A messy desk or countertop is the bane of my existence. Yet, as an artist and someone who spends a lot of time at my desk, messes are inevitable. While I have a powerful Dyson cordless vacuum that doubles as a handheld vacuum, it’s often a bit overkill for small messes. Plus, it’s not a very quiet device, so it’s not something I want to use all the time.

The Odistar Desktop Vacuum Cleaner is a handy little gadget to keep on your desk.r, quieter alternative to my main vacuum. I’ve been using this tiny vacuum for a few weeks, and while it isn’t perfect, it helps me keep my surfaces cleaner.

Price, availability, and specs

The Odistar Desktop Vacuum Cleaner is available from Amazon. It comes in multiple configurations, including orange and white models that use AA batteries, orange and white rechargeable battery models that charge via USB, and a white model that charges via USB and offers wireless charging for other devices. I’ve been testing the white AA battery model.

What I liked about the Odistar Desktop Vacuum Cleaner

Quiet yet effective suction

My favorite thing about the Odistar Desktop Vacuum Cleaner is its noise level. It essentially sounds like a slightly loud fan. It’s far from obtrusive, unlike my Dyson vacuum. In fact, my cat doesn’t even go running when I turn it on, which is a sure sign it isn’t very loud. I can easily run it to clean up the inevitable coffee grounds on the counter without interrupting the morning news on the TV.

Despite the quiet noise level, it offers a good amount of suction. The built-in brushes on the bottom keep it from sitting perfectly flush on a surface, but it still has no issues picking up debris. Plus, those brushes help lift things that may be slightly stuck or free up debris in the crevices of a keyboard. For more specific messes, it comes with a somewhat pointed attachment that easily slots right into the center of the vacuum.

Another plus of the Odistar Desktop Vacuum Cleaner is its size. It’s very compact, so I can leave it on my desk without taking up much room. It also easily tucks away in the drawer of my filing cabinet. This tiny device is also exceptionally easy to use. There’s a slider to turn it on and off, and nothing more.

What I didn’t like about the Odistar Desktop Vacuum Cleaner

Emptying the bin is a messy endeavor

While the Odistar Desktop Vacuum makes cleaning up messes on my desk and counters easy, there are some downsides. First, it doesn’t vacuum very close to edges. That means that around the side of my monitor stand or the base of my coffee grinder doesn’t get clean unless I brush that debris away from the edge.

This compact desktop vacuum is also rather limited in what it can vacuum up. The instruction manual specifies that it’s only meant for small, thin scraps like bits of paper, keyboard dust, and rubber scraps. The hole going into the dustbin is quite small, so it wouldn’t be able to suck up anything very large. I tested it on some fairly large pencil shavings, and it did suck them up eventually, but it took a few passes for some of them.

Perhaps the biggest downside, though, is the emptying process. There’s no easy release on the dust bin compartment. Instead, you have to more or less pry it off, and it then comes off suddenly, which can be a messy process. If you empty it over a large trashcan, there won’t be any issues, but I tried to empty the first bit into the box it came in and made more of a mess than I had before.

Finally, though it doesn’t change the functionality, the device I received looks different than the photos and graphics in the listing. Instead of a button to turn it on and off like the images show, there’s a slider.

Should you buy the Odistar Desktop Vacuum Cleaner?

It makes keeping your workspace clean easier

If you like to keep a tidy workspace but don’t like fussing with a full-sized vacuum, then the Odistar Desktop Vacuum Cleaner is a great option. It’s very affordable, compact, and easy to use, and offers plenty of suction for most messes. The compact design could even entice your kids to clean up their own desks. I would suggest paying slightly more for the rechargeable model instead of the one that relies on AA batteries, though, so that you aren’t stuck replacing batteries and creating more waste as a result.