I bought both the Black and Decker Pivot and Dyson Root 6 to compare them to each other. See http://monkeeworks.com/goVac1 for photos and more details! See my epinions.com comparison with Black and Decker Pivot.
Price List Price: $150; Street Price: $121 (ebay, Fall 2008)
Form Factor Excellent build quality, even surpassing that of the Black and Decker Pivot. (1) Conventional attachments that snap on to vacuum port. They include crevice nozzle and a space-saving fabric-brush hybrid combination. These attachments make the Root 6 somewhat awkward to use compared to the Pivot. (The Pivot has an elegant built-in flip-out nozzle with integrated slide-out extension.) (2) Modular, changeable 21.6V Lithium Ion Battery Pack (unlike Black and Decker's permanent spot-welded-in-place Ni-Cad cells). (3) Pre-motor and post-motor washable filters that should last the lifetime of the vacuum. Most of the Root 6's weight is in the motor (I partially disassembled the unit) whereas most of the Black and Decker Pivot's weight is in the old-tech Ni-Cad batteries. I was also impressed with the quality and size of the Root 6's motor and impeller assembly. (See website pictures.)
Canister Emptying and Cleaning Convenient clear canister to monitor debris collection, easy-to-open hinged bottom lid for emptying. Additionally, the Root 6's canister detaches completely for easier thorough cleaning. Two stage cyclonic particulate separation means no conventional filter to wash and replace. However, while the post-motor and pre-motor filters should not need replacing, they still require washing every now and then. Since the Root 6 doesn't rely on filter for primary particulate separation, there is not a conventional pleated cone filter like the Pivot's which needs regular shaking out.
Battery 21.6V Lithium Ion Battery Pack is replaceable so you can even keep a "hot" fully charged spare battery at the ready to minimize charging down times.
Electronics Sophistication Includes niceties such as (1) Magnet and sensor to detect if pre-motor filter is in place. (2) 3-LED Battery Charge Indicator. (3)Logic to disable vacuum once voltage threshold goes below a minimum threshold, thereby extending overall battery life. (I found this out during use.)
Performance (1) With an engine vacuum gauge, I measured the static vacuum of the Root 6. (Details at http://monkeeworks.com/goVac1.) It was impressive for a handheld. Root 6 draws 2 inches of Hg (a measure of vacuum, or suction), whereas the Black and Decker draws 1 inch of Hg. I found the superlative suction to be especially good for picking up debris that clings to carpet. (2) While doing flow tests with a 30 gallon garbage bag and stopwatch (see website for details), I confirmed Dyson's claim that the vacuum doesn't lose suction as the canister gets filled. (The Black and Decker Pivot does.)
Noise Not excessive. I measured the Root 6 being a little (2dB) quieter than the Black and Decker Pivot. See website to listen to audio under section '4. Conclusion'
Conclusion If you're in the market for a handheld vacuum, there are two main players: the Black and Decker Pivot and the Dyson Root 6. Both are capable, well-built vacuums, and you won't go wrong with either. In the end, it comes down to personal preference. Is value (Black and Decker Pivot) more important to you? Or do consider features and performance (Dyson Root 6) to be more important? Personally, I lean towards the Dyson Root 6 with its true vertically oriented dual cyclonic chambers, no-filters-to-buy operation, superlative suction that doesn't lessen as the canister fills, and replaceable, modular, longer lasting Lithium Ion battery which is also more earth friendly than the Pivot's permanent spot-welded-in-place NiCad battery pack that makes the Pivot "disposable" after the Ni-Cads fail.
-Clifford Vincent Arrow
http://monkeeworks.com/goVac1
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