Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

First of all, I have to commend Bissell for even attempting a product like this. Why? Because of SUS (Stupid User Syndrome) that is typically rampant in both floor steamers and vacuum cleaners by themselves. SUS is amplified x2 when combining these two products. I don't understand why quite a few people here find direct manufacturer replies to these reviews as suspect. I find it to be excellent customer service! If you read through the 1-star reviews, the majority of them say the Bissell Symphony worked perfectly the first few times/months they used it, but then it stopped performing well. Guess what, people? You have to maintain your housecleaning tools! I own three different vacuum cleaners, two different steamers, one hard floor scrubber, and one carpet cleaner. After every time that I use any of these, I thoroughly clean them. With my vacuums after each time that I use them I remove hair and debris from the power brushes, I wipe out the inside of the dirt cup with a wet paper towel, and generally clean the entire outside casing. Every two or three times that I use the vacuums I clean the filters as directed in the operator's manual. About every six months or so, I actually remove the hoses and run water through them to remove any built-up dust, and then allow to drip dry. These are all things you must do or every vacuum is going to fail over time. If you don't want to do this, then I suggest you revert back to a broom and dustpan, as they don't require any maintenance. Have fun with that! With my steamers I only use distilled water. The reason why stares at me every few months when I get a shower -- all of my shower heads in my house are crusty with mineral build-up because most city water is ridiculously hard. You should be doing the same thing in all devices in your house that produce steam -- steam cleaners, steam mops, clothing steamers, irons, etc. There's no place for those minerals to go when tap water is converted to steam, so it stays in the product and affects performance. Usually you can resolve this by running a cycle or two of diluted vinegar/water through it, but it's just better, easier, and usually cheaper or about the same price to simply use distilled water. You should especially use distilled water when the manufacturer specifically recommends it. Not doing that is, frankly, SUS (Stupid User Syndrome) and definitely not the fault of the product or manufacturer. Also, a lot of the complaints seem to be centered around cleaning up heavy messes. This isn't a shop-vac or an industrial steam cleaner -- it's more of a regular, routine cleaning device. If your home is really so filthy that this device cannot clean it, then you probably need to either clean more often or switch all you devices over to industrial/commercial models that are made for cleaning the apparent restaurant/hotel level of filth that you seem to be encountering. I have pets, I have children, I have women in the house with long hair, and I've never encountered messes that my consumer home appliances couldn't clean or maintain. Now, all that being said, the Bissell Symphony works just fine for me, even after months of owning/using it. Does it vacuum as well as my dedicated vacuum (Shark Rotator Liftaway Professional)? No. But even a Dyson vacuum doesn't clean as well as my Shark does, so I really didn't expect this product to either. I expected it to clean as well or better than my Hoover Lynx cordless vacuum (which is an excellent cordless vacuum by the way), and it does do this.The Bissell Symphony does steam just as well as both of my other steam mops (if not actually better because the steam starts faster), and it is nice to not have to vacuum the whole floor first. Admittedly, if I want my home to be as thoroughly clean as I can possibly get it (like I do once or twice per month), I vacuum the whole house with my dedicated vacuum and then steam mop all the hard floors with a dedicated steam mop. However, between these ultra-thorough cleanings, the Bissell Symphony does an excellent job of maintenance cleaning, and because it's combo device, I can get it done in roughly half the time. My time is valuable -- so it's nice for housecleaning to not take as long every time. There are several problem areas in my home -- by the guinea pig cage, under the bar stools, and under the dining room table. I usually hit those areas (and only those areas) with my Hoover Lynx cordless, and then just use the Bissell Symphony on the entire floor. I originally rated the Bissell Symphony 4/5 stars because I feel there is room for improvement on both the vacuum and steam mop sides. I do feel that if this item was improved it would most likely cost a lot more than it does, so given the price/performance ratio, I feel this is overall a very good product to excellent product as-is, which would probably get it more like 4.5 stars, so I rounded up.