Ultimate Vacuum

To anyone in need of a new vacuum- The Oreck is the way to go. I tried to be part of the whole bagless phenomenon, but they're just junk. Those washable "lifetime" filters need to be washed every time you vacuum or the thing has no suction. The commercials act like a vacuum bag is the messiest, most disgusting thing you'll ever encounter. Well let me tell you, when you empty a bagless vacuum, everything you've just cleaned up has to be poured out into the trash and it truly does fly out all over the place. Unless you're a complete moron, disconnecting a vacuum bag and throwing it away should be the simplest part of your day.
Secondly, the Oreck REALLY IS light weight. It's so easy to carry up and down the stairs. And speaking of stairs- the separate canister vac(which is free with purchase) is fantastic for stairs. So much easier than trying to balance a bulky, heavy, bagless vac on the stairs while hooking up all the ridiculous attachments. Much better to just have a separate vac for those jobs. I've used mine to suck up the cobwebs along the ceiling, clean my ceiling fan blades, get the dust off the top of tall furniture, even clean up around the dog food bowls. It's also quite light and has a shoulder strap to carry it around.
If you live near Temecula, stop by the Oreck store. (It's near Trader Joe's by the Mall.) They'll do a demonstration to show you the difference between the Oreck and the Dyson. Once you've seen that, I'm sure you'll be sold too! Especially if you have pets. Oh, and the one you see on TV all the time (well, if you're an insomniac whose up late- you see it all the time) is quite expensive. But they have a cheaper model that's just as good. The only difference is that it doesn't have a low speed. Who cares- it'd only be a problem if it didn't have the high speed!
This is a very wise investment, especially considering that it comes with 10 years of annual tune ups. I've heard that women don't like getting these types of things (household appliances) as gifts, but as the person who does the vacuuming in my house, it's the best gift I've gotten in years.