- Good suction power
- "Dyson quality" at a low price (as of 2020)
- Weight
- Manoeuvrability
- Accessories
Your guide to a smart home
Your guide to a smart home
We put the Dyson V8 Absolute to the test for you, because this cordless vacuum cleaner is quite special.
Back in the days when corded vacuums clearly dominated the vacuum cleaner market, the Dyson V8 cordless vacuum cleaner conquered the market and showed us that there is another way.
It’s got a strong suction power and a decent cleaning performance. In addition, the V8 is super easy to use, without any tangled cables, without a bag and it included a washable filter.
Dyson UK put a cherry on top and added a decent battery life, too.
That's how it used to be a couple years ago!
But what’s become of the Dyson V8 Absolute?
Today, the price is relatively cheap for one of Dyson’s premium battery-powered vacuum cleaners.
The key question is: is it still worth buying the Dyson V8?
We’ll give you an answer to that and to other relevant questions in our review of Dyson’s cordless Evergreen model. See for yourself...
In order to evaluate the suction power of all cordless vacuum cleaners, we have standardised our testing procedures.
First we spread sand, then lentils and in the end we spread oat flakes on different floor types and then vacuum it all up again at the highest level.
After we put the Dyson V8 Absolute through the wringer, we can say that the result is quite respectable. The device was definitely ahead of its time, and the test revealed its strengths and weaknesses.
At first, the Dyson V8 only pushed the lentils and oat flakes in front of it on the hard floor. But in the end, this didn’t reduce the cleaning performance of the oat flakes.
However, the Dyson V8 could suck up only 80% of the lentils. We think that’s due to the slot on the standard brush - it’s too narrow. That’s why the vacuum can’t pick up enough of the coarse dirt.
However, if you use the included soft roller (instead of the standard electric brush), the result is much better. So if you don’t have a problem with changing the brush with a few simple moves, you’ll get a perfectly clean floor without any problems. By using the soft roller, the dirt will be pressed in first and therefore can’t move away that easily anymore.
On short carpets, the Dyson cordless vacuum cleaner had no difficulties at all and achieved a brilliant result of 97%.
The Dyson V8 hit the bull’s eye on the soft carpet with longer fibres, too. It achieved a result of 97%.
Overall, the Dyson V8 achieved a very good result in the cleaning test.
The battery-powered vacuum also performed well in our everyday test. We were able to clean all our carpets and hard floors without any problems.
It always makes sense to pay special attention to the special design of the dyson v8, so we do in our review.
Same as before: You can click the suction tube into the motor unit of the V8, it’s the same procedure as in all other models of Dyson’s cordless stick vacuums.
The power unit (motor unit) has a pistol-like trigger. You have to press and hold down this trigger to vacuum.
Dyson sticks to non-locking power buttons, as it increases the battery performance enormously. This way you only activate the cordless vacuum when you really use it.
A dirt container, the motor, a HEPA filter and a switch for controlling the suction levels is also integrated in the motor unit.
Various options for attachments allow you to convert the device from a cordless vacuum into a cordless hand vacuum - a very useful 2-in-1 function.
The height of the battery-powered vacuum cleaner is not as important as the weight.
With a height of just over 120 cm (47.2 inches), the V8 can be manoeuvred comfortably through the room.
The weight of only about 2.6 kg (5.7 lbs) makes the cordless vacuum cleaner from Dyson a real lightweight and guarantees a comfortable operation.
| The Size and Weight of the Dyson V8 | |
| Length | 122 cm (48 inches) |
| Floor Roller Width | 25 cm (9.8 inches) |
| Weight | 2.6 kg (5.7 lbs) |
If you convert the Dyson V8 into a cordless hand vacuum, it’ll be much easier for you to vacuum furniture or suck away cobwebs along the ceiling, for example.
Weight plays an important role here. If the vacuum cleaner is too heavy, your arm will feel uncomfortable after a short time.
The device weighs around 1.5 kg (3.3 lbs), which makes vacuuming very comfortable and convenient.
| Size and weight of the Dyson V8 as a handheld vacuum cleaner | |
| Length | 32 cm (12.6 inches) + attachment (size varies) |
| Weight | 1.5 kg (3.3 lbs) |
We at Smart-Home-Fox don’t think that’s entirely true..
Many manufacturers in the UK include countless useless gadgets in the scope of delivery of their cordless vacuum cleaners to set themselves apart from the competition. Things that no one really needs so at the end of the day, it’ll be relegated to a distant corner and will only take up space in our homes.
This is not the case with the Dyson V8 Absolute. Every accessory is justified and has its special area of application.
The scope of delivery of the Dyson V8 Absolute
You can use the standard brush for vacuuming both hard and soft surfaces.
This one comes in very handy when removing dirt from hard floors such as laminate or parquet.
It’s a useful extra that you can use to vacuum objects. For delicate surfaces, you use the soft bristles and if you don’t want to go too easy on the surface, you can pull back the bristles with the push of a button.
The crevice nozzle is an evergreen among vacuum accessories. With this attachment, you can get into narrow crevices and slots where other attachments won’t fit in. It’s perfect for vacuuming the car or between upholstery.
It's very useful for storing the cordless vacuum cleaner on the wall to save space and charge it at the same time.
It's a game changer when vacuuming pet hair from upholstery.
This one comes in very handy when cleaning furniture and sensitive objects.
When the V8 was launched, there was a range of different models to choose from: the V8 Absolute, the V8 Motorhead, Fluffy and so on.
That’s how Dyson UK differentiates the prices and the main difference between these models are the included accessories.
Nowadays, there are only two different V8 models left to choose from:
The only difference between these two models, which are available at the same price, is one accessory.
The Absolute includes a super soft brush, whereas the Total Clean comes with a flex hose.
It’s therefore just a matter of whether you prefer a soft brush or a flexible hose. Once you’ve made up your mind about that, the decision is quite easy to make.
It’s really just a matter of taste!
It takes more than just a strong suction power to achieve a good cleaning result. Various factors contribute to how good or bad the cleaning performance of a cordless vacuum cleaner is.
The standard brush's got its own drive, which means that the roller rotates independently and transports dirt into the suction tube at high speed. This is a great support for the suction power.
This already works very well with the V8.
However, we noticed in our test that the V8 achieves much better cleaning results when you use the soft roller on hard floors and the standard roller on soft floors.
The disadvantage lays at hand: you have to change the brush. Not everybody is willing to make this effort.
You can quickly and easily convert the V8 into a handheld vacuum. With the hand vacuum and a suitable attachment, you can vacuum all the places that you can't reach with the floor vacuum. That’s a real advantage of the cordless vacuum!
In addition, you can connect any attachment to both the power unit and the suction tube.
Let's take the suction tube plus crevice nozzle as an example: You can use it to remove cobwebs from the corners of the ceiling.
The Dyson V8 has two suction levels. In normal mode, the power is strong enough to deal with most dirt. For more stubborn dirt, you can switch to turbo mode at the touch of a button and that’ll do the job. Of course, the battery runtime is much shorter in turbo mode.
It all starts with unpacking the new device.
Dyson UK makes sure that the packaging is as plastic-free as possible. This is good for the environment and comes in quite handy.
The commissioning is self-explanatory. It takes about 5 hours to charge it completely. After the loading time you simply have to choose a suitable attachment and off you go.
When the Dyson V8 first came out, the battery runtime of about 40 minutes in normal mode was on top of the line. Today, a few years after the launch of the V8, a battery runtime of 40 minutes is pretty average and is kind of the minimum standard.
All in all, 40 minutes should be more than sufficient for cleaning most homes.
In turbo mode, you can vacuum for only 7 minutes, which is pretty short. However, turbo mode is not really necessary for normal cleaning.
| Suction Level | Battery Life |
| Normal | approx. 40 minutes |
| Turbo | approx. 7 minutes |
When it comes to the volume of a vacuum, the following definitely applies: the quieter the better.
In our test, we measured how loud the Dyson V8 Absolute really is. With a volume of 72 dB, the Dyson is quite tolerable and is one of the quieter cordless vacuum cleaners on the market.
Manoeuvrability is one of the Dyson V8's main strengths. Thanks to the low weight and the mobile cleaning brushes you can go from room to room without any problems.
The joint on the brush makes it very easy to vacuum around furniture and objects.
With the Dyson V8, there are four things to maintain on a more or less regular basis:
There is a lever on the top of the motor unit. Once you pull it, the dust container pops open and the dirt falls into the trash (which you should’ve placed underneath beforehand).
This works quite well and the mechanism is very durable.
A small red lever at the bottom of the dirt container allows you to detach the container completely from the motor unit. Then you can hold it under running water to clean it.
The HEPA filter (more about filters) removes fine dust from the air.
This is especially good for allergy sufferers.
The filters are also extremely long-lasting, i.e. there are no follow-up costs.
However, you should clean the filter from time to time. To do this, you can simply pull it out of the motor unit, then tap it out or even wash it.
Another filter is located on the back. You can also simply unscrew and tap it out.
Note: The filter has to dry for 24 hours before you can put it back in.
Sometimes threads or hairs get wrapped around the brush. This reduces the cleaning performance.
Therefore, it’s worth cleaning the brushes from time to time. To do this, you can open the brush compartment on the side and pull out the roller. All you need is a coin or something like that. Then you can use a sharp knife to remove the hair from the rollers.
If the battery loses power or even breaks down altogether, you don’t have to throw away the entire vacuum. You can simply re-order the battery and replace it with little effort.
The Dyson V8 has many strengths: it has a very good suction power and well designed accessories.
The appearance is chic and the workmanship is good.
Back in the days, it was a truly revolutionary product on the cordless vacuum cleaner market.
From today's perspective, however, it also shows some room for improvement. For example, it couldn’t handle coarse dirt on hard surfaces and the battery runtime can’t really compete with today's standards anymore.
Altogether, the advantages still led to a great result in the cleaning test.
With the cheaper price nowadys, you can say that the Dyson V8 is a good deal and you get a powerful cordless vacuum cleaner that is better than many competing products.
However, if you're looking for perfection and want to be on the cutting edge of technology, you'll have to dig a little deeper into your pockets. One of the newer models might be a good choice for you.
You may also be interested in the comparison of the Dyson v10 vs Dyson v8 in this context...
Customer Service: To contact Dyson UK directly, please call their helpline 0800 298 0298 or visit their live chat. The Customer helpline is available Monday to Friday (8 am - 8 pm) and Saturday and Sunday (8 am - 6 pm)
Registered office: Dyson United Kingdom - Tetbury Hill, Malmesbury SN16 0RP.
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