Dreame H12 Core review: Clean sweep

Dreame Technology may not be a household name, but the Xiaomi-backed Chinese vacuum specialist launches interesting products that take the fight to more established brands. The latest in its portfolio is the H12 Core handheld wet and dry vacuum cleaner, a product that is designed to make short work of the mundane job of cleaning hard floors.

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Design-wise, the H12 Core doesn’t stray significantly from the standard upright Dyson-esque design, with a single roller brush at the front agitating the dirt before it is pulled in by the vacuum and two 900- and 500-ml water tanks for clean or used water below the handle. It may look bulky, but the unit is rather lightweight at 4.65 kg, and it stands upright without support.

Coupled with the large rear wheels and the roller brush using power from the motor to generate forward traction, the H12 Core is rather easy to handle as you operate it from room to room. Its self-propelling capabilities mean that even the preteen at home could be convinced to handle vacuuming duties on crunch days.

The H12 is easy to get started with, with the large LED display on the top showing you cleaning mode, battery level, and alerts to empty the used water tank (which pauses cleaning) and initiate self-cleaning during charging on the included base. Self-cleaning, in particular, is very handy; the roller brush is rinsed, spun, scrubbed, and dried, ready for the next cleaning session, without the drudgery associated with cleaning the device.

There are voice prompts for most times when user action is needed — roller brush stuck, blocked tube, low batter — so you’re not left peering at the display trying to make sense of the issue. Firing it up on a full-clean tank and an unswept, unswabbed room, the machine tackled dirt and stains from spilled liquids quite easily, and the inbuilt dirt sensor automatically adjusted the suction and water flow to handle tougher stains. It’s only meant for hard floors, so while marble, tiles, vinyl, and wooden flooring are fine, carpets are a strict no-no.

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The only issue I foresee is that the 200 W brushless motor running at full tilt empties the battery in under half an hour, which might be a factor to consider for larger homes with plenty of floor space to cover, and then it’s a five-hour wait till the machine is charged and ready to go.

Rating: 8/10

Price: INR 24,999