Buying a large appliance comes with all sorts of decisions, and while we are all cutting back, one of the big ones is cost.
Sometimes you can get away with going cheap, but sometimes it’s a false economy. What you save on the initial purchase will not work out in the long term if it’s not economical to run or you have to replace it well before its time.
So what about vacuum cleaners? The problem these days is there is too much choice. You can spend under $100 at the discount department stores or into the thousands for an industrial unit that might suck up a small child if you are not careful.
Well, if you are going with the budget option, CHOICE has done the hard work for you for Australia’s popular retail outlets Target and Kmart and rated the current offerings. The reviews are also frank and forthright.
One and the same
It’s probably worth noting that while Target and Kmart are owned by the same company, Wesfarmers, which also owns Bunnings, Priceline and Officeworks, they were traditionally marketed to different price points. Kmart was the discount store to Target’s more middle-market homewares and clothing.
However, the back-of-house operations were merged last and as a result there has been a lot of crossover in product lines since then.
Many of their homewares are now branded Anko products, which began as a home-brand Kmart line, but is now drifting into Target.
Anyway, on to the reviews, and they are not good.
You get what you pay for
First up, the increasingly popular stick vacs, and the CHOICE experts say you get what you pay for.
The $79 Anko2-in-1 cordless V8260-12A received a lukewarm “okay overall” from the testing staff. It performed well on hard floors and in hand-held mode but struggled on carpets.
The next step up was the $99 Kmart Anko Cordless Stick EV-PH666-S222, and CHOICE experts struggled to see any overall improvement. They found it easier on hard floors, but worse on carpet. However it scored well for pet hair, so maybe one for keeping the car clean from hair after your next frolic in the dog park.
Sadly, these two cheaper versions were the high point. Things went downhill as the price increased.
According to the experts, the $129 Kmart Anko Cordless Stick Cleaner and the $149 Anko Cordless Stick Vacuum were an obvious step down from the cheaper models.
Better off paying more
CHOICE’s verdict: “There’s little else to commend these vacuums for, and you’re likely to be better off paying a little more for a stick vac that’ll actually do a good job at cleaning your home”.
Ouch.
CHOICE also took into account running costs. A replacement battery on the $149 model came in at $68 and the $129 model replacement battery will cost $55. That’s an extraordinarily high price to pay for a budget item.
The two cheapest models don’t even offer replacement batteries, which as CHOICE pointed out, makes them little better than soon-to-be future landfill.
Filters were a little more affordable at $2 to $15 depending on the model, and there were a few replacement parts and tools, but they were only available for the two more expensive models.
Do you use a stick vacuum? Do you prefer it over a traditional model? Why not share your thoughts in the comments section below?
Also read: How to properly load your dishwasher
