There will always be two camps over whether you should opt for an upright vacuum cleaner or a smaller based cylinder option and Dyson continue to make that decision harder and harder for you each year.
Launching in 2012 is the Dyson DC38, a lightweight cylinder vacuum cleaner that promises to give you great manoeuvrability while still giving you good suction.
Can the DC38 Multi Floor achieve that? We've been living with one in the office for a couple of weeks to find out.
Dyson DC38 Multi Floor lightweight Dyson Ball cylinder vacuum cleaner for every floor type
Technical details:
- Patented Radial Root Cyclone technology for no loss of suction.
- Lighter to pull across different floor surfaces than any other vacuum.
- Ball technology for improved manoeuvrability.
- Engineered for reduced noise levels.
DC38 Multi Floor is an ultra-compact Dyson cylinder vacuum with Ball technology for greater manoeuvrability. Wheeled vacuums can be awkward – heavy to pull, head the wrong way and collide with obstacles. A Dyson Ball vacuum cleans without the awkward moves, turning on the spot. DC38 Multi Floor also has a central steering mechanism for greater control. The pivot point is located near the centre of the machine, so it can make tighter turning circles and more easily follow the user’s path. The lightweight body, low-friction bearings, smooth undercarriage and ball underside make the machine lighter to pull across different floor surfaces than any other vacuum.
Dyson cyclones capture more dirt than any other. DC38 Multi Floor has Radial Root Cyclone technology with remodelled airways to maximise suction power. Like all other Dyson vacuums, DC38 Multi Floor doesn’t lose suction as you clean. There are no bags to replace and the lifetime filters are washable, so there are no extra costs.
DC38 Multi Floor has been engineered for reduced noise levels with no compromise in performance. The essential components are located inside the acoustically treated ball.
Patented Dyson technology
Dyson engineers are constantly testing and inventing, trying to find new ways to make their technology work better. As they work, they file patent applications to protect their inventions from copycat manufacturers. That’s why the only place you’ll find Dyson technology is inside a Dyson machine.
DC38 Multi Floor uses the following patented Dyson technology:
New Radial Root Cyclone technology
Ordinary vacuum cleaners rely on bags to trap dust and dirt. As you use them, the tiny holes in the bag clog up with particles of dust. This restricts the flow of air, so the vacuum cleaner loses suction.
Dyson vacuum cleaners don’t rely on bags to trap dust and dirt. Instead they use cyclone technology, which spins the air at incredibly high speeds. The cyclones inside a Dyson vacuum cleaner generate centrifugal forces many thousands of times the force of gravity. Dust, dirt and pet hair are flung out of the airflow and straight into the bin. No bag. No loss of suction.
Dyson has been continually refining cyclone vacuum technology since inventing it more than 20 years ago. DC38 has new Radial Root Cyclone technology. Reconfigured air channels and improved flow efficiency reduce turbulence and preserve air pressure, so that the inner cyclones can extract more microscopic particles. These refinements help remove more dirt, dust, allergens and pet hair from the airflow.
DC38 Multi Floor includes:
Ball technology
Dyson Ball vacuum cleaners use Ball technology to overcome the steering limitations of fixed wheels. They ride on a ball, which turns on the spot so you can steer with ease, changing direction with just a turn of the wrist. The ball also holds the heaviest component (the motor) – positioned towards the base for a lower centre of gravity and greater stability. Even the cable rewind system is located inside the ball – it has been miniaturised to be smaller and lighter, without compromising the cable length of 5m. The machine moves easily around obstacles, and the ball’s smooth surface means that it doesn’t dig into carpet pile.
Mini Flat Out head
Super low profile for easier cleaning under very low furniture.
Reduced noise levels – ball engineering
No compromise in cyclonic performance. Essential components are located inside the acoustically treated ball.
Lightweight body
DC38 Multi Floor weighs just 6.5kg.
Clear bin lets you see when it needs emptying
The bin on a Dyson vacuum cleaner is transparent so you can see when it needs emptying – and just how much dust, dirt and pet hair your new Dyson machine has picked up.
Captures allergens, expels cleaner air
Dyson cyclones capture microscopic particles down to 0.5 microns in size including mould, pollen and bacteria.
Extra tools
As well as the Mini Flat Out head, DC38 Multi Floor also comes with a Combination tool with a debris nozzle that converts to a brush tool for dusting, and a Stair tool.
No extra costs
Other vacuum cleaners are still designed to need replacement bags and filters – and the cost soon adds up. Over 5 years. Dyson vacuum cleaners don’t need bags and have lifetime washable filters, so there are no extra costs to worry about. Your Dyson vacuum cleaner is likely to take a few knocks and bashes during everyday use – but that’s nothing compared to what Dyson puts its machines through during testing and development. All Dyson vacuum cleaners undergo a lengthy and rigorous testing programme. That’s why DC38 Multi Floor comes with a free 5 year guarantee – parts and labour.
Design
The DC38 Multi Floor is a dinky little cleaner. It's main unit - excluding the rather large and long hose/handle - measures 290 x 240 x 438mm in size and weighs 6kg.
Using the company's ball technology for movement, the motor - that provides 170 AW of sucking power - is hidden in the unit's ball, which keeps the design nice and clean.
The striking Dyson design ethos remains with the new DC38. The overall design has been through a refining process compared to previous models, but it is still clearly a Dyson. The vacuum cleaner is mainly grey with a strong dash of colour, in this case yellow, and a clear bin topped with all those "cyclone" funnels still looks really "industrial", and lets you can see the dirt you are collecting.
Moving around
As you can imagine with the DC38, the design focused around a ball makes dragging the vacuum cleaner in the direction you want very easy. The manoeuvrability is so good that the cleaner can actually turn on the spot. To add even greater flexibility the hose can also be moved through what we think is about a 160 degrees meaning it is just easy to use. Not once did we find ourselves fighting with the cleaner to get it to move the way we wanted it to - a good thing in our books.
Performance
In use and the cleaner is good, picking up the dirt quickly, effectively, and quietly. We did have to go over troublesome spots from time to time, but on the whole we are impressed by the sucking performance of the DC38. We especially like the flat design of the head unit - which you attach to the end of the hose - as this allowed us to get under the edge of our sofa easily.
The "Turbo boost" button works a treat, and the auto coiling power cable helps keep things nice and tidy.