I got a Dyson for my birthday in November. I absolutely love it. We have all hardwood floors except in one room. We have a cat that sheds a ton and each day I vacuum and get a ton of fur in the canister. Since I've started using it, our sofa looks so much cleaner! Also, our allergies have really gotten better.

I used to think that Dysons were just status symbols, but after actually using one...man, they really live up to the hype.

It was a chore for me not to sleep with it the first night that I got it. Seriously. I love it that much.

iI do understand about getting attached, so to speak, to our housekeeping helpers.

As far as CR's "beef" with Dyson..the only one that it rated at all in the top 12 is the Dyson Animal DC17. That one lists for $550.00. .. They are rating on noise, emissions, bare floors, carpet, pet hair, handling. Interestingly, the Dyson only scored good, not excellent on pet hair...the 2 Kenmores and a Eureka scored excellent on pet hair.

I am very impressed by the loyalty shown here to Dyson. I can feel the love. The dilemma goes on........

Hm. Interesting. We have a long haired cat and she sheds like crazy. The Dyson is awesome at getting her hair up. We have hardwoods all downstairs and then regular carpet upstairs.

Honestly I think when we bought our Dyson (and we have the purple animal one) the Kenmore wasn't available. I don't know if it would have changed our mind or not, though. MIL got a Dyson and raved about it - and she's sort of my go-to for cleaning recommendations. The woman is a fiend when it comes to housework and I trust her judgment in these matters.

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In all my years of vacuuming, we've owned the following:

an ancient Kirby (circa 1958)
a new Kirby (circa 1985) traded in the ancient one and immediately regretted that decision
a Hoover wind tunnel which currently resides in our garage for pet hair out there
an Oreck which we bought because a friend said it was the best vacuum she ever had (NOT)
a Dyson (and not the Animal--it's purple and blue)

If I were to rate these it would be Dyson #1, ancient Kirby #2 and the rest were practically useless.

Fine, silty dirt? Dyson.
Animal hair? Dyson
using the attachments? the ancient Kirby (I really don't like the hose attachment on the Dyson)

I don't understand why CR would rate Dyson so low. I belong to another chat board for animal owners and the consensus there is that the Dyson is the BEST.

My vote is for the Dyson....love it....my only complaint is that it doesn't vacuum the house all by itself!

WOW! so many dyson lovers. i've always loved 'em. especially the purple one- just because it's purple!

hubby doesn't want to spend that much- I think we're going to look closer at the kenmore. I really appreciate all the input! I have a cat too so we need something that will pick up the cat hair and litter.

This one was #6 on the Consumer Reports list and considered as one of their best buys:
http://www.amazon.com/Hoover-U5140-9...=28IM7YAKIRHF8

I haven't used one though. I'm thinking about ordering it. The plus for me is it is lighter in weight.

The Dyson Animal 17 (I think it is - it's purple) - absolutely LOVE it!!!! We have a 1/2 chocolate lab & 1/2 golden retriever who is pure black and it does an awesome job picking up the hair. It could only get better if they made one that would run on it's own - set a timer for it to go every day! HA - Who knows, maybe some day.

I want to get the DC 24 -the ball one that is compact for our camper. I'm going to justify it by using it downstairs in the family room in the wintertime so it'll save wear and tear on my other one .

I have had two Kenmore canister vacuum cleaners and didn't think I would EVER get an upright as I didn't care for them at all - the first Kenmore we received from my parents as a wedding gift and it lasted almost 12 years I think it was. The second one lasted two and when we bought the dyson, I had just vaccuumed that day and when my husband ran the new vaccuum over the carpet - it was GROSS yet amazing how much crud it sucked up - my carpets looked good too afterwards.

Rachelle

I take it that a vacuum cleaner that sucks is a GOOD thing

Reminds me of something I saw in a list of taglines, leveling a zinger at a certain software corporation owned by the Richest Man in the World: "The day M*******t makes a product that doesn't suck is the day they go into the vacuum cleaner business"

I love my Dyson. My heart was bleeding over the price, but man, it's worth every penny. I have the cannister style (don't like uprights). I have two dogs and one of them sheds 365 days a year. It is unbelievable what the Dyson pulls out from the rug.

Before I bought it (this summer) I read tons of pages of customer reviews either on Amazon or on epinions. Many people said how they didn't want to spend the money on a Dyson, got something else, it broke within a year, got another something else, it broke again, then they finally got a Dyson and now they regret they hadn't gotten the Dyson in the first place.

That Dyson SUCKS!

I've had my Oreck for years and love it....I love that it's made in the USA too!