home Handheld Vacuum Cleaner , Dunelm’s Handheld Vacuum , and Dyson’s V8 Animal Vacuum Cleaner .

I put the three to the ultimate test - my dog hair-ridden car, the taxi for two Retriever Labrador cross breeds, Alfie and Lacey. Being half golden retriever, both are extremely hairy and tend to shed in excess.

Aldi Easy Home Handheld Vacuum Cleaner, £14.99

We test Dyson and Dunelm handheld vacuums against cheaper Aldi versionAldi's handheld vacuum is a huge hit when available online- we had to put it to the test with other leading, more expensive brands to see what all the fuss is about

Aldi’s Handheld Vacuum Cleaner was the smallest, quietest and most lightweight I tried, and it handily comes with three nozzles, plus a charging station. It comes with a brush, wet suction and crevice attachment, which is particularly handy for cleaning a car.

The run time as stated on the box is 25 minutes, although I certainly ran it for nearer 35 minutes before it packed it in. Being so small works in this vacuum cleaner’s favour, because even with the brush or the wet suction nozzle, it can easily be manoeuvred into every crevice.

It has an inbuilt washable filter and is easy to take apart to empty. Despite being so small, I had no need to empty it mid clean as it really compacts all the dirt it takes in.

There were two cons to Aldi’s handheld vacuum. Firstly, the front part twists and locks into place after being emptied, but it is not secure at all and I got quite frustrated after it had opened several times during manoeuvring under seats.

Thankfully, the dirt is kept behind the filter so nothing spilled out. The other downside is this vacuum does not pick up hair all too well.

Other than that, this is a nifty purchase and I was wholly impressed for the small price of £14.99 some time ago online. You can still pick them up

Dunelm Handheld Vacuum, £20

We test Dyson and Dunelm handheld vacuums against cheaper Aldi versionDunelm's sturdy, handheld vacuum had to be a contender in our hunt to find the best home cleaning tool

I picked Dunulm’s Handheld Vacuum up online for £20. It arrived slightly bulkier than the Aldi vacuum, and it was much noisier. It also only has one attachment, which is quite restrictive.

It is slightly heavier than the Aldi vacuum, but not so that it would be a problem. It is quite fiddly to take apart to empty.

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It claims it only runs for 10 minutes from a full charge, but it ran for 20 minutes for me. It does take seven hours to charge though, which is long for its output.

Performance-wise it was pretty good for its price, although as it was a little bulkier, it was harder to manoeuvre around the smaller spaces of the car and under the seats. It worked best as a regular vacuum on the floor mats, which I took out to hoover separately.

This vacuum has real potential but I just think it fell flat by not including a few other attachments for versatility.

Dyson V8 Animal Vacuum Cleaner - £329.99

We test Dyson and Dunelm handheld vacuums against cheaper Aldi versionDyson's model is more on the expensive side- but how does it measure up with Aldi's cheaper alternative?

Costing much more, at £329.99, the Dyson V8 Animal Vacuum Cleaner is by far the most powerful of the three. It also comes with the most attachments, eight in total, and doubles as a regular and a small handheld.

I loved it straight away because of its variety of attachments which lent itself to many different uses. However, I was after one thing only, a clean car.

It is certainly powerful and even has a ‘max suction’ setting for those hard to reach areas. However, I do think it was lacking in having one, go to, multipurpose ending that works for things like cars. That means it needs to have good suction, good hair-suction technology and be easily manoeuvrable, which you would expect for that price.

The most disappointing part was that for an “animal vacuum cleaner”, it did not actually succeed in getting rid of much, or any of the yellow dog hair staining the boot of my car. The only thing that got rid of that was manpower.

Overall Verdict

We test Dyson and Dunelm handheld vacuums against cheaper Aldi versionThe footwells of my car needed some good suction power from the vacuums we were testing

Overall I think all three handheld vacuum cleaners performed well in different areas, but it was Aldi’s £14.99 handheld vacuum cleaner which stood out to me for its price and performance. For how lightweight it is it sure has some power behind it, and it was perfect for getting into the crevices of my car.

If you are looking to order one online, the Dunelm vacuum cleaner was not a bad substitute and in the same price bracket. The Dyson V8 is the most versatile, and saves you buying a separate big vacuum.

While I have no doubt the Dyson V8 would win in most other areas, it just did not perform as I expected in cleaning my car.

Stacey Dutton

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