Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

Recently we decided it was time to replace our 10-plus year old Kenmore Progressive canister vac. We have a dirty dog, a cat, a child, no mudroom. Our floors always felt dirty even after we vacuumed. I hated the Kenmore--it was heavy, always tipped over, and generally a pain, it was hard to find bags and parts given its age without a search. My child's allergies, though not severe, seemed to be worse. We had repaired the motor once. Vacuums have evolved quite a bit since we were last in the market for a new one. So many "pet hair" vacuums to chose from. I also was attracted to the idea of an upright with an easy to use hose and attachments. After some "research" I settled on the Dyson DC25 because of its allergen removing properties, the ball, the suction (far better than my Kenmore) and the 5 year warranty/never needs new parts claim. The DC25 vacuums--All Floors, Animal, and Blueprint are identical except for the attachments. I bought the Blueprint ($529) because it was on sale at Best Buy for $400. (The All Floors retails $500; the Animal $549). I figured the money I saved I could use towards attachments. I vacuumed right away. I liked the suction and I especially liked the attachments. My house felt cleaner. The next day I used the vacuum to further clean mattresses and dusting. I noticed that the hose kept slipping from the attachment point on the wand. The hose is held in place with two plastic nubs. I pushed it back in, same problem. On closer examination I noticed that part of one of the nubs seemed to have broken off. Not a good sign. I called Dyson; the rep told me to take it back to Best Buy (BB has a 30 day return policy). The rep was certain this was a fluke, that the hoses go through all sorts of testing. I exchanged it for another one (the last one on the shelf). Two days later the same problem! My husband wanted me to return it. I really liked the vacuum and wasn't ready to return it because I knew there were no more left at that price. I called Dyson. THe rep said they'd send me a new hose; said I should get it by the end of the week. In the meantime I was using duct tape to hold it together. Well I didn't the hose receive by the end of the week. I called the following Monday. This rep put me on hold, then told me "there's a problem at the warehouse in NY". Said he'd re-order it and I should get it by week's end. Never showed. The following Monday I called Dyson for the third time. The rep told me the hose was out of stock and there was nothing he could do but send it out when it became available. After demanding to speak with a supervisor, he got back on the line and said a manager OK'd sending out the identical hose from the ALL Floors model (different color)to use until the Blueprint one came. At this point, I didn't have much confidence in Dyson. I had only 5 days left to return the vacuum to Best Buy. I requested that the hose be expedited; no can do he said. I explained I didn't want to be stuck with a lousy vacuum and not be able to return it to BB. I asked for a new vacuum to be shipped. Nope. I asked to speak with a supervisor. Was told they were not available right now. I said to him you just spoke to one!He was very customer-service empathetic--I'm sorry this has happened--but there was no action he could take to recitfy things. He said they'd gotten 20,000 calls since the holidays (this was in early Feb.) and the supervisors were stretched (now that tells me something!) He put me through to the supervisor's voice mail and I left my contact info. The next day I still had not received a call back from the supervisor. My husband and I decided to wash our hands with Dyson because of the lousy customer service and concern that any time we had a warranty issue we'd have to go through all this hassle. We returned it to Best Buy the next day. The BB clerk was the same one who handled the first return. She remembered me and there was no problem returning it. I had even purchased a $70 attachment kit and she said she'd give me the money back on that since I could no longer use it. Thank you Best Buy! PART 2: Research for a new vacuum began. My mom told me she had a Riccar. I'd never heard about it but it got very good marks. It was also expensive--$800-$1000 range; a few mid level ones between $600 and $700. care available only through brick and mortar dealers. Long story short the local dealer in my area also sold Miele and Sebo vaccuums, also pricey. The dealer suggested a Miele over the Riccar because of it's reputation. Built to last 20 years, 7 year warranty, high quality, the #1 vacuum in Germany where they are manufactured. We purchased a Miele S2 series Titan canister. So lightweight.High quality parts, easy to pull around and much higher suction that the Dyson. 130 CFM versus 110 CFM. And it is so QUIET. My 8 year old child and my dog normally run from the room when I vacuum. My daughter happily vacuumed her room without sound cancelling headphones. And it is light enough for her to maneuver. Also, we have a local vacuum guy that services these vacuums for 30 years. The dealer also had a few Dyson's on the floor. When I first walked in I told him about my problems with the Dyson. He told me they are a piece of junk. He said he used to provide warrannty service for Dyson's but had to give it up after 2 weeks because so many people were bring their Dyson's in for repair it was taking away from their regular clientele. He said his shop will still repair them but he doesn't work with Dyson anymore as a warranty servicer. When my husband went back to purchase the Miele, there were 2 people there bringing in their Dyson's for repair and very annoyed. Said they are junk and bring it in to this shop because the alternative was to send it to Dyson in NY for the work and Dyson required them to pay freight. MY ADVICE: if you buy a Dyson be prepared for breakdowns and poor or bureaucratic customer service. Don't buy one online. Get it locally where you can try it for a while with a no-hassle return policy. We got our Miele Titan for $600 and couldn't be happier. It's small, lightweight, but a powerhouse. Well built and our allergies are much reduced. If you're going to pay 500 for a Dyson it's worth the extra money for a Miele despite the extra cost for bags and filters.