Hasta La Gadget!

While a vacuum cleaner is meant to make our lives easier, as it sucks up all of those nasty settlements of dust bunnies around the home, sometimes, all the bending down and squatting while getting up in a repetitive manner to target those hard to reach places can do a number to your back. Which is why instead of bending down or leaning forward, picking up the vacuum cleaner itself from one room to another, the $199.95 Backpack Vacuum, as it is called, will remain nicely on your back to make you into a dust bustin’ Ninja Turtle lookalike.

You basically wear the Backpack Vacuum like a regular backpack, where it is lightweight in nature (tipping the scales at around 7.5 pounds) so that your back will not be strained, where it will remain flushed against your body so that it delivers optimal mobility as you slip into tight corners and access all the different areas and spaces which require cleaning. The inclusion of soft padding ensures that extra cushioning is delivered to the back, while adjustable shoulder straps pave the way for a comfortable fit. Colonies of dust bunnies will be no match for its powerful 800-watt motor, where a HEPA filter removes allergens to boot. Each purchase comes with a handy half dozen cleaning tools, two extension wands, mesh storage bag for accessories, and disposable paper and reusable fabric bags.

[ Backpack Vacuum makes at least one house chore easier on the back copyright by Coolest Gadgets ]

We’ve covered Dyson fans and vacuums for years now, being constantly amazed at the utility and wild designs that come out of James Dyson’s wee English workshop. He makes things that suck and blow and his latest, the DC44 “digital” vacuum sucks with the best of them.

The DC44 is a hand-held vacuum that essentially replaces the DC31 and adds a few tricks to the hand-held magic show. The DC44 has a number of attachments, including a long “motorized floor tool” that allows you to extend the handheld’s reach all the way to the floor.

At first blush, it’s easy to underestimate the DC44. It’s amazingly small with a compact collection bin and an seemingly weak motor. Whereas the previous models sounded like jet planes taking off and actually offered an odd sensation of torque on ignition, the DC44 has a tiny “digital pulse motor” that apparently moves at 104,000 RPM and emits a shrill whine. The suckage, however, is quite impressive. We were able to easily sweep the kitchen and hard wood with the longer attachment and it’s an excellent solution for picking up scraps the kids throw off of the kitchen counter.

The best thing about the DC44, however, is the 20 minute battery life and dual speeds. We’ve used the old model, the DC16, for years and over time the battery life has dropped down to about two minutes. To have a vacuum this tiny and with such a long life is arguably exciting. The extra speed boost is a bit of a placebo – it’s already plenty powerful – but it’s nice to see a dedicated button for adding a little bit more oomph.

The charging solution is also unique. The Dyson mounts on the wall upside down, which means if you fill up the front tube you’ll have dust and dirt falling out of the mouth when you go to plug it in. They’ve designed it so the holder can hold all of the accessories – the long motorized sweeper included – but you need plenty of wall space to get the whole thing to stay put.

Now is this thing worth the $400 you need to spend to get super-sexy Dyson suckage? I’m not quite sure. It doesn’t quite replace a real upright – the floor tool is still too small to really vacuum and entire room (although you could try) – and plenty of hand-held vacs can be had for much, much less.

Dyson is the Apple of vacuums and, depending on your opinion of Apple you’re either paying for quality or for marketing and cool design. While I would argue that the DC44 is definitely a strong replacement to the older crop of Dyson handheld vacuums, you may need to examine a few models before deciding on this mini-vac. As a primary vacuum it’s a possible alternative to bulky bag or canister models but as an alternative to cheaper hand vacs it’s definitely worth the price.

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Robotic vacuum cleaners are definitely able to help you get the job done when it was first released, but those are not exactly the cutest things that you would find in any living room. The Cocorobo vacuum cleaner that you see here from Sharp is one that was specially destined to be appealing to everyone, where it is not only remote-controlled as all modern day appliances should be, it is also capable of talking to people. Granted, Cocorobo will not be the most stimulating conversation partner you will ever run into, but at least from what we have seen in the past, it is worth a shot.

One great thing about the Cocorobo is its ability to function in a somewhat familiar manner as that of a pet dog – after all, it will respond to your voice. For instance, barging through the door after a long day at work, yelling “I’m home!” would see you receive a warm welcome from the Cocorobo itself, and even if you swear at it in your particularly foul mood, it will still continue to get the job done without frowning or pulling a long face.

By Ubergizmo. Related articles: Sharp to cut 5,000 jobs in March next year, Sharp to begin shipping display panels for the next iPhone in August,

What to get the homeowner who has everything? Perhaps a robotic vacuum styled in the fashion of an RC toy will fit the bill. Here at a gdgt event in New York City we happened upon iRobot’s Roomba 790, which comes with a touchscreen remote for manually controlling where the bot goes. The controller — make that the “Wireless Command Center” — has an interface matching the one on the 790 itself, so there’s no second set of menus to master here. In addition to deciding where it moves, you can also schedule daily cleanings or tap a “Clean” button to push the robot into action.Though this isn’t the first time iRobot’s dabbled in remote-controlled vacuum cleaners, previous models tended to rely on infrared sensors, meaning you could only control the Roomba if it was in your line of sight. This guy, though, uses a proprietary technology that allows you to program that 4pm scrubbing from up to 25 meters away.

As for battery life, it runs on four AA cells, and is rated for three to six months of runtime, depending on how compulsively you plan on cleaning. Interestingly, despite the change in wireless standards, the 790 is compatible with older 700-series Roombas, though it’s not as is the controller would be sold separately. If you happen to be the kind of fabulously wealthy family who can afford (and has a need) for multiple Roomba cleaners, you can only pair the remote with one robot at a time anyway. Don’t have the budget for a $700 robotic vacuum kit? We’ve got hands-on photos below and a demo video after the break.

Continue reading iRobot Roomba 790 with Wireless Command Center hands-on (video)

iRobot Roomba 790 with Wireless Command Center hands-on (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 25 Jun 2012 18:21:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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