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.

Enjoy an amazing run-time of up to 40 minutes* per charge. The removable battery can be charged on or off the vacuum, wherever suits you. *In ION power mode, with non-motorised tool. All the buttons are conveniently placed, making it easy to switch modes or activate the boost function. We also like the comfortable handle. The Dyson V11 Absolute is one of our top rated cordless vacuum cleaners. It’s an outstanding vacuum that provides strong all-round performance, although this comes at the cost of an eye-watering price tag.

Effective on both carpet and hard floors, but heavy and awkward to manoeuvre on carpeted floors

The right option depends on your budget, whether you have pets, and if you need the longer run-time. Even if you don’t have pets, however, we still think it’s worth paying extra to get a Shark vacuum with the motorised pet tool, as it’s brilliant when the vac is in handheld mode. Dyson V11 Absolute Vs Shark IZ251UKT

It’s worth noting how good the anti-hair wrap technology is, too. The soft roller has a comb that cleans itself as it goes, catching long hairs and sending them into the vacuum before they can wrap around the roller. Despite being tested in areas that collect a lot of hair, such as around dressing tables, the rollers on our test unit stayed tangle-free. However, the battery life isn’t anything particularly out of the ordinary. Shark quotes it at 40 minutes, although this is without the motorised floor head attached. In our tests, we found it lasted 22mins 34secs when tested on carpet with the motorised head attached, falling to 16mins 10secs in Boost mode. How does the Shark compare to other premium cordless vacuums though? And should you buy it? Read our Shark IZ251UKT review to find out. Overview of the Shark IZ251UKT’s FeaturesThe Shark DuoClean IZ201UKT is a dry vacuum cleaner designed for cleaning bare and hard floors. Equipped with a filtration system, it effectively traps dust and allergens, making it suitable for people with allergies. The vacuum utilizes a cyclonic/filtering dirt separating method, eliminating the need for bags and allowing for easy disposal of collected dirt. With a dirt capacity of 0.4 liters, it requires regular emptying during use. We really like the IZ251UKT, as it combines many of the best features of Shark uprights with the convenience of a cordless vacuum. It also does an excellent job of cleaning hard floors and has a longer run-time than most competing models. The Shark Anti Hair Wrap IZ201UKT has headlights on its floor nozzle that help you spot smaller dust particles on the floor. This addition is particularly helpful when vacuuming in dark areas. Together with the flexology feature, the headlights make it very convenient to properly clean under the furniture. The only minor inconvenience of the headlights is that you cannot turn them off while cleaning, and having the lights on the entire time drains the vacuum’s battery life. The Shark Anti Hair Wrap IZ201UKT would be better if it came with the option to turn off the headlights when cleaning in well-lit areas.

Like most Shark vacuums, the IZ251UKT feels easy to manoeuvre and balanced. It’s not the lightest cordless we’ve reviewed, but it’s not a struggle to steer around furniture due to the swivel steering system. It’s also easy to hold up when cleaning above the floor, although you may find this tiring after a while. The Shark cordless did a fair job in our standard cleaning tests. On hard floor, it collected 24g of a 26g spillage of Cheerios. The missing Cheerios were sent flying across the room by the enthusiastic soft roller, but that was nothing that couldn’t be sorted out by hunting them down afterwards.If manoeuvrability is key for you, the Eufy HomeVac S11 Infinityand Dyson Micro 1.5kgare both much easier to handle. With that said, we don’t think it can match the Dyson V11 Absolute when it comes to cleaning carpets. It’s better than most cordless vacuums, but fails to meet the high standards set by the very best models. It’s worth noting that the Shark is considerably cheaper than the Dyson V11 series though.