While there isn't anything overly terrible with the HoLIFE Portable Vacuum Cleaner, there also isn't anything particularly exciting about it. It delivered lackluster results in the majority of our tests and its one above average result in our battery tests is canceled out by its horrendous showing when it came to collecting pet hair. On top of that, it was outperformed by less expensive products, making it hard to recommend.
The HoLIFE finished a bit behind the Bissell Pet Hair Eraser and tied with the Homasy Handheld Vacuum Cleaner. To be honest, we are pretty much convinced that the HoLife and the Homasy are actually identical products with different brands, as they both performed identically and the parts are actually interchangeable. However, we did find that the Homasy usually retails for about $10 less, making it a better option. The Bissell cleans far better than the HoLIFE, though it doesn't have as long of a battery life, it also retails for about $15-20 less than the HoLIFE and we vastly preferred it.
The bristles are a little stiff, so it didn't do amazingly well at cleaning up the flour from our statically charged sheet.
However, they were excellent at getting off caked-on dirt and mud from a section of linoleum.
The bristles did a good job of cleaning wider surfaces, like window sill or shelf, even getting into the corners, but weren't the best at smaller edges, like the top of trim or baseboards.
The HoLIFE got off to a good start in our first test, doing surprisingly well at removing flour from the carpet. It cleaned up a lot of the mess, but it couldn't match the performance of the vacuums that have a rotating brush.
It didn't do quite as well with the oats on the carpet and on the cushions, leaving a fair amount of dust behind on both surfaces.
This handheld vacuum was also able to clean up mini-wheats without becoming clogged if you didn't use an attachment. Finally, we measured the air flow each vacuum caused using an anemometer mounted in a makeshift wind tunnel. The HoLIFE caused it to read 1338 FPM — approximately standard for these products.
The HoLIFE's nozzle is a little wider than some of the top products, making it a little more time consuming to clean out the window track, but you could eventually get it just as clean if you were willing to take the necessary time.
Unfortunately, this wider nozzle means that it can't clean as far under a nightstand or appliance. It only was able to clean 8.5" into the 3" gap — representing a nightstand or sofa — and about 5" into a 1.25" gap, similar to the space under a dishwasher or stove.
This vacuum lasted for a little over 26 minutes — one of the longest times of the groups — and takes 3-5 hours to recharge, according to the manufacturer. However, it did charge a little faster in our tests, only taking 2 hours, 40 minutes.
This vacuum is right in the middle of the group when it comes to size, weighing in at 2.4 lbs. without any tools and its heaviest tool only adding 0.1 lbs. However, this vacuum did stand out by being one of the quietest models of the group, only registering at 68 dBA on our sound meter.
It can be a bit of a pain to empty the bin, which can hold up to 0.6 L of dry mess and up to 0.1 L of liquid.
The attachments for this vacuum are not integrated and there isn't really a convenient way to keep them organized with what is included in the box.
It got about 85% of the hair off the cushion, but almost none of it actually made it into the collection bin, with most remaining trapped on the brush. It was the same story with the carpet, but at least half of the hair we spread out was still on the carpet after the HoLIFE cleaned.
This vacuum is a bad value option, as there are less expensive products that significantly outperformed it.
