Realme TechLife Handheld Vacuum Cleaner Review: It Sucks! But in a Good Way

Is it a worthy option in this price segment? Let’s find out in this review.

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I know, I know, the use of the word “suck” in the headline will be scoffed at by many Editors in India. But hey, what better word than “suck” to capture the only actual job of a vacuum cleaner? Okay, let’s not digress and get on with the product that’s in for review – the Realme TechLife Handheld Vacuum Cleaner. Yes, Realme now has a pair of vacuum cleaners that it launched last month. The company introduced a handheld option and another fancier robotic vacuum cleaner to the Indian market recently.

We’ve already reviewed the Realme TechLife Robot Vacuum Cleaner and you can read more about it here. Coming to the Realme Handheld Vacuum Cleaner, the appliance comes with a price tag of Rs 7,999, which makes it one of the most affordable options in the market in its category. But is it a worthy option in this price segment? Let’s find out in this review.

Design and Accessories

The Realme Handheld vacuum cleaner looks similar to other cordless vacuum cleaners available in the market. You get a gun-shaped main unit, which comes with different attachments. There is a motorised floor brush, an extension rod, a crevice tool, and a 2-in-1 brush. Apart from this, the package comes with an adapter to charge the vacuum cleaner, a brush, wall mount accessories and a user manual.

The best part about this vacuum cleaner is the compact form factor. The main unit can fit anywhere without much hassle. The main motor has a flat underbody, which also houses the battery, so you place it easily on a table or shelf. The charging port is on the right side and there is a slide button at the top to switch on the vacuum cleaner and choose between two cleaning modes: strong and soft. The five LED indicators upfront light up blue when the device is on and give a rough estimation of the battery status. Moving on, you can also see a fairly large dust container that collects all the dust from the cleaning session. There is a toggle slide at the bottom of the container that allows you to open the lid.

You can also completely detach it by first pressing the round button on the right side and then simply taking it off from the main unit. Once you take out the container, you will see that there is a HEPA filter. The good thing here is that both the HEPA Filter and dust container are washable. However, you should first dry the HEPA Filter before inserting it back to the container. At this point, you might be wondering how you can attach the accessories. There is a connector at the base of the nozzle that allows you to connect different accessories to the vacuum cleaner. Attaching them is easy and with the help of the pins, it allows the attachments to fit properly.

Performance: It Sweeps Just Fine!

The vacuum cleaner comes with a 140W motor with 10,500 RPM that provides a suction power of 9.5KPa. Simply put, you can easily clean out most of the dust in your house using this vacuum cleaner. As for the modes, there are two for cleaning: strong and soft. The strong mode uses the maximum power to clean all the dust and some big particles like the chips, bread crumbs, choco chips, and more. Feeling hungry? Blame my toddler.) That said, the 9.5KPa suction power does feel a bit underwhelming when it comes to cleaning some tricky spots in the house. But, considering the price, it is not a bad deal at all.

All the dirt goes straight to the dust container and you can also clean it easily via a brush that comes bundled with the box or with a damp cloth. To open it, all you need to do is toggle the slide upward. However, be sure to open it at a place where there are no overhead fans as the dust particles will fly in the air the moment you let it out. While cleaning the dirt container was easy, I found it difficult to clean the filter inside the dust container.

Coming to the attachments, it works well with the right set of attachments. I quite like the motorised floor brush, which has a few interesting features. For example, there is a light at the front, which allows you to clean the dark areas (like under the bed, sofa, and more) quite easily. The small wheels present in the motorised floor brush makes it easier to move it around while cleaning. Moreover, there is a built-in motor that rotates the soft bristle brush at 2,200 RPM. This makes it easier to collect the dust.

The second attachment is the crevice tool that allows you to clean the sofa cushions and hard-to-reach corners hiding the dust. I was quite satisfied with the performance of the crevice tool as it has helped me to clean these corners quite effectively. I have a toddler at home and this one is a tad naughty. She tends to create a mess while eating on the sofa and this tool has come in quite handy to clean all the mess she had made after the eating session was over. Lastly, we have the 2-in-1 brush that can be used to clean doormats, shelves, fans, and more. There is a switch to move the brush up and down. Although it did a decent job, I never understood the use of the brush in this tool.

Battery Life

Although vacuum cleaning is one of the most efficient ways of cleaning your house, there are some limitations with cordless ones. And this one is no different. One of the weak points of Realme Handheld Vacuum Cleaner is that you just don’t get enough battery backup to clean the whole house. I live in a two-story house, which has roughly 668 square feet of area for each floor. During the testing, I found out that the battery ran out in the middle of the cleaning session, which can be a frustrating experience if you are on a mission of cleaning the whole house in one go.

However, it managed to complete one floor. So, if you are someone who lives in an apartment with normal-sized rooms, then you can expect it to do the cleaning of at least two rooms or three rooms without much trouble. But beyond that, you will need to charge it first. Coming to the charging speed, it is not that great as well. I found that the device took around 3.5 hours to get fully charged up. So, I would advise you to plan out your cleaning accordingly.

Should You Buy the Realme Handheld Vacuum Cleaner?

For Rs 7,999, the Realme TechLife Handheld Vacuum Cleaner is probably one of the best options you can get in the market, especially during the festive sale on Flipkart. The compact size of the vacuum cleaner is just right to place it anywhere in the house, while the attachments are easy-to-use. However, slower charging speed, loud noise and limited battery life can cause some minor inconveniences. But, at this price, you can surely overlook these as the overall performance of this vacuum cleaner is apt for a regular apartment. However, if you are still willing to go for an expensive one, you can then consider Dyson’s different handheld vacuum cleaners. But, at this price point, the Realme Handheld Vacuum Cleaner is one of the best options to clean up your house without much stress, provided you time it well.