Dyson V8 Review

The Dyson V8 cordless vacuum cleaner is one of the best cordless vacuum cleaners on the market.  The V8 is twice as powerful as the V7 and cheaper (for the Animal model).  The attachments and tools that come with the V8 are superb and pick up the dirt better than most of the competitors. There are three models of the V8 available:

• Dyson V8 Animal

• Dyson V8 Absolute

• Dyson V8 Total Clean

We recently reviewed both the Dyson V6 cordless vacuum and the Dyson V7 cordless vacuum cleaners, so before making a decision we suggest reading both reviews thoroughly.

The Dyson V8 cordless vacuum delivers the best performance of any of the Dyson cordless vacuums that you can buy.  Each of the three models of V8 available boasts 150% more brush bar power. Brush bar power is the force in which the brush attachments spin at, like torque.  This isn't the speed in which they spin, but the force in which they move.  When you're dealing with high pile carpets you will often find that your vacuum brush may begin to struggle, especially if you have pet hair in the carpet.  

The Dyson V8 combats this by increasing the power available to the brush bar by 150% over the Dyson V6 range.  This extra power helps force the brush bristles into the carpet, picking up dust, dirt, pet hair and debris out of the carpet and into the suction container.

Dyson themselves claim that the Dyson V8 also has "twice the suction of any other cord-free stick vacuum".  That is quite a claim, but from our tests we would agree that the suction from the V8 is incredible.  Note Dyson's choice of wording there, that they aren't comparing it to all cordless vacuums, just cord-free stick vacuums, which generally have lower performance.

Like the previous models the Dyson V8 range consists of a main unit which houses the motor, battery and dust bin.  There is a long arm that can take a number of different attachments that clips onto the main unit. This design is a massive win for Dyson over other cordless vacuums as it allows the operator to remove the long tube and put the attachment directly onto the main unit, turning it into a handheld.  

So many people these days purchase a powerful upright along with a small handheld in order to clean their home more quickly and more thoroughly.  Dyson have seized that opportunity and brought to market a model of cordless vacuum that can do both. Unlike a lot of the other Dyson cordless vacuum models, the V8 range has a built-in filtration system that captures and removes allergens from the dust and air that it sucks in.  

The idea is to create a cleaner room in your home, not just because your carpets and furniture is cleaner, but the air is too. As with all of the Dyson cordless models, the magic is in the attachments, and the Dyson V8 is no different.  The three models available all come with a different selection of attachments that make the V8 perfect for any home, regardless of whether you have carpets with pets, or hard floors with spill-prone kids.

The Dyson V8 range all weigh in at 2.55 kg, which is more than the V7 (2.32 kg) and considerably more than the V6 range (2.1 kg).

The extra weight comes from a more powerful motor, which provides more suction and a higher wattage output. The bin capacity is still at 0.54 L, the same as the V7. The battery, however, is larger as the new motor requires more power. The battery also delivers additional run time.

So does the weight make a difference? Because of the way you hold the V8 it doesn’t feel like it makes much difference at all. Naturally you hold the Dyson close to your body so there is very little pull from the device on your arm. The additional weight only becomes problematic when reaching with the vacuum, often at arms length.

We tested this by holding the device out at arms length, and didn’t find it an issue. That said, anyone who is particularly weak armed may struggle. This really is nitpicking though, but we want to be thorough with our testing and reviews.

The beauty of the Dyson V8 cordless vacuum range is how agile it is. Despite the additional weight from the more powerful motor over the V6 and V7 range you can still throw the V8 wherever you need to. It’s no problem at all to reach into the top corners of ceilings, which ordinarily you would need to detach a hose or get a different attachment for with a normal upright.

Floor vacuuming is smooth and free as the neck of the floor cleaning heads pivot on a number of angles. You’re able to glide around corners and vacuum floors as easy as an upright but with the added advantage of the light and nimble body of the Dyson V8.

Getting under tables and chairs – a common problem with large uprights – is also much easier. Because the device is so small and light it’s easy to duck the device under the height of chairs so you don’t need to remove them first. Also, probably more importantly, because the device is so light, if you do bump into anything there is likely to be far less damage.

The Dyson V8 has the longest battery life of all of the cordless Dyson models.

It’s huge battery packs in 40 mins of continuous use in normal mode.  That’s 20 mins beyond the standard V6 models.  In max mode, the battery lasts 7 minutes – which might not seem like much, but max mode is designed for us in bursts on particularly dirty areas, rather than continuous use.

Interestingly, the Dyson V8 battery doesn’t lose power as it loses charge.  Many cordless vacuum cleaners are notorious for losing suction and power towards the end of the charge, but some how the Dyson keeps on going at the same continuous power the whole time.  This actually makes a massive difference in practical terms.  

I know from experience that when a cordless vacuum starts to lose its power I’ll tend to give up and go and charge it, otherwise I end up with a half clean floor.  The power could start to drop 75% through a charge, so with the Dyson V8 holding power so well, that effectively gives me an additional 25% of charge over other cordless vacuums.

First up in the Dyson V8 cordless models is the Animal.  The Animal, just like all Dyson V8 models comes with a powerful motor that packs 150% more power in its brush bar than the standard V6.  It’s also got double the suction of the V6, to suck up any dirt that the brush bar kicks up.

The Animal comes with a number of attachments and tools.  The first is the direct drive cleaner head, which has been specifically designed to help remove pet hair from carpets of all thickness and pile height.  This brushed head really works at clearing pet hair – trust me, I have a house full of white carpets and a black dog that does nothing but malt.

As well as the brushed head is the mini motorised tool.  Think of this like the main cleaner head, but smaller – it’s designed for getting pet hair our of furniture or stairs.

Lastly we have the rigid crevice tool for getting into corners and the tops of skirting, and of course the standard combination tool, which is basically just a tube with a slide on/off brush on the end.

But let’s not forget the docking station to charge the Dyson Animal V8!

The Dyson Animal V8 comes in at £350.  Personally, I think this is the best buy from the Dyson cordless range and where I would recommend spending your money, unless you have a specific requirement for one of the other models.  Take a look at the pricing and order for yourself.

The Dyson V8 Absolute comes in a very fetching gold colour.  With all of the standard Dyson V8 features, it definitely packs a punch, but what’s different to the other models?

Like the V8 Animal the Absolute comes with a direct drive cleaner head, which is optimised for removing pet hair from carpets.  It also has the mini motorised tool for tackling furniture and stairs too.  As with all cordless Dysons the V8 Absolute also has the docking station, combination tool and rigid crevice tool in the box.

The uniqueness for the Absolute comes from the soft roller head cleaner, which can whip up debris from a hardwood floor with ease.  There’s something oddly satisfying about the soft roller in action – just like the adverts it leaves behind a totally clean trail behind it.

The Dyson V8 has a relatively big jump in price up to £440.  It’s available to buy online.

The daddy of the Dyson V8 cordless range is the Dyson V8 Total Clean.  With all of the power of the V8 motor and bigger battery of the V8.

The Dyson V8 Total Clean comes with the full range of tools.  Starting with the standard stuff:

• Rigid crevice tool

• Combination tool

• Docking station

• Direct-drive cleaner head

The Total Clean also has the same soft roller cleaner head from the V8 Absolute model and the mini motorised tool from the V8 Animal mode.

On top of all that the V8 Total Clean also comes with the Flexi crevice tool and Up Top adapter.  The flexi crevice tool is like the standard crevice tool but with a brushed end on a silicon flexible pipe.  This enables the tool to bend and flex (hence, Flexi) around bends and into awkward spots.

The Up Top adapter is an arched brush tool that can reach over the top of cupboards, on top of doors or light shades to clean them without you need to get up onto a step ladder.

The Dyson V8 Total Clean is feature packed, but it comes at a price. At £550, it’s the most expensive choice.