Its still sucking fantastic (Dyson DC04)

Member Name: hillcrestsan

Product:	Dyson DC04
Date:	14/03/08 (221 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Really works. Bizzarely, looks good.

Disadvantages: Can't do cars

This is going to be a bit of a retrospective review - a progress report if you will. The Dyson range has been going now since 1993 and the story of its conception has been well discussed. We are now, I think, on the 7th version of the Dyson upright vacuum cleaner but do they live up to the hype?

The focus of the range was to develop a vacuum cleaner which sucked like no other, that could remove even miniscule particles such as cigarette smoke and cats. This came from getting rid of the 'only way to do it' bag and use some weird cyclone death ray thing. All invented by mad scientists. The result was a vacuum cleaner that looked totally different and worked like no other.

Of course no-one actually cares about the sucking power. They just like being able to see the dirt collecting in the see-through canister perched on the front. This is a natural human thing. We enjoy seeing just how close we came to being buried under piles of dead skin and toast crumbs. We see victory in the conquering of filth and there is the proof - right in front of your eyes. And when you suck up the car keys you can find the buggers with ease. How we laugh, in a mad dictator sort of a way.

This review is on the Dyson DC04, the 4the generation, don't you know which cost about £170 4 years ago.

The looks
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These things were invented by the kind of people who thought Benneton was cool. If you make something look odd and gaudy it stands out a mile in a showroom and before you know it everyone wants one. This model merges the well loved combination of lime fluorescent green and grey. Of course this inspires nothing in a man but the vacuum has such iconic statues that it fails to look odd in even the most bland room. It has the look of a hover stripped of its skin, with the central cylindrical column sitting atop the rather normal looking brush head. The handle-cum-hose protrudes with the awkward looking handle facing front at the top. The top of the cylinder has clip-on holes for the attachments.
It's a hefty thing, but doesn't look it, and stands about 1.2m tall.

Using it
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Well, it has an on button. And you push it. That sort of sums it up if you want to skip the section.
There are 2 modes of use.
1. Push it along the floor and let the motorised brushes and sucker do the work.
2. Stand the thing upright and the suction comes through the handle-hose. To extend the hose you pull in a little trigger and it extends out from the handle, attach the attachments and of you pop, Do the shake-and-vac and dance.

Dead easy and minutes of entertainment watching the dirt fly around.

Results
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Without a doubt, these things suck better. The problem with bags was that suction dwindled as they were used. These definitely don't. These things have anti-bacterial filers and anti-allergen filters and god-knows what else and I have noticed a lot less bacteria around since using a Dyson. Only the other day, my wife said 'Not only has the cat buggered off to live next door but I hardly see any bacteria around nowadays'. I explained to her about the Dyson and she seemed satisfied that it wasn't her cooking. Oh my God what am I talking about?

The brush head is especially effective but don't expect it to go right to the edges, but it gets close. Anything left can be obliterated with the hose. The range of attachments (3) cater for most nooks and crannies and you can try to suck my wife's hair up them and produce weird hairstyles that stick up. Ha ha. The brush attachment is especially good at getting all the dust that seems to be in love with the cabling next to the computer.

My hose has quite a good length, and believe me I don't hear that often, and can get to the top of stairs at a push, which is a plus because it is heavy and my wife refused to carry it up. That's cool, sometimes women need men. I understand.

The part of the household this thing doesn't do well is the car. The hose is simply too inflexible and the hoover too bulky to get all my tobacco out which fills every crack. As a result, my car stays as a large green ashtray until I drag the Petvac out of the garage, usually just before the MOT.

Durability
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Ours is now about 4 years old so it's getting a bit long in the hose. How has it done in the long term? Well it's never broken down or needed a replacement part. It sucks like a goodun' still. Occasionally I suck something I shouldn't. Stop sniggering. And I have to play hunt the obstruction, but the Dyson is cleverly dismantlable. You can remove little covers and put them back with great ease and I have always found the problem and removed it without any trouble. This is a real big plus and the Dyson has been designed very cleverly so as to have an indestructible air about it.
In fact, the only thing that has broken is the bit where one of the attachments joins to the hose, and this can be used still if careful.

Overall
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Well done Dyson. Yes, you live up to hype. I am a very sceptical person and I suspect my belief that this is a good vacuum is down to the fact that it has been marketed very cleverly to make me believe this. It would be heresy to refuse this notion. But, if that is the reality, then so be it. Our next hoover will be a Dyson.

Info on the interesting James Dyson story and the coming of the Cyclone age can be found on: http://www.dyson.co.uk/

May also be on other review sites.

Summary: 4 years on and going strong.

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