Customer Reviews

Hoover 5507-900 Elite Auto-Rewind Bagless Upright Vacuum Cleaner

5 star:		(281)
4 star:		(154)
3 star:		(44)
2 star:		(43)
1 star:		(69)

 

 

This vacuum is great. yes, the rewind feature is awesome but also the sheer sucking power of this vac will have you wonder why you ever sat on your carpet without cleaning it with this sucker fist.

Great features:
clear canister so all the dirt-a-phobes can see all the filth they are sucking up
canister has a thumb release so your hands don't have to get near the dust
super easy assebly
on off power switch at the base of the vac so you can turn it on with a toe
lightweight for a strong vac
snappy red color
no bags and a lifetime hepa filter(easy to wash)
3 levels of adjustment for bare floors, burbers and longer thick carpets

Oh yeah and it doesn't cost a lot and you do get an attachment for pet hair that works great on just about anything..lampshades etc.

Update: 2009 and I still have mine going strong despite a nicked cord (my fault) and babysitting the hairiest dog on the planet. The giant hair balls clogged the intake hose but I just had to detach it and take the garden hose and blast out the clog. New rule to live by: Don't let a dog into your house who's coat is in the "blow" stage.

Update: 2012 Still working albeit it looks a little rough. I ended up sticking some felt around the bumpers of the vacuum as I repainted the trim in my house and the black rubber was marking up the new paint. Bonus, now the fuzzy felt dusts the trim when I bang up against it.

I researched tons of vacuums before purchasing this one. I wanted the best I could get for around $100. This is the first time I've owned a bagless vacuum and I was a bit concerned that it would be messy to empty it. Turns out not to be a problem. Everything detaches easily. If you were to open it over the garbage and shake it out, then some of the dust will fly around cause of the shaking. I just set it in a plastic bag, open, and lift it up and everything comes out mess free in the bag. The automatic cord rewind thing was not a selling point for me when I purchased it, but now I don't ever want to own a vacuum without it - it's so convenient. I gave it four stars only because it is a little bit heavy, but not too much to be a problem for me.

Having two different Eureka Optima's break within a six month period, I figured it was a sign to maybe try a different make and model. Then I saw this Hoover and figured I'd give it a try. I'll admit I was a little unsure at first because it was a little too big, especially for my apartment. But wow, was I surprised by it's performance and features. Setup was a breeze, took five minutes and a phillips screwdriver. The retractable cord is an awesome feature, but by far my favorite feature has to be how you release the dust cup. It's just common sense, but took forever for someone to realize "Hmmm, let's make it easy and prevent dirt going everywhere by having the cup release from the BOTTOM!" And you can do so one handed, with the flick of your thumb. Storage is the same as my old Optima, it's just a little taller, but I can tell this badboy is going to be around for a long long time. Five stars all the ways!

Wow! What a vacuum! My husband and I just bought this vacuum for $99.99 at Best Buy (we used a gift certificate from a boss, so it didn't cost us a penny), the other day. I researched a boatload of vacuums, because ours was a scandal (as my mother-in-law fondly referred to it), so we needed something good. We'd narrowed it down to 3, including this one. The selling point for me was the washable filters (no expensive semi-annual filter purchases to consider) and the rewindable cord, plus all the attachments. There is something similar to the "Power Paw" which is a feature of other vacuums, however, the attachment on the Hoover does not rotate at the brush like it does on other brands/models. I didn't find this to be a problem.

When the rep. asked if I wanted the additional warranty, my gut reaction was to say "no", but then she asked me to consider:

1. She does not get commission/awards for selling the warranty.

2. The ext. warranty is $20 (gift certificate = costs me nothing).

3. If the vacuum loses suction in 3.89 years (or if I just think it does), I can bring it in and get $100 toward my newer, shinier vacuum.

Enh...no skin off my nose, I guess. Sure! (Mark calendar for 3.89 years down the road when vacuum "loses suction".)

The real test: We brought the vacuum home. My husband assembled it - by default, that means it was exceedingly simple to assemble (husband is a lover, not a fighter - he does not deal well with machinery). We thought our carpets were pretty clean. We didn't think this because we are such cleaning machines...we thought this because his mother (who IS a cleaning machine) cleans our house with HER vacuum cleaner, because she thinks ours is/was a waste of space. (Hey, I can't argue with that.) What came out of our carpet would make Pigpen jealous. Honestly, if I were a conspiracy theorist, I would believe that someone from Best Buy planted that dirt. I could NOT believe that so much dirt came out of what appeared to be a clean carpet!

My mother-in-law didn't believe me. Afterall, she'd cleaned those carpets herself, right? They must be perfect. So, I gave her the reigns and let her give it a try in a different room. She was disgusted...and convinced. She went out that day and bought the same vacuum.

Oh, and let's talk about cat hair. The first room that we vacuumed was a room that the cat does not enter. We did that because we didn't want skewed results. Our next challenge was to vacuum the cat's favorite spot. It didn't look too bad - sure, there was a little cat hair, but nothing that you wouldn't expect to find in a pet's favorite spot. What came out of that spot was unbelievable. Add some eyes and teeth to it, and we could have had a whole new pet!

Emptying the canister is a cinch (once you figure out how to do it properly). One bit of advice - use a trashcan with a large mouth. I used a petite, designer bathroom trashcan the first time, and I made a big, fat mess. From now on, it's the kitchen trashcan for me.

I am preaching the gospel of the Hoover Elite Rewind! For a mere c-note, you can't go wrong. My husband and I really look forward to vacuuming now. Sick, we know.

If I were going to go looking for flaws, I would say that the vacuum has tipped on me while using the crevice cleaner. Perhaps it's not as flexible as it could be. The vacuum is also a little heavy at 23 lbs., but hey...for this kind of suction...I'll work out!

Interestingly, we bought our last vacuum online, and I wonder if that's where the problems came into play. Part of me wonders if online product sits in storehouses and wastes away until someone purchases it. With this product, however, I don't think it's been on the market long enough to peter out in a storehouse somewhere. I'd feel safe buying it online, but I will say, given my last vacuum experience, I'm glad to have that extended warranty...just in case.

So, there you have it. It's my new joy in life - to have a husband who has a fascination with the vacuum cleaner, and to get some kind of twisted joy out of vacuuming. As another reviewer stated, you will wonder how you could even place your feet on your carpet before you had this vacuum. You think your carpets are clean? Think again, June Cleaver!

First, this vacuum vacuums well; it has great suction power. If you vacuum carpet that looks perfectly clean, you'll be surprised at how much debris this thing will find and pick up. Second, for the price I paid, this is a fantastic value (assuming this vacuum lasts for a few years).

This is a fantastic design. It maneuvers and gets into tight spaces. The collection cannister is easy to empty without getting your hands dirty/dusty.

The rotating brush attachment is great. I used it to vacuum a white couch and was very happy with how clean this vacuum got it. It almost looked like I got the couch cleaned.

The retractable cord is a convenient feature.

And for and added bonus, this thing looks as good as it works. With its yellow accents, it looks like a Ferrari vacuum cleaner.

RELIABILITY UPDATE (January 8, 2008): I've had this vacuum cleaner for about 9 months now. It still works great. No problems. (Caveat: I only vacuum twice a month). I wonder if all the broken belts I'm reading about are because the unit's height setting is too low. If you can hear the motor laboring or if the bristles are fraying... probably.

I bought this vacuum when my Bissell was in the shop for the second time in three months! I chose this over the Hoover EmPower, which is recommended by Consumer Reports. (When I saw the EmPower though, I didn't like that the Hepa filter is in the dirt cup, and the plastic body felt cheap. It's also a pain to remove the hose to use attachments!)

PROS:

*Pretty easy to push, even when on a low carpet setting.

*It holds a lot of dirt and fur.

*It has a lifetime Hepa filter.

*There is a primary filter, which prolongs the life of the Hepa filter.

*The cord is on a ratchet, so you don't have to wrap it around and around every time you use it!

*There is an easy release mechanism on the dirt cup so you can empty it without getting your hands dirty. However, it's still easy to take apart if you want to clean it out thoroughly.

*When you start your vacuuming with a clean dirt cup, you can see proof that you are really accomplishing something!

*The attachments are very easy to use, and transitioning from floor to attachments is simple.

CONS (What do you expect for under $100?):

*The cord isn't all that long, so I do have to use three outlets to get three areas of my house. (But just how much would fit on a ratchet reel? Winding a long cord manually is more time consuming than moving the plug to another outlet!)

*The primary filter, which looks like a small Hepa filter, needs to be banged on a rock or something to remove fine dust. (In Arizona, that's a lot!) It doesn't say it's washable, but I hosed it off one day and made it white again with no visible damage!

*The only extension wand is also the crevice tool; I'd prefer to have a large bore tube extension in addition to the crevice tool.

*The crevice tool likes to fall off sometimes while I'm vacuuming.

*As with ALL bagless vacuums, the dirt cup should be emptied in an outside garbage can because dirt WILL fly around to some degree. If that's not convenient for you, you should probably stick with bagged vacuums.

*I tried it on a bare floor near the cats' litter box, and just got my ankles sand blasted. Better to use attachments on bare floor, since the beater brush can't be disabled.

So now I have a Bissell CleanView Deluxe and a Hoover Elite Rewind. Despite minor drawbacks, I find the Hoover so convenient to use that I've been vacuuming daily since I got it! This makes my home cleaner - and even fresher smelling! This vacuum was very reasonably priced, and I really feel I got a great deal for the money.

hi. prettty good vac for the money, but the beater bar does not turn off when you are using the tools, if you leave it in one spot for too long, it will damage your rug(s). So move it to hardwood floors or lay it down. I called Hoover to inquire why they would make such a huge blunder when designing this product, and the customer service rep told me that the higher priced hoover models have this feature, and that I get what i paid for. Very very rude ! I have a Dyson also, which was way way WAY overpriced, broken, and does not have a height adjustment, which will damage antique oriental rugs.

Hello, when i first purchased this vacuum i was very pleased with it, i gave it 5 stars. My excitment for this product ended very quickly. The first 4 to 5 months the vacuum worked great, but after that it totally fell apart. Some of the problems.....

1. The tubes constantly get clogged. i have to clean the tubes after almost every use. This involves unscrewing the bottom and getting something that can reach into the tube.

2. Cheap plastic that held the brushes that spin broke off

3. The belts are very difficult to find. I went to three different places to get them and couldn't find them. The belt that the vacuum comes with has a size on it. When purchasing that size it doesn't seem to fit. I eventually called hoover who couldn't tell me what belt would work on this vacuum.

4. The vacuum requires constant maintance, it gets very annoying after awhile when all you want to do is vacuum the floor.

The bottom line is "you get what you pay for". The vacuum will work great for awhile but will eventually fall apart. If $100 and six months of use is good for you then by all means purchase this vacuum. If you want more then i suggest looking elsewhere.

I vacuum every day and my very old bagged Windtunnel needed major service that I didn't feel was worth the money. I researched this vacuum and read all of the reviews before I decided to buy it (Consumer Reports hasn't reviewed it yet). I wanted a bagless because of the ease of emptying and no bags or filters required. Even after reading the reviews, I was pretty skeptical of a $100 vacuum.

This vac is worth the money and it cleans very well to excellent on carpet. It has a lot of suction, the mechanical upholstery tool is an added bonus, and it takes one screw to assemble. Someone mentioned that they were tripping over the cord because it's at the bottom. There is a clip on the handle to hook the cord, so that fixes that problem. My old Windtunnel wands fit this model, so extra wands are probably a universal fit. This vac is also much quieter than my expensive Windtunnel.

I vacuumed my carpet first with my Windtunnel and then went over it with this vac. I was really surprised at how much actual dirt it picked up. I mean really surprised since my Windtunnel has a dirtfinder feature. I then vacuumed the hard kitchen floor and it does an OK job. I used the upholstery and stair tool and was very impressed with that also. There is a lot of suction through the hose which is sometimes lost on cheaper uprights but not this one.

All in all, for the money, I don't think you can go wrong. It empties from the bottom like a Dyson, it cleans carpet better than most, you never have to replace the filters including the HEPA, and it's easy to use and operate. If you place it side by side with a Dyson, it's nearly identical in being plastic, bagless features are the same, and Consumer Reports only gives the Dyson vacs very good ratings on carpet, not excellent. This vacuum is very basic with a few features, but for the price, you can't go wrong. It's also guaranteed for one full year. I think you'll be very happy with it.

I LOVE my Elite! It is absolutely amazing. Both light and flexible, it picks up even miniscule particles of dust. I have used it on both my carpet and linoleum floors and it is awesome. With three cats I have a lot of cat hair and the Elite picks it up and doesn't leave a trace. The tool attachments are great, too. They work fantastic on stairs and furniture. The rewind feature is soooooo cool. Just *zip!* and the cord is put away and doesn't risk the chance of unraveling. I can't say enough good things about this vacuum! I highly recommend it!