AEG QX9-1 Review

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AEG introduced a new model a while ago: the AEG QX9-1 series. This cordless stick vacuum is equipped with an integrated hand-held vacuum cleaner, which you can easily click out of the vacuum cleaner. The vacuum cleaner looks different from others: at first glance it is a beautifully designed vacuum cleaner.

I have decided to buy this AEG stick vacuum and put it through a thorough test. There are various AEG QX-9-1 versions: in this review I chose the AEG QX9-1-ALRS.

Unboxing: what do you get with the AEG QX9-1-ALRS?

For my review I decided to buy the AEG QX9-1-ALRS. This vacuum cleaner is equipped with a number of unique accessories. Let's see what's in the package.

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1. AEG QX9-1: the vacuum cleaner itself, now as a handheld vacuum cleaner
2. Vacuum cleaner rod: here you can click the AEG QX9-1 (1)
3. Floor nozzle: motorized brush with lighting
4. Mini Turbo Brush: Motorized Mini Brush for Pet Hair Removal
5. Soft dusting brush: an elongated nozzle with soft bristles
6. Crevice tool: a crevice tool with extendable brush*
7. Charging station: a charging station where you can plug the vacuum cleaner upright

* You can also click this brush separately on the hand vacuum cleaner for sensitive surfaces.

Suction performance of the AEG QX9-1-ALRS

In all my vacuum cleaner reviews I test the vacuum cleaners on two different floor types: soft floors (high-pile and low-pile carpet) and hard wooden floors (parquet).

The AEG QX9-1-ALRS comes with one type of floor brush. I find it very interesting to know whether this squeegee is suitable for all floor types. This ALRS variant is intended for people who quickly develop an allergic reaction: I am therefore also curious how suitable this vacuum cleaner is for removing pet hair.

Suction performance on wooden floors, carpet and pet hair

The AEG QX9-1 scores very well on wooden floors. Both small and large dirt are well sucked up by the suction brush. We also note that the vacuum cleaner slides very flexibly forwards and backwards on the wooden floor. We do not discover a special suction brush for sensitive parquet, but this one seems to work very well in terms of suction performance.

The vacuum cleaner also scores well on short-pile carpet: small and large dirt are not pushed forward, as I see happen with many other vacuums. On long-pile carpet, the vacuum cleaner has a little more trouble with larger dirt: this dirt size is pushed forward on this floor type. However, this is not a problem if I flip the vacuum cleaner up a little bit.

The AEG QX9-1-ALRS comes with a motorized floor nozzle and a mini turbo brush. Both are motorized, making them very suitable for removing pet hair. Although it is a ‘mini brush' for small surfaces (such as a sofa or chair), I do notice that this is still a fairly large suction brush.

• Hardwood floors: 7/10
• Carpet: 6,5/10
• Pet Hair: 7/10

Suction power and Airflow measurement

In addition to the suction performance on various floor types, I always investigate the suction power of a vacuum cleaner. I measure the suction power in kilopascals (kPa) with my custom-made vacuum tester. Although the measurement of one vacuum cleaner still says little, these measurement results do help me to compare vacuum cleaners in a fair way.

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The AEG QX9-1 has a suction power of 6 kPa. This is quite low compared to other stick vacuums. In addition to the suction power, I also measured the airflow: it comes out at 20.6 meters per second, which is fine.

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User-friendliness of the AEG QX9-1 ALRS

An important part of my reviews is the user-friendliness. Because, a vacuum cleaner can have such good suction performance, if it does not vacuum fine, it is still a bad choice.

To assess usability, I look at the following factors:

• Versatility
• Handling/Manoeuvrability
• Noise level
• Weight
• Battery life/charging time

Versatility and control of this AEG stick vacuum cleaner

The AEG QX9-1 is equipped with a suction brush with LED lighting. I see this more and more with vacuum cleaners and I find it a pleasant extra. Dirt becomes more visible, especially on dark floors.

When using the vacuum cleaner, I notice that it is very manoeuvrable. It doesn't feel heavy at all, which is entirely due to the location of the motor and dust container: almost all of the weight is on the underside of the vacuum.

When using the vacuum cleaner, I notice that it is very manoeuvrable. It doesn't feel heavy at all, which is entirely due to the location of the motor and dust container

This makes it unique, given that the motor and dust container with stick vacuums are normally located at the top of the vacuum cleaner. I saw this once before during my Miele Triflex HX1 review.

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The AEG QX9-1 has a parking position: you can click the vacuum cleaner forward to make it stand upright.

Charging time, weight and noise level

The AEG QX9-1 is a cordless vacuum cleaner. So we are dealing with a vacuum cleaner that is equipped with a battery. Where with canister vacuums I look at the cord length to calculate the range, I do this with stick vacuums using the average battery life.

The QX9-1 has an average battery life of 55 minutes. Compared to other stick vacuums, this is quite long. If we use the vacuum cleaner on the highest setting, it will last about 15 minutes. This is also longer than most stick vacuums.

In terms of noise level, the vacuum cleaner also scores well: with 72.8 decibels, it is not the best quiet vacuum cleaner, but it is significantly lower than other cordless vacuum cleaners.

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The vacuum cleaner weighs 5.8 lbs. I do notice that the integrated hand vacuum cleaner feels very heavy when I click it out of the vacuum cleaner.

Maintenance: filters and dust container

On to the maintenance of the AEG QX9-1: how easy is it to keep clean and charge? The AEG QX9 has a 0.35 liter dust container. This is on the small side: you will have to empty it after about two vacuums. I find emptying a lot more difficult than other vacuum cleaners:

1. Remove the handheld vacuum cleaner from the vacuum cleaner rod
2. Click the button to click out the dust container
3. Remove the filter from the dust container
4. Empty the dust container above the trash can

As you can see, emptying this vacuum cleaner consists of four steps.

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The AEG QX9-1 ALRS is equipped with a HEPA 13 filter. This involves a filtering of 99.95%. You should wash the HEPA filter at least once a month. You can clean a HEPA filter under the tap. In addition to the HEPA filter, this ALRS version also has an extra micro filter in the dust container to filter fine dust from the air.

The floor nozzle of the AEG QX9-1 offers the possibility to easily remove tangles from animal hair. You can also take the roller brush out to clean it. AEG reports that this should be done every two months.

Conclusion AEG QX9-1 review

The AEG QX9-1 is a beautiful vacuum cleaner. It not only looks very nice: the integrated hand-held vacuum cleaner is easy to click out of the vacuum cleaner. The stick vacuum has good suction performance on all floor types, although large dirt on deep-pile carpets requires a little more effort.

With a battery life of 55 minutes, you can vacuum continuously for a longer period of time. The AEG QX9-1-ALRS has a HEPA 13 filter and a micro filter. That's not the only thing that makes this vacuum cleaner suitable for allergy sufferers: you get two motorized suction brushes with it to easily remove pet hair. It has even thought about removing tangles in the suction brush: they can be removed with the push of a button.

With the ALRS version you may get a few accessories, which makes this variant less versatile. In addition, the price of this AEG vacuum cleaner is high compared to other vacuum cleaners.