The Micro is as compact as Dyson gets but its diminutive size is deceptive as it gets the job done over the course of its 20-minute battery life. The 0.2-litre capacity isn’t all that sizeable but should carry you through in smaller living spaces or if used for single-room cleaning. The Roomba’s run time is 75 minutes, but charge time is only 90 minutes, so you can schedule it to clean up twice a day or more.
Like Dyson’s handheld vacuums, its robot vacuum operates using cyclonic action, which reportedly allows it to capture particles as small as pollen. The company claims the 360 Eye sports the strongest suction of any robot vacuum, thanks to being equipped with Dyson’s proprietary digital motor. That said, the 360 Eye is frustrated by a couple of things in my home. Specifically, it has issues with sloped pedestal stands for chairs, including ones found on my living room lounger, and those which support my kitchen bar height stools. The Dyson bot regularly tries to climb these, seems to hesitate about it halfway over the lip, and then essentially gives up, freezing until I come and reposition it.
Third, even some more expensive—£300 and up—robot vacuum cleaners can struggle getting right up against walls and tables and other tight spots cleaned. It’s always worth having a look up against walls after your robot vacuum has completed its job as you may find its size, shape and the layout of the device has meant some pesky mess has been missed. This is a problem that’s sure to be fixed as robovacs get smaller and even more effective. Boosting power over the original by 20%, the 360 Heurist is just about the most powerful vacuum cleaner I’ve used, easily dealing with mess on all surfaces from hard floors to carpet.
He looks after all things smarthome and home appliances for Trusted Reviews. The 360 Heurist comes with the same pull-out 0.33-litre bin at the front of the cleaner as the original. This is a handy position for the bin, as you can see quickly if it needs emptying without having to lift up a flap on the robot. Inside the bin is also one washable filter, with a secondary filter at the rear.
Released back in 2016, the Dyson 360 Eye has remained one of the most powerful robot vacuum cleaners to date, easily beating much of its new competition. Today, the 360 Heurist is even more powerful, with its upgraded V2 motor delivering 20% more power. Most robot vacuum cleaners are short and wide, but Dyson has opted for a taller, narrower design with the 360 Heurist. Here, the vacuum cleaner can squeeze through gaps, such as chair legs, which stop other cleaners, yet the height means that the 360 Heurist can’t always fit underneath furniture. While the majority of robot vacuum cleaners make do with wheels, the Dyson 360 Heurist has a pair of tank tracks, designed to propel the robot over obstacles and through longer-pile rugs, for example. The 360 Eye design is functional, too; the clear dust tray shows you at a glance when the bot is full and needs emptying, and the ‘eye’ resides up high, giving it the best possible view of its surroundings for mapping efforts.
Dyson says this isn’t stored or used to inform the vacuum’s next trips – each time it starts up, it starts up completely fresh. But what it does offer is confirmation that your vacuum has covered the area you want it to, since you can see right in the visualization what portions of your floor it managed to clean. The Dyson 360 Eye managed to deliver a better overall clean than my Roomba, which is no small feat because I have a very orange dog which sheds a lot. Pet hair, in volume, is a terrific vacuum challenge, and even though my Roomba has pet in the product name, the 360 Eye beats it hands-down when it comes to dog dander.
The highlight of this vacuum is hinted at in its name, using a laser to reveal microscopic dust – making sure you can spot everything and get it picked up. The V15 also smartly adjusts its suction power, ramping it up when needed. Fancy tech doesn’t drain the battery life either, with up to 60 minutes – which should be plenty, even if the laser has you meticulously cleaning every nook and cranny.
Shaped more like a dense 3-layer cake than its wider-flatter counterparts from iRobot and Neato, I assumed it would never clear coffee tables, chairs and other low-profile furniture. It costs $999/£800 and didn’t perform as well as the similarly app-enabled $700 Neato Botvac Connected or the $900 iRobot Roomba 980. She’s interested in environmentally-conscious irobot vacuum cleaner brands, and appliances that save time, money and improve our lives. Gear Patrol participates in various affiliate marketing programs, which means we may get paid commissions on editorially chosen products purchased through our links to retailer sites. Dyson offers a two-year guarantee with its Heurist, as iRobot does for its Roomba models.
Like some other Dyson products, the 360 Eye’s value is also questionable. Sure, I like 360 Eye’s app and the way it navigates around a room, but the Neato Botvac Connected has similar features, performs better in every category and costs $300 less. That doesn’t mean you won’t like Dyson’s Wi-Fi model, just be sure to weigh it against the competition before you buy. Dyson’s last vacuum cleaner, the oddly-named 360 Heurist, skipped a US release, apparently because its design was ill-suited to the layout of American homes. But it looks like the company is planning to launch a new robovac in the US soon, after filing details of an unannounced product with the FCC.