Shark UltraCyclone Pet Pro Plus Cordless Handheld Vacuum Cleaner review: a handy addition to any home

Our Shark UltraCyclone Pet Pro Plus Cordless Handheld Vacuum Cleaner CH951 review is worth a read if you have shedding fur babies (and humans) in the home, unexpected messes to be prepared for, or a car that appears to have a resident cookie monster. Either way, having a handheld vac within reach is ALWAYS going to come in handy.

I challenged this vac from Shark with all sorts of dirt, dust, and fluff over the past few weeks in my own home. We currently have no carpet on the stair so this was a good place to start before I moved on to tackle the skirting boards and guinea pigs (and human) hair which seems to find its way into all sorts of places.

Keep scrolling for a full account of my findings then, head over to our best handheld vacuum cleaner guide for more top options.

• Editor's note: I tested the UK equivalent version of the Shark UltraCyclone Pet Pro Plus Cordless Handheld Vacuum Cleaner CH951, known as Shark Handheld Cordless Pet Vacuum Cleaner CH950UKT. The body style and attachments are the same. The only discernible difference is it advertises a 10 minute run time and takes 4 hours to charge, while the UltraCyclone offers 15 minutes of runtime and takes 6 hours to charge.

Shark UltraCyclone Pet Pro Plus Cordless Handheld Vacuum Cleaner specifications

• Floor types: Carpet & Hard floors
• Capacity: 0.45L
• Battery life: 15 minutes
• Charge time: 6 hours
• Dimensions: 20.8" L X 3.8" W X 4.3" H
• Product weight: 2.8 lb

The delivery

The Shark CH951 arrived in a branded cardboard box which was inside another cardboard box with my delivery address attached. Package material used is tissue paper and a couple of cardboard end pieces which were used to secure the vac in place whilst in transit. This got one very big tick from me because it means that ALL packaging and materials can be recycled, so we're off to a good start already...

Setting up the Shark UltraCyclone Pet Pro Plus Cordless Handheld Vacuum Cleaner CH951

Opening up the branded box was the main unit, three attachments, and the charging cable. As with all deliveries, I get excited as to what's inside so as soon as I got my hands on the main unit, I fired it up. It worked BUT I wasn't going to use it until it had its first charge. The lithium-ion battery which powers this vac takes approximately six hours to charge completely, so I left it to charge until it was ready. There's a slow flashing light when the vac is charging. When it's ready to go, this light will be solid.

Using the Shark UltraCyclone Pet Pro Plus Cordless Handheld Vacuum Cleaner CH951

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With three attachments to choose from, and the ability to use the main unit without an attachment, deciding where to tackle first in our house was a big decision. It's so versatile so a few familiar places were selected to really put this vac through its paces.

Stairs
On the stairs, I used a combination of the main unit on its own for the wider area of the steps, and then attached the crevice tool to get into the corners and along the side of the staircase. This worked a treat. With no carpet, there's no hiding. Crumbs and flecks of mud were sucked up directly in front of the nozzle AND a small area that surrounded it. There were also some fluff balls (the shame) which were swiftly tended to.

Small rug
We have this rug at the bottom of our stairs to help protect the wooden flooring from heavy-footed residents stepping down from the last step on the stairs. This tends to end up being covered in dust, grit, hay, and hair after a week so was the perfect little patch to test this vac out on. For this, I used the mini motorized attachment which just slid onto the nozzle like the brush tool.  This did a marvelous job of lifting dirt and filling up the 0.45-liter dust canister.

Skirting board
The skirting in our Victorian home is pretty chunky and it has a ledge across the top where dust tends to settle all too easy for my liking. To tackle this I used a combination of the brush and crevice tool accessories since I wanted to clear any dust (and other messes) from around the skirting, too. This worked a treat BUT what I did notice is that the brush picked up a lot of hair on its bristles which blocked the way up the nozzle.

Battery life and charging

The lithium-ion battery is the power source for this vac. The specs say that it has a runtime of 15 minutes, which is (more than) true because I kept it kept running for 14 minutes 43 seconds from a full charge. However, I do feel that it would be helpful to have an extra five minutes or so before the vac shuts itself down. There were a couple of instances where I was vacuuming away, didn't notice the flashing of the power button to let me know that the battery was running low and then the vac cut out. Suction remained the same throughout the duration I was using it, though, which is a good thing.

To recharge, insert the charging adapter plug to the port on the handle and plug it into a socket. It'll take approximately six hours to charge completely but after 15 (or so) minutes there will be enough juice to turn it back on again, although this won't be for long.

Maintenance

With all that suction you're going to be needing to empty the dust cup regularly. This is easy, just make sure you hold the vacuum over the bin when you press the empty button otherwise the debris will go everywhere.

The dust cup and filter can be washed with water straight from the tap. And air-dried for at least 24 hours. It's important that both parts are completely dry before putting the handheld vac back together (don't be tempted to use the hairdryer), and to not put them in the dishwasher.

Is the Shark UltraCyclone Pet Pro Plus Cordless Handheld Vacuum Cleaner CH951 worth it? Here's our verdict...

For $89.99 (or thereabouts), absolutely yes. It's got impressive suction that doesn't fade towards the end of its battery life, and no debris is too much for it to handle, making it a great handheld option for the best vacuums for pet hair. The three attachments make it a versatile choice and the fact that you can go cordless with this vac makes it all the more appealing. It's a good one to have around the home for quickly whipping around, or taking out to the car to make the most out of all 15 minutes of battery life.

About this review and our reviewer

Jennifer Oksien is our Appliances Editor across the homes titles at Future. This means that she spends her days working with appliance (and mattress) brands to ensure that you get the best products for your home. She lives in a Victorian terrace that is undergoing an unintentional renovation so whilst stripping back walls, ceiling and floors (etc!) she visualizes how the space can be best used with a suite of gadgets, gizmos, and home comforts to make home life that little bit more streamlined.

As with all our reviews the Shark UltraCyclone Pet Pro Plus Cordless Handheld Vacuum Cleaner CH951 has been tested first-hand in our home, using it just as you would so you know exactly what you are buying. The products are given to us free of charge and we test them for as long as possible before sending them back to the brand unless we are able to keep it as we are with this vac. This means that we can continue to use the product which gives us the opportunity to return to our reviews for updating, so you can keep up-to-date with how it's fared over a period of time.