Mach V1 Ultra Review: What the TikToks won’t tell you

The Mach V1 Ultra arrived on my doorstep at apparently the same time as it arrived at a slew of TikTokers. Before opening my own I’d watched a handful of lifestyle influencers unbox, uncoil, and use the Mach Ultra unchallenged. My experience was undoubtedly different.

The Mach V1 Ultra has a RRP of $1,499, but is already available for less at select retailers. At the time of writing the device was available for $1,295 from Harvey Norman.

I don’t have a ‘grammable lifestyle of plush white linens, and a neatly labeled pantry. My household is more brown shipping boxes, and strategically placed throw pillows to cover coffee spills. The Mach V1 Ultra was always going to have a harder time with me than anyone who fits the former aesthetic. Seemingly, it fought back.

Set up was admittedly as seamless as the TikTokers will have you believe - the V1 Ultra really is a plug and play kind of device at its most basic level. Within minutes of opening the box it was getting a final charge, ready to tackle the mess of two caffeine-addled WFHers and an ever-shedding kelpie. But, this is where my narrative forks away from the short-form video experience.

On Auto-Mode the V1 Ultra detects when the Cordless SteamWave Technology is needed and prepares the steam within 20 seconds. But as the cleaning solution heated up, a “Blockage” error appeared on the LCD Display. After turning it off, and cleaning out any potential blockage from the head using the included Cleaning Tool, I tried again.

“Blockage”

Right. Maybe it was the storage bins? Cleaned out both of those, turned on the Mach V1 Ultra again and,

“Empty Storage Bin”
Quickly followed by (you guessed it),

“Blockage”

Figuring out this saga took far longer than a 60 second allotment, but the V1 Ultra ended up needing a firmware update to fix the bug. Which is a sentence I never thought I would type about a steam mop or a handheld vacuum cleaner.

Even though the on-stick prompts are aimed at making it easier to maintain the vac, the troubleshooting process is overcomplicated for a manual cleaning device. All up, it was a poor user experience out of the box. For less tech-savvy home-bodies, connecting a non-robot vacuum cleaner to the internet to fix a blockage just wouldn’t be on the to-do list.

Tech issues aside, the Mach V1 Ultra is a compelling and well-thought out product, but it is unlikely to replace your vacuum cleaner in its current iteration.

While it is a vacuum cleaner, a mop, and a steam mop in one, it lacks much of the functionality you’d expect from a stick-vac. Other stick vacuums we have reviewed include five or more attachments to get into deep crevices, pick up animal fur, or to suit different floor types, while the Mach V1 Ultra doesn’t have any of these additional accessories. It does however perform impressively on small, medium, and large debris on both carpet and hard floors, but the floor is the only place it will reach. Even with the mop and steam functions, chances are you’ll still need to reach for another vacuum to do a proper clean of your space.

In saying that, the steam and mop functions are notable not just because this is the first device of its kind. Being able to switch between the three modes without swapping accessories is a time saver, and the steam mop effectively dealt with caked on coffee spills in the kitchen while sucking up any floor crumbs concurrently. Add in the Self-Cleaning function available through the eufy Clean app, and it's an excellent cleaning solution for the time-poor.

However, something the TikTok micro-blogs didn’t quite get around to is just how heavy the device is. Coming in at 5.7kg it is the heaviest vacuum we have reviewed, at over double the weight of the Samsung Bespoke Jet and the Dyson V12 Detect Slim. Pushing it around the house, the weight quickly builds up momentum making it harder to maneuver than competing stick vacuums. I’d also love to see some height adjustability in later models. The weight and lack of adjustability may make it less accessible to some users - I wouldn’t recommend it for my mid-60 year old mum for example, or for any one who prefers ergonomic devices.

Pitched as a three-in-one, the Mach V1 Ultra won’t quite give you the functionality you need to throw out your other vacuum cleaner, but it does have potential. The simultaneous mop and vacuum could be a time saver in primarily hard-floored households, but the lack of additional accessories means its use is still limited.

With some tweaks like additional vacuuming accessories, a lighter formfactor, and an adjustable height the V1 Ultra could replace three devices for almost any household. But for now it is asking a high price to ostensibly be an (admittedly impressive) steam mop.

The Mach V1 Ultra is a gentle reminder to take everything you see on social media with a grain of salt. While the vacuum/mop/steam mop itself is an innovation, it isn’t as flawless as it may seem in a well-curated 60-second video - but as the first of its kind, that is entirely to be expected.