Gtech AirRam mk2 vacuum cleaner
Buy now £199.99, Gtech.co.uk
- Weight: 3.2 kg
- Run time (on full charge): Up to 40 minutes
- Charge time: 4 hours
- Bin volume: 0.8l
- Dimensions: 112H, 29.7W, 25.6cm
- Suction power: 22V
- Cordless: Yes
A futuristic-looking model in grey and Gtech’s well known green colour, it has an odd design, with a slim pole and a chunky brush head – not the sleekest cordless design on the market. Its bin and battery are located at the base of the vacuum – giving it a completely different set-up to most cordless models on the market.
You can’t miss the big “on” button, which is located on top of the brush head, while the battery, which can slide out to charge, is housed on the other side of the pole. With a push of a button and a quick slide, the pole gets smaller, while the low-profile handle leans all the way back allowing you to reach under furniture. The second handle, halfway down, we assume, is there to give more stability, but we did find the design a little odd and unneeded.
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The bin was extremely easy to empty – the two handles allow you to easily slide it out and after a quick slide of the ejector’s arm the dirt was safely in the bin without causing much mess. The vacuum also comes with a comb, which helps you to easily clear out any hair, which may get wrapped around the floor head as you pick up dirt. Easy to store, in the corner of a room, or in a cupboard, we love how it stays upright, without too much effort. Although a wall bracket would also be a nice touch.
PerformanceAlmost like a little jigsaw to put together, it took a few attempts before we slotted all the right parts into the right places. Unlike some of the cordless models, this one came with a completely empty battery, so instead of putting it to the test straight off we had to wait for it to charge fully. We found it took a little over four hours to fully charge, and while the green lights show up on the battery when it’s in the vacuum, it doesn’t do the same when charging – which isn’t very helpful. Its run time was very impressive though, and on a full charge, lasted for up to two weeks before we had to charge again.
Because of the light stick, it’s easy to handle, and despite the whole cordless vacuum weighing over 3kg it is relatively light to push around. Designed with a power brush head and AirLOC technology it’s also really powerful – not leaving anything behind as we picked up food, dirt and even cat hair from the floor. With no settings to change it’s also easy to do a quick clean without having to push any buttons or change the floor heads.
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However, we did find the brush head quite large and unable to get under pipes or into small nooks and crannies, which is where attachments would have been a great add on – but this vacuum doesn’t come with any. As its design is upside down to most models there also isn’t an option of making it a handheld vacuum.
That being said, for an extra £20 you can opt for their accessory kit – which includes a duster and speed clean handle, which attaches to the head and can be used for cleaning cars and harder to reach places such as the stairs.
One clever design, which really impacted how we cleaned, especially on hardwood flooring, was the LED lights along the front of the AirRam, which illuminated the floor ahead as we cleaned. One big drawback for the vacuum was its noise – a deep heavy groan was emitted from the model as soon as we turned it on, and it got even worse on hard floors.