Shark Cordless Stick Vacuum Cleaner [IF250UK] Twin Battery, White and Orange

This vacuum cleaner is expensive but you do get what you pay for. I'm glad that I bought the second battery as I do need it when cleaning the whole house or preparing a carpet for a shampooing. The ease of charging and replacing the batteries within the machine is so simple. In fact, everything about this device is simple from the occasional maintenance (filter cleaning) to selecting the appropriate attachment. Emptying the dust cup is easy as is bending the machine for under table usage. It does a superb job when actually cleaning carpets. The headlights may seem a bit of a gimmick but can be useful in dark places.Regarding the power, it may be best not to use the maximum power setting as apart from draining the battery more quickly, it really can provide too much suction. I stick with the normal setting, which really does a good job. In fact, if there is any draining of power the machine will switch off, which is a sensible warning to let it cool off for a few minutes. The batteries themselves give a good indication of remaining power and when recharging them the blue lights also allow you to see the charging status clearly.On top of all this, it is very light and can live in a small place when not in use. Yes, this is pricey but I do believe it is worth the money.

This Shark cordless replaces a Gtech cordless which replaced a Vax cordless. See the theme? Having got a corded Shark which I am impressed with, I decided to get the cordless version after bad experiences with Gtech and Vax. The Gtech stripped its drive cog after 12 months - interestingly my daughters unit which I purchased for her along with my own, also stripped its gears in the same week - but this is not surprising when I found out, after I stripped it down, that there was a hard metal drive cog meshing with a soft plastic one. Built-in obsolescence?The Shark worked straight after its easy assembly. I pre-vacuumed with the corded Shark first then the new one. Interestingly there was a small amount of fluff/dirt collected after this trial. Being cordless is such a joy and the Shark literally pulls itself along on its rollers. it is a bit disconcerting at first but, like an automatic car, you very quickly get used to and appreciative of this feature. After 4 weeks I am still verypleased and rarely use anything else. There are plenty of tools and the 5 year warranty is a bonus. The batteries - I got the two battery option - last 2 full house vacs and the unit's lack of weight makes it a pleasure to operate. The only niggle I have is that the dust cannister is very small and needs emptying regularly. I find after 2 days is optimum. Given that there are only two old codgers in the house, plus 2 Yorkies, I am constantly amazed at the amount of dirt that gets into the cannister each day.So, for the moment, I am very pleased but, if there are any problems, I will update this review.UPDATE. The wand failed recently at the knuckle joint. I rang Shark and within minutes was promised a new free replacement wand which arrived the next day. I have had the Shark over 2 years now and this is the only problem. And, I still have another 3 years warranty left!

I am updating my review having returned one machine that developed a fault (which was replaced promptly by Amazon) , being returned due to the replacement developing a fault (which the Shark helpline could not resolve). My original review remains unchanged below for you to read, but after less than 4 weeks and 2 failed machines, I've had enough of Shark. They clearly have poor build quality. I have never in my life had to ever return an item and its replacement due to fault. I am appalled. The idea and flexibility are good in principle but the reliability is awful. I am disgusted. I'm off to find an alternative.THE ORIGINAL REVIEW READ......Bought this as was fed up with the restrictions of my traditional vacuums. Here are good points I've found.....Quick and easy to put together out of boxEasy to use and very manoeuvrableQuick charging batteriesBattery unit can't over charge as has auto offLightweight vacuumEasy to switch between carpet and hard floorFolds to very small unit for storageBatteries have more than enough power to clean 3 bedroom homeLight enough to carry with ease up stairsDetach stick & unit great for stairs and sofa etcBest thing ever for cleaning my dogs bed with ease and this ain't the so called pets model (see below).Easy to strip down to clean parts, filter etcHas 5 yr guaranteeHowever on the downside.....It's top heavy like all these cordless unit typesNo height adjustment so at 5'2" my arm aches after 5 mins use.The dirt box can be difficult to completely empty without serious banging it to get dog hairs out.So the downs are far less than the ups. And there ain't a vacuum on the market that is perfect despite manufacturer claims. I'm glad I bought it.Was originally considering pet model at £450. Dropped in at Curry's and a well informed sales women told me that the only difference between the pet version and standard one was a £30 attachment and the unit colour of white and orange against the grey of the pet model. Both same power etc. The standard model she was selling at £330. So I checked amazon and paid £300 instead and didn't have to maul the box home. But how I'm glad I spoke to her.After 10 days usage the sensor kept switching between hard floor and carpet in a confused state. Then it would shut down. I called the helpline and spoke to one hell of an annoying yank. I had rang the line for faults yet this women was banging on how wonderful the shark flex was. Please Shark get rid of such boasting people, they annoy us Brits endlessly. Then she finally went through the basics of how to strip it down. Before admitting it was faulty. I've marked this product down as a result of her and this issue. But as always I just booked a return with Amazon and product was collected and replaced within 2 days. It has 5 yr warranty so am not concerned.In summary... Great vacuum which makes it far less of a chore to clean and saves time. Not perfect but close.