Real vacuum cleaner or toy?

This is the Heinner HVC-MTB700YL electric vacuum cleaner and when I bought it, it was the cheapest on the market, at €30.

So what is an electric vacuum cleaner like that is cheaper than even children's toy vacuums? Better than you would expect! ... Well, almost…

Let’s first see what it’s like, its features, and what it means to have such an affordable and cheap electric vacuum cleaner.

Inside the box we find the vacuum cleaner, in yellow color, which somehow reminds me of another brand, but okay, I won’t judge. The vacuum is lightweight but not as much as I expected, made from economical materials. Obviously. It comes with a 2-liter capacity bag, has 700 Watts of power, and a 5-meter long cable.

Along with it, we have the plastic flexible hose, the wand in two pieces (also plastic to keep the cost low), the nozzle, and 2 cleaning brush attachments.

It has a HEPA 10 filter, automatic cable rewind, and a bag full indicator. The noise level stated by Heinner is 78dB.

Tests:
So, as you can understand, the game was a bit uneven from the start, as my expectations for its performance were very, very, very low, due to the cost alone. Not that I snub a device just because it’s so cheap, but let’s face it, most of the time cost mainly reflects performance and build quality.

I used it for 2 weeks in various cleaning scenarios and compared it to the main vacuum we have at home since 2019, the Hoover Telios XXX, which I also reviewed back then. It’s starting to disappear from stores after so many years, but its performance remains very good, so if you want, check out the video.

So how does the cheapest electric vacuum cleaner on the €30 market clean? You’ll be surprised, dear viewer, as I was. Maybe I was a bit biased as I said before, but I can say I have no complaints. The 700W is more than enough, the nozzle does its job despite the low build quality, and the noise during use—well, noise is noise, it won’t blow your ears off but it doesn’t go unnoticed either.

It sucks quite well and doesn’t leave things on the floor. A note about vacuum cleaners: half the performance depends on the nozzle design, don’t underestimate it. It did well with paper bits, larger pieces, on carpet, marble, parquet. Almost as well (within reason) as a €100-200 vacuum.

The general problem with very cheap devices isn’t whether they’ll do the job. Most of the time they do it without much issue. Whether it’s a cheap vacuum, a cheap multi-blender, a cheap iron, a cheap air fryer. The issue is HOW LONG they’ll last mechanically and how long before some part breaks or fails due to low build quality.

In this case, a vacuum or an iron can be a temporary or even permanent replacement device because the risk from construction and use is small. In the case of devices that come into contact with food for preparation or cooking, things change a bit and I’m not so lenient. A cheap air fryer may cook well, but I wouldn’t trust either its safety or my health. Mainly due to the construction materials and compromises in the health aspect, regarding what might be transferred to the food at such high temperatures and how the construction materials react. And no, not all air fryers are dangerous, check out my video buying guide for air fryers if you want to learn more.

Final verdict? Look, not everyone is obsessed with expensive or fancy appliances, and there’s no need to be. Maybe you don’t clean the house yourself and don’t care, maybe you don’t have high cleaning demands. I don’t often test such affordable devices, mainly because I wouldn’t buy them for myself. But I always understand the financial situation of users and how much they want to invest in a device.

So, the Heinner HVC-MTB700YL vacuum cleaner may cost only 30-40€, but in a student or bachelor’s home, it can serve decently for a few years. It’s also back to school, back to university season, etc., so if you’re interested, take a look.

Do I recommend it? Yes, but only for this category of users. I already know, without experiencing it, that this vacuum cleaner won’t last 5-6 years with weekly use. That’s usually how it goes. Maybe I’m wrong, but I wouldn’t bet on it. Obviously, times have changed and no device lasts a decade anymore; it’s not your grandma’s vacuum from 1992 that stubbornly refuses to be replaced because “it still sucks just fine, it sticks to the tile.”

So yes, if you have such a low budget or don’t want to spend more, you can get it and it will do the job. With all that this entails.

Purchased on 21/6/24 for €39.90. We bought it urgently because the shower glass broke and we needed to clean up the glass immediately, as we didn't want to use the stick vacuum we have. So we wanted something cheap and immediate.

Given the above, it did its job perfectly.

Positives:
- Very easy assembly, use, and emptying of the bag.
- Compared to other vacuums that cost €100, the suction power is much better.
- Fabric bag that can be emptied and reused.
- Not very noisy.
- Lightweight.
- Takes up little space.
- Easy to transport.

Negatives:
- The bag has a small capacity, but that's what it says, so you know it when you buy it.
- Only one function/intensity, no other settings. Satisfactory for tiles, but I imagine it would have mediocre performance on carpets (I didn't try it on carpets).
- The hose consists of 2 sections that fit into each other. It seems that the construction is not good, time will tell how long it will last.
- Not many accessories: 1 regular nozzle and 1 small one for corners that can be rotated and the head slightly changes.
- Short cord.

Overall, I was more satisfied than I expected. I recommend it for the price. Time will tell if it will last. If anything changes, I will come back.