Customer Reviews

Miele Titan S2180 Canister Vacuum Cleaner with SEB217-3 Powerhead and SBB-3 Parquet Floor Brush and HEPA Filter w/ Free Shipping

5 star:		(22)
4 star:		(11)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

I have owned my share of vacuums over the years. And like strollers, I kept trying to find the "one" that would be all I needed. I think I finally found it! About a month ago, I decided to put my Eureka Boss out to pasture and begin the search for a new vacuum. My FIL had a new Dyson vacuum that he seemed to like, so I started my research there. Boy, am I glad other reviewers recommended in their reviews to check out the Miele vacuums instead!

I live in a four story Colonial (basement is "unfinished", but we have rugs down where the washing machine is) and our walk-up attic was just refinished with wall-to-wall carpeting. On the other two "main" floors, it's mostly hardwood/tile and area rugs. So, we have many different floor surfaces requiring different maintenance needs! The more I researched Miele, the more I knew a canister vacuum was for me. I couldn't fathom trying to carry a heavy upright up and down all the different levels in my house. I found a local appliance store that sold Mieles and went to look at them myself. We bought one soon after through Amazon.

Here's what I like most about the Miele:
1. The retractable cord. It's a pet-peeve of mine that more appliances don't have this feature! And although the cord isn't super long, it's enough to do a room (at least in my house) and then unplug it to do another room.
2. The quietness. I just had a second baby and was worried about how I was going to keep the house clean with coordinating TWO nap and sleep schedules. The Titan (and I'm sure most other Mieles) resolve this issue by making it very quiet to use. I even used it in the room with my sleeping newborn and it didn't wake him!
3. The lightness. I can easily move this vacuum up and down the stairs with one hand. Don't know exactly what it weighs, but it's pretty light.
4. The different brushes and "heads" that attach to the hose. My Eureka had some of them, but they were such a pain to use. Switching out the brushes on the Titan is easy and quick. I never thought about vacuuming the top of the trim with my Eureka, but do all the time now with the Titan.
5. The powerbrush. This Miele comes with a powerbrush, which was essential for our house, because we have carpet, and some of it "thick pile". This powerbrush makes it easy to use on carpet and then by just pushing a switch on the handle, you can turn off the power (but not the suction) to the powerbrush and continue to vacuum the hardwood or tile floor. It's not as great as the hardfloor brush (which is also included), but it definitely works better to suck up dust and hairballs better than my Eureka ever did on hardfloor.
6. The filters. This model came with a HEPA filter, but we haven't even used it and the air quality (at least while vacuuming) seemed better! We don't have allergies (at least not indoor ones) though so I'm probably not the best person to believe.
7. The suction. It has six different levels of suction and even at the lowest suction end, it still managed to suck up more dirt than my Eureka ever could! (there's a piece of molding missing around a part on our floor and dirt falls in there like it's the grand canyon....the Titan removed it all, on the LOWEST suction setting!). The most amazing thing is that even with the brush attachments, it doesn't kick the dirt backwards, to be scattered across the floor again. It actually picks up the dirt on hard floor surfaces!

Things that could improve:
1. I wish there were a "handle" on the top of the unit, when it's on its three caster wheels. It would be nice to just pick it up as is and move it over a really high threshold or all the baby-gates we have in our house, without putting it on its "feet" first.
2. A place to store the "parquet floorbrush" on the vacuum itself. It's the only adapter/brush that doesn't have a "home" on the Titan.
3. Might also be nice to "retract" the hose that attaches the canister with the brush attachments, for storage. There seems to be a lot of hose to figure out how to wind around the handle before putting it away. Maybe they could figure out how to make the hose shorter sometimes and longer when you need it.

Overall, I'm EXTREMELY satisfied with this vacuum. And it's even gotten my husband (who NEVER vacuums) to vacuum once in a while! I'd definitely recommend this to my friends and family.

Miele is a family-owned German manufacturer of home appliances. The company's philosophy of continuous improvement ("Immer Besser") has made them a favorite throughout the world. Their products don't have bargain prices, but provide value in high quality design and manufacturing that results in superior performance and durability. Miele was founded in 1899 and began producing vacuum cleaners in 1927; their vacuums have become favorites of professionals worldwide, including many top-end hotel staffs.

The Miele S2 line of canister vacuums is new for 2009, offering the quality and many of Miele's standard features at a lower price. There are four S2 models, all sharing the same 1200-watt base vacuum. The canister has six power settings and a standard air filter that catches 94% of particles down to 0.3 microns. The Olympus model is the lowest priced of the S2 line, and features a floor/carpet combo head (SBD350-3), non-electric hose and a telescoping wand. The Capri model substitutes the air-powered Turbobrush (STB205-3) for the floor/carpet combo head, and adds the Parquet Floor Brush (SBB-3). The Delphi model substitutes a power head (SEB217-3), electric hose (SES116) and electric telescoping wand (SET220) for the non-powered components of the Olympus. The Titan model retains the power components of the Delphi and adds the parquet floor brush (SBB-3) and active HEPA filter.

Note that all S2 models can support the power hose and brush, but only the Delphi and Titan include it as part of the package. Similarly, all S2 models support the active HEPA filter, but only the Titan includes it in its package. If you don't currently need a power head you can buy the Olympus or Capri and add the power components later; you'll pay more in the end, but you won't have to buy power components now that you may not need for a few years. The non-electric combo head works well on smooth flooring, is usable on short-pile carpet, and is difficult to use on deeper-pile carpet.

Like all Miele vacuum cleaners, the S2 is well designed and manufactured in Germany. The vacuum has a range of 29.5 feet from the end of the self-retracting power cord to the tip of the brush. The unit is light (under 10 lbs), nicely balanced and moves easily in any direction on its casters. The top-exhaust design allows you to vacuum easily with the canister standing up, such as on steps. The motor is surprisingly quiet, particularly at the lower power levels. The six power levels allow you to switch from floors and carpets to shelves and tabletops without accidentally grabbing objects or papers instead of dirt or dust.

The S2 cleans very well and is a pleasure to use. The base has notches in which the hose can be parked, one for when the base is on its wheels, one for when the base is standing. This is a great touch, useful for temporarily standing the hose while you move a piece of furniture, and helpful for storing the vacuum in a closet without breaking down the hose and wand. Perhaps the only weakness of the S2 is the "varioclip" for tool storage, which rides somewhat uncomfortably on the hose rather than more naturally on the base. Changing the filter and bag are each a snap, and an indicator tells you when the bag is full.

Finally, what compromises does the S2 line make from the more expensive S4 and S5 lines? The most obvious changes are to external components: a few parts, such as the bumper strip that surrounds the canister, are made from hard plastic rather than softer rubber. The operating radius is a few feet shorter (due to a shorter power cord), and the accessory brushes use some lower-cost materials (nylon versus natural bristle brush, plastic instead of metal). Inside, the S2 canister uses Miele's "CleanAir System" construction, while the S4 and S5 canister use its "Sealed System." Miele doesn't offer a detailed comparison of the two, but one might assume the latter system provides an extra measure of dust capture that may be more appropriate for those with allergic sensitivities.

The changes made to lower the price of the S2 line will make small differences in daily use, but shouldn't compromise the vacuum's core ability to clean. Those who are especially sensitive to dust should consider the HEPA-equipped Titan model, or stepping up to the S4 or S5; those with less stringent needs will find the S2 a terrific entry point to the Miele line of high quality vacuums. If budget is no issue, look at the S5 line, but if value-per-dollar is a major consideration, the S2 line will bring you Miele's engineering and manufacturing prowess at a more affordable price. [©2009-2010 hyperbolium dot com]

I bought this vacuum when our dog started to shed for the first time. The old one just didn't get the hair off the rugs. We were not disappointed by the Miele Titan suction power - it's ability to get most hair off of rugs and upholstery is amazing.
But there are some things about this model that are truly annoying. You should consider them before you buy:

1. The cord is about 1/2 the lenght of our old Kenmore canister vaccum. We constantly have to move it to another outlet. The operating radius is very limited. This is what my wife complains the most about.
2. The dust bag compartment is tiny. The bags could hold a lot more dirt, but because the compartment is so tiny, they fill up quickly. 4 bags cost about $20, which turned out to be a real money sink. I estimate that we will spend another $600 over the first 5 years on dust bags. This is what I complain the most about.
3. There is no onboard tool compartment. I'd rather have a little larger canister and not have the tools piggy-backed onto a flimsy clip that is attached to the top. There is no way to attach the floor attachment when it is not in use. We always have to go look for it when switching between the power brush and the floor attachment.
4. The locking mechanism on the telescoping wand broke after 6 months, and as far as I can tell I will have to order the whole thing - a $115 part.
5. The canister rests on 3 wheels like most other models, but the front wheel of this one is relatively close to the center of gravity, which makes it unstable. It tends to easily tip to either side.
6. Changing the dirt bag requires that the cord for the power wand be disconnected, which is plugged in under the handle. This is a very odd solution.
7. The purpose of the soft-start feature is unclear to me. It does create the appearance of coolness, but because the power switch does not have a defined click, I sometimes can't tell if I switched the unit on or not for a second or two. When I tried to explain to a 7 year old how to turn the unit on, she could not locate the power switch at first, and when she finally pressed at the correct location in rapid succession, she turned it on and off without knowing.

Overall, it appears that the design engineers strived for the most compact canister for no appearent benefits (the size matters very little to me - I don't travel with it) while sacrificing usability (which does matter to me). I wish I had bought a bigger S5 model instead. They sell for almost the same price here on Amazon. No more than 3 stars for the Titan.

I needed a new vacuum cleaner for over a year, so I had a long time to read up and do my research before I finally decided on a Miele, although not without hesitation; I mean, seriously, look at those price tags! However, I am fed up with having to buy a new vacuum cleaner every few years, so I really wanted solid construction and reliability. I thought about which features I needed, such as a power head for carpet, and arrived at the S2 line. Just as Miele advertises, I think the vacuums in this line strike a good balance between features and price.

After a couple weeks of using the Titan, I realized that part of the reason I always disliked vacuuming was because no matter how thoroughly I did it, it always had to be done again so soon. My house literally stays cleaner longer after I vacuum now. That may sound like an exaggeration, but it makes me realize just how much dust, dirt, and pet hair (dog and two cats) my old vacuums either failed to capture or blew back out. After vacuuming now, my house is cleaner and it even smells better, since the Titan's filtration makes it almost like taking an air purifier around from room to room. I also have no more aching back and shoulders from dragging around a heavy, unwieldy vacuum and moving every piece of furniture; the Titan is very lightweight and maneuverable, and the power head is designed in a way that enables it to fit around and under nearly everything. It's amazingly quiet, as well.

There are some drawbacks. Because of the canister's small, lightweight design, there isn't a lot of room for the cord, so it's short. The advertised 29-foot cleaning radius sounds like a lot, but it's not, and I use an extension cord. Also because it's small, the tools travel in a little clip on top rather than under the cover. It works okay, but to make it work, they had to keep the tools small, too, so the crevice tool is a shorty and the upholstery and dusting tools don't cover much ground in a single swipe. However, the vac's power makes up for that, because everything gets caught the first time through (in fact, it's the first vacuum I've had that actually does a really good job of dusting -- as good as dusting by hand). And, once again, there's the price, not only initially but also for the supplies. The bags, for example, are almost $4 each (BIG, though), and Miele-branded accessories are similarly pricey. Now that I've seen it dust, I really want the big, soft furniture brush that sells for a ridiculous $35+.

If I get the kind of use I'm hoping for from this vacuum, though, I think I'll end up money ahead in the end. And in the meantime, I sure resent vacuuming a LOT less!

I've had a Dyson for the past 5 years. After owning my Miele for a week I've been shocked about how much dirt the Dyson had been leaving behind. My hardwood floors and area rugs have never looked cleaner... and that's saying something as I'm a clean freak with 3 kids and I vacuum everyday. The powerbrush feature is a must. Without it it's not worth having. It made one of my old rugs look brand new and the brush head itself works great on hardwood floors (with the powerbrush function turned to off for floors). The other attachments are also great for cleaning curtains, ceilings, baseboards, etc. If your home is mostly hardwood floors and you've owned an upright previously you'll wish you'd purchased a canister vacuum long ago.

This vacuum didn't get 5 stars from me because of the cord length. It boasts and extra long cord which makes me wonder what on earth the regular cord must be like. I had to unplug and replug my Dyson 2-3 times to clean the downstairs floor of my house. I have to unplug and replug the Miele 7-8 times! I find this so irritating that I took off a star, and almost took of 2 stars.

I honestly don't know if it is worth $600 or the heart attack my husband had when he opened up my Amex bill. Not having had a chance to compare it to a less expensive machine I can't be sure. I am however a vacuum cleaner fanatic and in my experience you get what you pay for.

I waited until I owned this for 6 months before reviewing and I'm glad I did because now I have a real feel for its strengths and weaknesses. I use this 3x weekly meaning it's in and out of the closet a lot, so I can safely say that it is much easier to store than any cannister I've owned before (and I've owned a few Kenmores and Electroluxes). It does suck things up and I like the adjustable suction for area rugs and upholstery...this thing is powerful on full blast. A plus is that it starts up slowly, gradually building power and it is fairly quiet as vacuums go.

Can't imagine why anyone would call this "very, very heavy" even after reading the posters response to comments. This thing is light compared with similarly powered vacs (not the cheap lightweight ones that die in a year), and like I said, I've had plenty.

Now for the issues of this post's title:
1) I was told that this thing was so perfectly sealed that I would not smell the backdraft, which is patently false. I can still smell pet hair and the bags are so expensive I wait until they are more or less full to change them out.

2) The cord length is absurd. Like a previous poster said, if this is extra-long I wouldn't want to see the short version. Ridiculous...I now keep a 25 foot heavy duty extension with it.

3) The 3-wheel design may have worked conceptually, but it sure doesn't work when trying to move this thing from room to room. It tips over, catches on doorjambs, tips over...did I mention it tips over?

4) "On-board storage"...not so much. The smaller tools do fit on a small attachment that clips on to the hose base, but the wand with the brush attached is supposed to slide vertically down into a crevice on the back of the cannister between the cord reel and the power button; it is best to collapse the wand when doing this so as to better maintain the machine's balance, which is already suspect. The groove is already losing its tightness and the wand doesn't stay as upright as it used to...I can already tell this will become a major annoyance later when I can't stand the wand in the groove and it flops around the closet.

Overall, for the price, the deisgn issues should not be so glaringly obvious.

Built a new home, prior home has a central vac so I hadn't been in the market for a good vac in 15 years. After much research this brand had the most praise. The only negatives I read were, too heavy, cord too short, placement of attachments, canister is tippy, and air quality. Let me address those first.

This vac IS NOT HEAVY. I carry it with ease up and down stairs in one hand.
Cord is too short. That is true, but I plug it into a 100 ft extension cord.
Attachments hook to the top of canister. This is a personal preference that doesn't bother me.
Canister can tip, but not so much that I would call it a problem and I am out of practice with a pull behind.
Air Quality was great, I did not smell dust from the air exhaust as one person said. I did buy the hepa filter. I even gave it a test run on some saw dust & dry wall dust to see if I could smell either & I didn't.

I love this vac. I have a lot of ceramic, over 1800sq ft, and low pile soft berber. This would not be the vac for anything deeper on carpet and it says that. When using on ceramic, set suction to max & you can see the dust bunnies scooting across the floor toward it. When I clean up against a wall I can hear the dirt. With central vac I had to unhook & clean walls & corners everytime to feel like it got them clean. You have to dial the suction back for carpet or it is way too hard to push.

Update March 28, 2010: I still love this vac. It is not big & impressive but it sure does a great job. After several months of use, it is tippy. I manage to knock it on it side while doing the carpet at least 3 times. Not a deal breaker for me.

Well we have owned a lot of vacuums and this one is very nice. One thing you will notice right off is the bags are very thick. They are 9 different layers and not just a paper bag as in most vacuums. On top of this there is a Heppa Filter.
The next thing you will notice is when you turn it on. This is the most quiet vacuum we have ever owned. I had a Hoover vacuum once and it was like having a jet engine running in my living room.
This vacuum is very well made. The only down fall is the vacuum head is not adjustable. If you just have short carpet this should not be an issue. If you have longer carpet then you should get and S4 with an adjustable head.

********UpDate********
The lever to adjust the telescoping vacuum tube keeps breaking. We have had this vacuum for only a short time and have had to have it the entire tube replaced 3 times now and we have owned it less then 6 months??? That is once every 2 months this thing breaks!!!. The entire tube is made out of stainless steal and then this lever is made out of cheap thin plastic. It has cracked in half in the exact same place each time. I am ready to return the entire vacuum for this issue.

Here's what I learned when doing my research:
- Power is irrelevant. Any decent vacuum that is not a total piece of junk will have enough power. What sets Miele apart from the competition are other things:
- Noise level. The Miele really is significantly quieter than my previous vacuum. I live in an apartment with shared walls and could never vacuum at night. Now I can.
- Exhaust direction. I have hardwood floors and the fact that the exhaust of the Miele points UP means that it doesn't scatter dirt into the air like my previous vacuum cleaner. With my previous vacuum, I would do all the floors and then 30 minutes later it would be covered in dirt again once the dust settled. Not so with the Miele.
- The parquet floor brush is great for hardwood floors. Well worth it.
- Variable power. Being able to turn DOWN the suction power is actually very useful. For example, if you're vacuuming a door mat, you can just turn it down so it doesn't suck the mat up into the vacuum (like my previous vacuum did).

Here are the very minor issues I have with it:
- The power cord is a bit too short. I have to replug once to do my 700 sq ft. apartment.
- There is no way to know if the vacuum is in the on or off position when it is not plugged in. So if the power button got bumped while it was unplugged, then it might turn on the moment you plug it in next time.
- At $600, they could've included a simple pouch to store the powerhead and parquet brush.
- The box had a lot of empty space in it. So now I have to store a big box.

Received unit today, in person, not impressive to look at,doesn't look expensive and I guess for a Miele, it's not. All the power anyone could ever want, ever! Cleans like a demon,nice swivel action, pretty darn quiet too. Great powerhead and parquet floor brush. Hate the attachment to the unit for small tools, dusting brush too small, too stiff. Cord is too short,I had read that, well they are right, by about 6 feet, hose also could be a foot longer,I keep stepping back onto the unit from the short hose angle. I have purchased maybe 15 machines to try and find one that does it right, this will be close , I should have bought their top of the line to fix those few short comings.I am used to heaver older well made units, hate ones with bad hand feel, amazed it can clean so well.The suction actually pulls the heavy carpet up from the floor, and the small powerhead fits places the others don't. Turned off it works well on floors, none of my others do that, and has great pull from the sides for things you almost missed,have never seen that before.See comments on short hose! Wow is that frustrating.