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Is the solution to a small robot vacuum really to increase the power of the motor above the competition? On hard wood flooring I've never found rotary brushes

by buro9 12y ago

Is the solution to a small robot vacuum really to increase the power of the motor above the competition? On hard wood flooring I've never found rotary brushes to be better than side sweeps (what most of the competition uses). And on carpet where rotary brushes do perform better, I can't help but think that instead of upping the suction power you could approach the problem from a different perspective... such as using a low vibration to shake the dirt and dust free of the carpet so that it's easier to pick up the material with less suction power. I really like Dyson products, but it very much feels like they have a hammer (high powered suction in lower watt motors) and so every problem looks like a nail. Some of their innovations over the past 5 years haven't impressed me... Their hand dryers do a worse job than the classic World Dryer and look uglier over time and seem to be less performant over time (smaller clogged filters perhaps!?). Their "fanless" fan of course has a fan, and whilst it shifts a good chunk of air at first it also suffers from degrading performance as the hidden fan gets clogged with dust over a season. And yet, the classic desk fan performs consistently well all the time. And the problem with releasing highly-hyped products that turn out to be only average, is that it's hard to believe the hype in future. Whereas I used to look at a Dyson as being incredibly functional innovation, I now look upon them as gimmicky innovation using their single core-trick. And of course, they will successfully market and patent all of this (of which even the linked article is a part of that puzzle), such that people start to believe this is the best solution (not proven at all), and that Dyson will claim that no-one else can provide the best because of the patents (partly true, but who said this was the best?). Years of buying and using Dyson products has left me greatly cynical. Their upright hoovers are still the business though.

ZenoArrow 12y ago
"Their hand dryers do a worse job than the classic World Dryer and look uglier over time and seem to be less performant over time (smaller clogged filters perhaps!?)." Really? That's the exact opposite experience than I've had, the Airblade dries my hands faster and more thoroughly than any traditional hand dryer.
- buro9 12y ago
  Which one? The Airblade db works, but not as efficiently as rubbing hands together under a World Dryer (not one of the cheaper imitators of them). The Airblade V works extremely well, but tends to suffer from being put where old driers were, which is too damn high to be used comfortably... in motorway services where these and old traditional ones are offered you see people choose the older ones. The tap based one I've not seen in the world.
  - ZenoArrow 12y ago
    I didn't realise there were different models, I only have experience of the DB. In my experience the DB works better than the World Dryer or any other traditional hand dryer. I find it easier and more effectice to dip my hands in and out of the DB than rub them under a World Dryer, plus it's more efficient from an energy efficiency point of view. Here's a study by the University of Westminster that backs up the improved drying speed claim (check out table 2)... http://www.europeantissue.com/pdfs/090402-2008%20WUS%20Westminster%20University%20hygiene%20study,%20nov2008.pdf http://www.europeantissue.com/pdfs/090402-2008%20WUS%20Westm... As for the V, it's hardly Dyson's fault if they are installed in an inappropriate way.
- joncrocks 12y ago
  Apart from the tips of your fingers, which always come out wet...
  - ZenoArrow 12y ago
    That's not what I've found. I wonder what I'm doing differently. Do you shake your hands before putting them in/under a dryer?
Throwaway823 12y ago
Dyson definitely does a great job at marketing, and giving their products a premium price and expectations. I was at the store one day, and saw vacuum cleaners. Now, I have no interest in a vacuum at the moment, but they had a Dyson Ball, and I've seen countless videos of it, and had to take a look to see this high-end vacuum. I was disappointed from the first second, it just looked like a bunch of cheap plastic parts, and similar to something I'd find from a yard sale ten years ago. Photo below of my expectation from all the marketing, and a photo someone took of the actual vacuum. http://i.imgur.com/bs1ygfM.jpg http://i.imgur.com/bs1ygfM.jpg I played around with it for a bit, and it just felt cheap, in every way possible. I was expecting the best vacuum in the world, and I was holding something that was entirely different. Now, I don't own one, it might work great for vacuuming, but it had no sense of luxury in person. Another example, is the handheld vacuum, I'd see commercials on television, and then I saw one in the wild at a friends house. Comparison below is using slightly different models, but just look at the materials. In the promo image, it looks like glass and metal, and then in reality, it's some cheap stamped plastic that you'd expect from a bottom of the barrel vacuum. http://i.imgur.com/RZ8sFxq.jpg http://i.imgur.com/RZ8sFxq.jpg As for the hand dryers, I find they work well and fast. It's a creative idea, and I think they're a success. I imagine they're more difficult to clean though, and get dirty with all the water dripping on them.
- mnem 12y ago
  You really don't want things made substantially of glass when you have to hold them at arms length and bash them around nooks and crannies :) One of the nice things about Dyson vacuum cleaners is that you can take most of the important bits apart by hand - something other manufacturers don't seem to bother thinking about. Vacuums get blockages all the time, especially if you happen to have cat litter made from wooden chips...
- nickflees 12y ago
  I own the vacuum pictured in the first link. I bought it with high expectations and disappointment began to set in almost immediately. After 3 years of not-totally-clean floors and periodic struggles getting the rotating brush to work, I finally replaced it with a much cheaper competing brand. My carpets and floors have never been cleaner.

by buro9 12y ago

ZenoArrow 12y ago

"Their hand dryers do a worse job than the classic World Dryer and look uglier over time and seem to be less performant over time (smaller clogged filters perhaps!?)." Really? That's the exact opposite experience than I've had, the Airblade dries my hands faster and more thoroughly than any traditional hand dryer.

buro9 12y ago
Which one? The Airblade db works, but not as efficiently as rubbing hands together under a World Dryer (not one of the cheaper imitators of them). The Airblade V works extremely well, but tends to suffer from being put where old driers were, which is too damn high to be used comfortably... in motorway services where these and old traditional ones are offered you see people choose the older ones. The tap based one I've not seen in the world.
- ZenoArrow 12y ago
  I didn't realise there were different models, I only have experience of the DB. In my experience the DB works better than the World Dryer or any other traditional hand dryer. I find it easier and more effectice to dip my hands in and out of the DB than rub them under a World Dryer, plus it's more efficient from an energy efficiency point of view. Here's a study by the University of Westminster that backs up the improved drying speed claim (check out table 2)... http://www.europeantissue.com/pdfs/090402-2008%20WUS%20Westminster%20University%20hygiene%20study,%20nov2008.pdf http://www.europeantissue.com/pdfs/090402-2008%20WUS%20Westm... As for the V, it's hardly Dyson's fault if they are installed in an inappropriate way.
joncrocks 12y ago
Apart from the tips of your fingers, which always come out wet...
- ZenoArrow 12y ago
  That's not what I've found. I wonder what I'm doing differently. Do you shake your hands before putting them in/under a dryer?

Throwaway823 12y ago

Dyson definitely does a great job at marketing, and giving their products a premium price and expectations. I was at the store one day, and saw vacuum cleaners. Now, I have no interest in a vacuum at the moment, but they had a Dyson Ball, and I've seen countless videos of it, and had to take a look to see this high-end vacuum. I was disappointed from the first second, it just looked like a bunch of cheap plastic parts, and similar to something I'd find from a yard sale ten years ago. Photo below of my expectation from all the marketing, and a photo someone took of the actual vacuum. http://i.imgur.com/bs1ygfM.jpg http://i.imgur.com/bs1ygfM.jpg I played around with it for a bit, and it just felt cheap, in every way possible. I was expecting the best vacuum in the world, and I was holding something that was entirely different. Now, I don't own one, it might work great for vacuuming, but it had no sense of luxury in person. Another example, is the handheld vacuum, I'd see commercials on television, and then I saw one in the wild at a friends house. Comparison below is using slightly different models, but just look at the materials. In the promo image, it looks like glass and metal, and then in reality, it's some cheap stamped plastic that you'd expect from a bottom of the barrel vacuum. http://i.imgur.com/RZ8sFxq.jpg http://i.imgur.com/RZ8sFxq.jpg As for the hand dryers, I find they work well and fast. It's a creative idea, and I think they're a success. I imagine they're more difficult to clean though, and get dirty with all the water dripping on them.

mnem 12y ago
You really don't want things made substantially of glass when you have to hold them at arms length and bash them around nooks and crannies :) One of the nice things about Dyson vacuum cleaners is that you can take most of the important bits apart by hand - something other manufacturers don't seem to bother thinking about. Vacuums get blockages all the time, especially if you happen to have cat litter made from wooden chips...
nickflees 12y ago
I own the vacuum pictured in the first link. I bought it with high expectations and disappointment began to set in almost immediately. After 3 years of not-totally-clean floors and periodic struggles getting the rotating brush to work, I finally replaced it with a much cheaper competing brand. My carpets and floors have never been cleaner.