Purchased by me
Slim, genuinely light, 30-40 minutes of real battery, and it breaks down into a dust-buster for the car. Just don’t ask the main head to swallow big crumbs.
Dyson V9 Motorbar
The verdict
Buy it if
you want a light cordless with a removable battery and a mini motor brush that’s great on stairs, pet beds and the car.
Skip it if
you mostly vacuum up larger crumbs and debris and won’t swap tools to do it.
What’s good
- Genuinely light and slim, with a swivel that makes it easy to steer one-handed.
- 30-40 minutes of real-world battery mixing low and medium, and the battery pops out for a spare.
- Converts into a mini dust-buster; the mini motor brush is excellent on stairs, pet beds and furniture.
- Longer wand than the old Digital Slim, so it suits average height without stooping.
The catch
- The main Motorbar head sits low, bigger crumbs skate under instead of in, so you swap to a brush tool.
- Boost only lasts about 10 minutes, and it restarts in low power every single time.
What it is
A light, slim cordless that’s essentially a rebadged Dyson Digital Slim with two changes that matter: they added a mini motor brush and made the wand a bit longer, so it finally suits average-height users without stooping. Removable battery, hanging charge dock, tool-free emptying.
What I found using it
The V9 is genuinely light and easy to steer, and I lived in the medium power mode, that’s the sweet spot, and it’s the main reason I’d take this over the two-mode V8. You get 30-40 minutes mixing low and medium; boost only lasts about 10, so I saved it for stubborn messes. The battery pops out, so a spare gets you through the whole house.
The standout tool is the mini motor brush, it’s what I used for stairs, pet beds and upholstery. My one real gripe: the main Motorbar head sits low, so larger crumbs skate under it instead of in. The V9 clearly has the suction to grab them, they just won’t fit under the brush, so you swap to a brush tool. Converting the V9 to a handheld for the car is a nice bonus.
Who I’d tell to buy it
Get the V9 if you want a light, maneuverable cordless with a removable battery and that mini motor brush, and you don’t mind swapping tools for the occasional pile of big crumbs. Want more power and a dust sensor? The V15 Detect. On a budget? The V8 Plus.
How it did in testing
I ran the V9 as my main cordless for a few weeks across hardwood, rugs and the car. The V9 is essentially a rebadged Digital Slim with a mini motor brush added and a longer wand, and those two changes are why I’d take the V9 over the V8.
Words, not numbers, below, here’s what actually happened.
| Test | What happened | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Battery life | 30-40 min mixing low and medium; about 10 on full boost. | Save boost for stubborn messes. |
| Bigger crumbs | Main Motorbar head skated over them. | Swap to a brush tool. |
| Stairs & upholstery | Mini motor brush handled pet beds and furniture cleanly. | The tool that earns its keep. |
| Emptying | Wand off, lever over the bin. | Clean and quick. |
Living with it
The V9’s only real gripe is that low head clearance, it clearly has the power to grab big crumbs, they just won’t go under the main brush. Everything else, from the removable battery to the longer wand, makes it the Dyson I’d pick in this weight class.
If you’re choosing between this and a V8, the medium power mode and mini motor brush settle it for me.
