Eureka 431A Optima Bagless Upright Vacuum

Pros: Cleans fantastic!, light, cool looking!
Cons: Strange exaust location

I could write all day about this, but the fact is... it will meet or exceed your expectations. Run your old vacuum before you run this one.... then be in shock when the optima picks up sooo much more dirt.

Pros: light weight, compact, great, great suction, cool tools
Cons: cleaning filter. cord length

I did a lot of comparing when I decided that I wanted another vacuum. I currently own and love my $1500.00 Rainbow (all bells and whistles)but... I wanted something that I could just grab and go with. Knowing that I did not want to spend a lot of money, i had my eye on something small like this little green machine. This little sucker cleans my bare floors and carpet. My stairs are easy to clean too. Nice tools on board stretch a distance too. Light weight. I wish that the cord was longer so that I can keep going. I find that cleaning the filter with a stiff dry paint brush does the trick. If you do this DO IT OUTSIDE!! Picks up everything and I am completely happy that I chose this one. The little blower on the front is no biggy to me. You gotta have this little machine!! One more thing is the handle, it telescopes down, perfect fit in the foyer closet!

Pros: Good suction. Light and easy to carry. Works well on pets.
Cons: Idiotic design. Terrible for hard floors.

Very good suction. Fairly noisy but I guess what do you expect for the price. The worst thing about this vacuum is its design. I think the engineers who put this thing together where recovering from a late night out because it has and incredibly idiotic configuration. The vacuum exhaust is to the front and down. Therefore when trying to vacuum a solid surface all dust, dirt and fur(for you pet owners) it blow away and you wind up chasing it and can never really get it all because it becomes airborne. I use it to vacuum my dog with the crevice tool after I brush him and this is probably the only thing this particular vacuum is good for. Be careful before buying this unit..........

Pros: Strong but small and elegant. Easy to use.
Cons: Dirt accumulates on the filter.

I love it.  Elegant, powerful, and well designed.
I'd buy it again. I have it for 4months.
Maybe was better to have the filter protected with a small bag. But it is not a big deal and once in 10months we can afford a new filter.

Pros: Lightweight, great suction, compact.
Cons: Cleaning the filter - Yuk!!! and the short electric cord.

I am really hard on vacuums and I've had a lot over the years, but for the money and being such a small vacuum it has a lot of power and picks up things great. I love the fact it is lightweight and easy to get around.

Pros: small, good for tall people, strong suction, lightweight, price, hose, it's green
Cons: replacement filter = mystery search, interact with the gross dirt, short power cord

So it's a bagless vacuum that uses a filter. It sucks up the junk from carpets just fine. But what is very strange is that if you try to buy a new filter good luck with that. Try buying a replacement filter at stores who sell the vacuum. (I checked Target, Bed Bath & Beyond although I purchased at Costco which of course doesn't sell the filter.) If you have a pet, the filter must be changed more frequently and therein lies the cost and challenge. Why would stores not stock the filter like they do for every other vacuum on the shelf? It's odd, like dicy vacuum salesman odd. It's almost more practical to purchase a new one which come with two filters. AND Eureka came out with a slightly more pimped out vacuum for about the same cost. It's like having a disposable vacuum. Within 5 years you could pay for a Dyson (the supposed greatest upright) with as many filters you could end up buying as well as I don't believe this vacuum will last 5 years.

Pros: compact, easy to assemble, incredible power
Cons: odd-placed exhaust

This vacuum is incredible for its price. IT is the most powerful vacuum I have ever owned...gets carpets AND wood floors spotless. Suction is so great that it pulls dirt and dust right out of corners and baseboards. Exhaust fan is in the front and blows stuff around a little but is such a minor thing since the vacuum sucks it up anyway!

Pros: Great suction, easy canister removal, lightweight
Cons: Cleaning path size

Our old vacuum had broke so my sister went out and bought the cheapest vacuum that she could find. I chuckled at first because this vacuum looked like it was a toy vacuum for my 4-yr old son. But it works great! And my 4-year old son loves to use it!

Let me tell you this vacuum picks up all of the annoying little strings on the floor that no other vacuum will pick up(and on the first pass...big plus!). It works well on the bare floors. And it has a switch for floor/hose which allows great suction on the hose. It also has an adjustable handle comes in handy. We have had this vacuum for about 5 months now and we have had no issues with it at all.

This is a great buy for the money and you will be completely satisfied.

The only downfall would be the width of the vacuum. The cleaning path is only about 10 inches so it takes a little longer on the big rooms.

Pros: Compact, good cleaning power
Cons: Filter hard to clean and not available in any store we have checked.

We went looking for a small vacuum for our motor home as storage space is limited. Yet we needed a powerful one as our Miele stick vacuum just did not cut it. The vacuum is compact and yet powerful with a switch to shut the brushes off for bare floor. It does a very good job cleaning and the hose stores well although it could be longer to reach high places. The canister is easy to empty but the filter is very difficult to clean and replacement filters have been unavailable in the stores. We had to order filters on line, cheaper than if you send in a mail order by several dollars. The handle collapses for storage and is adjustable for height depending upon how all you are. All in all we are very pleased with it except for cleaning the filter.

Pros: LIGHTWEIGHT, INEXPENSIVE, EASY TO MANEUVER, FITS IN SMALL SPACES, POWERFUL.
Cons: SMALL BASE REQUIRES MORE PUSHING IN LARGE AREAS. SHORT CORD.

THE EUREKA OPTIMA IS A DREAM COME TRUE FOR ME! I HAVE USED IT FOR ABOUT A MONTH NOW & I ABSOLUTELY LOVE IT! I HAVE BEEN USING A HOOVER WINDTUNNEL WHICH I LIKED VERY MUCH (ESPECIALLY THE DIRT INDICATOR), BUT THE EUREKA BEATS IT HANDS DOWN. IT IS SO LIGHTWEIGHT & EASY TO MANEUVER THAT I USUALLY VACUUM EVERY DAY NOW (THAT'S BIG FOR ME)! IT HAS AN ADJUSTABLE HANDLE THAT MAKES IT COMFORTABLE FOR ANYONE TO USE. I LOVE THE HANDLE STYLE. THE DIRT CUP IS EASY TO EMPTY. BECAUSE OF ITS SMALL SIZE, I CAN FIT IT INTO SPACES THAT NONE OF MY VACUUMS HAVE BEEN ABLE TO GO BEFORE, LIKE BESIDE THE TOILET. I USED TO HAVE TO PULL OUT THE HOSE. IT ALSO FITS EASILY IN MY COAT CLOSET. BEST OF ALL, THIS IS A POWERFUL LITTLE VACUUM. IT CLEANS JUST AS GOOD OR BETTER THAN MY HOOVER & IT WEIGHS MUCH LESS. MY HOOVER WAS $299 3 YEARS AGO & I PAID $59.99 FOR THE EUREKA OPTIMA. EUREKA IS VERY SMART MAKING SUCH A GOOD VACUUM FOR SUCH A REASONABLE PRICE. THE ONLY THING I DON'T LIKE SO FAR IS THE SHORT CORD.

Pros: weight, portability, price
Cons: filter requires constant cleaning, smaller tubs clog easily

This is the lightest, most portable vacuum I've owned. It works well for a smaller space with light pile or indoor/outdoor carpet. The telescoping handle and long cord make it incredibly convenient to pack and go.

Unfortunately, the Achilles heel with this vacuum is that you have to clean the filter after nearly every single use and it's not easy to get off the top of the canister in order to clean properly.

Moreover the smaller size of the vacuum tubes means that even the smallest object can clogs it up.

I've also found that (due to it's extremely light weight) I sometimes have to "push down" on the vacuum in order for the brushes to make contact with the carpet and properly sweep up dirt.

Pros: It's little and pretty light; also cheap to purchase.
Cons: Everything else.

It might work well for others, but I wanted a lightweight upright to use in the room where the cat's litter box is (low, industrial-type carpet).  It hardly picks up the kitty litter at all.  It bounces it around quite a lot though.  I have to go over and over the same spot five or six times to get *most* of the litter picked up.  If I want a really clean surface, I have to get out the heavy duty Kenmore (still doing an A+ job after twelve years!).

Just thought I would warn anyone who might be tempted to purchase this small vacuum for something like this:  It doesn't work well at all.

Pros: The Eureka Optima is great for rugs and corners.  Powerful suction while staying light-weight.     
Cons: Filter clogs easily.  Exhaust blows down into vacuum path.  TERRIBLE for hardwood floors. 

The Eureka Optima vacuum has decent suction with a filter that clogs easily. I wouldn't recommend this for dog owners with hardwood floors (like me).   The powerful exhaust vent on the front of the vacuum is angled DOWN, so it blows everything out of the way before you can vacuum it up.  It's VERY, VERY FRUSTRATING.  This design blunder baffles me.  I can't imagine marketing a product for bare floors without even testing to see if it's effective on bare floors. 

Pros: LIght weight, easy on the wrist, small storage, strong suction, easy to use, looks nice.
Cons: Needs a bigger dirt holder!! (maybe if I vacuumed more often, wouldnt need it, haha!)

by far the most in a small vacuum!! have problem with my wrist (carpl tnl) but this vacuum helps a dull task happen easier!! Have been thru many vacuums. Have mostly tile w/ a few large area rugs. This vacuum does it all!! And best of all, have had it almost a year and it works just as good now as when I got it! Paid 55 @ target. Worth every penny. Light to carry too! Such strong suction,