Customer Reviews

Dirt Devil 088520 Featherlite Bagless Upright Vacuum

5 star:		(18)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(10)
1 star:		(20)

 

 

My first concern in buying this vacuum was the light weight. I figured that anything that light could not be that powerful. Was I ever wrong there! When using this vacuum, be wary of vacuuming bathroom rugs, because this will suck the rug up easily.

As with most bagless vacuums, emptying out the canister can be messy. It is easy to do, but in dumping the dirt, there will be a small cloud of dust, which will make another mess you need to clean. I recommend emptying it outside. Also, emptying it outside also makes it easier to clean the filter. This will take more than a couple of shakes, or some very dirty fingers.

There is an knob for switching between hose and vacuum, and there is a lever to adjust for the vacuumed area, such as from smooth floors to high-pile carpet.

The hose and attachments are fine. They are a little stiff, which makes it difficult when cleaning shelves, but it really isn't a problem. There is one thin attachment for getting behind furniture and getting corners. Also, there is a stiff brush for dusting. I didn't care much for the brush because the bristles are very stiff and short. It didn't clean the dusty places as well as some older vacuums.

Nonetheless, this is a great vacuum at a great place. I feel that it did a much better job at cleaning than my last vacuum and that it doesn't take as much effort to lug it around the house or up stairs.

We've had a Fantom Thunder for 7 years; we bought this Dirt Devil a year ago when we found ourselves with a 4-floor house and wanted a second, lighter unit. I agree with the frequently made points in the other reviews -- to summarize, the Dirt Devil is not as good as our Fantom or other more expensive units, but it's great for $75-80.

Pros:
-Higher quality than I feared. No mechanical problems at all, and less "cheap" feeling than you expect for the weight and price
-Powerful. It does get up the dirt, and doesn't lose power very quickly as the bin fills
-Lightweight
-Rolls very easily (the wheels are on casters)
-Bagless

Cons:
-The bin is messy to empty because of the need to remove and clean the filter that sits inside it
-The beater is actually too powerful; it's noisy, and I wonder if it could damage a carpet
-Tips over easily
-Short attachment hose

In short, if you want to spend less than $100, this is a good choice. (Although the Eureka Litespeed that Amazon is selling is very similar and appears to get slightly better reviews.) But if you are willing to spend more, it is worth it over the life of the vacuum. (BTW if you do spend $150-200, the Eureka 4870DT on Amazon is Consumer Report's favorite bag model at any price. For bagless, the older Fantom models that use the Dyson technology are now made by Westinghouse, called the Westinghouse Wire. The new Fantom "Twisters" do not use that technology and are poorly reviewed.)

I've used a fantom canister bagless vacuum for years, with 2 long hair dogs and was very happy. Decided to try this one because I wasn't sure how much longer the fantom is going to last and due to the high ratings of this Dirt Devil on Amazon.com. 1.The suction is good but empyting the dust bin is a mess, with the dust spilling out through a huge hole in the side of the collection bin. The center hepa filter also comes lose which adds to the mess. 2. The extension tool is very short making it impossible to reach very far, missing spiderwebs on the top of a standard 8 foot tall wall. 3. Due to the high height of the vacuum head, you cannot vacuum under the couch or lamp tables, making it necessary to fully pull out the furniture in order to clean under them. There must be a better bagless vacuum out there...don't waste your time with this one. I am going to have to continue to use my canister in order to clean under and above the furniture, using this one only for wide open spaces.
****Additional info-after about 5 or 6 months of use, the motor stopped working. I called for help, and the tech support was totally useless. He then gave me the name and mumber of a repair facitlity supposedly near my location. When I called the number, the location address had changed 2 years ago and the facility was now located about 1 hour away. I gave up on it and bought a Dyson with which I am much happier (very good suction, easy to empty, no odor). You really get what you pay for....

This is a GREAT vacuum. If you are reading these reviews to firgure out if you want to buy this vacuum (like I did), stop right now and just buy this one. The day it was delivered, I put it together (that was easy), then decided to vacuum with my old vacuum first. I did so and then vacuumed with the new one. I filled up half the dirt cup and it was almost like I hadn't vacuumed in a month!! (I think it might have picked up dirt from the former tenant of my apartment!!) It's powerful, yet doesn't sound like a jet engine. It is easy to move around, you won't strain your back pushing this one! The attachments have just as much power and were picking up things before the nozzle even got to them! Great vacuum, great price...buy it :)

I have several pets, so I spent a lot of time trying to find the right vacuum. I eventually found what I feel is the perfect vacuum (Dyson Cyclone!).. this is definitely not it!

While this is a decent vacuum, it just doesn't hold up well compared to others. The suction is average at best, you will get MUCH better suction from the Dyson. The price is very good though, and when you're talking 4-5 times more cost for a Dyson, this might work for those who need decent vacuum and can't afford the Dyson.

Some pros:
-Fairly powerful
-Decent suction
-Very lightweight
-Bagless (saves lots of money!)

Some cons:
-Attachment hose is WAY too short
-Very noisy
-Easily tips over
-Bagless bin is messy and a pain to clean
-Vacuum head is big, making it difficult to vacuum underneath furniture

If you live in a small apartment and/or have no pets, this will probably be more than enough vacuum. I live in a house with 3 dogs and 2 cats, so I needed a more heavy duty and reliable vacuum - which I got with the Dyson. The dirt devil is probably the best vacuum in its price range though, so I do recommend it for those who don't need the super heavy duty vacuum.

We did quite a bit of research on vacuums when our old one quit standing, the hinge was broken. We didn't want to spend too much money, but wanted a bagless vacuum. The Dirt Devil Swivel Glide Vision Lite Vacuum is great. It is lightweight and nice looking. We use both the vacuum and the hose on a regular basis and both are quite powerful. My only gripe is the hose. It works just fine, but seems a tad cheap. Again, it works great and the hose functions wonderfully. I do recommend this vacuum.

I find this vacuum mediocre at best. The suction is OK, but not anything stellar. It is impossible to empty the dirt container without getting a good dusting of what you have just vacuumed up all over you, and the filters are IMPOSSIBLE to find. I have to keep banging my filter on the ground outside to dislodge the dirt because I have yet to find somewhere that sells the filters (I have owned this vacuum for 2 years)
If you have a small area to clean, no pets and unlimited time to spend on the internet searching for filters, buy this vacuum. Otherwise, don't get lured in by convience and/or price. The bagless feature is not a convience and there are many more vacuums to choose from in this price range.

I recently received this vacuum as a wedding gift. I have never owned a bagless vacuum before but this one is great! It's actually replacing another Dirt Devil that I've owned for years (it still worked great). I have a dog and a long-haired cat, I was amazed at all the hair this was able to get out of my carpet. The attachment also works wonders on my furniture. Here's a trick for cleaning the filter-put it inside a plastic bag and tap it against something...this keeps the dust from getting everywhere. Great product...highly recommeded!

Since I knew that most bagless uprights have traditionally been a bit pricey, I was a bit hesitant to purchase what seemed like something of a bargain-basement vacuum and questioned whether or not it would really perform up to my expectations. The overwhelmingly positive reviews here and elsewhere won me over, however, and now that I've used it a few times I can recommend this vacuum with confidence. It sucks up more dirt than you can possibly imagine, to the point that you just want to scratch your head and wonder how you could have possibly been living in all that filth. When my girlfriend heard I'd gotten it, she wanted to try it out since her cats shed like mad and she just couldn't get all the hair up with her vacuum. Suffice it to say that the cat hair was no match for this thing, and now she wants one just like it for Christmas! As far as the durability factor is concerned, since I've only had the vacuum for a few weeks I can't really comment on that, but so far it seems solid enough given that it only cost me [X] (Gold Box offers with free shipping are *definitely* the way to go! This would've cost me nearly [X] at Wal-Mart.).

In summary, you'll be hard-pressed to find a better value for the price, if indeed that is possible at the present time. Great buy, satisfied customer.

I got this vaccum at Best Buy for $50. It sucks dirt out of carpet you never knew was there. I had a hoover that was so old it had a shag setting. Well that one bit the dust so I bought this soley based on the price. WONDERFUL!!!! When we moved to our new apt. the carpet was brand new but it was amazing what this thing sucked out of it. There was evidently a powder on the carpeting that you couldn't see with your naked eye. The canister was filled with the stuff. It's also amazing how much dust you get out of the carpeting too. In our old apartment I couldn't keep up with the dust and now in our new place I only have to dust once every two weeks. I swear this sucks the dust out of the air. It also has 3 different pile settings and a bare floor setting for a variety of surfaces. I use the setting that is 2nd from the highest because it gives the best results. My only complaints would be the filer has to be cleaned very good on a weekly basis and it does get very dusty when you go to empty it. Also where the cord attaches to the vaccum is poorly placed because it will pop the hose out of its storage space and it will become an annoyance during vaccuming.

Over all this is a great vaccum for the price.