Oreck Magnesium Upright Vacuum Cleaner - I Pick This One
Weighing about 7.7 lbs, without the cord, it is the lightest weight full-powered vacuum Oreck has ever made.
Reviews of Oreck Magnesium Upright Vacuum Cleaner
Good performance, high price, annual maintenance cost.
Rating by : Just Trying to Help, 
I had always shied away from Orecks in the past. I have friends who absolutely adore them, but as they explained their experience with Oreck I was always unsure it was a good idea for me to buy an Oreck for myself.
Why?
Well, there are two reasons really.
1) Regular maintenance despite a higher cost up front. Orecks cost more than most other vacuums as a rule. But once you pay the premium price, you have to take it to an Oreck service center annually to replace motor parts, gaskets, and belts. This is not the case with any other vacuum brand that I am aware of. Of course, my friends had their Oreck vacuum for years and years, but over the lifetime of the vacuum they continued to shell out money on something they already purchased.
2) Orecks are never rated very highly by Consumer Reports. I've never seen any Oreck model in the top ten vacuums in independent testing of 50 vacuums.
Now, my Oreck fanboy friends never like it when I point out those two little details. People who like Orecks, really like them. So I may be somewhat unpopular for letting that cat out of the... um... vacuum bag.
But let's be honest, I don't buy things just because a magazine told me it was the best. And it's very possible that this vacuum may be perfect for me regardless of these two details above. There must be a reason so many other people love Orecks, and I was ready to find out if I would become a convert!
Just for reference, the last vacuum I bought was a Hoover Platinum Lightweight Upright Vacuum with Canister, Bagged, UH30010COM. This vacuum is a close match for the Oreck in basic function and design. The Hoover Platinum also has a hose-less design where the air goes up the "backbone" of the vacuum, just like the Oreck Magnesium. And, depending on the prices at any given time, you can buy 2 of the Hoovers for the price of 1 Oreck. I bought the Hoover because it had performed so well in the independent testing done by certain magazines, and the Hoover met my expectations (for its price) in actual use.
I feel that if you are considering an Oreck you should consider the Hoover Platinum as the lesser price competitor as the basic design is almost the same.
Oreck Magnesium Performance:
I have to say I was pleased with the Oreck.
1) It is amazingly light. The Hoover Platinum is 12 lbs, and the Oreck weighs in at almost 8 lbs. It feels like nothing in your hand, and vacuuming is effortless. But don't try to vacuum quickly, its so light that there is nothing keeping the vacuum head on the ground at the end of the stroke. Slow and steady wins the race with the Oreck Magnesium.
2) The Oreck proved to have adequate suction, although sometimes I felt that the lightness of the action made the operation of the vacuum feel too insubstantial. I tried vacuuming white dog hair off a black rug (talk about contrast!) and it sucked up *almost* all the dog hair on the first pass, every time.
3) It restored the nap on my rug better than the Hoover.
4) The advertised ability to lie almost flat is a true benefit, and my 8 year old daughter was able to vacuum under a low coffee table easily.
5) The large wheels did make transitions from slate tile to rug and back very effortless.
Overall the Oreck does an admirable job as a vacuum, and its certainly easy to use, much easier than any other vacuum that I've owned.
What you give up: the lighter weight is largely from the lack of a removable hose that can be used to get trouble spots. This vacuum is not for corners and certainly could not be used on stairs.
To solve this problem you would want to buy a combo of an upright vac and a canister vac. Oreck sells a bundle with a cannister for that purpose. The Hoover Platinum also sells an upright+cannister combo. You can buy 2 Hoover platinums with canister for the price of one Oreck with Cannister, and have money left over. Since it costs double, you would expect double performance. But you don't get double performance, the Hoover seems to work as well or better when I compare the two. And if you throw in the cost of Oreck's recommended Annual Maintenance, then I feel the Oreck is not a very good value, and the lower weight comes at a huge premium in price.
So what about the maintenance? Well, when I went to Oreck's website, they boasted that if you buy the Magnesium from them, they will include 3 annual tune ups. So, I guess the Magnesium requires annual maintenance like the rest of the Orecks. I was unable to find any information about the annual maintenance online, other than the fact that it is, indeed, included when you buy from Oreck. I wish this information were better represented on the Amazon product page or on Oreck's website, but, it is not. To find out more about what this requires, and what it costs, I called the local Oreck service center. I was promptly told that the Magnesium requires an annual service, which takes about a week, and costs $40. You can prepay for 3 years of service for $60. (At least thats out in the open now!) They replace some parts in the motor every year, check the belt, and clean it up. if you buy your vacuum from Oreck, it will come with the 3 years of service. On a lark I called Dyson's toll free number and asked them if they even recommend an annual service for their vacuums. They don't. Even the Roomba robot vacuum doesn't require annual service, and its the most complex vacuum I know of.
Imagine if we lived in a world where your dishwasher had a required annual service of $40. Or your ceiling fan (or any fan in your house) needed to go to the shop for one week annually at any price. You simply wouldn't stand for it. And yet, for Oreck, its a fact of life.
One must assume that failing to replace the motor brushes means that performance will worsen quickly, otherwise they wouldn't tell you to do it. So, thats not so good.
I'm not very happy with the warranty at all. A list of my "Warranty blues":
1) The 7 year warranty is only in effect if you buy the vacuum from Oreck or from an Oreck Authorized Reseller. The manual is very clear that if you do not buy from the right people your new vacuum is sold "as is" with no warranty. So are all those sellers on Amazon "Authorized" or not? I guess thats up to you to check.
2) To keep the warranty you have to do the annual maintenance. The required annual maintenance will cost you over $120 to $180 during this time period, too, depending on whether you got 3 years free when you bought it. Its ironic to note that the warranty is sold in 3 year increments but the warranty is for 7 years, making you re-up your service contract just before the warranty is out. (I derive this from the fact that the Warranty is void if you abuse the vacuum, and neglecting the required maintenance is the most common form of abuse for any product).
3) The warranty is void if you use the vacuum for commercial use (for your office or if you run a cleaning service).
4) If you are still eligible for the warranty all it does is replace the defective part. You will not get a new vacuum. So I tend to feel that the warranty is not financially equitable.
The warranty is not a selling point to me because of cost of the required service and caveats therein.
In the end I give the magnesium 3 stars. I think that the vacuum performs well and I love the light weight. As far as the "out of the box" performance I would give it 4 stars. I have had other vacuums with more suction, so I can't give it my best rating for performance.
But I am really put off by 1) the required maintenance and 2) the flimsy warranty. Its conceivable that whatever you spend on this vacuum today, you should plan on spending an additional 50% of that over the lifetime of the vacuum. I feel like thats a hidden cost. And the required annual service isn't even mentioned on the Amazon product page! I'm very displeased with that fact.
I had been hoping that the Magnesium would require less service, but it seems to be a permanent part of the Oreck business (profit) strategy.
Best vacuum cleaner I have owned
Rating by : Quoad Toad, 
I was always a bit skeptical of Oreck with their bowling ball commercial. I was given a chance to try out the Oreck Magnesium and didn't know what to expect. I find myself pleasantly surprised.
First, the Magnesium is very light. The cord almost feels heavier than the entire vacuum cleaner itself. Set up took less than a minute. The Magnesium comes almost assembled - you just have to attached the handle, which doesn't require tools and takes a couple seconds.
The rest of the construction feels solid, apart from the plastic tube near the back. I wish that was made of the same material as the handle. The bag and zipper parts also feel well made. I never owned a bagged vacuum cleaner before, but Oreck's bagged system actually works well. The bag seals itself, so there's no mess (unlike with my bagless cleaner that ends up spreading dust around when I dump it out). I'm also a sucker for the electric blue accent color of the bag portion.
As for cleaning, the Magnesium is excellent. It cleans much better than my clunky Bissel bagless. I have a dog whose fur gets all over my floors and the Magnesium sucks it up without pushing it around. I have both hardwood and carpeted floors. I have had an especially difficult time vacuuming my hardwood floors in the past. The Magnesium actually picks up the fur though. My hardwood floors no longer have a fine coat of dog fur. The Magnesium also does well on carpet. There is no need to change settings when going from hardwood to carpet.
This vacuum cleaner also feels powerful. It almost propels itself along the floor. I can push it along my hardwood floors with just the slightest tap. It feels like it wants to "take off." It is smart enough to auto shut off if something gets stuck. I have a bad habit of vacuuming over things, like blankets accidentally tossed on the floor. If something gets caught, it automatically shuts off and the item can be easily removed.
The Magnesium doesn't have any attachments, but that allows it be flexible in other areas. You can lower the handle down all the way to the floor. The vacuum cleaner is thin enough that it can fit completely underneath my bed.
Overall, I love the Magnesium. Yes, you'll have to buy a hand held or canister vacuum cleaner since the Magnesium doesn't have attachments. However, the Oreck does what it's supposed to do exceedingly well. It's agile and I enjoy vacuuming with it. I hope to keep it for many years to come.
There are things to like about this vacuum... and things not to like...
Rating by : TheTerrorBeyond,
Positive impressions:
1. It is very light and easy to push around the carpet, thus making it easier to vacuum larger rooms without issue. This will be a good unit for people with physical limitations.
2. The beater seems very strong, so strong, in fact, that it almost seems to be self propelled. This could actually end up being a negative, as you might not spend enough time vacuuming.
3. You can lean the vacuum down flat and it can get under furniture that most other vacuum cleaners can't.
4. It has a fairly long cord, allowing you to clean more carpet without unplugging and moving the cord.
Negative impressions:
1. No hand tools at all. You will need something other than this if you want to clean couches, tight corners, curtains, etc.
2. The cord is about 8 feet shorter than the cord on the Dyson vacuum that I have.
3. Uses bags instead of canister. The bags will add up over time and will add to the price of the vacuum.
4. Does not vacuum even nearly as well as the Dyson DC07 that I have had for many years.
My testing involved vacuuming a large room where our dog plays that had not been vacuumed in a month. I vacuumed the floor VERY slowly and carefully with the Oreck first. I vacuumed up/down, then right/left, with overlapping patterns. My test involved cleaning the floor slowly in each direction to get the maximum coverage and suction possible. After finishing the room with the Oreck, I vacuumed again with a Dyson DC07. The Dyson picked up a whole lot of dog hair and other smaller (dusty/powdery) material from the carpet. It picked up so much that I checked the Oreck to make sure that it was actually sucking up dirt; it was.
There are certainly things to like about the new Oreck Magnesium, but the sole purpose of a vacuum cleaner is to clean your carpet and this one does not perform as well as it should on moderately thick carpet. The price is entirely too high for this cleaner and I would not recommend it unless you really need a lightweight vacuum.
I am giving this vacuum a three-star rating because of the weight, as I believe that it will be a good choice for people who have physical limitations that make it difficult to use a heavier vacuum cleaner. Other than those who need a lighter cleaner, I cannot really recommend the Oreck Magnesium. It hurts to say this, as I had an Oreck before and it was a monster of a cleaner, this one just doesn't measure up.
Oreck introduces the new Magnesium Vacuum Cleaner, the lightest-weight, full-powered Upright vacuum on the market.
Oreck Magnesium Magnesium SP is the lightest, full-powered upright vacuum cleaner in America. With its extremely strong, durable magnesium frame, the Magnesium SP ...
5 stars. "Best vacuum cleaner I have owned" I was always a bit skeptical of Oreck with their bowling ball commercial. I was given a chance to try out the Oreck ...
Find great deals on eBay for oreck magnesium vacuum and oreck magnesium vacuum bags. Shop with confidence.
Oreck introduces the new Magnesium SP Vacuum Cleaner, the lightest-weight, full-powered Upright vacuum on the market.
No comments:
Post a Comment