Hoover Platinum Overview & Features:
Like most other things in life, different kinds of vacuum cleaners come with different trade-offs. For instance, upright models are extremely efficient at cleaning large surface areas fast. However, their trade-off is a general tendency to be heavy and unwieldy, especially when it comes to tasks like stair cleaning. But there are always exceptions, and one shining example is the Hoover Platinum Lightweight Upright Bagged Vacuum.
Weighing roughly 11 lbs., this Hoover turns convention on its head with an upright vacuum cleaner that’s not only quite light in weight but also doesn’t sacrifice any of the cleaning power. The best part? Hoover Platinum Uprights purchased through Amazon come bundled with a Portable Canister vacuum – complete with a shoulder strap, stretch hose and a host of onboard attachments. For the sake of our Amazon readers, we’ll be covering both units in this review.
The Hoover Platinum Upright Vacuum is a sleek looking thing, with illuminated fingertip controls, a powerful LED headlight and glides along as if self-propelled. The heart of this machine is a 5.5-amp motor that also produces Hoover’s acclaimed WindTunnel suction.
Performance:
The WindTunnel technology’s claim to fame is being able to lift embedded dirt straight up from the carpet instead of scattering and blowing back dirt like typical vacuums. Our trials revealed that this isn’t just gimmicky advertising. The Hoover Platinum Lightweight Upright works exceptionally well in cleaning carpets with just one pass. The auto height adjuster and choice of 2 speeds meant low and high-pile carpets were tackled equally efficiently.
We especially appreciate the fact that the Hoover has true edge cleaning abilities, making short work of dirt around furniture and along baseboards of the house. And it does this with a pleasant hum, quite unlike the thunderous Hoover WindTunnels from ages past. When it comes time to replacing the filter, we found the process of swapping out bags to be relatively quick and painless, primarily because of a self-sealing HEPA bag that eliminates dirt puffs.
Up until this point, we had been using the Platinum Upright strictly on carpets and rugs, and the verdict had been overwhelmingly positive. However, some issues were noted when we took the vacuum to the hardwood. We really wish there was a Brush Roll On/Off switch for the user to control. Although the rotating brush works great on carpet fibers, it was noisy on bare floors and would sometimes scatter dirt before the WindTunnel suction had a chance to do its pass over.
Canister Attachment:
The canister left us with mixed feelings. It’s a stark contrast to the refinement of its upright counterpart. On the one hand, its got a lovely host of accessories and extensions, including a floor brush, dusting brush, crevice tool and a telescoping extension wand – not to mention a shoulder strap that just makes sense. In theory it makes off-the-floor cleaning a breeze. However, testing revealed the canister’s suction is average at best.
Additionally, the 7-amp motor is loud and high-pitched in operation. We also found a couple of the attachments would not securely fasten, although that may have been a problem specific to our test unit. To be fair, the Hoover Platinum Canister Vacuum is not a terrible product, but because it comes bundled with its vaunted upright cousin, a comparison highlighting its shortcomings is inevitable.
Conclusion
If you have area rugs or fully carpeted flooring, the Hoover Platinum Upright Vacuum offers impressive cleaning capabilities. It’s surprisingly lightweight and, thanks to its HEPA filtration, leaves air smelling great. By comparison, the Canister Vacuum is the red-headed step child of this bundle. The canister’s suction is average, and it operates on the loud side of things; but it still offers versatility with off-the-floor cleaning and a number of attachments and extensions. If hardwood or low-pile carpeting is what you have mostly, we recommend taking a serious look at the Miele S2121 Olympus Canister Vacuum Cleaner.
The Bad: Average performance on hardwood/bare flooring; No brush roll on/off option; Canister vacuum has marginal suction and is loud to operate.
VC Reviews Verdict: While the portable canister is not without its faults, the upright vacuum more than makes up for its shortcomings. If you have mostly carpets in your home, this set could be all you’ll need to get the job done.
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