CHOICE verdict
The light, slim Dyson PencilVac is a breeze to manoeuvre, swivelling smoothly under low furniture and in tight corners. Long hair won't tangle around the conical brush bar, either, and it easily picks up general dust and debris. But it isn't for everyone. If you have a big home, frequent messes, or lots of rugs or carpet, this premium-priced, hard floor-only vacuum isn't powerful enough to cut it. It struggled with the hard floor test we apply to all our stick vacuums in our lab. Larger, heavier particles quickly filled its tiny dustbin, and vacuuming up fine flour caused regular blockages.
Price: $949
Contact: dyson.com.au
The PencilVac is Dyson's self-proclaimed "world's slimmest vacuum cleaner". Designed for hard floors only, the machine first launched in Japan where homes are traditionally far smaller than Australia's and carpeted rooms are rare.
Now it's hit our shores, we wanted to see how it performed in larger homes as well as in our labs, so our in-house experts borrowed one for a few weeks.
On this page:
- What exactly is the Dyson PencilVac?
- What's in the box?
- How well does it pick up debris?
- How easy is it to use?
- So is the PencilVac worth it?
What exactly is the Dyson PencilVac?
True to its name, the PencilVac is thin: its main body (not including the cleaning head) is 38mm in diameter, with the battery pack and motor encased neatly into the tubular handle.
The cleaning head moves in all directions and a green 'laser-like' light illuminates dust in both forward and backward orientations. It's designed to get around hard floors easily, and the fluffy conical brush bars won't get long hairs wrapped around them. Instead, they get ejected out the side of the cleaning head into a hairball for easy disposal.
The vacuum weighs 1.8kg, and claims to filter out dust down to 0.3 microns. The battery lasts for up to 30 minutes on the lowest-power eco mode, but only up to around ten minutes on boost mode.
The Dyson PencilVac.
What's in the box?
The PencilVac comes with:
- One rechargeable swappable battery (extra batteries are available for $189)
- Magnetic charging dock including base, stand and charger
- Fluffycones cleaning head
- Rotating combi-crevice tool
What's in the box: a dock (with charger and stand), rotating combi-crevice tool, Fluffycones head, battery and handle.
Crumbs, dust and other debris are compressed to the top of the tiny dust bin to maximise its capacity.
How well does it pick up debris?
CHOICE hard floor test method
Our expert Adrian Lini conducted the standard hard floor test we apply to all stick vacuums that come through our labs, to see how much flour, potting mix and cornflakes were collected.
The PencilVac's dust bin is minuscule - just 0.08L (80mL). To maximise its capacity, it uses air to compress or 'squash' dust so it settles at the top of the space.
It claims a fivefold increase this way, but in our testing, this didn't work with large items like cornflakes which can't get compressed and fill the bin very quickly. Although it picked the cornflakes up easily, only about half were sucked up before the vacuum shut off and displayed a 'blockage error' message.
It collected the potting mix well, but again the bin had to be emptied twice during the test.
Last of all was flour, and Adrian rated it very poor for this. The vacuum was clogged twice during cleaning (stating the 'blockage' error) and both the bin and the filter needed to be cleaned.
Stray hair gets ejected into a ball rather than getting tangled into the brush bar.
Hair removal test
We also tested how well it removed hair from the floor, and it did what it said: we scattered a gram of long, synthetic hair around the floor, and the PencilVac gathered it up in the brush bar before ejecting it to the sides in a convenient 'hairball'.
Smaller clumps of hair got sucked up into the dust bin. (We tried collecting it using the supplied crevice tool in boost mode, but it was too wide to fit inside. So you may need to collect the hair with a dustpan or your hands.)
In terms of safety, the vacuum turns off automatically when getting caught on the edge of a rug, which it isn't designed to clean anyway.
In conclusion, the PencilVac is only for small, light cleans. (Think dust bunnies on skirting boards, stray hairs, and that sort of thing.)
Fluffy, conical cones in the cleaning head are designed for hard floor cleaning and detangling long hairs.
How easy is it to use?
Manoeuvring
The PencilVac's small form factor is definitely a bonus for people who may have trouble lifting up a more conventional stick vacuum to dust ceiling fans and other hard-to-reach places like shelving, skirting boards or cornices. It's very well balanced as there's no hefty battery or motor taking up room at the top; all the technology is stored in the sleek handle. This means it's unlikely to get too tiring to use.
It's very well balanced as there's no hefty battery or motor taking up room at the top
Everyone we gave the PencilVac to was impressed by how easily it glides over floors and swivels into corners with a twist of your wrist, although it may take a little getting used to as it's so fluid.
I tested it with bird seed and pellets that accumulated under bird cages and in corners of my home. It had no problem reaching tight and low spaces, and along skirting boards as the brush bars sweep right to the edge. (You can also use the supplied combi-crevice tool for accessing tighter spaces.)
It's also satisfying to see the squashed, 'stratified' dirt through the bin's clear plastic window as you clean various rooms.
But because the bin is so small, it'll fill up quite quickly if you have a big place, and will likely need to be emptied regularly. Emptying the bin uses a syringe-like mechanism that is easy enough to master, as the compressed debris can go right into the bin with minimal mess.
Green, laser-like light illuminates dust and dirt in dark areas that may not be easily visible with the naked eye.
Maintenance
Cleaning and washing the filter is a little more fiddly, but no more than other stick vacuums. You can also remove the four fluffy cones for rinsing to help prolong its life.
The on-board display tells you how many minutes you have before the battery runs out, as well as the percentage of charge left.
It will last up to 30 minutes on eco mode (the lowest power). On boost mode, it's only around ten minutes, so the power will deplete quickly. It takes 4 hours for a spent battery to completely charge again.
The lightweight, magnetic dock is handy, and a welcome addition which makes it easy to charge up. (If you need more runtime, the battery is swappable, but a spare costs $189.)
Using the app
There's an associated MyDyson app. Once you connect the vacuum up via Bluetooth, the app lets you know when it's time to empty the bin or clean the filter, depending on how long you've used it.
There are also related how-to videos and you can also activate firmware updates (yes, the vacuum did require an update to its on-board software when we first connected it).
So is the PencilVac worth it?
At $949, our tester Adrian Lini doesn't think so. While there are more expensive stick vacuums in Dyson's range, they're able to tackle a range of floor types using various attachments – some are even able to deal with liquid spills.
While the PencilVac's design and ease of use is impressive, Adrian says most people may need a regular stick or barrel vacuum for full home cleans, as its performance in many scenarios is just not powerful enough to be your sole vacuum.
But if you have a small, hard floor apartment that gathers the odd bit of dust and hair, then the PencilVac's a contender for the job – if you're prepared to pay a premium.
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Stock images: Getty, unless otherwise stated.
