Hi
I've seen the Shark Mutli-Vac at Best Buy and right out of the gate am saying wait until the prices drop. Overall, were I to buy one, I might justify the purchase if the cost was low. My feeling is that 60 to 65 bucks for this particular machine is more than adequate.
First, as noticed by others, there is no brushroll nor brush strip -- just a plastic squeegee-type blade underneath the floor nozzle. I say this cautiously but the clear plastic nozzle itself is designed to be relatively sturdy. It is also equipped with two swivel casters at its front similar to the swivel casters employed by Miele's S7 uprights.
Briefly amusing was my discovery that the salesperson in the appliance department didn't have a clue as to how the Multi-Vac disassembled or re-assembled. After a bit of fussing about I figured things out and showed her how to detach the motor unit for the handheld mode. Nice idea but the designers employed little effort in providing an air path to make best use of air flow. It's all a little too simple. The small suction port on the dust container is exposed upon detachment and a set of plastic glides also act as spacers to allow a little bit of distance between hard surfaces and the suction port. There's not much use attempting to give upholstered furniture a decent going over with the machine in handheld mode as it would prove a bit $#%*bersome. It should however be adequate for sucking up loose litter on table tops or the floor.
Having been put off by the lack of razzle-dazzle presented during handheld mode, I did not bother trying the attachments -- a small combi-tool and the turbo-driven upholstery nozzle. Nonetheless, this small cleaner is nice and light has adequate suction in stick mode. I could see myself not minding it for quick pick-ups and doing hard-surfaced stairs. The largest points off for this machine is that its unique design may not provide "no-brainer" use for lots of purchasers.
Yet, despite whatever uses I'd employ it for, I'm sorry to say its overall worth does not equal a price of $100 to $120. Check it out and if you like it, wait for the price to come down.
I should also mention that upon my show of hesitance to buy the Best Buy sales rep reminded me several times during the demo that if I wasn't satisfied I had thirty days within which to bring it back.
Venson
This message was modified Dec 2, 2009 by Venson