In the beginning there was dirt. And it was good. But it stuck to all the parts that were difficult to reach, and so begat the vacuum cleaner. But lo, after a time there were large flat areas which also needed cleaning, but the cloths were slow and yea, they were cumbersome. And at this time there came a marketeer with an idea, and it seemed profitable.

Why not build a vacuum cleaner to clean windows, tiles, and other surfaces like mirrors, he said? And so was born the Karcher WV50 Cordless Window Vacuum. This Lithium Ion battery powered gadget works just like a conventional squeegee, except that as you swipe it over the surface it also sucks up the dirty soap suds, water and condensation or whatever. Sounds good, right?

The big benefit of all this sucking is apparently the end of the streaky window, which as we all know has been the bane of hard working cleaners since records began. It can be used on any window, tile or mirror that is flat, and it should handle up to 45 ‘average’ windows per charge. Just in case you were wondering. Priced at $69.99 (or £46.80).