We have had the Bissell OptiClean for a month now, so I will post some additional comments. I sent away to Bissell for an extra dust cup and also the two filters it carries. This allows me to vacuum for about an hour. When the first dust cup fills up, it can be popped out in seconds, and the clean dust cup is inserted. The dust cups are both emptied at the same time, and the filters are removed. The foam filter can be cleaned by washing in warm water & detergent, and allowed to dry. The pleated paper filter can be vacuumed clean, with a shop-vac or something similar, and this will extend the life of the filter. I don't know how long the pleated paper filters will last, and this is significant, because they cost around 10 dollars each. We have a carpeted hallway, and I was able to get this area clean by using a stool, which I sat on, and vacuuming the carpet with a small nozzle, by hand. I think it took about 20 minutes, where it might have taken 5 minutes to do the same area with an upright vacuum. However, the carpet got really clean, so it may be that the Bissell OptiClean is doing a better job. It sure picks up a lot of dirt.

Tomatozilla - You just cracked me up! I need a new vacuum - have an Old Eureka and been looking at what is out there. Was going to by a Dyson as Walmart had them advertised...well, they got 3 in and 3 went out in a day. Of course they don't get any more. BUT I use a shop vac in the house for a lot of things...under the beds, the edges of the cabinets, around the edges of the floors and places up high. Heck, I might as well go get me a new shop vac. My old one in the garage has such a short cord, I don't like using it. My husband has a bigger, heavier one in his shop that has a long cord. I never even thought of just going and buying me a new shop vac! A lot cheaper I am sure...Thankssss!

Time to move this one down.

I had the same question you did when I put in hard flooring. I needed to save money and get the most bang for my buck... I bought a HOOVER FLAIR Bagless Upright Stick Vacuum with Power Nozzle, S2220 (not the S2200) off Amazon.com and love, love, love, love, love, love, LOVE it! I'm IN LOVE with it! haha (I saw a quote on a review and I've adopted the phrase!) It's very reasonably priced ($45/free shipping), has great reviews, is bagless, great suction, very light (to me) and there's a switch that goes from hard floors to carpet/beater brush on that I use on my dining area rug. The cord length is great for MY use. It covers my kitchen, dining, foyer, hall, hall bath and laundry room! When I bought it I thought, for $45 I can try it and see how it works. If it doesn't I'll get a "better" one. It works though, so, YAY! I liked mine so much I bought one for my daughter-in-law. I got a text the other day that said: "I LOVE my birthday present!" We both used to SWEEP and I haven't swept now in months because it's great at sucking up the crumbs with no spreading it around in the air like a broom does. I DO clean the air filter (an old toothbrush works great) almost every time I use it just to preserve the machine & filter. It's amazing how much dirt/hair/debris it picks up. You can purchase new air filters but I haven't had to yet and have owned it for a good 6 months. I do not usually have big chunks of anything (like dog food) so can't comment on that. If I have something like that I pick it up first then get the rooms w/vac. Here's the Amazon link, hope it works: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00020BQGK Good luck