Dyson V11 Absolute 268700-01, Blue, Nickel, 38.6 W, 0.76 liters, 84 Decibeles

Product Information

If you want a single vacuum cleaner for all jobs, rather than having to switch between a plug-in cleaner and a cordless model, this is for you.

Her house also boasts a variety of floor types – tiled flooring, carpet, wooden floors and lino, all of which the Dyson cleaned beautifully. There’s no loss of suction as the battery depletes either – something that was an issue with the cordless Gtech HyLite during testing. The Dyson's Radial Root Cyclone™ technology also flings dust straight into the bin so as to not clog the filter. That said, unless noise is a particular issue for you, the advantages of this vacuum cleaner more than outweigh its volume levels. On top of that, the Anti-tangle hair screw is a small conical brush that has tufts of bristles angled in such a way that strands of pet and human hair automatically move towards the slimmer end of the tool rather than getting caught around the brush bar itself. Moving seamlessly between floor types, the Dyson V11 Absolute is a breeze to use on a day-to-day basis. The suction adjusts automatically depending on floor type to ensure optimal battery life and efficient cleaning – there's 185 air watts of suction power in boost mode. Any way you cut it, this is an expensive vacuum cleaner and one that many people may find it hard to justify.Large debris (rice, spilled cereal and dried leaves) were whisked away in no time, and smaller debris (toast crumbs, washing powder and sugar) vanished in just a couple of swipes. If you’ve used a V10, then the Dyson V11 will look familiar. It retains the same basic design, with the large bin (big enough for getting around a standard house) inline with the motor for better performance over the older models, such as the Dyson V8.

In the US, you can get two different models of the new cordless vacuum. Both come with the new High Torque cleaner head (more on that later) and a range of additional cleaning accessories. If you plug in the new High Torque cleaner head, the Medium mode becomes Auto mode. Here, the V11 uses its Dynamic Load Sensor (DLS), which monitors brush bar resistance up to 360 times per second, to adjust the suction power between carpets and hard floors. This is useful, since who really wants to mess around trying to choose the right power mode anyway?This model ships with everything you’ll need, including a soft roller for hard floors and a mini motorised brush for upholstery. Just like the other V11 models before it, the Outsize is a dream to use. Despite the extra power afforded by the V11 Outsize's supercharged Hyperdymium motor (which is able to spin at up to 125,000 revolutions per minute) the vacuum itself feels totally under control at all times, with a pleasing hum that only really gets loud on the highest Boost setting. The Dyson V11 looks very similar to its predecessor the V10, with a sleek futuristic design that isn't an eyesore if you forget to stow it away in the cupboard. With the Dyson V11 Outsize inheriting all of the standard V11's technological features, the main point of difference is in its design. More specifically, its weight, size and the inclusion of a handy new design choice which allows you to extend the Outsize's battery life.

In either case, Boost mode sees up to a four-minute run-time improvement over the V10. Note that Boost mode will rarely be required; you’ll be fine in Eco or Medium modes for much of the time.

Like the V10, the new Dyson V11 features an “in-line configuration” where the motor, bin, and cyclone array are all aligned, meaning “air is drawn into the cyclones in a straight line”– which helps maintain inertia and increases the suction power. However, if you have hard floors or want proof that your vacuuming sessions really are thorough, then the laser cleaning head along with the acoustic piezo sensor on the V15 Detect is going to be a real draw. Remove the extension pole and the V11 Absolute turns into a capable handheld unit. It’s a touch chunkier than some of its competition, but not to the point of being unusable. The motorised brush makes light work of each step, with standard mode our preferred choice of power mode. You can even use the main power heads for a bit more power.

The Dyson also won't disturb or upset any nervous pets. How easy is the Dyson V11 Absolute to keep clean? Alison found the mini motorised tool useful for pet bedding, the dusting brush great for blinds, curtain poles, light fittings and skirting boards, and the crevice tool a must for upholstery, for reaching the spaces between kitchen appliances and for other hard-to-reach nooks and crannies. The battery is designed to last for an hour in Eco mode, operating with or without a motorised brush. That’s the same as the V10, because the V11’s larger battery has the more powerful motor for increased suction. Once again, the battery has a handy rubber pad on it so that the V11 doesn’t fall over when you stand it up against a wall. It’s a small thing, but great for anyone who’s watched an older Dyson cordless cleaner fall to the ground. As it’s cordless and handheld, there’s no need to tug at any cords or balance the Dyson precariously on stairs. As a result, Alison found the V11 Absolute much more efficient on stairs than other vacuums she tested.When it comes to runtime, Alison found that there was plenty of time to vacuum the whole house, which included three double bedrooms, an upstairs bathroom, a hallway, living room, study, dining room, kitchen and utility room. One charge lasted for a thorough clean throughout, which we were really impressed by. Another similarity is the front-facing barrel arrangement that allows you to attach heads directly to the unit for a bench-top vacuum or to the far side of a tube for floor applications. What is new to the V11 however, is the ability to clip your accessories onto the vacuum itself – a useful touch for anyone who's found they need another head when on the far side of the house. If last year’s model signalled the death of corded models, the V11 gives them that final push over the edge. In addition, the cordless vacuum cleaner is also available as the cheaper V11 Animal. Behind the barrel you’ll find the V11’s cyclone array, which consists of 14 cyclones in total. Dyson says that they generate “forces of more than 79,000g to fling microscopic particles into the bin”, including pollen and bacteria. For most uses on the lower power modes, you can actually hear other people over the V11’s powerful motor – and it isn’t a distracting noise.