Vacuum cleaners

(1 of 1 customers found this review helpful)

Comment:

Although this is a quiet vacuum (owned for 2 years) with excellent suction and better quality materials, it falls short in simple design. As a product designer myself, I am being quite critical because at its price and reputation I expected better; better ergonomics and more logical design. Given that many/most of the vacuums on the market are outright junk, this vacuum is superior. I do like its performance and I do find it works well to pick up pet hair. It is not useful on full-flight stairs as the hose is too short. I find that its short length causes the constant drag/yank of the machine. The hose is one foot too short and too stiff; it knocks things off tables and you cannot reach up to dust picture frames, for instance, without using the telescopic wand which is cumbersome. The wand is also too large in circumference to get under some furniture.<br />The cord could be 5+' longer.<br />The large plastic handle is too cumbersome and gets in the way of vacuum-dusting in corners and its two part construction twists apart at the parting line in your hand.<br />Although lightweight, the casters should be outboard more and having only 3 casters - it tips over often.<br />You must unplug the cord (at carry handle) to replace the bag/filter; not a big deal except that with the size of my hands, it is difficult grip the plug.<br />The bags are well made but $$.<br />The supplied crevice tool is useless @ 5 long. I purchased additional attachments that one would normally expect to come with it, such as a hardwood brush tool ($70) and a longer crevice tool ($22), very pricey!<br />The adjustable brush tool broke after the 5th use, warranty would not cover it: $26.<br />Right now, the unit is in the repair shop because the switch broke. It takes repeated presses to turn it on and sometimes it will not turn off.<br />Ironically, we replaced a 20 year-old, $90 Eureka no-frills canister vacuum with this one. We are now using it while the Miele is in the repair shop.

How long have you owned it:

More than six months

Bottom Line

No, I would not recommend this to a friend.

Comment:

This is an additional model CR as yet to review. I have had this model for almost a year now and I am very satisfied with its performance. Its best feature is the quiet motor. I live in a Condo/Townhouse and if a noisy vacuum is a concern for you, you need to give Miele's a hard look. They are not cheap and this model was just shy of $800 last winter. Overall ease and operation is sastifactory with better than average suction than the last upright I had. I am a single guy, kind of a neat freak, and do not live with pets, however I have found that the perfomance on carpets and bare floors to equal or exceed the performance of other vacs I tested, including Kenmore, Hoover and Dyson.<br /><br />Some previous reviews complained about the powercord being short in earlier canister models, and I find the retractable power cord to be sufficiently long enough in the S-5 series. Keep replacement bags on hand. The bag is small and frequent users will change the bags more frequently than other makes, and the bags are not cheap. The machine is pretty light weight, and I tend to carry the canister when doing the stairs or light duty vacuuming.<br /><br />The one con that I can mention is storage of the wand/handle and power head. In my opinion this is the achillies heal for this machine. There are plastic tabs on both the power head and wand that you align to slots on the cannister for storage, and I predict that these will break in time, sooner rather than later for frequent or professional users. Retract the wand for prolonged storage to reduce the stress on these tabs and slots.<br /><br />If you are noise sensitive, or live were noisy vacuums can be troublesome, you need see your Miele dealer and check out the line of canister vacs. You will pay more for a Miele machine in both purchase and operating costs, but you will be hard pressed to find a vacuum that will meet most consumers performance specifications balanced with size, weight and minimal noise.

How long have you owned it:

More than six months

Bottom Line

Yes, I would recommend this to a friend.

(9 of 9 customers found this review helpful)

Comment:

I own another Miele vacuum and love it. I find that the Titan is rated higher than this model as they are the same except the Titan is red and has a HEPA filter. They are the only differences. Seems odd the ratings are so far off. I disagree there. These vacuums are truly great machines. They are build solid and very quiet when operating. Light weight to has a big bag. Nothing escapes this vacuum. The Electro brush is fantastic. My other Miele has the Turbo Brush and it is good, but the Electro Brush is way better. All the pet hair GONE. dirt GONE. Buy one and you'll see what others leave behind and never mess with clear bins!!

How long have you owned it:

A month or less

Bottom Line

Yes, I would recommend this to a friend.