Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

With so many 5-star, Verified Purchase reviews, my expectations were high. After receiving it, I’m a bit underwhelmed and need to consider if it’s really a good value with respect to the price point and other cordless vacs on the market- including the Dyson sticks. I know cross-shopping this against the Dyson is like cross-shopping VWs and Porsches. I think most people, myself included, end up looking at the Makita because they can’t justify the price difference for the Dyson models. However price is one thing, value is something entirely different- where value is the benefits divided by the price. Benefits, of course, are subjective and each person will have their own criteria. First, the pros and cons: Pros 1. Lightweight, nice balance 2. Very good suction (not sure about the reviews that complain about the suction, it’s pretty good) 3. Maneuverable 4. Removable and easily sourced Lithium-Ion battery, which is common across many Makita tools 5. Doubles as a dust buster on steroids 6. While the power button/trigger does not lock in the on position, it is well placed and easy to operate. 7. Fast recharge times 8. Good run time 9. Floor tool is not bad on tile and wood floors 10. Reasonably quiet Cons 1. Battery + charger represent more than half the cost of this package (~$95 on AMZ as of this writing) 2. Replacement battery by itself is $60- though with the quality of this battery, may never need to replace it. 3. Dust cup can be opened too easily (just adjusting the floor tool in wrong direction will cause the cup to open) 4. Dust and dirt accumulate on the filter, which makes cleaning/emptying more of a chore. Vacs like the Dyson have the cyclonic/windtunnel action that sends the dirt to a collection area and not necessarily into the filter. 5. Tube sizes are on the small side, so no repurposing tools from other vacs 6. Floor attachment is on the small side too and is not motorized nor has suction-powered beater action (yeah, knew this upfront, but if consider the *value* of a Dyson, this could be a factor). This will have limited use for carpets and area rugs. 7. No HEPA filter (though there is a reviewer with a DIY mod) 8. No included tool ideal for use in the car, other than a crevice tool 9. Plastic is on the cheap side 10. Battery charger is a monster- same pro-grade unit sold for power tools. It has a fan to keep the battery from overheating while its fast charging. It’s a bit hard to classify this as a ‘con’ since it and the battery are the most deluxe thing about the whole package, and disproportionally so. Other thoughts 1. If you are ‘all in’ with Makita tools and have other LXT items, then presumably you already have compatible batteries and charger, so you could opt for the $80 *tool only* model. Or get this and have a spare (2 Ah) battery and rapid charger. 3. I think the Dyson battery powered stick vacs could (and probably do) serve as upright replacements, this is more suited to quick cleanups, and small areas. 4. By far, the best battery/charger combo amongst its peers. In conclusion, I'll keep it. It won't replace my plug in upright for general duty and carpeting, but fills a niche for quick, spot cleanups and dust buster type work. UPDATE 4/5/2016 After living with this vac for about 3 weeks, I find I use it a lot. The lightweight and small form-factor make it very convenient and not a chore to use at all. My plug-in upright is feeling neglected. I'm leaving the rating at 4-stars, since the dust cup being too easy to open and the dirt accumulation on the filter (#3 and #4 in my Cons in the original review) remain annoying.