Side by Side Comparison of: Shark vs Black & Decker

For a small vacuum, this is really powerful! I've been really impressed. And it comes with quite a few extra attachments and a bag to store them in. I bought this because I wanted something more powerful than the Dyson battery powered stick that came with my fifth wheel and this definitely fit the bill. I am very pleased.

Love this! Did some research and am happy we got this one. We moved from a big home to a very small home with no wall to wall carpet, just area rugs. This has great suction for shaggy area rugs as well and low pile rugs. The hard floor attachment is a tiny bit of an inconvenience to change out, or else I'm lazy, so I end up using the carpet attachment most of the time. It works fine for picking up little stuff, but doesn't "dust" the floor like the proper one does. Super easy to empty the dirt cup. Hangs nicely on the wall. Just love everything about it. You should get one!

I hardly ever write reviews, but I felt compelled to with this product. My Shark Rocket just arrived and I took it for a quick test drive. I loved it so much that I took it for a test drive through my entire house. I went from room to room easily changing the setting between hardwoods and carpet. I even used an attachment to clean my air vent. Worked like a charm. The rocket got under my bed easily. In fact, it got under and between places that my vacuum couldn't even think about. It got dust bunnies under the kitchen table that usually require me to move all the chairs to sweet. It fit under the chairs - no problem. I'm in love. The storage for dust and debris is small and needs emptied frequently, which I think adds to the experience because I had JUST vacuumed my house yesterday and it was still crazy to see how much dust the shark picked up.

I highly recommend to everyone. Very easy to assemble and figure out. I almost returned because the box came looking beat up from Amazon. The internal Shark box, not the outer amazon box. It looks like someone had returned the product and it was used, but I opened and checked it out and it looked brand new. I am very glad that I didn't return. I'm in love. When I was finished cleaning, I actually stood looking around my house to figure out if there was anything else I could clean with it.

Positives:
1. Has lots of suction power.
2. If you suck up a sock or a toy my mistake, you just open the canister with a push of a button and get out.
3. Light weight.
4. Even if I don't see hair/dirt on my floor I am amazed at how much junk this vac finds!
5. Can be used on any carpet, wood or hard floor just by flipping a switch.
6. Easy to assemble.
7. Well made.
8. Can reach a good portion under my couch and has lots of handy attachments to help with detailed cleaning.
9. Makes my life easier and does a much better job than a broom ever could!

Dislikes:
1. Because the motor is high on the top, it is top heavy. This makes your shoulder and arm carry most of the weight. Even though it's light, the repetitive motion of use may not be easy for people with shoulder problems. I would recommend one of the stand up Sharks for older individuals for this reason. (I have not ever had a bad experience with any Shark product).

I have a very good canister vacuum that I love, but it is a bear to get around my rather oddly shaped house. I was therefore looking for a lighter and easier to maneuver vacuum that would make cleaning my house less of a chore. Enter the Rocket!

Pros: This vacuum cleans as well as my canister, but it is so much easier to maneuver! It is very light, the head easily slips under furniture, and the head articulates in such a way as to make it easy to get into very tight spaces. I have a small house with a mixture of carpeting, area rugs, and hardwood flooring and it cleans all with ease. I am certain that I will be vacuuming more often just because of the ease of use. That is a wonderful thing to say for a single father with little time!

Cons: It does struggle a bit with very tall pile, but so does my canister. It still cleans well, but hair gets wrapped around the brush on very thick carpet and needs to be pulled off. The bin is very small and needs to be cleaned often, but that is to be expected with such a small vacuum. Not much else.

If you are looking for a small and maneuverable vacuum to frequently clean a small to mid size house I highly recommend this vacuum!

If you are left handed you will have a learning curve; at least I did, but it is doable...why? because of how the buttons are placed are counter intuitive; but everyone knows lefties are taught by life from birth on how to live in a righted world. Once you get over that this, is a wonderful quick and easy powerful hand vac that can get up just about anything up easily! I use it for the messy bits that come in the mud room, and the cat litter that gets all around HIS bathroom. I am glad we got this, it works so much better than the last hand vac we had, and I thought that was pretty good, until it wasn't.

2hr charging 15min battery life. But real good. I bought for $89 but the price dropped to $30 on Black Friday so I bought another 3 for family and friends

My original pivot vac will no longer keep a charge, and I've been looking for a decent replacement. Thank goodness that B&D finally came out with this lithium powered model! It has the rubber flap to keep debris from falling back out, and a charging stand that automatically makes contact and can be wall mounted. It is more powerful, runs much longer, all while being smaller & lighter. The brush pivots up when needed and is never lost. A nice feature is that it comes apart for easy cleaning. Overall a super unit, it wins over the Dyson and Hoover and Shark, by far.

Update: Evidently you can replace the battery pack, when needed. Two screws hold on the side cover, and then the battery pack plugs in. Great improvement over earlier models!

This review is for the BDH2000PL MAX Lithium Pivot Vacuum 20-volt

I needed a replacement for my Black & Decker PHV1800 vacuum. The PHV1800 worked well for over 4 years until its battery wouldn't hold a charge. I used the PHV1800 to clean out my car. The BDH2000PL easily picks up sand from the car's floorboard. After vacuuming the entire car, the vacuum still has plenty of run time. The built in crevice tool is handy for cleaning around the car seats.

The BDH2000PL seems to be the same design as the Black & Decker PHV1810, except the BDH2000PL has a 20V lithium ion battery. The BDH2000PL also has a rubber flap in the canister to prevent dirt from falling out through the nozzle. The PHV1810 reviews mention that dirt falling out of the nozzle is a problem with the PHV1810.

The BDH2000PL comes with a charging cradle that can sit on the floor or be wall mounted. The cradle includes two screws for wall mounting.

The vacuum has a dim blue light on its side. While the vacuum is charging, the blue light flashes. The light goes out when the vacuum is fully charged. The light also comes on when the vacuum is running. It seems that the designers at Black & Decker have finally listened to the complaints about their charging lights being annoyingly bright. You can't see the light on this vacuum more than a few feet away.

The built-in crevice tool extends from the nozzle several inches. The crevice tool pushes into the nozzle when not in use.

The built-in brush is attached to the nozzle. The brush folds out of the way when not in use.

The filters on the vacuum use a simple twist lock. The filters can be easily removed for cleaning. The dust canister/nozzle can be removed for cleaning as well. The filters can be removed without removing the canister/nozzle.

I am very pleased with this vacuum. I would recommend it to friends. I would buy it again.

It seems to function as it should. I still like my Dyson better but it's ok for the every day kind of stuff. As an update, I've now had my SharkNinja for 6 months. Things are starting to fall off of it. There was a plastic duster-bar of sorts on the bottom that came off the other day. I've not used my Shark in any rough fashion so nothing should be falling off of it at this point. It's too bad things aren't made like they used to be.....

We recently moved into a larger home with stairs, and although I already have 3 vacuums, nothing was quite right for vacuuming the stairs, and it was driving me crazy!! I wanted something small that had a rotating brush. After reading mixed online reviews, I decided to try the Shark. I love it! It works very well on the stairs, but also on the bare floors, and for other "touch ups." The attachments make it a very versatile vacuum. The suction is adequate, but nothing compared to my Simplicity and Panasonic uprights. It definitely cannot replace my uprights, but for stairs, bare floors, hard to reach areas, and quick touch ups, it is my go-to vacuum!

This is the second shark I have purchased. I am used to using a rainbow vacuum and had a hard time believing that a vacuum that did not filter through water would not affect the air quality. The washable filters, however, do the job very well. I never smell any dust after I vacuum with it. The suction is very good. The brush works well. I vacuum short dog hair more than anything else. It's the kind of dog hair that somehow weaves itself into fabrics and this vacuum pulls it out. I would prefer a dust cup that was removable. The cup fills up for me after vacuuming 3 rooms and then the vacuum needs to be held over a waste basket and the release button pressed which isn't the worst, but it could be better. The wall hook it comes with is convenient since it does not stand on it's own. The swivel action in the foot is great. Overall very pleased with this product.

I love this vacuum cleaner and its exactly as advertised! So easy to pull out and vacuum, it almost makes vacuuming fun...I said almost! It does stink that you can't sit it upright but a quick workaround for that is to disengage the handle from the stem and sit in on something higher when you need to rest the cleaner. Cordless would be nice but that's more expensive. It's so easy to reach high places with this unit and dust skylights, clean webs, etc.

I would give 5 stars BUT the bin is very small and u need to empty several times when cleaning and u can't leave the Vaccum standing up because it's too top heavy need to lay down on floor every time u stop but otherwise this Vaccum rocks! Light weight, easy to swap attachments cleans really well and small enough to get under things!

This product basically slowed down a lot after 6 months of daily use. It is an issue with the battery. After about 6 months of daily use, it started powering out on me each time I use it more and more quickly. After emailing their warranty department they got back to me within minutes and said they would send me a new one. That is really nice! I must also say that this machine is really strong and does a fantastic job cleaning. Very necessary for solid wood or tile flooring!

It took 2 1/2 years, but now we are having the "jet engine loud" motor problem that some other users have described. Until today, it ran at a more reasonable volume. I don't know how long it will continue to work as a vacuum, as it does seem to still have good suction, but the noise is incredible. It sounds unsafe to use -- like it could fly apart at any moment. We are unsure whether we will buy another one or try a different brand/model.Update: I contacted customer service at B&D (note: I did not mention I had written a review) and they sent me a replacement vacuum. So I'm adding a star to my review for that excellent customer service. I do think it's a great vacuum for small spaces, while it lasts.

Wish I could do 4.5. I'd have take just a half star off for the big size. Other than that I truly, truly enjoy (!) using this vacuum. Being able to angle the nozzle works very nicely, I can get into areas I couldn't even approach before and it reduces fatigue. Pull out extension is nice, except I wish it could be snapped into place. Brush is helpful, I couldn't believe what came out of my couch. Suction is better than my upright. An unintended benefit is that I can work up a sweat doing some household tasks and the exhaust is so powerful it even dries my hair so I can keep going w/o stopping. Clean up is easy, except for clogs from nozzle past rubber flap into bowl, sometimes I have to get a knife and clear that area.

I was worried about Black and Decker but after reading reviews I decided to get this Vacuum. Overall I'm happy with my purchase. The pivot option is pretty cool and allows the whole thing to be more compact when it's in the downward position. It does take a while to charge (over an hour) but it will run for 15 minutes or so before dying again. This is more than enough for the small jobs we use it for. Suction is good (not amazing) but again we only use it for minor jobs since we have hardwood floors.

Gave this as a gift to a senior family member. The vacuum works great and makes the cleanup of the smaller jobs a breeze. This one has already proven a winner and is particularly helpful when cleaning small areas on carpeted stairs. The removal of the filter was fairly straight forward with the instructions provided and the filter chamber is easily seen given the design. The only reason it rated with four stars was the weight of the vacuum. Trying to find a vacuum that has strong suction ability and is light enough for someone in their 70's to use was the primary consideration. This one fits the bill and should be considered regardless of the age of the user.

Very powerful suction, and reserve power to keep this hand vacuum going during a lengthy cleaning event.It takes a little wiggle to seat the unit into the socket to charge the battery or so it makes contact with the charging contact pins.Only a minor issue. Luckily there is a light indicator that acknowledges the unit is seated properly in the charge socket properly.The reason for the 4 stars.....? .... There is a soft flap check valve that closes off when the unit is off and in idle position.Its basic design, is to prevent debris that has been deposited inside the vacuum, from trickling out and dropping debris out from the container inside the unit. Anything larger than 7mm (approx.), will get jammed in the flap. i.e....I vacuumed up popcorn, and the unit abruptly, lost suction power.The reason, was that the popcorn was stuck in the flap check valve, and following that, smaller debris and clumps of dust / etc. just further closed the opening. There were several times, I had to take a stick, and open the unit to remove the stuck popcorn, and clumps of debris to allow the vacuum to be clear of obtructions, so it would restore suction.There is not enough space, to allow the flap valve to open fully; and or at least open enough to allow pop corn or similar size debris to be sucked into the container; like the cats spilled crunchy's or treats. Works great on grinds, and dust, and crumbs.Other than that, the unit works great.

Not impressed with the suction power. I bought one for my office and home and not as effective as I had hoped. It leaves alot of the dog hair on
the rug at home and freguently I have to make several passes at the office to pick up dirt, tiny bits of paper. Nice long cord.

I wanted to love this as much as I love my Shark rotator lift away vacuum. I can't say enough good things about that vacuum. Unfortunately this Rocket doesn't compare. The suction is less then what I wanted. The fact that the cord is attached to the base makes it awkward to dump, you have to bring the cord with you when you dump which to me is a major oversight by shark because this is a smaller container and you dump more often. I was considering returning this but figured it would be too much of a hassle. It does an ok job on my tile and hardwood but I wouldn't consider it for a main carpet vacuum.

I've had the vacuum for 18 months now. I purchased it because I had back surgery and needed a lighter vacuuming option. This was great, at first. I empty it frequently (at least once per room) and have cleaned the filters monthly as recommended. At about the year mark the suction seemed to be struggling at times and I had to start manually cleaning around the filter inside the canister because hair was getting stuck around it. Now at 18 months, every single time I use it, it has this loss of suction problem and I have to manually clean out the canister multiple times per room. I tried to contact the company since the product has a 5 year warranty, but that warranty only applies if you bought the vacuum directly from the company and not through Amazon. So I guess it was cheaper than a Dyson and was good while it lasted, but I expected more...

Waited a bit to dour my review to make sure I liked it .. it should be 3.5 stars .. I feel it could be more powerful. .a bit of a mess to clean out . Brush could be wider ....other than that I like it ez to use quite looks cool if it last more than 4 years I would buy again. . Hopefully by then it gets upgrades. .

This is a nice compact vacume that does a good job. It is easy to carry upstairs, and I like the wood floor attachment. The handle is heavier than I am used to and I have to switch hands in the middle of cleaning. It could be improved with a foot button quick release of the brush to reach small spaces, and retractable cord. Overall I am happy with the machine, just spoiled to perks.

The big plus is how long it runs before slowing down and losing suction. However, who knows how long it will continue to last as long as it does now. I don't like that you cannot replace the battery. I also wish the suction end was wider. I have to make many more swipes over the area I am cleaning than I had to with other dustbusters I have owned. I want to finish chores quicker, rather than have them take longer. I also find that the length is too short. I find I have to bend over further to reach the floor with the Dustbuster. This leads to back discomfort.

It's working, but it arrived dirty. Removed it from the plastic bag and the dirt canister already had dirt and dust in it. This was a gift, so I had to lie and say "oh maybe they tested it to make sure it worked". That is more of a seller thing. The product itself is working, no complaints from the person I gifted it to. They probably know I lied, but what else does one say to that?!

I purchased this vacuum due to the fact that it had a wall hanger and would be very easy to charge as well as hang when not in use thus saving space. Upon purchasing this vacuum I was very happy with the flexibility of the head, as well as the power it had. I came to realize it loses power after a certain amount of use or if the content being vacuumed is powder being that it clogs the filter where air goes through to suction. One of the biggest downfalls I found that pretty much disappointed me was that upon being hung in it's charging wall port, the vacuum would release dust or any content still inside the vacuum. Though I had inquired if this was something common, I purchased a second one to try and that one as well spills debris when hung in its normal position. This to me automatically disqualifies a vacuum in its use to remove debris and keep it from being released back.

The vibrations caused screws in the motor housing to become loose and the standard user will NOT be able to re-affix. Heard the rattlings and during trouble-shooting the motor burnt out. B&D promptly replaced the item no questions asked and no shipping hassle. Excellent Customer Service if yours doesn't last long like mine.

UPDATE: BATTERY IS DEAD and CANNOT BE RECHARGED NOR REPLACED. This is seven months before the two-year warranty is to expire. There seems to be no way to get warranty service on this through Amazon, so now I have to find a B+D dealer and waste time going there to find out what's wrong. Or, as they probably planned when they priced this items, it is cheaper to just buy another one. So now I have to either buy another of the same unit, which is the only one that I can find that pivots like this, or try a different model.Original review:I love this machine. It has good suction and I love the extra brush and crevice tools that are built in. I like the ease at which I can change the angle of the nozzle. It is easy to empty too. I have not had it long so I cannot speak to its durability but it seems well put together.

Except for one structural flaw, this was a good purchase and I'm glad we bought it. We use it every day to clean up cat litter and debris that the cats spread around, and for other light-duty clean-up. The battery charge duration is great, the unit seems to have great power and suction and it is hugely more convenient than dragging out the vacuum cleaner.HOWEVER - the hinge on the clean-out access door is woefully under designed. The small plastic pegs on the door that slot into the holes on the opposite side of the hinge of what Black and Decker calls the "Bowl & Nozzle" assembly have two very tiny connection points to the plastic door. After 10 months of daily use, the connection points evidently weakened and today when I opened the door to empty the debris, it came off in my hand. My wife and I have handled the vacuum with care, especially when taking it apart for cleaning, so I would assume that any rougher handling would have resulted in earlier failure.The Black and Decker parts website has the full "Bowl & Nozzle" assembly available (listed as "limited quantities available" - not sure what that means) for $17.33 + tax and econo shipping of $10.99. Its better than throwing away the whole thing and buying a new unit, but I'm pretty disappointed that an otherwise sturdy, reliable and useful device has this single point of weakness that, once it has failed, essentially makes the whole thing useless.I'm trying to repair the broken pegs with super-glue and the photo attached shows one peg reattached and the other awaiting glue.So, beware of this issue and handle the access door extremely gently or buy a second "Bowl & Nozzle" assembly for when the door breaks off.

Less then a year and the plastic hinge that holds the vac door broke again . This is the second one I've bought and had the same problem .

Has good suction (on wood and tile fioors) I have no carpet so someone else will have to comment on that. It is light weight.

No place to wind the cord unless you want to leave the roller brush attachment on. So if you want to take it partially apart to store - the cord is a mess. Of if you want the floor attachment on more often, still no place to keep the cord.

Wand has no adjustment - so it is either totally on or totally off (i.e. not in 2 pieces ) This is awkward for ceiling fans, baseboards etc where you want a little more reach that just straight up attached to the handheld unit, but can't step back the full length of the wand.

The dusting attachments are useless unless you want to dust a completely flat, level surface at with the handheld unit directly above. So it works ok for a table, but not for anything else. There is an bendable dusting attachment you can buy directly from shark, but it is $30 + shipping
If is very awkward to change the attachments once the wand is on because there is no way to set agains anything - this is a necessary part of the design but it requires a lot of bending.

Emptying the dust receptacle is not as good as on some other bag less models (hoover air, for instance). I am not sure why, but everything is stuck inside and I either have to stick my fingers in and pull the debris out or shake it vigorously . In any case, I have to clean up the area when I emptied the dust cup.

It looks like it would have be easier and more convenient than dragging out the canister for a quick pickup or light touch up, but it isn't actually .

This is the fifth shark product I have purchased for my home over the last five years. I love the shark navigator so much that I literally wore the wheels off of it. I had gotten my money's worth out of it so I didn't mind when I had to buy a second one a year later. When I wore the wheels off of that one I next tried the lift away model. I liked this vacuum ok, good suction easy lift away feature, but I didn't like the way the canister closed, it wasn't tight enough for me, however, my daughter loved it and is still using it today. Next I bought the sonic duo for my carpets and my floors . Love it! So when they offered the rocket I was elated to get one for my hardwood floors. I was sure it would have the Shark suction power that I was accustomed to with Shark products. I was very wrong, this thing wouldn't pick up a pine needle on the hardwood floor! And trying to vac the ceiling fans was somply impossible. Whis I had gotten another navigater.

I have a very hard time maneuvering this because the weight is all on the top near the handle. The dirt basket is also awkwardly located behind that motor on the top, so you have to lift the whole thing up to unclip the cup into the garbage can. This is something between a quick (cordless) stick vaccum (This has a cord), and a regular vacuum- but doesn't function as either very well.

The suction is not all that great. I have to continue to go over the same spot of my area rugs a few times. Not happy

Suction power very wimpy even when absolutely fully charged. And endurance of the battery unimpressive... maybe 25 minutes max.We have corded (plug-in-the-wall) slightly heavier and almost as compact old Eureka portable easyclean vac and were hoping with this being cordless it would be more convenient, but the Eureka kicks the butt of this (or, I guess, most any battery driven hand vac).., and for us well worth the minor hassle of plugging in the cord. This unit was very disappointing after reading the positive reviews. Maybe we just happened to get a wimpy one..... but I see many other negative reviews report similar experiences to ours. Add to that the fact that the power and endurance surely will get worse as it ages, and returning it was a no-brainer.I guess if you HAVE to have a hand vac in a location where there is no electric plug this might be useful despite its wimpy performance.

Seems like hand-held vacs are just meant to break within a year or two. In the past, it's always been the battery that would no longer hold charge. But with the lithium battery in this vacuum, it's still going strong a year later.We've had this vacuum just under a year. About 2 months, we noticed that the vacuum was getting louder and louder. Then today the vacuum was so loud that it hurt our ears. And when we would tip the vacuum, like to reach into a corner, the vacuum made a horrible sound and started emitting a terrible smell then start to sputter. Looks like the motor is self-destructing. It's still covered under the 2-year warranty, but now I have to drive an hour to the nearest B&D service center to see if they can/will repair it.Other complaints: As other reviewers mentioned, the dust door is junk, very hard to open, and then won't always stay closed. And as others have mentioned, the vacuum doesn't seem to suck properly unless the unit is perfectly flush to the floor, which makes it hard to use in corners.

B&D used to make great hand held vacs. What a disappointment!! I ordered this one to supplement my B&D PHV1800CB 18-Volt Pivoting-Nose Cordless Handheld which is excellent. I had imagined this 20v would be a little more powerful than the 18v but in this case there is no comparison. The PHV1800CB 18-Volt has markedly better suction and is quieter. I guess if you have never owned one of the older models you would not know the difference and this would pass as a good choice. I searched the web and here on Amazon and others must know how good the vPHV1800CB is because they are asking $172 used and over $300 new. This review may or may not be helpful since the other is not available at a reasonable price. So I am just saying do a little more research. As of now I cannot recommend this 20v.

I purchased this vac 13 months ago. It has excellent power for all light duty home needs. Recently I noticed it wouldn't stay charged. Disassembled the charging base and discovered that one of the contact strips had corroded completely through. Contacted Black and Decker's customer service on three separate occasions by e-mail and received "error" messages each time. Sorely disappointed.January 6, 2017 update: regarding the above I was contacted By Black and Decker customer service and they quickly replaced the charging station without cost. Thank you and I appreciate it. Now however, 2 weeks out of its 2 year warranty the vac. just died. Burnt machinery smell from the motor compartment which I assume is the lithium battery burning. Nonetheless I think it's still the best on the market and I'm ordering another. Kind of a shame though with modern products: I had a DustBuster that lasted 15 years in the "good old days"!

The unit I received was bad. Straight out of the box, the latch that holds the canister closed wouldn't consistently engage. That made it unusable.There are so many great reviews - I'm assuming my experience isn't typical. I chose to return the unit to Amazon and not get a replacement. If you have an experience like mine, remember that you have the option of return to Amazon or using the manufacturer's warranty.

Can't believe this one got so much of high reviews. Only pros I see on this vacuum is Lithium battery. It's definitely heavy for a handheld and weight is not well balanced at all. My wrist got ache within a minute of using it. Please check the pics posted by me, within a short usage, the suction power really went down since the plastic filter is completely clogged. I could never be able to get all the dirt out by just opening the lid. I got to use some tools and fingers to get that out. Plastic filter holes are so small and it gets clogged with small debris, sand. Even after forced water and brushing I couldn't able to completely clean it. I feel it will soon be completely clogged. It was described have a Crevice Tool but its not a real crevice tool, it just a extender and it will be large and you will have difficulty in getting in to the narrow gaps in the couch. Usually crevice tool have a angular end but this doesn't. You won't be able to use the brush with the extended tool option. I frequently end up accidentally pressing the button on the pivot arm while moving the arm and that lead to opening the bin and getting all the dirt dropped down and whole mess. They try to copy the Dyson handheld with so much flaws, Dyson worth the cost.

I don't know if it was damaged when I received it, but after using it twice the clip which secures the plastic dust container broke off. I have been trying to purchase a replacement part, but so far no luck.
I am using a piece of tape keep the lid closed when I use it.

Top heavy and awkward to use. Not happy at all with this product. Sorry for the low review.

Very hard to empty dirt container. You need three hands

It was just too heavy for me to use. All the weight is in the top end of the vacuum and I really strained my back using it. The suction was great on it but I don't want to get hurt everytime I use it. Have to send it back I hope I can find a lighter one.

Too heavy and awkward to use.

It was always loud but i didn't think anything of it. I've used it a half dozen times and noticed the filter seemed to always have to be reset. The thing now has seized. I should have sent it back when i thought it sounded loud but assumed it was in my head. Should have sent out back when the filter never seemed to stay in place. Now my window to send it back has passed. I do not believe it was operator error as out was loud from the beginning and i had to set the filter before i used it the first time. I think it was just defective and i was too stupid to realize the sound was too loud.

Used it maybe 5 times to clean up little spots in the kitchen and it completely burned out on me. Stunk up the whole kitchen. Complete garbage. And the return policy is no good.

This item worked OK for 5 months. I bought this on March 26 2016 and it worked till August 28th. I emptied the dust bowl and the pre-filter and filter fell out. I reinstalled them and from that point on this vacuum sounded like a jet taking off and it vibrated a lot. The filter was cleaned every week and the dust bowl after every vacuum job. This vacuum still works but the noise is so loud that I would need ear plugs to use it, it's that loud. I would not recommend this unit as it seems this is what happens when it fails as most of the negative reviews state. The suction was adequate but the main selling point for me was the lithium battery which didn't fade with usage.

Have had this Black and Decker 20 volt BDH2000PL for 15 months. Used on average once a week, decent performance. Yesterday it shows up dead as a doornail. Checked charger with a voltmeter, it's working fine. Checked battery with voltmeter ... zero. Put it back on the charger, charge light lit up as normal. Hour later the charge light was out which indicates a full charge. Unit still dead. Manual says to recycle battery but no mention of a replacement battery. Black and Decker web site parts section doesn't have a single word about batteries, like they don't even exist. Nothing on Amazon either. Paid $95 for this vacuum, in the trash can in 15 months, would have expected better than this. Will NEVER buy another Black and Decker product.

Update: 5/23/16 I changed my rating from 4 stars to 1 as the door for the vacuum fell off yesterday. I've attached a couple of photos. While the vacuum performed well and actually beyond my expectations it pains me to knock it down to 1 star. However, the door that fell off is obviously a critical part to the vacuum. If you look at the second picture with the close up of the two pieces of plastic that hold the door on you'll see that both sides snapped off where the plastic knobs fit into door. It looks like this was under engineered and under reinforced for such a critical component. The door needs to open multiple times during each use as the user unloads the garbage and then continues on so in reality this is the most used moving part on the entire machine and should have been built to withstand the abuse. Now comes the fun part of trying to get Black and Decker to fix or refund the vacuum.I was going to return this when I first got it since the suction was much lower than expected based on other reviewers claims and the manufacturers claims of strong suction. However, after use it turns out it has enough suction to get the job done. We have 1/4" shag carpet and stairs and this will clean up the visible stuff. The trick to making this device work (and my other recent vacuum purchase Eureka AirExcel Compact No Loss of Suction Canister Vacuum, 990A which I highly recommend) is a good and quick way to clean it. The manufacturer tells you to tap out the garbage and if needed was the hepa filter. While this will work it will still leave small dust and debris in areas that will require tweezers or pliers to get out. Washing the hepa filter requires drying which takes time. The answer is a blower to clean it. I bought this one a while back for my wood working Milwaukee 0884-20 M18 Compact Blower (Bare Tool) (I have big blowers, shop vac's, large wall mounted cyclone vacuum) and it is great for quickly cleaning this and the Eureka AirExcel. It'll blow out all the gunk stuck in the hard to reach places and blow the hepa filter clean. It's so easy that I clean after every use and sometimes after every few minutes during a big clean. So, a couple of other things about the vac. After the first charge I cleaned the stairs and our upstairs living room carpet on one charge. I've never had it run out yet. I've left it off the charger for a couple of days and it ran fine so not battery drainage going on when sitting idle. The biggest plus is my 6 year old thinks it's fun cause it's light and easy to operate so I'll find her cleaning with it without asking. Hope this helps someone out there make up their mind on this product.

This product has design flaws and really frustrates me after 40 days of use. I picked this one due to great customer rating, now I regret I did not return it earlier as it has pass 30 days. Despite all the "cool" functions such as rotating nozzle, powerful suctions and Lithium battery, there are some headaches to deal with using this vacuum:1. I use this vacuum mainly to clean out carpet on my car. I found out the the dirt or sand always get in the joint of pivoting nozzle. This leads to sticky joint and makes sound when I adjust nozzle angle. Dirts also by pass two filters and get in the motor. I opened the motor cover and found out the O ring is oversized. It is NOT sealing the motor from dust!!!2. Sand always get caught and stuck on the pre-filter, I used brush to try to get it off but failed. It is just a pain to clean pre-filter. Whoever designed this, please use you BRAIN!!3. The button that open the dust chamber gets stuck sometimes. I have to hammer it in order to get it loose.Anyways, this product is not properly engineered and does NOT last. I wish I saw all the bad reviews before buying this product. Think TWICE before placing your order.Attached photos shows the OVERSIZED O ring!