So for all the people who spend hours looking for a vacuum cleaner that is as good as Dyson but not as expensive. Forget it. We've had most of them, high-voltage cordless vacuums. All either worked well for a month, then lost more than 50% of their performance or even collapsed. (and a very mechanical guy. I can fix most appliances. The Hoover cordless handheld vacuum was the worst time waster. I literally threw it straight in the trash with all the accessories, the extra battery, and the charger. The only thing I would do recommend the small dust bag that came with my 12v Milwaukee power tools it's 12v but runs for about 20 minutes and its suction power is good for small areas Dyson just can't beat a motor V8 Really all I can say , is if you have a serious dog or cat coat problem, don't beat around the bush, get the best Dyson you can afford, by the way, find out about James Dyson, he really is a mechanical genius. He actually invented what makes his vacuum cleaner better. I've heard comments about him being the "Steve Jobs" of vacuum cleaners and Dyson ne niche is new product, like Apple, but it's not true. Do you need an excellent vacuum cleaner? Get Dyson. In 12 years I had 8 different squires who spoke differently.