Top positive review
5.0 out of 5 starsThe best value in hard surface vacs - incredible suction, super light and durable.
Reviewed in the United States on October 16, 2014
I'll preface this by saying I've enjoyed really nice Electrolux vacs over the years - back before they got assimilated - real Electrolux units - the type you'd refurb and hand down to your kids. I've also owned my fair share of Eurekas, Hoovers, Panasonics, Sears, Dirt Devils, etc in both uprights and canisters. Not one of them was perfect nor "did it all", despite their claims. No one really wants to do bare floors with an upright. So keep in mind, this review is within the scope of the typically defined tasks for canisters with non powered heads.
This is my second Mighty Mite (I purchased it for my daughter) and I can't say enough about these. If you have mostly uncarpeted areas to clean (in our case it's ceramic tile) this thing is really great.
The good: Incredible suction. I've had one for 18 months of brutal usage, and as long as you change the filter and bag - it just works incredibly well. It's light - the lightest canister I've ever seen. It's durable - its taken many a spill, and not one bit has chipped or cracked and it still works like new. And it's cheap. So cheap. Same may say it feels cheap, and it doesn't feel like a $1000 vac, but did I mention how nothing has broken or chipped on it despite hitting the hard tile numerous times?
It has some flaws, it's designed to a price point, but it has incredible suction, is super reliable, light enough to carry all the time, and parts and accessories are cheap. To that point - things you might want:
1) HEPA filter. The same HEPA filter that fits on the "Pet" version of this vac fits this one. They're the same basic unit. It snaps over the exhaust. Bingo - you have a HEPA filter.
2) A bigger hard surface floor brush. I bought a nice one for about $10 or so that is wider, has a nice bristle pattern, and now there is little chance of scratching the floor and zero nice from the head.
3) The shoulder strap - Eureka makes the strap, mostly for it's Sanitaire version of this vac, but it fits this one just fine. You'll find the part number in the accessories catalog with the vac, but oddly, good luck finding it online. The vac is so light that with the strap you have both hands free to move a chair and still control the vacuum hose. And with no canister on the ground, you will be surprised how fast you can vacuum.
The bad: if you have carpet, this is not ideal - you need a powered head. And as I mentioned earlier, it's designed to a price point - certain parts feel flimsy - the hose is small and thin (but mine has NEVER broken or collapsed) and the attachments don't have much...bristle. But if you read above - you can fix almost any of that. Some people don't like the friction only connectors for the hose and wand and attachments. Mine fall apart fairly regularly, but usually when I pick it up when it's been stored - and it's not tragic - they just slip back on, and if I remember to make sure each is tight before I start to vacuum, they probably won't fall apart while I vacuum.
So, you can complain about this super inexpensive vac not having a brush, wand, or feature, but if you look, you might just find that you can add it for a few dollars.
This is an inexpensive vacuum, very narrow in focus (hard surfaces), so it's not for everyone. On the other hand, I always had a canister (usually an expensive one with a motorized carpet head) and an upright anyway, and the uprights are generally excellent carpet cleaners, so I didn't miss much by losing carpet capable cleaning from a canister. If that sounds like you, you might want to think about this little vac.