Hoover 300 3in1 Cordless Vacuum: agile, dual LED lights and brushless motor, H-FREE 300 HOME HF322HM

Product Information

We also used the hose on its own, without extension or tools, to see if this increased the suction power – but it barely improved. Unfortunately, this isn’t a cleaner for stairs. Hoover H-Free C300 – How does it cope with pet hair?

A full charge took us just over 6 hours, as the manual suggested. That’s a seriously long time and clearly not going to see multiple cleaning sessions in the same day. Then again, if the Hoover does deliver on its promised 60 minutes run-time, that shouldn’t be a problem. Measuring 110 cm at its highest point, the Hoover boasts six adjustable height settings, which means it’s easy to store, and it comes with a more than manageable seven parts in total, including a main vacuum head, removable battery and stretch hose. While anything that comes with screws instantly sounds fiddly – and it would be better if you didn’t need to use a screwdriver at all – you’ll only need to screw on two parts, both of which are hooks on which you hang the stretch hose. While there are only two power levels (carpet and eco) in addition to the main setting used exclusively for hard floors, carpet mode is, in fact, the real winner here.

Hoover H-Free 300 pets cordless vacuum

Heading out over different carpets and rugs around the home, the Hoover delivered a reasonably good clean, pulling up pet hair and titbits easily. Suction to the floor-head isn’t the strongest, so much of the good cleaning here is due to the effective brush bar and design of the floor-head in concentrating the suction. Either way, the C300 works well as an upright vacuum over the carpet.

The same can be said of the hose. Releasing the upper section of the handle to use as an extension tube, push-fitting the hose in the floor-head and handle is a rather flimsy affair. It does give you fairly decent reach, however, and we effectively used the extension tube with the dusting brush to clean above canvas paintings. If you’re on the look-out for both of these things, then this model may well be worth considering. What is a First Look? We’d have liked to have seen a larger bin capacity and a less bulky vacuum head, but the runtime and lightweight design do well to outweigh any negatives. Performance at the highest power level is solid, with very little vibration from that motor and noise levels that are no worse than, say, a beefy hair dryer at full tilt. Suction power is also really good at the top setting, although it does drop away on those other lower settings. These are handy for delicate areas around ornaments and suchlike, but we got most value from the maximum setting. Quality isn’t based on suction power alone, but also the efficiency of the tools, which is where my real-world tests come in. First, I started be spreading an ‘X’ of flour onto a carpeted floor.As is standard for Hoover vacuum cleaners, there’s a rubber wiper in the box that can be slid into the floor head for better suction on hard floors. This also makes the vacuum cleaner harder to push. I’d prefer to see a soft roller, of the type included with the Dyson V11.

The filter is only basic; it isn’t EPA or HEPA rated. If you any folk in your home who suffer allergies, a vacuum cleaner with better filtration may be required, such as the Dyson Small Ball Allergy. At the rear, there’s a Power Control touch-sensitive button that you tap to run through the Power mode. With non-powered tools, there are three power modes: Low, Medium and Turbo; add a motorised brush and you just get Medium and Turbo modes. There’s no doubt that the 3-in-1 tool is convenient, especially since it handily clips onto the machine, but performance-wise it isn’t great. The soft brush was fine, but the short and wide crevice tool wasn’t likely to go in anything you could describe as a crevice, plus the upholstery tool was basic. The tool was also a bit fiddly when it comes to switching nozzles, making it feel rather cheap. The C300 cordless vacuum cleaner from Hoover houses all its workings, including motor, battery and filters, in the floor-head. That really makes it a cordless upright cleaner with no hand-held cleaning option, although you do get a tube, detail tools and a handle that doubles as an extension tube. The accessories clip on-board, and with the telescopic handle fully down, it’s compact and easy to store in low cupboards such as under the sink. Aside from the ability to stand up on its own accord, which makes it a hit with us for starters, the Hoover H-Free 300 looks pretty good overall. Our test model came with a red anodized finish on the aluminium main tube, while the colour scheme overall is a blend of red, dark grey and silver, topped with the iconic Hoover logo on the main body.

All-in-all, it took our team about 15 minutes get going. As the vacuum was already part-way charged out of the box, we could also start cleaning straight away – something that we were very pleased about. Once empty, it takes about six hours for the vacuum to reach full charge. Stand-out features At 3.4kg and 60 minutes respectively, it’s one of the lightest vacuums on the market with one of the longest battery lives, which will likely be very attractive to families who need a reliable model with a good battery that's light enough to lug up and down even the steepest of stairs. Included are a 2in1 dusting/ crevice tool, to help you to reach tight spaces and to clean above floors, plus a 2in1 large dusting brush/upholstery tool for cleaning bigger surface areas and textiles. Hoover has also installed two LEDs to highlight the surface you’re vacuuming. The first one is on the main body and is activated only when the main wand isn’t attached, giving you light when you use handheld tools.

For darker areas, there are three LED lights on the front of the floor-head although, strangely, they only come on in carpet mode. With the growing trend for hard floors like laminates, this seems an odd way of setting up the lights, particularly as we find LEDs most useful for spotting pet hair on hard floors. Sadly, the lights are pretty dull so their function is more decorative than useful anyway. Plug in the wand and there are lights on the motorised floor brush, so you can see clearly where you’ve cleaned and where you need to clean. There’s a nice attention to detail on this model too, with dual LED DustLocator lights built in to both the nozzle and the handheld section of the design. That means you’ve got illumination at your disposal to cover all scenarios, from darkened room corners through to those hard to reach shelf and cupboard innards. Thanks to Frontal LED lights on the floorhead and AUTO LED light on the handheld, the Dual LED DustLocator helps to find hidden dust on and above floors, like on bookshelves and behind cushions. LONG RUNTIME

Getting started

Battery life is around 40 minutes on the Low mode, but just 25 minutes when you use the cleaner on Medium. It drops a lot further on Turbo mode, although you shouldn’t need to use this mode too often. In terms of manoeuvrability, we loved the swivel steering (a huge highlight!) as it made the vacuum cleaner super easy to manoeuvre, especially when changing direction – key if you have enthusiastic children running around the house as you’re attempting to clean. Designed to complement a regular plug-in vacuum cleaner, this cordless model can stand up by itself and includes two LED lights. A decent performer with light spills and good at removing pet hair, this is a useful supporting vac to have in your home. Hoover H-Free 300 design and features – Cleverly, it can stand unaided Out of the box, the C300+ looks a little old-fashioned with an unexciting grey and blue design, especially when compared to the slimmer H-Free 700. But, of course, looks aren’t everything. Convenient touch button allows you to adjust power in one touch to suit different cleaning tasks. DUAL LED DUSTLOCATOR TO FIND HIDDEN DUST