My Christmas present needs to stay away from yarn and floss

So, I got my Christmas present early. I've been wanting one of these for years but settled for a Dirt Devil last year because it was $50 and this was $550. But, it was on sale last night at Home Depot for like $440 and that's the cheapest I've EVER seen it....so we needed a new vacuum anyway, one that would do the stairs...so, it's now my Christmas present.



Perhaps it has TOO much suction, as I've already sucked up one ribbon and one sock. Both ended up wrapped around the beater bar. Fortunately, the beater bar pops right off.

They're not kidding when they say that the ball makes it more maneuverable. The motor is actually in the ball part so it actually doesn't feel heavy and awkward when you push the thing.

Fun facts I've learned about Dyson:

1. He invented his first vacuum in the 80s (after 5 years and 5127 prototypes). It had his cyclonic energy and it was bagless. When he tried to sell it to vacuum companies, they all turned him down because they make like $500 million a year in vacuum bag sales. So, he sold it to a Japanese company and it was a huge hit in Japan.

2. In 1993 he had made enough off the first vacuum to start his own company. Marketers and retailers didn't want to sell his DC01 because it had a clear bin and people didn't want to see the dirt that had been in their carpet (to which my husband said "Come on! Everyone opened up their vacuum bag to see what was inside.")

3. Dyson also has a bladeless fan and a hand dryer. They have the hand dryers at Ikea and they are awesome. They actually get your hands dry!


Oh, and to answer the question, "Why are these things so EXPENSIVE?"

Well, I found out that the motor is actually a digital motor run by a microchip which emits no carbon. The dust bin is made from the same stuff they use for riot shields. The ball is made of glass-reinforced polypropylene, the stuff they make car dashboards out of. Dyson also has its own microbiology lab. They actually keep live dust mites on site so they can experiment on how to get rid of them. That's why the vacuums are certified by 12 allergy associations worldwide. The thing comes with a 5 year warranty. They must be expecting it to last...