Upright Reviews

This Upright Vacuum from Panasonic has a 12.0 Amp Motor and a 14" cleaning path, a dirt finder headlight. It also has the following unique features.

Convenient Panasonic Automatic Cord Reel with a simple touch of the foot pedal easily rewinds the power cord after vacuuming. The 28-foot Panasonic power cord is always neatly stowed away and is ready for the next vacuuming. Easy power cord adjustment, quickly dispense and adjust the length of power cord you need.

Electronic Dirt Sensor alerts you to the presence of dirt with indicator light even dirt you may not see.

A Clean Air system, the dirt is deposited into the filter paper bag before going through the fan and motor. You will not break a fan with this type system.

Quick draw On board tools with ready to use attachments made cleaning baseboards and above the floor as easy as it gets. The attachments include a crevice tool, dusting brush and two standard wands with a 12.5' reach

The Vacuum comes equipped with 7 stages of filtration with HEPA filter. HEPA (high efficiency particulate air) is a filtering efficiency specification for filters developed by the Atomic Energy commission during World War 2 to effectively remove radioactive dust from plant exhausts without redistribution.
A HEPA filter will retain all particles to .3 microns in size at an efficiency rating of 99.97%

All Panasonic Vacuums have a Motor Protection System should the unit get clogged a valve in the back of the unit will open and let air into the Vacuum to keep the motor from burning out.

Automatic Carpet Height adjustment allows fast and effective cleaning. The Panasonic upright automatically adjusts it powerful cleaning nozzle to match the carpet type for effective vacuuming. There's no bending, stooping or guessing what nozzle adjustment is needed, like some vacuums. Panasonic does it all, automatically.

Bare Floor Carpet Option optimizes cleaning anywhere and everywhere in your home. This convenient foot pedal easily switches to adjust the agitator to accommodate both carpeted and uncarpeted areas. The agitator grooms the carpet fibers and helps release dirt particles for easy removal. Switch to Bare Floor for scuff free vacuuming of hard surface flooring and wax finishes. There is no need to change attachments or make any manual adjustments which would prolong vacuuming time.

Dual Active Edge Cleaning means that Panasonic had placed bristles very close to both edges of the vacuum. This gives you edge cleaning on either side of the vacuum. No need to sure you are vacuuming on the side with edge cleaning.

Dirt Finder Headlight helps you see the lint and dirt in dimly lit areas.

This product comes with a 1 year warranty, and uses replacements bags U-3 or MC115P or U-6 MCV145M and Belts MCV270B

This Upright Vacuum from Panasonic has a 12.0 Amp Motor, 25-foot Power cord with Quick release and a 14" cleaning path. It also has the following unique features.

Counter-Rotating Dual Active Brushes achieve excellent pick up in the first vacuum pass. The design grabs the dirt coming and going with the counter rotation action and two tufted double-row brushes.

Dual Suction Paths allow for more evenly distributed airflow and suction power across the width of the nozzle.

Electronic Dirt Sensor alerts you to the presence of dirt with indicator light even dirt you may not see.

A Clean Air system, the dirt is deposited into the dust cup before going through the fan and motor. You will not break a fan with this type system.

On board tools with ready to use attachments made cleaning baseboards and above the floor as easy as it gets. The attachments include a crevice tool, dusting brush and two standard wands with a 9.5-foot reach.

The Vacuum comes equipped with a HEPA filter. HEPA (high efficiency particulate air) is a filtering efficiency specification for filters developed by the Atomic Energy commission during World War 2 to effectively remove radioactive dust from plant exhausts without redistribution.
A HEPA filter will retain all particles to .3 microns in size at an efficiency rating of 99.97%

All Panasonic Vacuums have a Motor Protection System should the unit get clogged a valve in the back of the unit will open and let air into the Vacuum to keep the motor from burning out.

Automatic Carpet Height adjustment allows fast and effective cleaning. The Panasonic upright automatically adjusts it powerful cleaning nozzle to match the carpet type for effective vacuuming. There's no bending, stooping or guessing what nozzle adjustment is needed, like some vacuums. Panasonic does it all, automatically.

Bare Floor Carpet Option optimizes cleaning anywhere and everywhere in your home. This convenient foot pedal easily switches to adjust the agitator to accommodate both carpeted and uncarpeted areas. The agitator grooms the carpet fibers and helps release dirt particles for easy removal. Switch to Bare Floor for scuff free vacuuming of hard surface flooring and wax finishes. There is no need to change attachments or make any manual adjustments, which would prolong vacuuming time.

Low Profile Nozzle gets extra flat and allows you to easily reach under Furniture, cabinets and baseboards

Active Edge Cleaning means that Panasonic had placed bristles very close to the edge of the vacuum.

Dirt Finder Headlight helps you see the lint and dirt in dimly lit areas.

This product comes with a 1 year warranty, and uses replacements bags U-3 or MC115P or U-6 MCV145M and Belts UB9

I bought this exact vac when it was sold at Sears under the Kenmore label (model 31079) after I heard it was really a Panasonic. What a great vac for the price. Built like a brick. Has a wooden brush roller that doesn't get wound up with long hairs under the belt. No screwdriver to change the belt. Just slide two latches on the bottom and pop the top. Pop the front off to change bag and filter. Hey, you could buy the sears 50688 microfiltration bags and 86888 filtrete filters as it is the same vac. It has great suction. It was quieter than any other similar price vac I tested in the store. My cats don't like it but they don't hide under the bed anymore either. And the Sears microfiltration bags, and little filtrete filter work very, very well. My lungs tell me this. Dust affects my breathing quickly and I can't sleep for choking. The air is a bit cleaner after I vacuum. So I love this little guy. On the negative side, my model has a short hose, short cord, no light, no heighth adjustment. The Panasonic model may have these. Mine has a dust and crevice attachment but no floor attachment. But who cares. I have unhappily owned an Oreck (too much dust), Fantom (fell apart and blew dust), Euroclean Allergen ($150 filters). This Panasonic works great, removes allergens and I can afford to change the bags before the kitty litty sweepings start to smell. Real quality and real cleaning.

I wanted to wait to write my review to see how this machine would perform. I have had it about 3 months now, and I am really pleased with my purchase. My dirt devil deluxe upright, died after 10 years....so needless to say, it was time for a new vacuum, and I was READY.

I did a lot of investigating as to what type I wanted. I couldn't decide if I wanted to try a canister or stick to the upright type.

When I found this "lift off" vacuum, it was so exciting because it did EVERYthing I wanted it to do. I use it on med. pile carpeting, hard wood floors, linoleum, and large to small throw rugs with varied piles. It has many different height levels with which to clean at. It cleans like I haven't been able to clean for a LONG time. The carpet looks new again after every vacuuming. Tt picked up things I didn't even see. It was pretty scary the first time I used it...yikes...what it picked up that the other one was leaving behind, whoa! It was also very easy to assemble, I did it myself without my husbands help, and it was a piece of cake.

It has some powerful suction and rotor brush on it too. I like that you can turn the rotor off and use it on hard floors like wood or linoleum, the other day it stuck to the kitchen floor the suction was so powerful :-). The rotor automatically turns off when you put your vacuum in the upright position and stop vacuuming for a minute. When you turn the rotor back on, it takes off practically on its own, with very little pushing, its a joy to push around. It does not come across as heavy to me, and I am a small person.

I also like the detachable canister. This also comes in handy if your kids have legos laying around and you suck one up like I did. I can rescue it easily. This aspect of the vacuum is SOOO nice. It detaches with a little lever, you dump out the junk, and put it back on with ease. I love not having to change bags anymore. But here is also where I found my complaint.

It may just be that I am not used to this type of system yet. But I thought that the container filled up very fast. I have to learn to pay more attention to it, or the dust bunnies start getting up into the filter area too high, and you have to scoop it out with your fingers, and it tends to get the dusty fuzz all over your floor if you are not careful, and you will have to re-vacuum what fell out. Just an FYI, if you are used to bags in your vacuum, you will have to keep a closer eye on this type of system.

Well after I left the dirt container on too long 1-2x like I mentioned, the filter and filter housing had to be cleaned out. However, this job is actually quite easy. The filters come out very easily for cleaning. The main filter (the one that got backed up) is a foam ring in side a plastic housing...it is washable. I already took it apart and cleaned it with water, and it looked like new after it dried. It returns to its location with ease.

With this purchase I got the little shark vacuum as a bonus, and I used it to vacuum the filter housing with its little pointy attachment. That also worked GREAT.

One other small complaint that I have found is the length of the cord. I don't feel it is quite long enough, or maybe I'm just lazy, but I find myself unplugging it more often than I did my old dirt devil. I do like (and use) the quick release lever for the cord. I just wish there was a quick way to wind up the cord :-/...oh well.

I do feel that the price of this unit is very reasonable for the quality and usefulness of this vacuum. Shipping with Amazon was free, plus I got that little shark hand vac. I would definetely recommend this vacuum to someone. At the middle of the road price range, I think this is a sweet treat to work with. It is a nice sparkly red machine that zooms along!! Plus it does so many extra things with all its attachments and the lift off system can go up the stairs with ease.

I am sure that there are more expensive vacuums out there that may claim to be more powerful, but I didn't want to spend more money...and I am VERY happy with my Bissell purchase. Plus I like to see my carpets looking so new after I clean them, so I clean them more often just to see it do its job...its a good feeling...to WANT to vacuum eh? That may wear off after awhile though ;-)

This is the best vacuum ever! Huge back wheels make it really easy to move around, garage to house and up and down stairs (even pregnant). I cannot believe the amount of hair, lint and general dust I got off my carpet. If my old vacuum had done that well the bag would have filled up twice as fast. The attachment for upholstery let me do my couch for the first time and I got more dirt off my couch than my floor....eeewww!! Plus, I will never have to buy bags again. The color is beautiful, the canister is lite weight and the price is a bargain.

If you are looking for a do it all vacuum cleaner that will not cost you your first born child, this is the one for you. I bought it to replace an aging 20 year old Electrolux and it works GREAT. It will truly do it all. Carpets, hard floors, ceiling fans, everything. It comes in a candy apple red color too that looks very sharp. I don't want to get mine dirty! All in all, this is a very good vacuum and I am pleased immensly. Thank you for posting reviews Amazon, it helped me find and purchase this fine product.

I love this vacuum cleaner. I would like it better, I think, if the attachment hose was a little longer, but that's my only complaint. It cleans like no other vacuum I've ever tried. And the spin duster is a special little added gem that is just the icing on the cake.

I spent a good 2 months analyzing all the vacuums available when my trusty Kenmore canister of 20 years started showing it's age. Basically, I was tired of having to replace the hose -which is now only available through the long process of ordering it as an outdated item. So, from inquiring through friends and reviewing the opinons on-line, I narrowed my choices down to either the Eureka Whirlwind Litespeed models, Hoover models, or Bissel. Eureka eventually won out mainly due to the overwhelmingly positive reviews on this site as well as Epinions.com. Even my dad encouraged me to consider Eureka. With an indoor cat, I really needed a good vacuum! My husand's allergies demanded no less!! So, off to Sears I went to see what they had in Eurekas - which wasn't much as I found out. Costco was just up the street and that's where I went next. Although the one I really wanted was not supplied there, the 5843AZ looked promising. I liked the duster included and thought it pretty neat that the machine even cleaned it after use!! Pulling out my cell phone, I called my husband and asked him to see what the reviews said. Only one reviewer and she gave it a two thumbs up! So, I decided that I was going to have to just bite the bullet and buy it!
As soon as I arrived home, I went to work putting it together. Actually, my husband did the work - which wasn't much. I was impressed with how easy it was to assemble!!! Within minutes, I had it plugged in and vacuuming! WOW!!! And I thought all these years I had been vacuuming!! WRONG! I was totally amazed at the amount of crude picked up by this vacuum! Our rug was new in 1971, so there was quite a bit of build-up!! I went over the same area many times and continued to get stuff sucked up into the canister. Even that nifty tubo brush did a bang up job on my husband's lounge chair. Our cat, Buster, loves to sleep ontop of it just above where my husband's head would be! Obviously, it was a source of frustration all the way around because of the cat hair left behind! But, that little turbo brush got it all!!! Trust me, Eureka does not pay anyone to say these things!! I believe these reveiws, now, because I've experienced the results! I paid $129.99 plus tax for my wonderful vacuum ( I've only had it a day, but I can tell it's going to be a good unit!!). Bad thing, though, about buying it at Costco, there are so many great 'other' things to buy there and I have to say my Eureka was not the only item I left the store with!! But, that's another story!! :) As a side note re: Costco, they have the best customer relations re: items that don't live up to the hype, so I would encourage anyone looking for vacuums to try them first!!
One thing that I was disappointed with is that this model does not have a washable HEPA filter. The one inside the canister is, though, so that's better than having none that are washable. I am going to inquire about the possibility of using the washable filter in place of the one that came with the unit. However, this little glitch has not dampended my enthusiasm for my new 'friend'!! Even my husband commented that he didn't smell any 'after burner' that he usually associates with vacuums! Another words, no dusty smells!!! HEPA really DOES work! :)
I highly recommend this unit! Certainly ran circles around my Kenmore - which is now permanently retired!

Amazon.com was enormously helpful in researching vacuums. We landed on this vacuum which we finally bought from Costco for pricing reasons. This vacuum is a great deal. It's quieter than out last Hoover, it's powerful, and it's easy to clean.

I just cleaned ours, we have had it for about a year, and cleaned it about 3 or 4 times. We use it EVERY day and have a 1 year old, who is sleeping on our carpet in the living room right now. She never has had a problem from vacuum dust either. Normally all I have to do is empty the can when it gets a little full. Cleaning can be a little labor intensive, but it's all pretty easy. 1 screw and I can have the hose off, the rest of the filters are easy to get to. This vacuum has never left a real alergy problem with us. We never sneeze using it. It will eventually get a vacuum smell as you use it, but if you keep it clean that is minimized.

After researching different options, this is what I found.
Baglass vs Bag Vaccums: Some people like bagless, some like bag. It's really a personal preference issue. I like being able to see what is in the can.
Drive systems: Beware of the Hoover. It uses a plastic geared brush drive mechanism which the salesman at Sears told me has been a real weak spot. The Eureka has a Belt driven brush, which is reliable.
Hepa filter vs Micron Filtration: Hepa filters can filter out particles below .3 Microns. This means your vacuum will filter out smoke as well as other things. Some vacuums claim to have 'Micron' filtration, which filters between 5 Microns and .3 Microns, but it's not Hepa.
Sealed Hepa Filtration systems: The Eureka has a sealed Hepa system, meaning no air gets out past the filter. This includes motor exhaust. This is the only real way to run a filter system. If it's not sealed, it's not doin' much.
Changing HEPA Filters: Do the 'light test'. Hold the filter up to a light. If you can still see light filtering through your filter, it's still good. But DON'T LET YOUR HEPA FILTER GET CLOGGED. It can fry your motor. The Eureka has a very easy to access Hepa filter, so you don't have to dismantle the vacuum to check it.
The hose is a nice addition. My Vacuum did not come with the duster, and I think that would be a nice addition.

Overall, I am glad I did my research and I'm gald I bought this vaccum. Thanks Amazon for posting customer reviews.

After using this the first few times, I planned on giving it a crap review. Stuff just seemed to get pushed around. Then I turned it around the other way. OK, so I'm an idiot. In any case, when you run this thing vacuum first, it picks up lots. One of the main reasons I got it is for the litter that my cats can't seem to keep IN the litter box. Every time I clean the box, I run this little thing to clean up the mess. It works excellently. I also use it before wetjetting my kitchen. I don't love the Bissel cloths they enclose, but it takes my Swiffer cloths so I don't care. This seems to do a good job of picking up pet fur, litter, crumbs and dirt, etc. The only thing it wouldn't pick up are the bits of cat food around the cat dish.

I love my Swiffer, but I found it just didn't do the job in the wintertime after moving to a city that liberally dumps sand on the roadways after snowstorms. All it did was push sand all over my lovely hard wood floors! And then my dog's prolific shedding meant I was using 4 cloths to clean my whole house (and that included turning them over when one side got dirty). The Bissell Catch-All was the perfect solution. The vacuum gets the bulk of the sand and hair, with the cloth picking up the rest--I'm down to one cloth per cleaning for my whole house. You won't want to throw out your Swiffer (you'll still need it to get under the couch and your dressers), but your floors will be better protected AND you'll save tons of money on cloths.

This is a great device. I bought this and the Dirt Devil Sweeper Vac with Swiffer and the Catch-All is by far the better choice. The Catch-All works much better for picking up small crumbs and dirt. It picks everything up in one pass while the Dirt Devil ends up pushing it around with the Swiffer pad. The Catch-All's removable battery also makes it easier to recharge (you don't have to store the vac itself near an outlet, who has outlets in their closets anyways?) and you can get extra batteries if your needs require it, or a year from now when your battery fails to charge anymore. I eventually returned the Dirt Devil and kept the Bissell Catch-All. The Catch-All continues to get use almost everyday to cleanup after my dog (his food crumbs, always shedding hair, dirt-magnet paws). It's great to no longer have to wait until vacuum day to get those crumbs off the floor. I have since bought one for several of my family members and they all love them. The Bissell Steam Mop also makes a perfect companion for the Catch-All for quick mopping.

Okay, so I waited a whole year to part with the $400 to buy a Dyson. I was so excited when I finally got I home I had to try it right away. So I vacuumed the berber in my family room, which hadn't been done in 5 Days, looked in the canister after I was done and was not impressed: not much in there. Looked down at the vacuum and realized, Whoops, hadn't turned on the brush. So I did that, went over the rug again and there was a lot more fuzz in the canister. But... here's the thing, that fluff comes at a price, because when I turned the vacuum over and looked at the brush I saw the hardest stiffest bristles I have ever seen in my life. And that can not be good for a rug over time. If you ever look at the bristles on other vacuums they feel soft, so they won't tear up the fibers on the rug.
According to the manuel; you should turn the brush off when doing delicate carpets. Well, aren't most carpets a bit delicate.
Also, I compared the suction on the Dyson hose with the suction coming out of the hose of my 9 year old Kenmore canister. The old Kenmore had superior suction. The Dyson can also be a bit hard to push on plush carpet.
So after 2 days, I returned my Dyson. The only reason I gave it 2 stars, was that it is very good on hard floors ,but I don't have enough of those in my house to justify keeping a $400 vacuum.

This is one powerful vacuum. I researched it on the internet (Dyson has a great web site) and read about it in a couple of magazines. I was impressed and decided to try it. After using it in my country home I can say it's close to, but not, alas, perfect for my needs. I have a mixture of floor surfaces; hard wood, linoleum, tile, wall to wall carpet and LOTS of area rugs. And I have plenty of dirt, pets and people running through the house in all seasons. The Dyson is great on everything EXCEPT the area rugs, which it has a tendency to try to gobble up... The suction power is irrefutable and I will never look at my (or anyone else's) carpets the same way again. I pulled 3 cannisters of dirt, hair and sand out of my 8' x 11' area rug with the first use of the Dyson after a recent run over the same rug with my old vacuum! Unfortunately, the Dyson also tried to eat the area rug and made a horrible sound while doing so. After a toll free call to Dyson's service center (at 5:30 pm on a Sunday evening) I was instructed to turn off the "beater brushes" and use the mode for bare floors. The horrendous sound and the "gobbling" stopped, but unfortunately without the beater brush, the machine did not do an adequate cleaning job on the area rug.

PROS: quiet operation, very powerful, easy to clean dirt cannister, super long cord, super long "expanding" hose with attachments makes cleaning stairs, crevices and window sills easy, great on wall to wall carpet and hard wood, tile and linoleum floors, carries tools on board, light weight and easy to manuever without self-propulsion, lifetime air filters and bagless design saves money and the environment, GREAT phone based customer support.

CONS: pricey, encounters problems with area rugs, difficult to assemble out of box (required a call to toll free customer service to solve an assembly problem), instruction booklet a little sparse, mostly plastic parts raise some concern with a new product, at [this price] all the accessories (floor tool and pet hair tool) should be standard -- NOT "extras", poor response from e-mail customer service on their web site, unable to purchase "accessories" right now and not able to find out from company when these will be available.

RECOMMENDED? Yes BUT with some reservations - if you have hard floor and/or wall to wall carpet surfaces and are willing to pay for good design and power with convenience, this might be the right vacuum for you. If you have lots of large, area rugs, you might want to consider something else

THIS HAS TO BE THE MOST AWESOME VACUUM I'VE EVER SEEN! I'VE EVEN NOTICED A REDUCTION IN DUST ON MY FURNITURE! WE HAVE ALWAYS VACUUMED AT LEAST 2-3 WEEK AND THOUGHT OUR CARPETS WERE FAIRLY CLEAN-WELL THEY WEREN'T! EACH & EVERY TIME WE VAC NOW, WE ARE STILL AMAZED. I EVEN APPROACHED A LADY LOOKING AT OTHER BRANDS AT SEARS THE OTHER DAY AND POINTED HER TO THE DYSON AND GAVE THE BEST SALES PITCH YOU EVER HEARD! HOPE SHE BOUGHT THE DYSON-TWO PEOPLE I'VE TOLD ABOUT IT SAID THEY WERE LOOKING AT ORECK'S-PLEASE DON'T-GIVE DYSON A CHANCE. BUY DYSON AND YOU WON'T BE DISAPPOINTED!
YOU CAN EVEN SEE THE VERY FINE, MINUTE DUST PARTICLES IN THE CLEAR CANISTER-IT'S JUST THE MOST AMAZING THING I'VE EVER SEEN-
I'LL SHUT NOW-BUT YOU BETTER GET YOU ONE OF THESE VACS (ESPECIALLY IF YOU SUFFER FROM ALLERGIES, TOO.)

After doing some research on Amazon.com and wading through all of the customer reviews, buying this vacuum was a no-brainer. I am completely satisfied with my purchase of the vacuum. I have an apartment that is about 650 square feet and I have no problem getting the whole place vacuumed using the charged battery. The vacuum has great suction power and I use it on both my carpets and tiled floor. I love not having to fuss with vacuum bags - and it is actually pretty neat to look in the clear cup at all the dust and dirt that gets picked up. The vacuum is incredibly light and has a handle that slides down which makes it easy to store.

I would definitely recommend this vacuum if you live in an apartment or if you don't have much carpet to vacuum. I think this makes a great 'starter' vacuum and would be a great choice for college students. I really can't think of anything bad to say about this product, and just look at the price - you can't go wrong.

Can't say enough good about this vacuum - I've had it for a year and its served us well. Works well on carpet, tile, rugs, anything you can throw at it.

Of course, it is not a $300 electric vacuum, but it keeps the average small household clean. Battery lasts about 20 minutes (enough to get thru a 700 sqft area just fine), and pics up everything with ease. The canister could be a little larger, but it will hold the average weeks worth of cleaning just fine. Of course when emptying the canister, dust is thrown in the air, so if you have allergy problems I would suggest dumping it outside.

Only downside I can think of is the brush clogs with animal hair too quickly - but I believe any vacuum would have this problem (long hair maine coon cat = murder on a vacuum). I find myself having to pick hair off the brush after each bedroom, which is a bit inconvenient but to be expected.

Bottom line, twice weekly cleanings on a 700 sqft tile downstairs, weekly 700 sqft carpeted upstairs, with cat litter and fur sprinkled all around, it works great, no cords, light and easy to manuever, no complaints after a years of use. When it breaks, I'll just buy another, for $60 how can you go wrong?

Kids & chores don't usually go together, but the cordless Boss sure helped make the whining & moaning go away alot quicker. It's very lightweight, does a very good surface job on the carpet (I use my regular vac once a week to get deep down cleaning). We have 3 cats (medium length hair)and 2 short haired dogs, so I was impressed when I looked in the collection cup and saw all the fur. Our cat box is located in the hall near 2 bedrooms & a bathroom so we need to use the Boss daily, I was also impressed with the cleaning it did there too. I also tried it in the foyer (the only entrance we use) and it did a great job on the vinyl floor (lots of fine sand, dirt & elm seeds). The only place that it worked poorly was the carpeted steps.

If you take the time to check (for what it is worth) you'll notice I only review things I really, really respect and like.

Well, I LOVE this vacuum.

Please allow me to tell you why:

In the past (2) years I have purchased two--count them-- TWO Dirt Devil Swivel Glide vacuums. The first one did a really good job-- then fritzed. I somehow convinced myself it was my fault. (I'm a guy. I'm hard on shoes, prescription glasses and I fling vacuums around like sledgehammers... to name a few faults.)

So after a year-- with the first machine dying a slow devilish death-- I bought another Dirt Devil. 9 months pass and the second one starts wheezing and emitting a very uncomfortable burning smell. It was a different, yet still ignoble, death.

I was about to go out and buy another one when Common Sense decided to make a rare visit: I vacuum a 1100 sq. ft. space once --and no more than twice-- a week. At (2) times a week that means I only vacuum this relatively small space (that is mostly covered by furniture) no more than 104 times a year... But yet I'm replacing these vacuums like I own Dirt Devil stock.

So I go on Amazon.com. I read and read all these different reviews and I find out about the Eureka Litespeed. I'm impressed. A few reviews are negative-- but negative in a way that I felt I had to totally discount their views on the machine.

One reviewer said something like, "I had to empty the dustcup twice before I even finished vacuuming the first time!" Gee, the dust cup on this vacuum is REALLY BIG. Did it ever strike you that it pulled so much CRUD out of your carpet that having to empty the cup--even twice-- was a GOOD THING?!?

Another person wrote that the vacuum started getting louder as time went on. Well, I've had this vacuum for (4) months and it is a little louder than when I first got it. But guess what-- I didn't buy the thing to lull myself to sleep. I bought it to VACUUM my carpet and the ever so slightest change in volume doesn't faze me at all.

Here's my experiences with the Eureka, bottom line:

1) The first time I vacuumed, I had to empty the cup twice too. The second time I vacuumed, I had to empty the cup twice. Now, some four months later-- I have to empty the cup every other time I vacuum. (Not because the cup is completely full... Just because I prefer to do it that way.)

I was one of those people who could NOT conceive of buying a BAGLESS vacuum. Too messy, too cumbersome, too whatever.

Is the large refuse cup hard to empty? No. It's EASY. Frankly, most bottles of wine take longer to open... and NOT having to buy BAGS is extra special charming.

2) This vacuum has been performing FAR beyond even my highest expectations. NO performance drop off at all and it still LOOKS almost exactly the same as the day I bought it.

3) It is effortless to push (the old Devils and their long forgotten ilk where much harder to maneuver).

4) I started using this machine on apartment carpet that was at least (3) years old. [And please remember, I had been using "top of the line" Dirt Devils on the SAME carpet for almost (2) years.]

The very first day, the very first use-- the Eureka LIFTED the nap and fluffed up my carpet and made it look BRAND NEW! Think of the first time you've ever walked into a newly carpeted room or apartment... That's what this vacuum makes your carpet look like EVERY SINGLE TIME YOU USE IT... And the Eureka has been making my carpet look brand new EVERY use since.

5) And finally-- I almost hate to make this embarassing admission-- but this is how much I love this machine:

I was standing in Target the other day and I saw this complete stranger staring at all the vacuums lined against the wall. I watched her for a while until she picked up a Bissel (that had been very poorly reviewed on this site) and started putting it into her cart.

Trying not to act like a complete nutjob-- I walked up to her and asked why she picked that vacuum. She said she had been looking at all of them for 30 minutes and had just decided for some inexplicable reason to buy the Bissel.

I told her if she was just looking at boxes and pictures that-- based on my experiences-- she had to get this Eureka Litespeed. I then showed her the vacuum's more than adequate features, etc... Basically, I turned into instant Super Eureka Vacuum Cleaner Salesman.

Much to my surprise-- the young lady didn't actually slink away from me in horror... She actually THANKED me for all my help and said she couldn't believe a complete stranger would actually stop to help her with something like this-- especially in this day and age.

Then she bought the Eureka vacuum!

I walked out of the store, still red in the face... realizing that I needed to get over this obsession with my Eureka vacuum and get a real life.

So that's why I decided to write this review.

I figured if I could help people find a SUPERB low cost vacuum on such a huge site like Amazon.com then maybe I could also rid myself of the need to walk up to complete strangers in Target stores and sell them this vacuum. (Especially since I get no payment from Eureka for my efforts.)

The first lady was nice. I might not be so lucky the second time. :-)

After reading Consumer Reports and reviews, I decided this vacuum was exactly what I needed for our household and I am amazed at its capabilities.

We own one very hairy dog and a cat. The dog is a sweetie, but the amount of fur she leaves behind is enough to make an entire new floor covering. I was in desperate need of a machine that would pick up ALL the hair. I went over our carpet ONE time with this Eureka and then I got down on my hands and knees and couldn't find a single hair in sight! We even took a dark colored sweatshirt and rubbed it on the floor and it came up clean! I ran the vacuum in front of the litter box and after one sweep all the scattered litter was gone! (YAY!)

I also found that this vacuum cleans up to the edges of the walls very nicely and has all the major attachments I personally need. It is EXTREMELY easy to empty the container and the filter will need replacement fairly often after cleaning my carpets but there are several ways to keep the filter clean without a lot of elbow-grease. Just tap it out and/or run it under water.

There are only two things I liked about my old vacuum better. This vacuum does tilt back to reach hard to get to areas, but the base is thick so it doesn't get very far under beds. Also, the cord has to be wound up by hand, but that is a very minor complaint. Mostly I'm just spoiled to the old one's retracting cord feature. No worries though.

I've only just purchased this vacuum, so I can't yet comment on durability, but for the low price I definitely feel like I'm going to get my money's worth even if it only lasts five years. I hope it will last longer with good care. (If you have a [place] near you, you may consider going to the store to pick it up and save on shipping costs!)

I'm very satisfied with our purchase. I recommend this vacuum to anyone that needs extra help with pet hair or anything else that is difficult to clean.

Yes, after vacuuming my entire house with what could be the best reasonably priced vacuum, the dust cup is full of it! Dust, pet hair, my hair, and dirt, everything! I am just so confused as to why such an awesome vacuum can be so cheap! This is my second Eureka after my first one finally started to spark (after months of reeking of burnt rubber). So, in search of my next vacuum, I began to browse Amazon and all the reviews. After reading ashman2003's review, I just knew I had to buy this vacuum. It's everything that ashman2003 says.

The vacuum is the most quiet vacuum I have ever known (my parents also had a Filter Queen or something). Now, it's definitely not silent, but it's not a roaring lion either. It does fluff up the carpet and by looking in the dust cup, I know the fluff is also clean. It's easy to assemble (as long as you have a Phillips screwdriver). It's even very easy to roll across my carpet and is surprising light in weight.

There really isn't anything wrong to say about the vacuum, but you won't believe me, so I guess I can find one. It doesn't fit completely under my sofa, which is about a 7". But that's just me being lazy.

If you're looking for a reasonably priced vacuum, this is very much worth the money. It costs the same as my Eureka Boss, but I prefer this vacuum hands down.

Happy Vacuuming!

This is the best handy vacuuming device I have ever purchased. With 3 kids, 1 dog, 1 bird, and a very busy schedule, I wanted something for quick daily sweep-ups. I tried my dust buster, the electric brooms etc. This vacuum is perfect. I have wood floors and area rugs of various sizes and the transistion is easy. Just flip the switch. There is a handle on the top to aid handling. It's light and quiet. It empties and filters like a dustbuster. It rests upright when you want it to and doesn't klunk you on the head unexpectedly. Pick-up is great. Powerbrush works fine. The power cord is basically room size. This vacuum is the one to use for daily and weekly (even hourly) tidying up. I bought it a month ago and haven't brought out the Electrolux yet. Inevitably, I will because for the big time cleaning under the beds etc. I will need my canister vac. with the floor brush on the long handle. Buy this vacuum if you want to do the Monster whole house vacuuming less often. The Easy Vac is perfect for Quick EASY vacuuming.

I bought this to replace my old vacuum, which was essentially a dustbuster on a stick. Imagine my disappointment when I got this, and found that releasing a simple latch allows you to remove the suction unit: it's a dustbuster on a stick.

But, surprise surprise, the dustbuster is super powerful, and the stick includes a powered rotating brush that really gets up dirt from carpets. This thing rocks.

It's not only effective and versatile, it also looks good. Not that appearance makes one bit of difference to the doomed dust bunnies on your floor, but this Powerbrush just looks and feels like a quality machine. It's relatively light and easy to handle, the clear plastic removable dirt collector lets you see when you need to empty it, and it's solid--this thing won't fall apart if it falls over.

Perfect for small apartments, dorm rooms, and condos. You might want to go with a bigger unit if you've got a lot of floor space and need super-deep cleaning.

Oh, and you can shut off the rotating brush with a simple flick of a switch mounted on the handle, allowing quick transition from, say, your carpeted living room to the hardwood-floored kitchen.

Great buy. 5 stars.

If you hate to sweep, get this vacuum for your wood and tile floor. I'm never using my broom again! It picks up all the cat hair, cat litter, sand the kids track in and who knows what else. It is quite an eye opener when you empty out the dirt cup to see what was on the floor. It is light and easy to handle. I would use a bigger vacuum for a large area of carpet, but it works great on throw rugs and entry way mats. Can't recommend it highly enough for kitchen and living room cleaning.