Smart home appliances seem to be on the rise each year, but when it comes to smart vacuum cleaners, the game’s been a little slow. Sure, there’s now an abundance of robot vacuums fighting for power, but for those looking for more in-depth suction, nothing quite nails it like a stick vacuum. And that’s where Tineco’s Pure One S12 Platinum comes in.
The Pure One S12 Platinum is Tineco’s smart stick vacuum cleaner, promising a dust sensor that automatically adjusts suctioning power, up to 100 minutes of battery life and in-app support offering maintenance updates and statistics on your cleaning progress.
The concept of a smart vacuum cleaner poses the question – what exactly does one stand to gain from using one and how will it advance cleaning efficiency?
With robot vacuums, the answer is obvious. When one can set and forget cleaning times as well as operate nearly hands-free, fully automated cleaning is almost within reach. So where exactly does a smart stick vacuum fit into this? We’re about to find out.
Tineco Pure One S12 Platinum
What is it?
Tineco's smart vacuum cleaner.
Price
$1,099.
Like
Clean, modern design, excellent suction, expansive range of accessories and handy maintenance updates.
No Like
Dust sensor is slow to kick in, some useless statistics and unhygienic dustbin emptying process.
How’s she look?
I currently own the Dyson V8 Absolute. It’s an absolute powerhouse of a vacuum cleaner, but it looks offensive inside the home with its bright orange and blue colour scheme. In contrast, the Tineco Pure One S12 Platinum sports a clean, minimalistic white and grey design that blends in well, while maintaining a practical frame that’s strikingly similar to a Dyson.
Its key differentiating point is the bright LED screen that rests over the motor. It’s got a touch screen that’s situated in a spot that almost makes you forget it exists as you move around, sucking up dust from your floors. It displays the amount of battery remaining, which power mode it’s on and the level of suctioning power.
From there, the trigger is located beneath the handle and has a handy lock that you can twist to switch on continuous suction. The lock’s location is well-hidden, if not a little awkward to activate, but does its job. Instead of a physical button, there is a sort of discreet touch slider located just below the screen that you can stroke to change the suction.
The only unfortunate part of its design is its wall mount and charging aspect. The battery for the Tineco Pure One is ejectable, which means you need to remove it from the vacuum in order to recharge it (there is a secondary one that you can swap over if you’re in the midst of cleaning). But the issue arises from having to mount its charging station to your wall for it to look organised. This is, of course, not renter-friendly. Though, you can just sit the charging station on the floor near a power point. However, that doesn’t look particularly nice either.
Does the Tineco Pure One S12 Platinum suck?
Hell yeah, it does. Dare I say it, the Tineco Pure One even rivals my Dyson. Complete with 10 different attachments, from a dusting tool to a pre-filter cleaning tool, which gives you a tonne of options. It’s also significantly quieter than any vacuum I’ve ever owned, even using max suction.
The Tineco Pure One S12 is lightweight and easy to manoeuvre around. Its multi-tasker power brush is fitted with LED headlights that allow you to see exactly what you’re sucking up, which is perfect for dimly lit spaces.
Even the highest level of suction works in a way that doesn’t drag the carpet with it as it moves, but still effectively digs deep into its fibres and leaves satisfying track marks. The scale of which the suction can change is also impressive, allowing it to perform according to its remaining battery life or at the capacity you need. While most vacuum cleaners only offer up to three modes, the Tineco Pure One S12 customises suction to your preference. Just keep in mind that a single battery can drain within 15 minutes if used on max mode.
From the previous section, you may have noticed in the photo provided that a colourful gradient encircles the edges of the screen. That reflects the power level used in addition to the amount of dust detected. The blue implies that there’s little to no dust detected in the area I’ve just gone over, which means it’s done its job (otherwise it would be red). It’s a pretty handy feature that I’ve come to rely on, seeing as I can tell from glancing at the screen whether I’ve done a good enough job vacuuming in one spot before moving to the next.
While, yes, the Tineco smart vacuum sucks (in a good way), its iLoop Automatic Dust Sensor feels semi-redundant. While a thoughtful feature that sounds good in theory, it was often delayed by a second or two. This meant that every time I encountered a heavy foot traffic area, I’d already gone over the spot and sucked up most of the dust and dirt by the time it kicked in.
Furthermore, the dustbin was on the small side, filling up much quicker compared to other vacuums I’ve experienced. The emptying process was also difficult, lacking the hygienic convenience Dyson vacuums offer. Whenever I opened the dustbin, all of the dirt and pet hair was so tightly packed in, it wouldn’t slide out without me shoving my hand in to pull it out. Yeah, gross.
How smart is this vacuum cleaner?
Here’s where things get tricky. The app is what separates the Tineco Pure One from your average vacuum cleaner. The app is relatively easy to set-up, requiring a stable internet and Bluetooth connection. From there, you’ll be able to access unique readings on the amount of dust in your home, including how much you pick up during each clean in addition to the percentage you use each suctioning power mode.
The app will also let you know when to recharge the battery and give the individual parts of your vacuum some maintenance, which is perhaps the most useful part of using the app since it allows you to preemptively clean its internal components before they affect performance. But much of its “smartness” seems to drop off from there.
For the typical user, it’s hard to see the value of the Tineco app’s dust readings. In a matter of days, I was informed that the total number of dust the vacuum picked up had hit 1,000,000. It’s alarming, it makes me concerned, and I feel a little disgusted.
But if we take a step back, that unit of measurement is not exactly clear. From what I can guess, it’s referring to the number of specks registered. So the truth is, I’m not really sure what to do with that information.
In addition, the Usage Details also report the ratio of each suctioning mode down to the day you’ve used it and up to a weekly or monthly usage. For instance, on one day, I use low mode 43.45 per cent, medium mode 4.14 per cent and max mode 52.41 per cent. Again, I’m really not sure what I’m meant to do with that information – do I need a dedicated app to tell me all that?
Thankfully, you don’t need to download the app to use the Tineco Pure One S12 Platinum, unless you do want the maintenance reminders.
Final thoughts
Even though it’s a tad more expensive (RRP $1,099) than your average stick vacuum, I have to admit I would pay that amount for this vacuum. It’s just that good.
Not only did I enjoy its low noise and customisable suctioning power, but I treasured its lightweight design, visually dynamic LED screen and stylish appearance. For its vacuuming prowess alone, it’s a worthy buy, and that’s without mentioning the diverse number of accessories to ensure your home becomes truly spotless.
Although its iLoop dust sensor promises automatically adjusted suction power, it doesn’t quite deliver. The reality is that it’s slow to activate and only increases suction for an additional second before reverting back to its previous level. The dustbin could also be expanded, as well as improved to more easily allow dust and dirt to be ejected.
Don’t get me wrong, this vacuum is hot stuff. But its smart features are gimmicky. The data is meaningless to the average user, unless they’re a data nerd. When it comes to the future of smart vacuums, it appears I’ve echoed the same sentiments that Gizmodo Australia Editor Asha Barbaschow had in her Dyson V12 Detect review.
It asks a bigger question altogether – do we really need to “smartify” all home appliances? I suppose that’s a question you can ponder yourselves.
Where to buy the Tineco Pure One S12 Platinum
Catch ($1,099) | Godfreys ($1,099) | Kogan ($1,099) | Matt Blatt ($1,099)