Dyson DC21 Canister Cleaner

Love the no bag vac, nice and compact and stores in a small area. Has great suction on carpets and doesn't suck them up at the same time. I am not impressed with the suction on the linolium though. I expected the dog hair to come from all ends of the room and suck in from what I had heard about Dysons.. I find that it isn't pulling dirt from the edges and corners very well. Though bagless, with my numerous pets, I find that the canister has to be emptied several times when I clean the house. Mind you, yes, my house does get dirty, but, the capacity is very small. Emptying is also not a clean neat process. You have to pour the dirt out and it often leaves a puff of dust. I had used a dyson in the past which dropped the bottom out of the canister and the dirt fell straight down. I don't know that it was neater, but it seems to me that it would be.

All in all, I am happy with it. I think maybe my expectations were built up a little too high by everything I had heard about these vacuums. I do love that all the attachments can be kept onboard with the exception of the hardwood floor cleaner (which is sort of stupid, but...). I find that the carpet brush works find for the hardwood floor anyway. I just turn the brush off. Turning the vac and brush on and off is easy even for us lazy folks who don't want to bend. A foot push is all that it takes. I am also finding that the extending handle doesn't latch and stay as well as you would like it. I have to fiddle with it quite a bit to get things to stay. Still does way better than my old vac though!

I bought the Dyson with high expectations. I wanted a quality machine. The vacuum works great, picks up well, good suction, easy canister removal for emptying and cleaning. The things I don't like are.
1 The telescoping wand is cumbersome and heavy, when you attach one of the small tools I feel I am holding this huge heavy club like thing with a tiny petite tool on the end, it is not a comfortable feeling.
2 The flexible hose winds and stores on the machine as advertised. But it doesn't like being straightened out, it wants to stay wound up. So it kinks easily. It doesn't have a swivel feature on the hose so it doesn't always do what you would like it to, you can't twist the wand into all the positions you might like, not good for the small attachments.
3 There is a bare floor brush but no place to store it on the machine.
4 The carpet head works well and does store on the machine. But when you hang it on the machine it rests on the floor so the machine will not move once it is attached in the storage position. So you don't attach it for storage until you have put the machine in the final storage place.
To summarize, I wish I had not bought it. It works well but is not convenient to use. I have had canister vacs which I did like, and thought I would like the Dyson, but I don't.

This is my first canister vacuum I bought, I always had the upright ones so I am getting used to the concept. Dyson vacuums are really good and this one has a lot of power, and suction. I have a dog and it helps to remove all the pet hair. It is more portable and light than the last one I had and it fits under the beds and tables.
I would greatly recommend it.

I hate this vacuum. I have had it for over 1 yr and hate using it...It is hard to maneuver, the hose is extremely stiff and kinks if you look at it sideways.....the telescoping wand is hard to lock into place....the cord is not long enough....it is definitely not user friendly...If you have arthritis or are a senior citizen....this vacuum is pathetic....the only good thing is it's suction and that's debatable over Hoover

The following are the most objective, honest points about this unit that that I think you'll come across (besides, I'm a stockbroker, not a vacuum salesperson, and do not stand to benefit if Dyson sells more or less units). First the negatives, then the positives.

Negatives:
- doesn't roll easily on the floor
- chord is a little too short
- the tube is too bulky and gets twisted if you are not careful
- the extension arm collapses sometimes when I bump up against a wall or bed post.
- overall heavy and bulky feeling. Definitely not the most nimble unit on the market.

Positives:
- the best damn suction on the market!! I was SHOCKED how many tiny bits of dust and dirt I picked up the first time I used it. It was very obvious that the air quality of the exhaust of superb as extremely tiny particles were trapped in the canister.
- the cannister lets you see everything you've picked up. The psychological satisfaction of looking at all that crap should not be underestimated. They say you don't have to empty the main canister every time but you will. The satisfaction is too much to pass up. And if you happen to suck up anything valuable by accident, you can retrieve it easily.
- the vacuum looks very futuristic. It's a great looking design.

Overall, I love this vacuum because it so incredibly effective at cleaning. The extra effort in moving it around and dealing with the other negatives become a non-issue. I replaced my cheap vacuum because I couldn't stand the dust that it kicked out of the exhaust (apparent a day or so after I vacuum and by the fact that the bag took forever to fill up). The Dyson picked up more my first time using it than my old vacuum picked up after a dozen uses. This is no exaggeration. The Dyson totally 'sucks', you'll love it.

Attamyway