The Shark IZ201UK Cordless Vacuum Cleaner is one of the best vacuum cleaners for pet hairon the market. It has a 0.7 litre dustbin which, while not the largest, is adequate for cleaning most homes without the need to empty mid-way. We also enjoy how lightweight it is, at just over 4 kg.

She also loved the portable vacuum cleaner element that is accessible with just the push of a button. This is thanks to Powered Lift-Away which is super handy for using the suite of attachments to refresh upholstery or vacuum skirting boards.Flexology means your vacuum can be pivoted under furniture using an elbow hinge at the centre of the tube. It saves you from bending and reaching, but it's only available on cordless vacuums. As with other Shark Flexology vacuums, the extension wand has a bend in it, which serves two purposes. Release the clasp on the wand and you can clean under low-lying furniture without having to get on your hands and knees. The bright LED headlamps on the front help you see what you’re doing. Second, fold the wand all the way over and, cleverly, the vacuum supports its own weight, allowing it to be stored temporarily in a corner without you having to lean it against a wall. We were very excited to test the brand new Shark Detect Pro for a few reasons. The first is that it's unbelievably lightweight, at just 2.76kg, so your days of lugging around a heavy vacuum are behind you. It performed excellently in our at-home tests, and the new detection features go a long way to improve day-to-day vacuuming sessions. I'm a huge fan of the stand system too, even though it comes at an additional price, and would be keen to try out the self-emptying bin system next, which seems like a lifesaver. In testing, our suction test confirmed the similarity between the two models, with the handheld unit producing almost the same suction results as the IZ201UK, as you can see in the chart below.

Switching between carpet and had floors is very easy thanks to the DuoClean brushrolls, which switch over with the touch of a button. It's also possible to go between three power levels, although we found the lowest level perfectly strong enough for the majority of tasks.If there’s one element I didn’t particularly like it’s the position of the power indicator lights on the battery. During operation these are well out of sight, so there’s no at-a-glance guide to how much power you have left without rotating the vacuum around to see the lights. If manoeuvrability is key for you, the Eufy HomeVac S11 Infinityand Dyson Micro 1.5kgare both much easier to handle. I was a little concerned that ditching the fluffy roller would be a compromise too far in our tests, and that the hard floor results would be some way behind what we’ve seen from Shark’s best models.