The Dyson 360 Vis Naz, the British producer’s new robotic vacuum, has lastly landed within the States. I simply obtained my palms on the $1,199 machine forward of its official launch on March nineteenth and have some early ideas to share.
As solely Dyson’s second try and enter the US robotic vacuum market — the primary being method again in 2016 — the Vis Nav has loads driving on its big wheels. With a whopping 65 air watts of suction, Dyson says it’s probably the most highly effective robotic vacuum you should purchase. Mixed with a largely distinctive design, and a extremely huge, fluffy brush, there’s loads to love right here.
A whole redesign of Dyson’s 360 Eye, which was solely briefly bought within the US, the Vis Nav is slimmer, shorter, and wider than its predecessor. The brand new design ought to imply it might probably get beneath furnishings and higher cope with giant US properties. Each these have been issues the Eye struggled with and causes Dyson determined to not promote its second robovac, the 360 Heurist, in America.
Not like most robovacs, the Vis Nav has a D-shape, with a sq. head that holds the largest, fluffiest, plushest robotic vacuum brush I’ve ever touched. This factor is kind of pleasant! The comb is located proper on the entrance of the robotic, that means it ought to attain the sides of your rooms and into corners.
A side-actuator brush makes use of the bot’s suction to drink up the dust from baseboards as a substitute of counting on a sweeper brush, like most bots. Beneath are two large tank-like wheels that Dyson says can traverse obstacles as much as 21 millimeters excessive. Its decrease profile, 3.9 inches, ought to imply it might probably get beneath the couch.
The Vis Nav is a vacuum cleaner that may transfer autonomously, not a robotic that may additionally vacuum — these could look like the identical factor, however they’re not. Its one and solely objective is to suck dust off your flooring. It doesn’t mop, watch your pets, or attempt to be something aside from a vacuum on wheels. Its spectacular suction energy is the closest any robovac has come to the ability of a stick vac. Add within the Dyson Hyperdymium motor and also you’ve obtained a critical vacuum.
The Vis Nav has roamed round my kitchen for the final hour and it’s loud
The vacuum can attain a high suction of 65 air watts with a regular pull of 10 to 10.5 air watts, in keeping with Dyson’s John Ord. Even at that decrease stage, Ord says the Vis Nav has twice the suction energy of its opponents. Most robotic vac makers measure in pascals (PA); Ord declined to supply a direct comparability to PAs, as a substitute saying air watts are the extra correct measurement of suction energy. (It’s the measurement used for stick vacs, that are nonetheless extra highly effective than the Vis Nav. Dyson’s Gen5 stick vac pulls 280 air watts.)
Nevertheless, the Vis Nav lacks a lot of the bells and whistles we’ve come to count on of robotic vacuums that price over $1,000. There’s no self-emptying dock, no mopping, no AI-powered impediment avoidance, no lidar navigation, and no safety digital camera operate. It additionally solely runs for a max of 65 minutes; even probably the most price range bot I’ve examined will get two hours. However in trade, you get that suction energy. Should you consistently battle mud, dust, and pet hair in your flooring, this is likely to be the bot for you.
On its first cleansing run in my home, the Vis Nav demolished a pile of dry oatmeal in seconds; different bots throw the flakes round with their facet brush first after which take two or three passes to get all of it up. It’s because most robotic vacs have shorter principal brushes and side-sweeping brushes that push particles into their path — in concept. In observe, this sweeping movement may spin these particles out of the robotic’s attain. Dyson’s design seems to repair this drawback.
With nice suction energy comes nice noise. The Vis Nav has roamed round my kitchen for the final hour, and it’s loud, significantly when it detects dust and kicks as much as full energy. I might additionally see the suction. When it handed some papers on a low shelf, they rustled within the robotic’s wind!
Whereas I haven’t had time to check out its mapping but (it’s a simultaneous localization and mapping system that makes use of an upward-facing, 360-degree digital camera), early impressions are its navigation is fluid.
It is the largest, fluffiest, plushest robotic vacuum brush I’ve ever touched. It’s fairly pleasant!
It rolled easily round objects and seemingly intelligently navigated my flooring. Preliminary critiques from Europe — the place this vacuum launched final yr — complained about its navigation prowess, however Dyson tells me the system has been improved forward of the US launch.
I hope that’s true, as it’s a highly effective machine roaming round my home. I feared for my daughter’s string bass when it rolled into it, and it actually wished to eat my giant rug tassels—however it determined towards it and navigated away.
Dyson says the Vis Nav has a “high-level processor” that “thinks and adapts” to the information it collects from 26 sensors to keep away from obstacles, detect mud, and discover partitions. However with out AI-powered impediment avoidance, it doesn’t know what it’s avoiding (so sure, it might have an in depth encounter with pet poop). In its first run by my cluttered downstairs, nothing tripped it up, and it returned to base efficiently.
The shortage of a self-empty charging dock is a little bit of a deal-breaker for me, however Dyson at the least packed an enormous 500ml bin on this factor, so it shouldn’t want emptying usually. I beloved the quick-release button for straightforward disposal with out getting my palms soiled.
The opposite design determination I actually don’t like is the colour. It is a very huge, very blue / purple robotic with a critical sci-fi vibe. It doesn’t go effectively with my midcentury decor. Nevertheless, with no big auto-empty dock to cope with and factoring in its decrease profile, it’s possible to cover this factor beneath a sofa. (Though Dyson advises you shouldn’t do that).
Right here’s a have a look at another options of the brand new robotic Dyson is touting. As talked about, I’ve had the Vis Nav for 2 hours, so I haven’t put any of those claims to the check. Search for my full evaluate within the subsequent few weeks.
- A piezo sensor detects the quantity of mud on the ground so the vacuum can robotically enhance suction energy.
- A HEPA filter captures as much as 99.99 % of mud particles as small as 0.1 microns. The entire machine is a completely sealed HEPA filtration system to maintain mud inside.
- There are 4 cleansing modes: auto mode analyzes mud ranges and adjusts suction powers; fast mode avoids edges and simply cleans open areas; quiet mode; and increase mode for a deep clear.
- The Vis Nav is managed by the MyDyson app or the on-device LCD display screen. It really works with Amazon Alexa and Google Residence for voice management and routines. It’s not suitable with Matter.
- The app permits for mapping, room-specific cleansing, and assigning “restrictions” equivalent to keep-out zones and no-climb zones.
- In accordance with Dyson’s Ord, photographs captured by the digital camera by no means depart the robotic. “We only capture features from the image for navigation, which are stored on the device temporarily and then deleted.”
The Dyson 360 Vis Nav shall be out there beginning March nineteenth at Dyson.com and choose retailers for $1,199.
Images by Jennifer Pattison Tuohy / The Verge