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A small and easy-to-store cylinder vacuum, the Miele Boost CX1 is a powerful cleaner that will across any surface. Pet-hair removal isn’t so good with this model, but there is a specific edition for those with furry friends. There’s plenty of suction power to hand, although this can make the cleaner difficult to push across some surfaces. That said, the overall combination of price and performance makes this a top cleaner, particularly for those who are short on storage space.

A cylinder vacuum cleaner can be easier to move around, but size and storage issues are two factors that commonly put people off from considering such an option. The Miele Boost CX1 may just be able to convince you otherwise. Smaller than most of its rivals, yet with the power to compete, the Miele Boost CX1 is a superb small cylinder cleaner.

The majority of cylinder vacuum cleaners – such as the Henry Numatic – come in quite large, but the Miele Boost CX1 is by far the most compact cylinder vacuum cleaner I’ve seen. Measuring just 280 x 400 x 400mm and weighing 7.8kg, it’s much smaller and lighter than the competition.

Sure, that weight isn’t as light as a cordless model, but given that I spent most of my time pulling the cleaner around on its responsive wheels, weight didn’t really prove an issue. The only time the cleaner really needs to be lifted is for going up and down stairs, and then its weight isn’t an issue for such a short period.

The Miele Boost CX1’s compact size also makes it easy to store. The wand and floorhead can be clipped onto the side of the cylinder when they’re not in use, and in comparison to rivals, the shorter 1.8m hose won’t clutter up a cupboard, while still delivering sufficient reach to get into the corner where your walls hit the ceiling.

The CX1 even comes with a clip-on tool holder for the dusting brush, crevice tool and upholstery brush. Miele thoughtfully labels each connector slot, so you know where each accessory should plug in.

The slightly shorter hose and 6.5m power cable give the Miele Boost CX1 a slightly smaller cleaning radius than rival models. A total of 10m reach should mean that you can clean most floors using a maximum of two power sockets. However, if you have a larger home, then you may be better considering a cleaner with greater reach. When not in use, the spring-loaded coil system sucks up the power cable into the vacuum cleaner’s body. 

Often the thinking is that small things are delicate, but not so with the Miele Boost CX1, which displays the build quality I’ve come to expect from the German company. Everything feels rigid and tough, plus the vacuum cleaner is very nicely designed.

The telescopic wand, for example, slides neatly up and down, so you can get it to the correct length for you. 

Controls, too, are well labelled. There’s a single power button, while a power dial labels by job type: curtains and upholstery, rugs, carpets and hard floors. That’s a much better system than simply having power levels, where you have to take a guess over which option would be best suited to a particular job.

Despite the CX1’s diminutive size, the bin is a decent 2 litres. For this model, Miele ditches the bags, with you simply having to empty the cylinder as it becomes full. I just popped the side off the bin to empty it quickly and efficiently.

Inside the bin are two filters: a fine dust and HEPA filter. There’s also a secondary filter at the rear of the machine, designed to keep dust inside the Miele Boost CX1 as opposed to blowing fine particles back into the air.

This model relies on suction power alone to clean, so the main floor head doesn’t have a rotating brush bar; there’s a switch to move it between hard floor and carpet modes. If you need your vacuum to regularly tackle pet hair, then the Miele Boost CX1 Cat & Dog comes with a motorised brush.

To test the Miele Boost CX1, I put it through my usual set of tests. First, I measured raw performance, evaluating suction at the handle in AirWatts (AW). This is a combination of airflow and lift power, and is the only true way to compare vacuum cleaner performance.

On its lowest setting, I measured an excellent 89AW, which is similar to the suction power of the Shark CZ00UKT. Since this setting is designed for curtains and other delicate cleaning tasks, it’s more than sufficient.

On the mid carpet setting, I measured a super-powerful 313AW, while max power delivered a huge 422AW – that’s far higher than the 285AW of the CZ500UKT and just above the Numatic Henry.

The reason that the Miele Boost CX1 requires that degree of power is because it relies on suction alone to lift dirt, rather than using a brush bar to agitate and loosen dust first. It’s a technique that works – although the Miele Boost CX1 does suffer the same problem seen with other suction-only cleaners: it can be difficult to push across some surfaces. As such, I had to adjust power settings and open the air vent in order to clean properly.

To see how the Miele Boost CX1 performed in real life, I started by sprinkling a teaspoon of flour onto my test carpet. A single pass through the middle removed every trace of dirt. Thanks to the wide floor head, there wasn’t much mess left to clean up on either side.

Next, I moved to the tough edge test, sparkling flour right up to the skirting board on carpet tiles. This proved no problem for the Miele Boost CX1, either: the vacuum cleared the lot. You won’t get better performance than this.

I combed cat hair into an area of my carpet thereafter, giving it the once-over with the vacuum cleaner. As you can see from the images below, the CX1 removed all hair.

However, turning over the floorhead, much of the hair had become stuck to its underside. As such, if your household comprises furry friends, then a cleaner with a motorised brush is likely to make more sense.

Finally, the hard floor test, where I sprinkled a teaspoon of rice onto the floor. The Miele Boost CX1 cleared up the grains brilliantly, without leaving a trace of any mess behind.

If you want a cylinder vacuum cleaner but don’t have much storage space, then the Boost CX1 is a great option.

Those with pets should consider a different cleaner, while those with a larger home may be better opting for a cleaner that delivers more reach.

Compact and powerful, the Miele Boost CX1 is a great cylinder vacuum cleaner for most jobs. It picked up mess efficiently on carpet and hard floors alike, although was found wanting slightly for pet hair removal: if you have furry friends then we suggest you opt for the Cat & Dog edition of this vacuum cleaner instead. If you’re looking for something different, check out my guide to the best vacuum cleaners.

We test every vacuum cleaner we review thoroughly over an extended period of time. We use industry standard tests to compare features properly. We’ll always tell you what we find. We never, ever, accept money to review a product.

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Used as our main vacuum cleaner for the review period

Tested for at least a week

Tested using tools to measure actual suction performance

Tested with real-world dirt in real-world situations for fair comparisons with other vacuum cleaners

The Cat & Dog edition includes a motorised floorhead that’s designed for picking up pet hair.

There’s a 6.5m power cable and 1.8m hose. Most floors can be cleaned with two power sockets.

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Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.

We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.

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