Beko VRT 82821 DV review: affordable cordless vacuum cleaner gets the job done

Beko VRT 82821 DV is a great cordless stick vacuum that can be used as a handheld. It’s best for those quick clean-up jobs around the home, and if you mainly have hardwood floors, you’ll be in for a treat.

Although they generally lack the sheer cleaning power of the best vacuum cleaners with power cables, the best cordless vacuum cleaners have been a godsend, changing the way we clean our homes and making our lives easier. There's no annoying cord to tug around, no bag, and clever technology and ergonomic design gives us the freedom to dart around the house without unplugging or tripping over a hose.  You simply can’t fault the convenience of a cordless, even if they are less powerful as the superior corded vacuums .

If you don’t fancy splashing out on a top-end, cordless stick vac, there are plenty of budget-friendly alternatives on the market. I recently reviewed the Bissell Mutireach Active, for instance. By comparison, the Beko VRT 82821 is similarly priced, feels less well made, but seems to perform better when it comes to cleaning floors. 

So how does the Beko VRT 82821 Cordless Stick Vacuum Cleaner compare to its other budget rivals, and it's more expensive, Dyson-esque counterparts?

BEKO VRT 82821 CORDLESS STICK VACUUM CLEANER REVIEW: DESIGN AND FEATURES

Unlike most domestic appliances where you have to rummage around in a sea of plastics and cardboard, everything here is neatly packed and sectioned in the box. Making it quick and easy to find the parts you need and assemble with a simple push and click.  

Design-wise, it has a modern, sleek look with a brushed-chrome and blue finish, and at 4.02kg, it’s easy to manoeuvre around the home. The top of the handheld cylinder has a circular white light feature when powered on and turns red for low battery.

Perhaps the key feature here is its 2-in-1 design, which can easily be detached into a handheld in just seconds - convenient for dealing with those small messes around the home. The Beko VRT 82821 Cordless Stick Vacuum has several other features that come in handy. Firstly, the power trigger on the handle allows more control, rather than the conventional on/off switch. These short bursts saves on precious battery power if you ever need to stop to clear or pick things off the floor. If you do need it on continuous mode, you can simply set the lever to ‘continuous’ for longer cleaning chores.

Another feature is the Turbo Mode button which gives extra power if you want to increase the suction. As with most cordless vacs, the LED lights on the floor nozzle are bright enough to help you see any debris in the dark, ensuring you’ll literally never miss a spot.

The bagless cylinder has a dust capacity of 0.5 litre which is a little on the small side. But if you’re only doing light-duty cleaning chores, this is sufficient enough. It also has a HEPA filter which is a bonus for allergy sufferers like me.

It comes with two accessories, a useful crevice tool to get into all those nooks and crannies, and upholstery brush with bristle attachment for precise handheld cleaning. While this may not seem like a lot, at least you won’t end up with a bag of accessories lying around you may never use!

BEKO VRT 82821 CORDLESS STICK VACUUM CLEANER REVIEW: PERFORMANCE

The Beko VRT 82821 Cordless Stick Vacuum Cleaner is equipped with a 21V battery and 100W digital motor, promising 40 minutes cleaning per single charge. Compared to other value vacs, this doesn’t seem too bad for a once-over around the home. After all, how long do you really need to vacuum for?

Cleaning hard floors and tiles proved to be a breeze. The power was pretty impressive in quickly sucking up all the debris, crumbs and dust particles. And it performed even better on Turbo Mode, managing to remove the stubborn debris stuck between the floor boards. Light to glide across the floor, the motorised floor head made it easier to get around the legs of the sofa and into awkward corners.

However, it doesn’t cope well with larger bits, when I discovered some left some behind once turned off. In any case, this was a bonus for me not vacuuming my son’s tiny Legos!

Removing and switching over the attachments were simple. At the press of a button, I went from cleaning the floors to dealing with pesky cobwebs on the ceilings and walls. The crevice tool and upholstery attachment were particularly efficient in cleaning the sofa and quickly picks up dust from various surfaces.

Next up, the carpet clean. Now this seemed to lack the same suction power as it did with hard flooring. Even on Turbo Mode, it seemed to struggle with picking up ingrained dirt or hair strands. So if you wanted a more thorough carpet clean, you’re better off with a more powerful vac.

After about 30 minutes of usage, the battery was running low but perhaps this was because I had it mostly on Turbo Mode, which cuts the battery time to about 22-minutes.

The only gripes to note are the vents on the handle blow air onto your hand during cleaning, which can take some getting used to. The vac is also a little noisy, and has an awful rattling sound when the battery is starting to wane. But these are minor downsides in the grand scheme of things.

Emptying is simple with a click and release of the dust tank, you just have to remove the yellow tag to open the lid. Just bear in mind to keep it lower down in the bin, or else you’ll end up with dust everywhere (that you’ll only be cleaning up again!).

In any case, it’s a great cordless vac for hardwood floors and tackling dustballs.

BEKO VRT 82821 CORDLESS STICK VACUUM CLEANER REVIEW: VERDICT

The Beko VRT 82821 Cordless Stick Vacuum Cleaner may not be a replacement for your corded vac, but it does a decent ‘once-over’ clean around the home. Its 2-in-1 feature is convenient for those who will fully utilise this, especially for hard-to-reach places and small clean-ups. It’s probably not suited for a deep carpet clean, but performs well on hard flooring and ingrained dust. 

Compared to other affordable models, this vac provides a decent battery life for your light cleaning, and will give your (not very much) money’s worth.