Dyson V6 Absolute vs Animal vs Motorhead Cordless Vacuums
Dyson V6 cordless vacuum cleaners is a group of lightweight, cordless, bagless, convertible 2-in-1 vacuums, suitable for cleaning various types of floors and elevated surfaces.
Dyson V6 cordless vacuum come in several versions, with the most popular being Dyson V6 Absolute, Dyson V6 Animal and Dyson V6 Motorhead models, differing in color, available attachments, air filtration, and of course, the price.
Published: February 15, 2020.
Dyson V6 Cordless Vacuum - Features and Specifications
Dyson V6 cordless vacuum is highly efficient Dyson Digital Motor V6 rated at 350 watts, providing 100 Air Watts (AW) of suction power in the maximum suction mode.
Conversion between cordless stick vacuum and cordless handheld vacuum can be done quickly and easily by detaching (or attaching) vacuum cleaner wand and other cleaning tools as required - and it can be done without tools, of course.
In the lightweight stick configuration, Dyson V6 Absolute weighs only 5.1 pounds (~2.31 kg), with physical dimensions of 9.8 x 47.5 x 8.2 inches (~24.9 x 120.7 x 20.8 cm).
Operating time of the Dyson V6 depends on the suction mode and on the cleaning tool being used. Dyson V6 features two cleaning modes: Normal and Maximum suction modes.
When the Maximum suction mode is used, operating time is around 6 minutes - this mode is used for vacuuming piles of dirt and in other situations where such strong suction is required. This mode optimizes performances, but shortens the operating time of the unit.
Normal suction mode is used for everyday cleaning. When the unit is used as stick vacuum cleaner with attached main cleaner heads, operating time is ~16 minutes. When Mini Motorized Pet Tool is used, fully charged battery provides ~17 minutes of operation. And when non-motorized cleaning tools are used, operating time is ~20 minutes.
When the battery is fully discharged, it takes ~3.5 hours to fully charge it.
Dyson V6 comes with the wall mount that is used for both storing and charging of the unit - when the battery is fully charged, the unit may be left on the wall mount and be ready for the use at the moment notice.
Dirt cup is transparent, allowing the user to see amount and type of vacuumed dirt. Dirt cup capacity is 0.11 gal (0.4 liters) up to the max. fill line, which is enough for most cleaning tasks. When the dirt cup is full or after each cleaning task, dirt may be emptied quickly and easily directly into the trashcan.
Most popular models of the Dyson V6 series are Dyson V6 Absolute, Dyson V6 Animal and Dyson V6 Motorhead vacuums. Their main features, specifications and in the end differences, are given in the following chart:
| Model | Dyson V6 Absolute | Dyson V6 Animal | Dyson V6 Motorhead |
| Photo |  |
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| Motor Type | Dyson V6 Digital | Dyson V6 Digital | Dyson V6 Digital |
| Rated Power | 350 W | 350 W | 350 W |
| Suction Power | 100 AW | 100 AW | 100 AW |
| Maximum Operating Time | 20 min | 20 min | 20 min |
| Maximum Suction Operating Time | 6 min | 6 min | 6 min |
| Dirt Cup | 0.11 gal (0.4 liters) | 0.11 gal (0.4 liters) | 0.11 gal (0.4 liters) |
| Charging Time | 3.5 hours | 3.5 hours | 3.5 hours |
| Post Motor HEPA Air Filter | Yes | No | No |
| Wall Mount | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Direct Drive Cleaner Head | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Soft Roller Cleaner Head | Yes | No | No |
| Combination Tool | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Crevice Tool | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Mini Soft Dusting Brush | Yes | Yes | No |
| Mini Motorized Pet Tool | Yes | Yes | No |
| Amazon Link | Dyson V6 Absolute | Dyson V6 Animal | Dyson V6 Motorhead |
Note: Amazon links open in the new windows, feel free to check them for most up-to-date offers and prices.
When compared with Dyson V6 Absolute, Dyson V6 Animal lacks motor exhaust HEPA air filter and the Soft Roller Cleaner Head, while Dyson V6 Motorhead lacks motor exhaust HEPA air filter, the Soft Roller Cleaner Head, Mini Soft Dusting Brush and Mini Motorized Pet Tool.
Dyson V6 Air Filtration
Dyson V6 comes with multilayered air filtration systems which differ slightly among these models.
All units use cyclonic action to separate vacuumed dirt from the clean air, hence requiring that the dirt cup is never filled more than the 'Maximum Fill Line'.
All units also come with the pre-motor air filter, providing the additional level of the air filtration.
Post-motor HEPA air filter comes only with Absolute model - this is true HEPA air filter and is able to capture 99.97% of 0.3 microns or larger particles, which is very important not only for people suffering issues like asthma and allergies, but also for all people in general.
Both pre-motor air filter (also known as pre-filter) and post-motor HEPA air filter are washable. On average, they should be washed every month and left for at least 24 hours to air dry thoroughly - never assemble the unit with moist or wet air filters.
Note: Dyson V6 Cordless vacuums are simple to use and maintain convertible vacuums, but when the unit arrives, be sure to read the manual thoroughly in order to get accustomed to your new cordless vacuum - better safe than sorry.
After some time, depending on the most common dirt type and the unit's use, air filters should be replaced completely. Despite there are numerous third-party air filters on the market for Dyson V6 units, only Dyson's (OEM) air filters are recommended.
Dyson V6 Battery Replacement
Dyson V6 is powered by fade-free lithium ion battery being able to store large amount of energy, required for daily cleaning tasks.
However, over time battery's capacity is decreased and new battery is required.
Just like with air filters, only Dyson's battery replacement for Dyson V6 is recommended, while the batteries from other manufacturers are NOT recommended.
However, due to the price of OEM's V6 battery replacement, many users choose third-party batteries.
If you are going for third-party replacement battery for the Dyson V6, be sure that the new battery has many numerous positive comments, and that it is compatible with your Dyson V6 vacuum cleaner.
Also, maximum capacity of the new battery is not that important, since batteries featuring actual capacity of 3-4Ah are usually able to provide more power (important for Maximum Suction mode) than the 4-5Ah replacement batteries.
Personally, go for the OEM Dyson V6 replacement battery and don't worry about it any more. And yes, that battery sometimes costs 3x more than the non-OEM battery.
Dyson V6 Cleaning Tools
In order to be able to clean homes and apartments from the floor to the ceiling, Dyson V6 comes with various cleaning tools and attachments.
Direct Drive Cleaner Head is designed for cleaning carpets and area rugs. Direct Drive Cleaner Head features stiff bristles for cleaning of the deeply embedded dirt like dust, pet and human hair, lint, fibers and similar.
Direct Drive Cleaner Head is motorized cleaning attachment which shortens the runtime of the vacuum cleaner.
Note: Direct Drive Cleaner Head comes with all three models: Dyson V6 Absolute, Dyson V6 Animal and Dyson V6 Motorhead. It can be used for vacuuming bare floors as well, but it is not as gentle as Soft Roller Cleaning Head - Direct Drive Cleaner Head should not be used on the sensitive bare floors.
Soft Roller Cleaning Head is designed for cleaning hard floors, including sensitive laminate and hardwood floors.
Soft Roller Cleaning Head feautures two types of fibers/bristles: soft woven nylon fibers trap larger debris, while carbon fibers remove small particles from the cleaned floors.
Note: Soft Roller Cleaning Head comes only with Dyson V6 Absolute.
Combination Tool is designed as 2-in-1 cleaning tool - it combines debris tool and brush tool.
Combination Tool is unpowered cleaning tool, requiring no extra power from the battery.
Debris tool is used for general cleaning of different types of dirt like crumbs, dry pet food and similar, while brush tool is used for dusting of different surfaces at home.
Note: Combination Tool comes with all three V6 models: Absolute, Animal and Motorhead.
Crevice Tool is long and narrow cleaning tool intended for cleaning gaps, crevices (hence the name), between mattresses and car seats, along the baseboard edges, in the corners and similar.
Note: Crevice Tool comes with all three V6 models: Absolute, Animal and Motorhead.
Mini Soft Dusting Brush features soft dusting bristles. As the bristles glide over cleaned area, they agitate the dust and other small particles which are then vacuumed into the unit via strong suction.
Mini Soft Dusting Brush is also non-powered cleaning tool that doesn't require additional energy from the battery.
Note: Mini Soft Dusting Brush comes with Dyson V6 Absolute and Dyson V6 Animal, but NOT with the Dyson V6 Motorhead model.
Mini Motorized Pet Tool features spinning brushroll and as such it requires some power from the battery, but it requires less power than Soft Roller Cleaner Head or Direct Drive Cleaner Head.
Mini Motorized Pet Tool is excellent cleaning tool for people with pets and kids - it cleans deeply surfaces that can't be cleaned using main cleaner heads and can reach areas that large cleaning tools can't.
Mini Motorized Pet Tool is not maintenance free cleaning tool - it is up to the user to periodically check it and clean, if required.
Note: Mini Motorized Pet Tool comes with Dyson V6 Absolute and Dyson V6 Animal, but NOT with the Dyson V6 Motorhead model.
Long Story Short: Despite being an older cordless vacuum cleaner model, Dyson V6 is nonetheless still rather popular model.
Thanks to the arrival of the new Dyson cordless units and various knock-offs, the price of the Dyson V6 is much more affordable than years ago, when this unit set new standards for cordless vacuums.
For more reviews and recommendations, feel free to check Dyson V6 Absolute Amazon link (link opens in the new window).