The Hoover OnePWR Emerge Pet cordless vacuum sucks (in a good way)

The Hoover OnePWR Emerge Pet is a mid-range stick vacuum, retailing for $599. At the moment, it’s sold exclusively through Godfreys.

If you don’t have a pet, you can save $100 by opting for the basic OnePWR Emerge cordless vacuum. Instead of the all-terrain dual-roller head that comes with the Pet version, the base model has a single roller head and comes in at about 300 grams lighter.

One of the key factors we look at when reviewing stick vacuum cleaners is weight. After all, if you’re going to be driving this thing all over the house for 45 minutes (or longer), you don’t want to have to take breaks because of a tired arm. Though it’s advertised as a lightweight vacuum, we found the OnePWR Emerge Pet’s 3.62kg body to be a little too heavy for comfort. That weight, paired with its bulkier-than-average vacuum head (thanks to the dual rollers), makes for a device that is, at times, tricky to maneuver—particularly around sharp corners.

For most back-and-forth motions, however, the OnePWR Emerge Pet glides easily. It does so even over steps between flooring types (like the 2cm-odd jump from carpet to tile at the entrance of my bathroom), thanks to its miniature monster truck-esque “all-terrain” wheels.

The vacuum’s components and accessories are attached and detached with a series of easy clips, designed for quick switching during your vacuuming sesh. It’s a similar story for the dustbin, which can be swiftly removed if you need to empty it mid-clean, and the battery pack.

Speaking of which, the removable battery pack is reminiscent of the kind you’ll find when you buy a new power drill. It’s designed to be used in multiple products, but in this case, instead of hedge trimmers and leaf blowers, the removable OnePWR battery can be used across compatible Hoover products (which, for the time being, only includes other vacuums).

Regardless of its current utility, could prove to be a versatile feature if Hoover continues releasing OnePWR products, and there’s no denying how much easier it is to charge a small removable battery rather than one that’s built into the unit itself.

Something I did appreciate is the fact that the OnePWR Emerge Pet can stand up on its own, so if you’re renting (or otherwise can’t be bothered drilling into your walls to attach the included wall stand), you don’t have to worry about finding a corner to rest it precariously against.

A few design flaws aside, there’s no denying it: This vacuum sucks. And we mean that in the best possible way. With a 265W motor, the Hoover OnePWR Emerge Pet packs a serious punch. The first time I used it was only a few days after I had already vacuumed the whole house. I was mortified at how much this thing sucked up (and, consequentially, how much my old vac missed). The brush roll does tangle with hair quite easily, though, so I would recommend giving it a clean after each use.

The OnePWR Emerge Pet is fitted with a bright LED light at the front of the vacuum head which is great for illuminating the dust and dirt in its path. Though it’s not quite on par with the likes of Dyson’s Detect laser technology, it’s still a game-changer if you’re coming from an older vacuum with neither light nor laser.

As for the battery life, it’s pretty damn good. It certainly meets Hoover’s promise of “up to 45 minutes,” which happened to be plenty of time for me to give our three-bedroom house a complete once-over and still have a little juice left over. Perhaps the best part, though, is how fast the removable OnePWR battery charges. With the included dock, it can go from empty to full in as little as an hour. That’s super impressive, given most stick vacs take a good three hours or so to fully charge.

Performance-wise, my only qualm was in regard to the noise level. The OnePWR Emerge Pet boasts Hoover’s “HushTone” technology, which supposedly makes for a quieter clean. However, I found that the noise it produces, though higher-pitched than most vacuums, is about on par with other products in terms of decibel level.

In the box, you’ll find three vacuum attachments and a wall mount for the vacuum. The attachments include a two-in-one crevice tool and dusting brush, a motorised pet tool (which doubles as an upholstery cleaner), and a powered extension hose for reaching high areas.

During my time testing the OnePWR Emerge Pet, I sanded and painted the skirting boards of a couple of different rooms in the house. That meant a lot of dust and debris, particularly in the annoying crevice where the carpet met the skirting board. This attachment was a godsend for this project, with the brush able to clear dust from the skirting itself and the crevice tool able to suck up all the dirt in the narrow gap between the carpet and the wall.

I found the regular vacuum head to be pretty decent at picking up pet hair on its own, but the motorised pet tool really takes things up a notch. For owners of high-shedding pets, I can see it becoming an integral part of the vacuuming process.

The powered extension hose really excelled at turning the OnePWR Emerge Pet into a powerful handheld device, particularly when it came to cleaning the car, dusting above doors and cleaning around cornices, air vents, and other hard-to-reach areas.

As mentioned previously, the OnePWR Emerge Pet comes with a wall bracket for storing the vacuum when not in use, and there’s even some extra room to store a couple of your most-used accessories.

The Hoover OnePWR Emerge Pet is a solid choice for those looking for a powerful vacuum without forking out the $800+ required for high-end stick vacs. It offers strong suction power, useful accessories (particularly for pet owners), good battery life and excellent charging time. Is that enough to offset its heavier, bulkier design and the failure to meet up to its promise of quieter cleans? That’s up to you.