Capsule is a new vacuum cleaner from British independent manufacturer Halo. A versatile cordless, it promises the suction and staying power of an upright. But does it deliver?
Our Verdict
Capsule is, quite simply, an excellent vacuum cleaner. It's the result of twenty years of floorcare experience from a dedicated engineer and this expertise shows in a wealth of great design details and features.
Thanks to its innovative use of carbon fibre, this handheld/ stick vacuum cleaner weighs only 2.6kg, while matching the specs of market-leading uprights.
Its very attractive price point is also in its favour, particularly when compared to rival products, although bear in mind that the £249.99 cost is apparently an introductory offer only.
Price When Reviewed
- $325.57
Halo’s Capsule aims to be a product disruptor. It's the first vacuum cleaner – in fact, the first domestic appliance – to use carbon fibre as a key construction material. (Dyson introduced carbon-fibre bristles onto the brushbar of some models in 2010.)
The unit’s shell is 1mm thick carbon fibre thanks to which, the makers claim, Capsule can rival the power and capacity of a corded upright while maintaining the weight of a handheld.
We put Capsule to the test.
Price & Availability
At this stage, Capsule is only available for sale from the manufacturer’s website. It has an RPP of £329.97 but is currently available to buy for £249.99. We think this is a very good price for a product of this quality.
This offer includes 52 dust pouches (Capsule's own redesigned, eco-friendly vacuum cleaner bags), which the manufacturer estimates will suffice for two years of use.
When you need more dust pouches, you can buy a pack of 26 (one year’s worth) from the website for £14.99. Currently, there’s a deal on, offering two packs of pouches for £27.99.
Capsule comes with a two-year warranty and free next-day delivery.
Design & build
Capsule is a visually appealing vacuum cleaner. Its muted grey and black colour scheme, with yellow accents in the form of its attachment clips and brushes, looks more contemporary than your average Dyson, whose magenta, royal blue and silvery plastic stick schtick is beginning to look dated.
It is also as light as promised, weighing a mere 2.6 kilos (5.7lbs).
Although a bagless cleaner has come to be preferred by a number of people, bags have the advantage of containing dirt and dust during disposal. They're great for allergy sufferers – or indeed anyone who doesn't want to get a mushroom cloud of dust in the face when emptying their vac.
The environmental thoughtfulness of the pouch design is a nice feature of the cleaner. Capsule’s vacuum bags, or 'dust pouches' in the makers’ parlance, are made of high-grade compostable paper.
This means that they’ll degrade naturally, whether you dispose of them in the bin or in your own compost heap. If you want to do the latter, you can shred the pouch first for the fastest results, although just adding it to a mature compost heap and turning it regularly should do the trick.
Capsule has a 1.6 litre capacity, which is a lot for a stick/ handheld cleaner. For reference, the Dyson V7 Motorhead cordless (also a stick that transforms into a handheld) has a capacity of 0.54 litres and the Hoover Sprint, 0.8L.
Capsule, in fact, has the same capacity as the Dyson upright Small Ball Allergy Vacuum Cleaner, a chunky upright that weighs 6.9 kilos.
Features & Performance
While many other appliances have one key selling point, the design of all of Capsule’s elements shows an exceptional level of thought. This is really what sets it apart.
Capsule has to be assembled when it arrives but fortunately, that takes a matter of seconds. You simply unlatch the cylinder. If a dust pouch isn’t fitted in the body of the unit, drop one in so that the circular card faces you.
Then you can attach your accessory of choice. You can fit any one of the three cleaning heads straight onto the cylinder itself or via the extension tube, which then slots onto the cylinder, so that the cleaner itself can switch between stick and handheld.
This means that to clean stairs, for example, you can fit the large power brush head straight into the cylinder. This allows maximum cleaning power and range, while making the cleaner as light as possible and removing the unwieldy stick. Not all vacuum cleaners allow you to use the main head in handheld mode, so this is a very nice feature.
Capsule has three power settings. The main attachment also has a power brush feature that can be turned on for carpeted surfaces and off for hardwood floors.
The lightness of the cleaner becomes apparent as soon as you start using it. It is extremely easy to use, with excellent manoeuvrability thanks to a joint at the top of the main head, allowing it to rotate into corners.
Capsule uses lithium-ion batteries, which charge in an efficient three hours. Again, this is better than industry-standard. The vacuum cleaner's running time before it needs recharging is given in the manual as “up to 60 minutes” but we can only say that after more than half an hour's use, it was still going strong, with no appreciable loss of suction. This is very good for a cordless.
Removing hair that’s become wrapped around the roller is always a horrible job and Capsule has a fix. There’s a groove that runs around the roller. The operating manual advises that if hair gets wrapped around the roller, you slide scissors into the groove to cut the hair away. You can then remove the clumps by hand.
This does work pretty well and is certainly a huge improvement on un-groovy rollers. However, it would be even better if the roller could be popped out for cleaning.
Our one design quibble is with the clips that attach the power head and the stick to the cylinder (the two smaller attachments have a slightly different clip, which works perfectly). Although they have a release button, they still need a reasonable amount of force to separate them. It is certainly not a satisfying clip and release system. We found ourselves struggling to get them apart at times.
Verdict
We're not sure that Capsule is the disruptor that its marketing suggests but it is very obviously the result of twenty years of floorcare experience from a dedicated engineer. This expertise shows in a wealth of great design details and features.
It's an excellent vacuum cleaner, with top drawer battery life, running time and dust collection capacity.
We would not hesitate to recommend Capsule to people who live in a flat or smaller home. It would also be an excellent choice for anyone on the hunt for a versatile cordless.
Its very attractive price point, particularly when compared to rival products with similar specs, is also in its favour, although the £249.99 cost is apparently an introductory offer only.
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