Gtech Multi MK2 K9 review: A handheld vacuum cleaner that smells good while it cleans

The Gtech Multi MK2 K9 is a great handheld vacuum for pet owners. Not only can it tackle the usual problems of shed hair and unfortunate mess, but it also uses replaceable scented cartridges that sit in the filter, leaving the air around you smelling better as you clean.

You don’t have to have a pet to benefit from its brilliant cleaning, though. Its tools can just as easily conquer regular household spillages, and it performed superbly in our tests.

Gtech Multi MK2 K9 review: What do you get for the money?

The Gtech Multi MK2 K9 is a chunky handheld vacuum cleaner that weighs 1.5kg. Its 315 x 730 x 470mm (WDH) dimensions are largely taken up by the 400ml collection bin, which sits parallel to the handle, with the cleaning tube extending from the top and the rechargeable battery sitting below.

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As well as the vacuum cleaner itself, the Gtech Multi MK2 K9 comes with a range of attachments, including a motorised head, a dusting brush and an extension tube with a brush on the end.

It comes with a crevice tool, although this is so ingeniously concealed in the handle of the main unit that I didn’t realise it was there until I came across it by accident while trying to work out how to empty the bin.

The box also contains a spare filter along with five spare sealed scented cartridges, which are used to add a fresh smell to the air as it’s expelled from the vacuum.

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Gtech Multi MK2 K9 review: What’s it like to use?

The Gtech is well balanced in the hand. The dust collection bin sits under the grip, while the suction tube wraps up and over, balancing the weight of the attachment you’re using with the dust collection bin below.

There’s an LED on the front to illuminate nooks and crannies while you’re vacuuming, and four lights on the battery to show you how much charge it has left. When it comes to charging, you plug the battery into the supplied cable, although you can choose whether to remove it from the main unit or not.

The battery takes around four hours to charge and, in our tests, lasted 16mins 37secs when powering the motorised head. Without the head attached, it ran for 25 minutes.

The bin is the clunkiest thing about the vacuum. It needs pulling off the main unit with a fair bit of brute force because there’s no release catch. Once it’s off, though, there’s a catch to open a trap door in the bottom, so emptying it into the bin is relatively simple.

Gtech Multi MK2 K9 review: How well does it clean?

The Gtech Multi MK2 K9 picked up all the Cheerios we dropped onto both our carpet and hard floor without any problems. The whole spillage fitted into the 400ml bin without any loss of suction.

When it came to cleaning up flour from the carpet, the K9 gathered up 47g of our 50g spillage on the first pass of the motorised head, leaving only a patchy residue. I went back and ran over those areas again and, with a bit of back and forth, and it collected the missing 3g.

On the hard floor it picked up 50g without any problem, although I could still see a powdery residue left behind. A little back and forth with the motorised head soon polished it away.

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Gtech Multi MK2 K9 review: Should I buy it?

Even without the bonus air freshener, the Gtech Multi MK2 K9 is a great handheld vacuum cleaner. It coped with our test spillages as well as vacuums several times its size, putting any minor niggle we had with the slightly tricky-to-release dust collection bin into the shade.

It doesn’t come with its own charging station, so isn’t as neat and convenient an option to have around as the Hoover H-Handy 700, and you could get similar cleaning power for a bit less money and a few compromises if you opt for the Shark Cordless Handvac Pet Edition.

However, if you want a solid handheld vacuum cleaner, especially one that injects a fresh smell into the air as it works, then the Gtech Multi MK2 K9 is tough to beat.