Shark AZ1002 Apex Powered Lift-Away Upright Vacuum with DuoClean & Self-Cleaning Brushroll, Crevice Tool, Upholstery Tool & Pet Power Brush, for a Deep Clean on & Above Floors, Espresso
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A P
> 3 dayFor reference, our old Dyson is 17 years old. Still works, but its a 15-20 minute struggle to cut all the hair off the roller every use (theres a LOT), which causes us to not vacuum the small apartment often. But with 2 light-colored cats and a long-haired teen, its very noticable that the Dyson just isnt picking up the hair from the short carpet. While I entirely intended to replace the Dyson with another Dyson, decided to give the Shark a try. WOW suction! Yes, it WANTS to go forward and you have to wrangle pull it back, but Ill take it! It pulled up the somewhat matted carpet and actually had vacuum marks! We vacuumed with the Dyson 3 days ago. Doing just the small living room packed the canister full (oops on that max fill line). The roller was mostly hair clean! That was, until, it met the teen kiddos room. Her long hair was wrapped all around that roller. Now you might think well then, it doesnt work for hair, but I disagree. (1) Her hair is to her waist and shes 55, (2) the Dyson wasnt picking it up (beyond what was trapped each time on the roller), so it was a lot of accumulation on the carpet, (3) cutting the hair off was CAKE in comparison and less than 3 minutes including finding scissors (4) the amount of hair that was in the top funnel bit of the cannister was HUGE and all that was NOT wrapped around the brush the way I know it would have been on the Dyson. So far Im pleased. I expect to need to cut hair off much less often, which to me is a win. And if we vacuum more often because we actually SEE it cleaning, thats even more of a win. The power cable is MUCH longer than our old Dysons too. Can plug the 30 cord into the living room at the front of the apartment and it makes it almost all the way to the back bedrooms walls. So that bits exciting for us too, because plugging into a more central location means we dont have to move the cord at all to vacuum the whole place. Easily reconfigurable and it gets UNDER furniture SO MUCH EASIER. Practically dusted the laminated floor in the kitchen/dining area when vacuumed, so I actually vacuumed the air vents and fan too (yes, Im being a dork with a new toy) which it also did great with. Overall Im liking it so far, all of one day in (so keep that caveat in mind). The reason for the 4 stars and not 5 is that (1) its day 1 and (2) it did not completely keep me from having to cut clogged hair off the roller. But I do think this is probably due to accumulation from the Dyson not picking it up and expect it to get better over time
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Eliseo Nikolaus
Greater than one weekOkay, so, Ive been looking for a vacuum so that I have something when moving into my new place. I was only really hoping to have a few certain yet important features. - No bags. - Strong suction. - At least a 6ft hose (or around there). - Fully sealed (no allergens get ejected back out). This unit met all of that & more! I wont bother going over everything thats shown since you can just read about it in the descriptions or even look up a video on the unit (Id suggest doing simple research like that anyway). So instead, let me point out the features that surprised me or just plain pleased me to confirm. To note, I used this for about 40-60 minutes in 2 bedrooms & a hallway, all carpet (that tall stringy type), as well as a hard wood floor living room. For the carpeted area, I ran over everything the day before with what could only best be called a cheap simple store bought vacuum. Enough to do the job on hardwood & still sucks up plenty on carpet, but it isnt gonna win any prizes. 1: The suction power. Let me put it this way. Just having the vacuum on, you could feel it trying to pull forward. Dragging backwards was the same. If you use this on carpet, I highly suggest you leave the main body of the unit (the engine & dust bin) attached instead of separating it from the rest of the unit. Their weight will help counter this. 2: The noise. Its a vacuum, so its gonna make noise, but it was much quieter than I thought itd be, especially for the level of suction it has. I could have a conversation with someone sitting 10ft from me & barely have to raise my voice at all. 3: The versatility. Its an upright, but you can pull the main engine & dustbin unit off, turning it into a handheld that has long reach & can get under furniture with just a bit of bending over. Both the head & handle have a light to see into dark spaces. You can remove the tube running from the handle to the suction head & use it that way if you so wished. Never mind the attachments that come with it. 4: The instruction manual. I know, I know. You look at the instructions? My uncle already laughed at me for it, but I prefer to go through the manual so I can know how to put things together the first time & even find nice little tidbits. Which is EXACTLY what I found going through this one. Let me just say that not only does this show you how to put it all together, but it shows exactly how to clean everything & even perform your own maintenance. No calling the support office, no scratching your head to figure out whats wrong. Just look through the manual & itll give you guides on cleaning, troubleshooting, why it may be doing this, etc. I LOVE when a brand actually gives you the ability to properly & fully maintain & troubleshoot the product you paid for yourself. 5: The filters. Four of them total. A mesh hair filter in the collection bin, a barrel sponge-like filter & a finer cloth pad filter before the suction engine & then finally a HEPA filter before any air gets shunted back out. All of these sealed up with rubber rings. I checked the filters (all removable & washable by the way, so you can keep them for much longer if you take the extra few minutes to rinse them after each session or so) & was very impressed with how much they grabbed. Honestly, not gonna lie, I sat there for a moment looking at these filters & thought ... is that what Ive been living in?. Now, I couldnt finish this review off without mentioning the one downside I had to this vacuum. The extra attachments. Ya know, the little tool heads that come with it & sit in slots on the back of the vacuum. I got a narrow hose head for tight spaces, a furniture head & a pet brush (ya know, like a little mini suction head with its own brush roller). The first is simple & works fine. The second does its job as much as Id expect it to as well. The third however... Never mind the fact that the unit only has space for 2 of the 3 attachments, but the pet brush didnt even work. The reason why is just as simple. It felt cheaply made. Out of everything that came with the vacuum, these were the cheap parts. The first two, as I said, work fine since they dont have to do much. The pet brush however didnt even have a proper seal between the top & bottom half. In fact, it had vent slits in the back so that the moment I set it down (lightly I might add) onto fur covered furniture, the brush stopped moving because it was too much & could just pull in suction from those vent slits. I should also mention that this was done on fabric upholstered furniture, not any kind of leather or similar material. Thankfully, I did not buy this vacuum for pets. My parents have them, sure, but I wont. I dont need this vacuum to tackle pets. So, long & short is this. Besides the pet brush attachment not having anywhere to sit & being cheaply made, I dont need it so Im fine with that being the cheap part. Everything else on this vacuum has already made me decide that the $300 spent on it was very much worth it.
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MarysvilleMom
> 3 dayI gave it 4/5 because it is heavy. It has great suction and its transformer abilities work great for different applications. We have a 70lb husky who sheds a lot. It does a great job with all his hair. I have been overall very happy but it is a heavy vacuum. I think my 75 year old mom would struggle with it. Just something to keep in mind.
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RJ
> 3 dayFor Apex DuroClean Powered Lift Away AZ1002 T4 For the last 6 years, our old Shark Vacuum worked well. A great use & selling point was the ability to reconfigure the machine for different vacuum tasks. This is done without tools with snap fittings and these still work perfectly on the old vac. The old vacuums power rotator floor head still works but the corrugated flex hose that attached to the power section failed. This part is not user replaceable. Shark wanted $118.00 plus shipping to replace the whole floor power head. Since the machine was 6 years old we decided to up grade to a new model. With a new warranty. The machine came on time and was undamaged and well packed. Since this Shark vacuum was similar to our old vacuum, I was easy to assemble. It has the same snap connections that we loved in the old machine. When first assembled the new vac would not start. Re connecting the components solved the problem but we had continuing issues with the power. After trouble shooting the vac, we found the snap connection from the power module to the hose wand was the issue. In less than two weeks ownership this snap connection became harder and harder to snap in. It appeared to us the issue might be the plastic fitting was warped or otherwise misformed. To get a good secure fit [and get connectivity and power], we had to exert a great amount of force, then push the rocker tab down to get the desired click. My wife did not have the strength to do so. The Shark vac had arrived less than 2 weeks ago. Called Shark/Ninja customer service. Did a video chat, allowing the tech to see the issue. Neither the agent nor us could really figure out why it was so hard to click connect nor which plastic part was the culprit. The tech stated she would send the wand handle section [this part has the on / off switch] but neither of us was sure this would fix the issue. Shark never offered to replace the machine. I agreed to accept the replacement I wanted to make sure the other part of the connection- the power module would be sent if this didnt solve the issue. Then I was told the replacement part would cost me $89.00 plus shipping. I refused to pay and after more conversation, the agent offered a 50% discount and finally offered to sent free it if I paid for the shipping. This on a vacuum that was taken out the box less than two weeks earlier. Take heed, the Limited warranty is not worth the paper it was printed on. Since we were still in the return window, Amazon has agreed to take the product back and has issued a label for shipping. They will also credit my account upon acceptance of the Shark Vacuum. Thank you Amazon.
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Casper
> 3 dayI bought this vacuum shortly after moving into my new apartment. Ill admit, I may be overcompensating due to the size of my apartment since its not very big. But nonetheless, I have been familiar with Shark Vacuums for as long as I can remember. My mother is a House Cleaner by occupation and Shark has always been her choice of vacuums. Im not one to be usually excited or impressed by a vacuums performance or vacuums in general, but this one I am definitely satisfied with. The one feature about it that I havent really experienced with vacuums all that much is the illuminated front lights. I literally clean my place in the dark now, and it REVEALS ALL. Every little spec of dust, piece of dirt, hair, any thing that cant be seen due to ceiling lights masking its presence. Nothing can hide. And its awesome. Another thing that caught my attention was the Advanced Anti-Allergen Complete Seal and HEPA filter. It literally smells as if the vacuum is renewing or cleaning the air. Its honestly really nice. The lift away feature is definitely great. Didnt realise how useful it was until needed. When everything is attached to the base the vacuum is a little bulkier that other stick vacuums or lower profile ones. So fitting in tight spot are limited when using the main brush roll. Speaking of brush roll. A feature that I think all vacuums should have that this one does is brush roll access. Two latches on each side of the vacuums head opens up the top like popping the hood of your car. Doing a little preventative maintenance once in a while I would imagine help make the vacuums life space run longer. Felt that was a pretty cool feature. I really like this vacuum. I am by no means testing its limits since my environment isnt that extreme or requires cleaning up all that more (be it dirt/sand or absurd levels or pet hair). But just as a whole it works and feels like a great vacuum.
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christina saldana
> 3 dayUnfortunately very heavy and difficult to maneuver while vacuuming. Otherwise it’s a good machine that will last a while like my previous one. I’ll need to decide whether to get another model or tough it out for the next 5 or more years with this heavyweight.
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fred
> 3 dayNow that Ive had this vacuum for a year and a half, I feel like I can review it fairly. Yes, the honeymoon stage is over and now were having our problems, albeit small. When I first got this vacuum, I was in love. It was a beast: insane suction power, amazing swivel, and every part of it can easily be separated by a push of a button. My only complaints when I first got it: its size and no retractable cord. The retractable cord thing really got me. How do you make a vacuum this nice and not either have a cordless option or push button retraction? That answer is still beyond me. Its a great vacuum, dont get me wrong, but after owning it for this long, these are my problems: 1. It loses suction power. It will tell you to regularly clean the filter (reusable which is great) regularly, or it will lose suction power. However, even if you do this, you will still lose it. 2. The hose. Its great this thing can come apart for tasks like the stairs, furniture, etc. But the super scrunched up hose can only reach so far. How far? Not really far at all. Maybe a foot before the super slinky wants the nozzle back. Im sure you could get hose attachments, but for the pricetag, I barely feel like I should have to vacuum at all. When we first got it, it was a fight for who gets to vacuum. Now the first five minutes are vacuuming the tears of whomever is doing the vacuuming. Honestly, these 2 things, along with the bulky size and non retractable cord water my only gripes with it. It still works, just nowhere near as good as it once did, and lugging the dust compartment because the hose can only stretch so far (which isnt far at all) can be a real pain.
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christina
> 3 dayMy dyson all floors basically fell apart after 10 years of use. I read hundreds of reviews and watched review comparison videos of all types of vacuums from super expensive down to inexpensive. I settled on this on based on the suction power and the zero-m anti hair wrap. I vacuumed my house after 8 days (my vacuum broke then it was a holiday so delivery was delayed) and there wasnt one hair on the brush roll. Other reviews said they had hair wrap so I wasnt expecting much but there was no hair. I have long hair and my daughter does too and we have a golden retriever. Super impressed. Also, the ease of access to the brushroll is a huge plus since my old dyson you had to flip upside down and use a coin to open the casing. It was pain. With this one you just click a button and the over comes off exposing the roll. The hand held pet tool did however get hair wrapped around it on the first use but it doesnt advertise the zero-m technology. It is tall. If you are short it may be cumbersome for you. I am 57 and it is noticeably taller than other vacuums. It drives itself when in carpet mode, very strong forward pull you have to control it. Easy to move between hard floors and the two carpet settings. The hose doesnt seem very flexible and I am getting used to the way to wand works it seems awkward but I may be using it wrong. 3 tools, and two spots for tools. Kind of annoying so I just kept the one brushroll tool with the manual in the accessories box that came with it. Seems like there should be a spot for all tools. Dust collection bin is smaller than the dyson I had, I emptied it 4 times for one vacuum but like I said it had been a week. Overall I am loving it. The negatives are very minimal and dont outweigh the positives. I did a ton of research before I landed on this one and I am glad I did. I have only had it a week so I cant comment on longevity but I have vacuumed daily for 8 days and not one hair is on the brushroll. For me thats a win.
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anna
> 3 dayPros: Small and gets under bed and good suction . Cons: 1)brush too small -does not fluff carpet as old Hoover did- could use bigger brush. The smooth brush not needed. It glides only on surface does not get into carpet. After vacuuming carpet looks flat like you used a roller- does not fluff carpet. 2) wish it had a bag. With bagless it needs to be cleaned every time you dump it, takes a lot of time not to mention debris not contained so it gets all over when dumping. 3) just like a carpet cleaner but with suction. Only happy with how it gets under bed. Like my Thirty year old Hoover better.
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Henriette Hackett PhD
> 3 dayBride had a much older version of this vacuum and loved it until it died. I figured the quality was down like most good products that are new and successful....boy was I wrong. This is an excellent machine and superior to the older one we had. Momma loves it.