I will be the primary individual to inform somebody to simply develop up and purchase a Dyson reasonably than accept a less expensive cordless vacuum. Sure, the Dyson buy most likely requires additional saving up, and sure, I acknowledge {that a} vacuum costing the identical or greater than a month’s lease places it within the “overpriced” class. However in the event you can swing it, I feel a Dyson stick vacuum is price it.

And that is just because my Dyson does such a great job that it makes me favor doing the chore manually. If a robotic vacuum does a crappy job of cleansing a tough flooring, my Dyson V12 Detect Slim will snitch instantly, utilizing its inexperienced laser to spotlight any leftover hairs or specks {that a} robotic vacuum missed. It is nonetheless clutch to have the ability to depend on a robotic vacuum for surface-level jobs in a pinch, however for higher or for worse, my final robotic vacuum check is the way it stands up in opposition to my Dyson.

So what higher robotic vacuum to compete with my beloved Dyson stick vacuum than a Dyson robotic vacuum? I went into my expertise with Dyson’s new 360 Vis Nav with excessive expectations, regardless of already figuring out about Dyson’s odd option to omit essential options like mopping and self-emptying. Here is the way it went.

Dyson hardly ever releases robotic vacuums, so this was large

The 360 Vis Nav initially bought out at Dyson’s web site inside hours of launch on March 19. Inventory subsequently dwindled utterly at different retailers like Amazon and Greatest Purchase inside the following days. That is not stunning — demand for a Dyson robotic vacuum has been effervescent since 2016, which is the final time Dyson launched a robotic vacuum within the U.S. And it was a flop.

Eight years later, the premise of a Dyson robotic vacuum feels rather more auspicious. Dyson has perfected its cyclonic suction energy within the realm of upright cordless vacuums, so it should not have any downside changing that experience to robotic type, proper?

The 360 Vis Nav got here out with the promise of being the world’s strongest robotic vacuum, aided by a flat edge and a genius extending facet duct for higher nook cleansing than what a spherical robotic vacuum can handle. A D-shaped robotic vacuum is exclusive, however is not one thing we have by no means seen earlier than. And it is undoubtedly not probably the most… attention-grabbing selection Dyson made with this bodily design. Let’s begin there.

This bodily design will conflict with quite a lot of dwelling decor

You possibly can inform a Dyson vacuum is a Dyson vacuum simply by it. The metallic grey our bodies, daring pops of coloration, and chunky industrial particulars are fairly recognizable to anybody who has shopped for a vacuum earlier than.

And I’ve by no means minded that boldness. My V12 Detect Slim, which is grey with a bizarre orange tentacle-looking piece on the mud bin and a purple filter cap, is a flex mounted on the wall in my kitchen.

That being mentioned, Dyson ought to have reined in its signature design with the 360 Vis Nav, as a result of it is sort of an eyesore. Moderately than sticking to graphite, your complete physique is vibrant indigo. That’s topped off with an exterior round dustbin that was most likely meant to present cool uncovered gear vibes, however extra so resembles a curled-up centipede.

One thing concerning the 360 Vis Nav and the Fleetwood Mac file simply do not vibe.
Credit score: Leah Stodart / Mashable

You possibly can select a cleansing mode on the touchscreen, however that is about it.
Credit score: Leah Stodart / Mashable

I suppose the polarizing design selection could be interesting to ultra-modern maximalists, however given my visitors’ puzzled reactions once they see the 360 Vis Nav in my lounge, it isn’t precisely screaming sensible.

Even if robotic vacuums have gotten more and more frequent, they will nonetheless really feel a bit misplaced — possibly too futuristic — in quite a lot of properties. Different manufacturers have caught onto the buyer’s choice for chicness and subtly, with iRobot going so far as to make its Roomba Combo j9+ dock double as a wood prime facet desk.

So the mud bin is not hid on the underside or again prefer it historically is on standalone robotic vacuums. Sure, which means that the wad of grey mud shall be dealing with outward till it is time to empty. You would be off the hook from that for weeks and weeks had Dyson included a self-empty dock, however a minimum of the 360 Vis Nav’s 0.15-gallon mud bin is bigger than most.

You maintain the dustbin like a handbag and click on it open through the deal with.
Credit score: Leah Stodart / Mashable

And granted, if a robotic vacuum goes to require handbook emptying, Dyson’s system is certainly the mildest ache within the ass. Simply pull up the deal with and un-click the bin whereas the vac is charging, maintain it over a trash can, and push the purple button. The door swings open downward and the whole lot falls instantly within the trash.

Talking of questionable design selections, not even the spiritual RuPaul’s Drag Race stan in me can justify the black and white checkered flags caught to the 360 Vis Nav’s dock. This skinny panel must be hooked up to ensure that the vac to map accurately and discover its means again. With out it, the 360 Vis Nav seems to be like me making an attempt to parallel park. No different premium robotic vacuums I’ve examined require obnoxious stickers to drive themselves. Simply saying.

Sensible mapping is correct, however customizing zones is irritating

A small LCD touchscreen and a small clear sphere often known as the Eye sit atop the 360 Vis Nav. You utilize the touchscreen throughout setup when connecting to the WiFi, and I admire that all the steps are specified by quite simple phrases. You can too use the touchscreen to pick out from 4 cleansing modes (which you too can do on the app): auto, increase, quiet, and fast. They’re fairly self-explanatory.

The opposite piece of tech on prime, the Dyson Eye, replaces the round LiDAR tower that’s seen on quite a lot of competing robotic vacuums. The Eye has a 360-degree view of its environment and, with the assistance of 26 totally different sensors, is claimed to research as much as 10,000 information factors a second, permitting it to recollect your property’s format and navigate round giant obstacles like furnishings and partitions.

Tight-knit desk legs or kitchen chair legs didn’t journey the 360 Vis Nav up as soon as.
Credit score: Leah Stodart / Mashable

The 360 Vis Nav knew to not use its facet suction round these defenseless blanket tassels.
Credit score: Leah Stodart / Mashable

The 360 Vis Nav’s mapping run proved to be fairly correct the primary time round, a minimum of when assessing the overall perimeter of the ground plan. (Dividing rooms within the app wasn’t as seamless.) After every cleansing session, the MyDyson app presents what seems to be like a warmth map model of its good map, displaying the place it discovered probably the most mud. It will work more durable in these areas the following time you begin a full dwelling cleansing.

Navigation-wise, the 360 Vis Nav is nimble when coping with tough furnishings. It by no means bought caught as soon as in my house, and was in a position to carve tightly round our acorn-shaped espresso desk. I am not over the dearth of small impediment avoidance expertise, although. And I elaborate on these gripes within the downsides part of this evaluate.

Suction energy: Nice on carpet, tough across the edges (actually)

Dyson alleges that the 360 Vis Nav has double the suction energy of any robotic vacuum. That is actually not completely unbelievable coming from a longstanding powerhouse like Dyson, however it’s tough to check suction energy on paper when different robotic vacuums measure that in Pascals (Pa) whereas Dyson measures in Air Watts (AW).

Dyson does scale its robotic vacuum’s motor the identical means it does its cordless vacuums, making contextualizing suction energy a bit extra tangible. The 360 Vis Nav homes a proprietary Hyperdymium motor that spins at up 110,000 RPM — quicker than all cordless Dyson vacuums that retail for greater than $649.99. Nevertheless, that motor solely creates suction as much as 65 AW of suction energy, which is sort of half of the suction energy pumped out by Dyson’s least expensive cordless vacuum, the V8, which might typically be discovered on sale between $300 and $350. As a reminder, the 360 Vis Nav prices $1,119.99.

Success tales first: The Dyson 360 Vis Nav is fairly stellar on carpet and rugs. It aced any particles check I threw at it, audibly boosting suction (in auto mode) when it got here throughout a large number. These three piles of crushed tortilla chips, soil, and cat fur have been completely cleared earlier than the 360 Vis Nav went again to its dock, even once I was skeptical after it missed some items on the primary cross.

Crumbs, filth, pet hair — the standard.
Credit score: Leah Stodart / Mashable

The 360 Vis Nav sensed that particles was left and went again to get these items.
Credit score: Leah Stodart / Mashable

The effectiveness might be a mixture of sheer suction energy and the triple-action brush roll. It is mainly a spitting picture of the one on Dyson’s Digital Motorbar cleansing head for its cordless vacuums, combining gentle nylon, stiff bristles, and anti-static carbon fiber strands that dig into carpet pile, appeal to particles like velcro, and suck it out.

When it comes to battery life, Dyson alleges that the 360 Vis Nav can run for 65 minutes. I used to be in a position to ship the Dyson out to cowl two rooms that took slightly below half an hour every, and it had sufficient juice for each on one cost. Nevertheless, I can see this run time dwindling considerably if extra of the ground is carpet or must be cleaned in increase mode.

Onerous flooring have been extra of a wrestle than carpet, which is stunning as a result of it is often the opposite means round for robotic vacuums.

My rest room is one place the place I want a robotic vacuum to reliably clear each day. It is the place considered one of my cats’ litter bins is, and is the place my hair sheds probably the most — and is the one place within the house the place I at all times stroll barefoot. So inform me why, on a number of events, I walked in there after a 360 Vis Nav run to see the again third of the ground nonetheless scattered with kitty litter and lengthy hairs. Both the 360 Vis Nav’s suction did just about nothing, or it did not try to return there in any respect. Contemplating a $299 Shark robotic vacuum efficiently got here to the rescue afterwards, neither of these excuses will fly.

Equally, the laser on my Dyson V12 Detect Slim confirmed a good quantity of mud nonetheless remaining in entrance of the litter field within the kitchen after the 360 Vis Nav cleaned there.

Sure, that is *after* the 360 Vis Nav got here by means of.
Credit score: Leah Stodart / Mashable

Dyson’s hyped edge cleansing was an enormous letdown

Apart from rocking a flat edge to scoot into 90-degree angles higher than a spherical vacuum, the 360 Vis Nav is supplied with facet ducts that reach when cleansing alongside a wall. These goal suction energy to the facet of the vacuum that the wall is on, changing the normal flimsy spinning facet brushes that function on mere hope. This was going to be large if true: Robotic vacuums universally wrestle to seize the mud bunnies that blew into the nook behind the sofa or the crumbs pushed up in opposition to cupboards or home equipment.

I believed this was a primary cross blunder, however no, it was left like this.
Credit score: Leah Stodart / Mashable

As soon as once more, the Dyson V12 Detect Slim saved the day.
Credit score: Leah Stodart / Mashable

Sadly, the 360 Vis Nav fell in need of edge-pectations. Throughout my spill-rice-on-purpose problem, the vac did an OK (simply OK) job at clearing the center of the ground, however hardly grabbed any of the rice hanging out below the lip of the cupboards.

Downsides: Dyson skipped essential options, then charged an excessive amount of

My checklist of cons of the 360 Vis Nav shall be fairly simple — not as a result of Dyson bought only a few issues fallacious, however as a result of there’s really not a ton of options to judge. No self-emptying, no mopping, no small impediment avoidance. I will cowl these within the part exploring the competitors, however first, I wish to contact on the options which can be current, however disappointing.

There’s quite a lot of misplaced innovation happening right here. Moderately than making certain some primary options that each high-end robotic vacuum ought to have, Dyson put its vitality into issues like a touchscreen. That may have been cool in the event you might do something extra proactive than choose the cleansing mode by means of it.

Equally, I’ve already gone off about how the 360 Vis Nav would not even reliably clear edges — the one factor it was purported to excel at.

Spot cleansing is one other large miss. Typically, scheduling a cleansing for one room particularly is not particular sufficient. Typically, you simply have to instantly deal with the few ft surrounding the kitchen counter, or the entrance door, or the litter field. If the flexibility to bodily choose the vacuum up, plop it within the spot that wants consideration, and press a button on the highest to make it go is not an choice, I will accept drawing a zone within the app.

JUST LET ME PINCH THE DIVIDER EASILY, I BEG YOU.
Credit score: Leah Stodart / Mashable

The MyDyson app would not differentiate between rooms and zones, regardless of referring to your complete room-labeling course of as “zoning.” Probably the most intuitive robotic vacuum apps help you drag a rectangle onto no matter space of the map you need for a one-time cleansing, no questions requested.

However if you wish to spot clear with the 360 Vis Nav, you need to put dividers up similar to you’d when separating a bed room from the hallway. That’d be advantageous if the dividers have been simple to arrange together with your finger. However they barely reply to pinching or dragging, after which get mad at you for not being organized accurately. This as soon as once more had me sending a $299 robotic vacuum to cowl these spontaneous spots.

The competitors

Dyson’s selection to easily omit options like self-emptying and mopping is unforgivable at this worth level. These “superior” autonomy options could have been thought-about premium in 2020, however have change into accessible at any worth level prior to now two years. You possibly can simply rating a robotic vacuum that empties itself and mops for lower than $500 even with out a sale.

The competing robotic vacuums in the identical $1,000+ pricing tier are literally going far previous simply computerized emptying or simply mopping, too. The theme of the robotic vacuums introduced at CES 2024 was absolutely self-sufficient mopping, together with computerized washing and drying of the mopping pads. Contemplating Dyson simply launched a mopping model of considered one of its finest cordless vacuums in Sept. 2024, it is stunning that its robotic vacuum ignores mopping utterly.

It is also inconceivable to not evaluate the 360 Vis Nav to Dyson’s personal stick vacuum lineup, particularly when the 360 Vis Nav prices extra than the most costly cordless Dyson, the $1,049 Gen5 Outsize. That vac greater than doubles the suction energy and dustbin capability of the 360 Vis Nav, plus could be trusted to get into corners. Sure, you will be the one doing the work, however it’s really enjoyable whenever you’re guided by a game-changing laser that highlights precisely the place mud and particles are. You already know I again the V12 Detect Slim, which might typically be snagged for lower than $500.

Is the Dyson 360 Vis Nav price it?

Nope. And that is not an “except you’ve gotten the price range to spend over $1,000 on a robotic vacuum” nope. It is only a onerous nope.

Equally-priced rivals empty themselves, mop, wash and dry their very own mopping pads, and might detect small obstacles like cords, pet waste, and socks. The 360 Vis Nav would not do any of that, and would not even ace edges, the principle factor it claimed to be good at.

And even when the 360 Vis Nav wasn’t drowning in competitors from different robotic vacuums, it could nonetheless lose to its primary enemy: its personal cordless stick vacuums.