Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

After my 20-yr-old Hoover finally died, I spent months researching vacuums online, and I finally bought this Kenmore because it had most of the features I was looking for. The user reviews were almost uniformly bad, but it received good ratings from Consumer Reports, so I took a chance. Live and learn.  It's a heavy machine that's difficult to manuever. I'm a scrawny 5'7", 110 pounds, and although this vacuum is not self-propelled, it literally drags me through the house. Pulling the vacuum back toward me is not an easy feat. If you have any type of injury or mobility issue, this is probably not the vacuum for you. Also, many other people have pointed out, it's extremely loud. The vacuum hose is ridiculously short, and the telescoping wand doesn't like to stay attached even though it has a locking mechanism to hold it in place. It's advertised as having a 10-ft reach, but I'd be surprised if it's really more than half that. Despite what the listing claims, you are not going to be able to use it to vacuum your ceiling fans unless you live in a Hobbit house. The various brush attachments are angled such that they can really only be used from a standing position, so you will not be able to use them to get down and clean under low furniture. I found trying to vacuum under beds to be impossible.  This model is supposed to be good for cleaning up pet hair, but I ended up having to pull a LOT of dog fur out from where it had wrapped around the vacuum brushes and roller. Likewise, this machine is recommended for people with allergies, but I had to clean a considerable amount of dust from the exterior of the machine when I finished vacuuming, so I'm not sure how helpful the HEPA filter or the bagged design on this machine really is.  Overall, this was a disappointing purchase, and I definitely would not recommend this model.