The AirRam cordless vacuum cleaner from Gtech.Gtech, a maker of floor-care and garden products in Britain, is setting its sights on the United States with the introduction here of its latest vacuum, the AirRam.
The AirRam, invented by the company’s founder, Nick Grey, combines the simplicity of a cordless vacuum with the power of an electric vacuum. This is thanks to an efficient, compact design that eliminates tubes and bags and incorporates a professional-grade lithium-ion battery.
The battery takes four hours for a full charge, which lasts up to 40 minutes, enough time to clean four rooms. But you can get a 10-minute charge after only an hour, hich is perfect for a small apartment like mine.
At seven and a half pounds, the AirRam is light, making it easy to push across a carpet or hardwood floor. And disposing of the vacuumed dirt and dust is easy, too, because the AirRam compresses it into tiny bales that can be plucked from the vacuum’s waste tray. The filters inside are washable, so no need to buy replacements.
The AirRam, which costs $350 and is available at Brookstone, collects data like how many calories were burned while vacuuming and how much electricity was saved (Gtech says the AirRam uses only 100 watts of electricity). You access this via a USB port in the battery; unfortunately, Gtech does not supply a USB cable. But who really wants that information anyway? All you really want to know is how well the AirRam works.
Gtech claims that the AirRam outpaces comparable offerings from Dyson. I couldn’t test this, but it sure had more power than my stick vacuum from Electrolux. It sucked up all the dirt, crumbs a! nd cat hair under my couch with one pass.
It has a jam indicator, too, which I found out when I accidentally ran the AirRam over the sleeve of a dress shirt and it was quickly pulled in. The vacuum shut off immediately, and a flashing LED indicated there was a jam. The half of the shirt hanging out the bottom was a clear sign, too.
But the AirRam is awfully loud, like a blender grinding up rocks. I wondered if my neighbors thought I was dragging a cement truck across my floor. I know my cat didn’t like it; she darted under the bed and wouldn’t come out for an hour.
The AirRam is a smart innovation, but Mr. Grey needs to design a muffler for the motor.
