Dyson is taking another crack at the robot vacuum cleaner market in the US after the failure of the Dyson 360 Eye – which it launched in 2016 and then quickly stopped selling here, saying it “wasn’t right for US homes”. (The follow-up model, the 360 Heurist, never made it here.) Now Dyson introduces the Dyson 360 Vis Nav robot vacuum cleaner. Shorter and slimmer than its predecessors, the Vis Nav is designed to work better in our intricate American homes. It still has the signature extra-long brush and square shape of the 360 line, but adds more suction and a faster processor.
Dyson also announced five other new products: the first-ever attempt at a mop – the Dyson Submarine wet roll head; the fifth generation of its signature cordless stick vacuums – the Dyson Gen5detect ($949) and Dyson Gen5outsize ($1,049); and two absolutely gigantic indoor air purifiers: the Dyson Purifier Big+Quiet Formaldehyde and the Dyson Purifier HEPA Big+Quiet Formaldehyde. Dyson hasn’t given any pricing or release dates for models other than the Gen5 vacuum cleaners, which launch on June 6.
As a Dyson product, we can expect the Vis Nav to be expensive. The Dyson 360 Eye launched in 2016 for $999. We also expect it to be innovative. But from the details Dyson has provided, which aren’t many, it looks like the company is going for power and precision rather than super-fast new features.
There’s no ability to mop or self-empty, which we’ve seen on many new robot vacuums these days, nor does it resemble AI-powered obstacle avoidance (just dodging debris). But Dyson says the Vis Nav has twice the suction power of any other robot vacuum and a “high-level processor” that “thinks and adapts” to the data it collects from 26 sensors to avoid obstacles, detect dust and clean walls. find. It also has a side actuator brush that allows for “precision edge cleaning”. Together with its square head that can get closer to edges and corners, this should mean it can reach those tricky spots that other rounder robo-vacs might miss.
The other big change is the smaller size. Dyson didn’t provide specs, but says the Vis Nav can get under furniture at just 3.9 inches. The original Eye was 4.72 inches high, too tall to get under most couches or beds. Sadly, it’s still blue, which is a bold and, shall we say, poor choice for a product hanging in people’s homes.
As with previous models, the Vis Nav has an extra-long brush that extends the length of the vacuum – most robo-vacs make do with a small brush in the middle. The brush also has three surfaces for clearing debris: a soft “Fluffy” nylon for big debris, anti-static carbon fiber filaments for fine dust, and stiff nylon bristles for digging into carpets.
Dyson uses its own version of simultaneous localization and mapping (SLAM) technology to figure out how to move around your home, powered by a tiny camera on top of the robot surrounded by LEDs to help it see in the dark.
The Vis Nav works with the MyDyson app, has a run time of 50 minutes and automatically returns to the charging base. The company did not provide further details, such as bin size, battery size, or information about software features such as mapping or keep-out zones. You can sign up for updates on the new products on the Dyson website.
Of course, Dyson is known for its regular vacuum cleaners, which are still a necessity even if you have a robot vacuum cleaner – robot vacuum cleaners still can’t do stairs. The latest Dyson vacuum cleaners, the Gen5detect and Gen5outsize, are cordless vacuum cleaners with the fifth generation of Dyson’s Hyperdymium motor. This is “smaller, faster and more powerful than its predecessors,” according to Dyson. The new models are also capable of “catching viruses from your home,” according to Dyson.
The Dyson Submarine is the company’s first water vac. The wet roller head can mop up wet spills such as ketchup and milk, as well as remove dust and stains from hard floors. An attachment to the Dyson V15s Detect Submarine and Dyson V12s Detect Slim Submarine vacuum cleaners, the roller head contains a small 300ml clean water tank and a separate waste water tank with a motorized microfiber roller for scrubbing. Both models also come with standard vacuum cleaner heads, but Dyson says the undersea attachment won’t work on existing vacuum cleaners.
Finally, the new Dyson Purifier Big+Quiet Formaldehyde (meaning it claims to capture and destroy formaldehyde as well as 99.97 percent of other pollutants) is a smart air purifier designed for wide open spaces in your home. With a completely different design to Dyson’s other tall and slim purifier/fan models, the Big+Quiet uses new “cone aerodynamics” to project its purifying powers over 32 feet. There’s also a Dyson Purifier HEPA Big+Quiet Formaldehyde, designed for shared, commercial spaces – which would be quite the talking point in the office.