<p>I can’t comment on Dysons eating the carpets, but our Eureka allows one to adjust the height of the brushes to accommodate hard floors through thick rugs.</p>
<p>It is a common mistake people make with Dysons. You really don’t need to bang the last bits of dust out of the Dyson’s dust canister. Guess what happens to these bits? They will be spun down into the canister when you put it back on and start vacuuming. Just shake out whatever can be shaken out.</p>
<p>Dyson vacuum cleaners have adjustable brush height, too.</p>
<p>I also have a purple Dyson and am happy with it… but I think that the one labeled for pets (which I have) simply comes with extra attachments — but otherwise is not different than any of the other models. I never used the attachments (too much of a hassle to disconnect & reconnect stuff). One thing I really like about the Dyson is that its light so it’s easy to vacuum frequently. Also… I got my Dyson at a significant discount from eBay – its a refurbished model and I never had any problem with it. </p>
<p>I used to have a Roomba and I do think it did a good job picking up the pet hair, but it was a real pain to clean out the brushes every time (sometimes more than once during a run if it got clogged up). (I had an Aussie mix, big shedder). So while it was fun for awhile, I think with the pet hair it was more work in the long run.</p>
<p>When I bang my Dyson cannister, it’s not to get the dust out. It’s to get the pieces of shredded tissue, paper, small candy wrappers, etc that are jammed between the clear plastic outside and the inner piece. They frequently get stuck just at the opening where everything comes in and won’t go down.</p>
<p>Well I just checked Consumer Reports and Dyson is rated well, but there are 11 rated higher–ratings do not consider price, the “recommended” label does consider price. The Dyson retails for $600 and the top rated Hoover Windtunnel Anniversary Edition retails for $230. The “recommendeds” include: Hoover Platinum Bagged $400, Kenmore Progressive $350, Hoover Tempo Widepath $80, Hoover Windtunnel Anniversary Bagged $140, another Kenmore Progressive @ $350, Eureka Boss Smart Vac $170, yet another Hoover Windtunnel Anniversary…this one Unbagged (don’t know what the first one is…bagged? unbagged? It’s # U6485-900) and Eureka Comfort Clean Oh! $140. The first and last rated are “very good” on pet hair, all the remaining “recommendeds” are “excellent” on pet hair.</p>
<p>I will say I’ve owned three Windtunnel models in twelve years. I don’t remember what caused me to get rid of the first–broken I imagine. I am still using the second, and the third is the top rated (Didn’t know until I just checked!) that I got a great deal on and bought just because of the great deal ($100). It is the self-propelled model, that’s what’s different from the bagged and bagless versions, I guess. It is bagged and waiting for the current one to die. </p>
<p>And the Roomba…mine’s one of the early ones…it was a fun curiosity, but it’s random path didn’t ever do a complete job and I sure couldn’t use it on the furniture.</p>
<p>Love my Dyson. I used my BB&Beyond coupon- no problem. Yes, it is still more expensive than the Kenmore Progressive I replaced, but worth it. I have hardwood floors, wool rugs and sisal. It works on all three better than my Kenmore. We live in an old farmhouse in the country with 2 dogs and a cat. So I can testify that our house is a good barameter for pet hair, dirt and lots of mouldings to clean. Love the Dyson!</p>
<p>Thanks for all the recommendations…and shmoom…thanks for the CR report. You guys are great.
So I’m now torn between a Dyson at Costco - at a great price ($329 after discount) or the Hoover WindTunnel bagless with free shipping from Amazon ($159.00).
It’s too bad that Costco doesn’t have the higher rated Hoover models…because I love the idea of just taking the thing back if I don’t like it. So should I pay over $150 more to get a Dyson and the security of the Costco liberal return policy? They also have a Eureka bagless for $89 but I read that’s it’s really heavy and bulky. Meanwhile, the yellow hair is piling up…why did I get dark red carpets?</p>
<p>FYI - Hoover shamelessly tried to steal parts of Dyson’s IP. However, they settled their dispute and Hoover ended up paying Dyson:</p>
<p>[ApplianceMagazine.com*|*Vacuum</a> Makers Dyson, Hoover Settle Lawsuit](<a href=“http://www.appliancemagazine.com/news_print.php?article=3691&zone=0&first=1]ApplianceMagazine.com*|*Vacuum”>http://www.appliancemagazine.com/news_print.php?article=3691&zone=0&first=1)</p>
<p>Dyson is apparently going after Hoover claiming that Hoover is using false advertising practices in the US. I will let the lawyers on this thread to dig out the dirt on that.</p>
<p>Got the Dyson. Worked great out of the box…hope it stays that way. Also very easy to empty the cylinder…wow…LOTS of hair in there.
Thanks everyone…</p>
<p>central vacs outperform ANY portable —larger motor=more suction—portables can’t match them plus all of them have great tools. Look at any vacuflo or beam product</p>
<p>While I got the Dyson for the dog hair, my husband loves it for cleaning the cars! We also have a Hoover Windtunnel that I hate but keep for when I have a cleaning service at the house; they are not allowed to used the Dyson as I have never had a cleaning service that didn’t break the vacuum.</p>