As a newly-minted homeowner navigating the world of cleaning appliances, I’ve definitely come to find that money does buy you time and convenience, and it’s worth every penny. And after diving into the world of wet-dry vacuum cleaners, I can safely say that I will never ever return to the days of painstakingly sweeping, then mopping the entire house to get the floors squeaky clean. Having tried different models from Xiaomi’s Xiaomi Truclean W10 to the Dreame H12 Pro, I couldn’t resist the opportunity to give the Dyson V12s Detect Slim Submarine wet and dry vacuum a whirl.
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Contents
- What’s the difference between the Dyson V12s Detect Slim Submarine and the Dyson V12 Detect Slim Absolute (HEPA)?
- Unboxing the Dyson V12s Detect Slim Submarine: what’s in the box?
- What are the Dyson V12s Detect Slim Submarine’s best features?
- Easy setup and click-lock feature
- Assembling the wet mop attachment
- How does the Dyson V12s Detect Slim Submarine fare?
- How Easy is it to Maintain the Dyson V12s Detect Slim Submarine?
- Verdict: An incredible everyday vacuum cleaner, a decent wet mop
What’s the difference between the Dyson V12s Detect Slim Submarine and the Dyson V12 Detect Slim Absolute (HEPA)?
| Feature | Dyson V12s Detect Slim Submarine Wet And Dry Vacuum Cleaner | Dyson V12 Detect Slim Absolute (HEPA) |
| Price | $1,299 | $1,199 |
| Suction Power | 150AW | 150AW |
| Battery Life | 60 minutes | 60 minutes |
| Novel Features | Submarine™ Wet Roller Head Fluffy Optic Cleaner Head HEPA filtration |
Fluffy Optic Cleaner Head HEPA filtration, said to trap 99.99% of particles as small as 0.3 microns |
| Bin Size | 0.35L | 0.35L |
| Weight | 2.2KG | 2.2KG |
We’ve seen quite a few variations of the V12 pop into the scene, but the most notable v12 model prior to the submarine would be the V12s Detect Slim Absolute (HEPA) that Dyson released in 2021. What you do need to know is, the submarine is basically the new and improved version of the absolute that boasts all of its capabilities and a novel mop function that will “wash” your floors.
In terms of specifications, you’ll see that the two are nearly identical, with the same run times, weight, bin size and more.
Unboxing the Dyson V12s Detect Slim Submarine: what’s in the box?
Like its predecessors, the Dyson V12s Detect Slim Submarine comes with a variety of accessories to help you tackle different cleaning obstacles at home. On top of the usual suspects, you’ll find the Submarine wet roller head, wall-mounted docking station and drip tray.
How heavy is the Dyson V12s Detect Slim Submarine?
The Submarine is an impressive 2.2kg in weight, the lightest vacuum model Dyson has ever produced. That’s equivalent to the weight of some 15-inch laptops in the market these days, which is incredibly light for a vacuum.
As someone who vacuums daily and has gone through a bunch of other cordless brands from the likes of Xiaomi, Tefal, I can attest to the Dyson being both light, yet robust. It’s easy to whip out for cleaning action, which is much appreciated when home is a terrace house with plenty of stairs to tackle as well.
How powerful is the Dyson V12s Detect Slim Submarine?
Now, let’s dive into the crucial stuff: suction power.
When we put the V12 models side by side, Dyson V12s Detect Slim Submarine touts the same 150AW suction power as compared to its non-wet mop Dyson counterpart, the Dyson V12 Detect Slim Absolute (HEPA).
In essence, the vacuum prowess of both models is more or less the same, and its suction power is more than enough to tackle large crumbs, rice grains, hair clumps and even floating balls of pet fur, but with its delicately small bin, we don’t recommend using the Dyson on chunkier particles like Cheerios, beads or gravel.
But given the nature of messes in most Singaporean HDBs, condo and even landed house; the Dyson is a solid choice for a cordless vacuum even if you have pets, kids – or both. It also ranks as one of the more powerful cordless vacuum cleaners in the market.
What are air watts?
While it might seem like rocket since navigating the specs of a vacuum, one thing you need to look out for in the newer cordless vacuum cleaners is Air Watts. It differs from the traditional wattage measurement because instead of measuring how powerful the motor of your vacuum is, air watts measures the device’s sheer airflow and suction strength. This makes air watts a superior gauge for performance.
| Cordless Vacuum Model | Suction Power (Air Watts) |
| Dyson V12s Detect Slim Submarine | 150AW |
| Dyson V12 Detect Slim Absolute (HEPA) | 150AW |
| Dibea F20 Max | 100AW |
| Tineco PURE ONE S12 | Approx. 150 AW |
| LG CordZero A9 | Approx. 140 AW |
| Shark ION F80 MultiFlex | Approx. 115 AW |
How long does the battery last on the Dyson V12s Detect Slim Submarine?
With its cordless vacuums originally capable of only 40 minutes of run time, the V12s Detect Slim Submarine will easily promise you 60 minutes – in Eco mode – which is a decent amount of time to vacuum an entire 5-room HDB flat.
The battery life, however, varies based on the different modes and vacuum attachment heads that you’ll use. Generally, use of auto or eco mode is more than enough for you to do a thorough clean of your home. I found that I could easily vacuum all the different floors of my home without worrying about the vacuum dying on me. There was even enough battery to conduct the mopping experiments.
What are the Dyson V12s Detect Slim Submarine’s best features?
Easy setup and click-lock feature
Apart from its futuristic form, the best thing about the Dyson is that it is a piece of cake to assemble. Every part clicks effortlessly into another and your vacuum is ready for action in a matter of seconds. Changing vacuum attachments? Emptying the bin? Transforming it into a handheld vacuum? That can all be done in a giffy – the whole process is super intuitive.
If you’ve ever owned any of Dyson’s older models, you’ll notice that beyond losing a few pounds, the V12s detect slim submarine in particular is one that no longer has the trigger handle. This is to improve the overall comfort of the user – a welcome change for lazy folks. All it takes is a press of a button to power the Dyson V12s Detect Slim Submarine up and the whole user experience is a fuss-free one that anyone would appreciate.
The best part is going back over the spot that you’ve cleaned to confirm that no dirt remains.
The Dyson V12s Detect Slim Submarine might not have been the first model to showcase this dust-spotting feature, but it definitely sports the most refined and upgraded version of the Fluffy Optic cleaner head. While previous V12 models gave you the option to turn the light beam off, the Dyson V12s Detect Slim Submarine has that as a standard feature for the entire duration of the dry vacuuming process.
Its precisely angled blade of light works wonders to expose pesky dirt and dust particles that would otherwise go unnoticed on rougher and darker surfaces like vinyl, parquet and stone tiles. In fact, the laser beam made the whole vacuuming process a lot more exciting with me gasping in a mixture of horror and excitement every time I vacuumed a new dirty spot.
Intelligent updates on LCD screen
Another nice-to-have feature on the Dyson V12s Detect Slim Submarine is its LCD display which goes beyond telling you run time and mode settings, but also displays real-time “dirt” analysis while you’re vacuuming. All of this is thanks to its piezo sensor. For the uninitiated, it might just look like a whole bunch of colours and numbers, but each colour actually depicts what your vacuum is actually picking up such as microscopic dust, allergens, dust mites and sugar.
HEPA filtration ability
No need to let the stats scare you though, the Dyson V12s Detect Slim Submarine Complete, an exclusive model available for purchase directly from Dyson also comes fully equipped with total HEPA filtration that is able to trap “99.99% of particles” and has a “fully-sealed filtration system” that prevents pesky microdust from being expelled back into the air.
Submarine wet roller head
Now onto the most anticipated part of the review – the highly anticipated wet roller head attachment. One thing to note about the Dyson V12s Detect Slim Submarine is that it is not a traditional wet-dry vacuum that is able to perform both functions at once. It still functions primarily as a vacuum, but is also able to effectively give your floors a good scrub down thanks to the new mop attachment.
What this means is that you’ll still have to complete one round of dry vacuuming before you can start on the mopping.
Assembling the wet mop attachment
Setting up the wet mop attachment is as easy as assembling the other parts of the vacuum. Clean water goes into a reservoir, and dirty water is collected in another compartment – that to our surprise is quite small.
Once you click all the components together, your LCD screen will register that the mop attachment is locked and loaded, and ready to rumble.
How does the Dyson V12s Detect Slim Submarine fare?
To truly put the Dyson V12s Detect Slim Submarine to the test, we rummaged through the kitchen pantry for some common villains: Sriracha sauce and fish sauce. Not the most palatable combination, but for the sake of this test, it’d have to do.
Test 1: Sriracha sauce and fish sauce
We found that the Dyson V12s Detect Slim Submarine was quick to remove all traces of fish sauce, and even did decently with the Sriracha sauce, even though going over the goopy mess the first time caused a rather ghastly sight. All in all, the vacuum works as impressively as advertised; we only found that post-mop, the vacuum head still left slight traces of water on the ground when the mop was lifted. Other than that, we were generally satisfied with the result we got.
Test 2: Dark sauce
We then moved on to a more stubborn and sticky substance in the form of black sauce. In this case, we saw the vacuum struggle to completely remove traces of the liquid and ended up lightly spreading it over the mopped area. This suggests it might be wise to do a bit of pre-cleaning for thicker, darker-colored liquids before passing the Dyson over them to ensure a more effective clean.
How Easy is it to Maintain the Dyson V12s Detect Slim Submarine?
Dyson’s “no-touch” bin feature is a winner in our eyes, granting homeowners the luxury of emptying the the bin without having to touch all the accumulated gunk. All it takes is the push of one button to “eject” all the dirt into the bin—100% hassle-free.
Taking apart the wet mop attachment was also incredibly straightforward, making the cleanup process a breeze. A simple rinse and wipe down of the various components left it looking spotless and brand new.
However, a self-cleaning drip tray or docking station, as featured by some competitors in the wet-dry vacuum market, would have been a highly valued addition. Additionally, the feature of self-drying for the roller brush, which prepares the vacuum for its next use without hassle, is notably absent in this Dyson model.
As a workaround, we had to resort to air-drying the wet rollers outdoors after washing, to guarantee they were thoroughly dry and odour-free. This step, while effective, adds an extra layer of manual effort to the maintenance process.
Verdict: An incredible everyday vacuum cleaner, a decent wet mop
Ultimately, the Dyson v12s detect slim submarine is a gadget that will still require you to keep to a 2-step routine, one where you vacuum first, then mop; which is a little bit sad considering some of the more advanced wet-dry mop offerings in the market. But the good part is that you no longer have to fumble and waste time and effort with your traditional mop and bucket. Plus, there isn’t a wet-dry mop in Dyson’s weight class that can hold a candle to it in terms of suction power.
As a vacuum, the Dyson v12s detect slim submarine is one of the best lightweight cordless vacuums money can buy. The laser on the Fluffy Optic cleaner head is one of Dyson’s strongest selling points alongside its weight, and definitely one that outshines the competition by a long shot.
We’re keen on seeing enhancements to the wet mop feature in future iterations, but as it stands, we recommend the attachment for lighter mopping tasks where the mess isn’t too overwhelming for the vacuum to handle.
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