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- High speed. High performance.
- Patented s-bag® allows maximum airflow to create optimum cleaning power.
- Washable HEPA filter captures 99.97% of dust, allergens and other irritants.
- On-board tools for convenient cleaning.
Superior performance with powerful suction. A motorized nozzle for deep cleaning all types of carpet. The large capacity patented s-bag® and washable HEPA filter offer superior dust containment. On-board accessories include dusting brush, crevice and upholstery brush, and bare floor brush.
Electrolux JetMaxx vs. Panasonic MC-CG917,
I had previously compared the Panasonic MC-CG917 to the MC-CG902, and established the the x917 made a bunch of small improvements over the x902 without regressing in any way, so let’s compare this Electrolux JetMaxx to the Panasonic MC-CG917.
Both are very similar bagged canister vacuums with a lot of similar features and design ideas. But each machine has shown me that the other is imperfect. Because I gave the Panasonic five stars, I feel I should do the same for the Electrolux. Here are the pros of each machine:
PROS for ELECTROLUX:
+ Definitely quieter. It may be similar decibel-wise, but from a sones standpoint – the loudness perceived by humans – it is much quieter. This equals less annoyance and less having to turn the television up when someone else is vacuuming. You can basically have a normal conversation over it, especially when the brush roller is not being used or by turning the suction down…
+ …which is another point. You can actually turn the suction down on the motor when desired, unlike the Panasonic, which just allows you to “waste air” by opening a hole on the side of the hose.
+ Smaller and lighter. Less bulky to carry around and less fatigue from doing so.
+ Cool holed crevice tool sucks also at the sides, allowing for good between cushion cleaning.
+ Unit becomes less hot, which is more comfortable to use.
+ Better light color (white instead of yellow), has LEDs showing height of brush, which is nicer than the rotary dial on the Panasonic.
+ Motor supposedly cuts off if something is caught in the brush. LED indicator alerts the user.
+ There is an extra joint in the main shaft which offers some more flexibility. I also like the hose rotation system off the canister better, and all the pieces disconnect easier. Both upright portions can fall over, but the Electrolux seems to have slightly better balance.
+ Looks a little cleaner, but that’s partly because there are less items on board.
PROS for the PANASONIC:
+ True on-board storage. I feel a little cheated when Electrolux says they have on-board storage, and then only two of the four tools fit on-board. The two that do fit on the Electrolux are the important ones and they fit right on the wand, which is nice, but the Panasonic allows all tools to fit in the canister part. Considering versatility and ability to easily use those tools is the whole point of a canister vacuum, I think this is a very important point.
+ Better dusting brush. Probably the most important tool has more bristles and seems more resilient. Although the Electrolux has a rubber insert to keep from scratching, I think the Panasonic is less likely to ever scratch.
+ Tools rotate on the suction head 360 degrees, where the Electrolux is limited by a keyed system.
+ Less expensive at time of writing.
+ More tools. Better options for cleaning stairs.
+ True(r) edge cleaning. Both devices have the suction inlet in the middle of the main vacuuming head, making the sides less efficient than the middle, but the actual brush on the Panasonic does go significantly further to the edge (it’s also a slightly wider head). The Electrolux says “edge cleaning” on the device, but once again I feel cheated, because I see no physical evidence to support that.
+ Head is slightly lower for getting under low furniture.
+ Slightly longer cord.
CONCLUSION:
Both products are of high quality and very similarly built, with a lot of similar features like extendable shafts and automatic cord wraps. Unfortunately, I can’t tell you which one to buy: while a lot of the pros above cancel each other out, I really value the quietness and lighter weight of the Electrolux. But on the other hand, the main point of a canister vacuum is the ease with which you can clean many different things thanks to the detachable wand and attachments. And in that case, the better dusting brush, rotating attachments, and the fact that everything rides on board is a big plus for the Panasonic. So which features are most important to you?
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|The ultimate vacuum cleaner,
I’ve been a huge Electrolux fan since about 2002 when I bought my first canister model. I bought it from an actual “vacuum cleaner dealership” (are these even around any more??) and paid over $500. It was the most expensive vacuum cleaner I ever bought.
It worked great until about 2009, when my housekeeper vacuumed up some snow and fried the motor.
So I bought another Electrolux, this time a canister model that cost about $300 and lasted until 2012– when a different housekeeper vacuumed up a wet floor after watering plants. The moral of this story (well, there are probably plenty) is that the Electrolux canister is not a wet-dry vac. In fact, water of any kind seems universally lethal to the canisters.
Anyhow, I bought my third Electrolux green last year and it works just as great as the others. It was significantly cheaper, which you can tell from the construction and weight of plastic– especially the hose.
This model (my 4th Electrolux), by contrast, is substantial and heavy-duty feeling. The attachment cleans carpet MUCH better than the others (which I primarily bought because of the hard floor cleaning function). It’s almost as quiet and just as easy to drag through the house (the egg shape doesn’t hang up on every single piece of furniture like the Hoover cyclonic) as all the others. I would have to say the carpet cleaning function and heavier duty construction are the main improvements of this model.
The cleaning head is heavier than the others. This is the first time I’ve left the cleaning head on the vacuum cleaner since the first model I bought. What I mean is, I really, really like the original attachment and have always just plugged it into the new vacuum cleaner, and put the newer wands in the closet. I probably wouldn’t have done that with this model just because the cleaning head/wand is so much better for carpet. I can’t do it because the attachment is different than the old Green model.
You can’t go wrong buying this vacuum cleaner if you have lots of hard flooring or lots of low pile carpet. I cannot say enough positive stuff about Electrolux products. They are really well-built and are such good vacuum cleaners for my hard floors. This one is one step above the rest as it still does hard floors but adds carpets to its repertoire.
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|Comparison of the JetMaxx with the Panasonic Optiflow and Miele midsize,
I’ve been using the same Miele S312 vacuum for about 15 years, and also have a Panasonic MC-CG917 “OptiFlow” Bag Canister Vacuum, so I was happy to get this to compare. I found it to be superior to the other (also HEPA) vacuums in terms of raw rug cleaning power, with a few issues.
* DOES IT SUCK?: In this case, Electrolux lives up to its name. Not only did the vacuum lift crud out of my entry rug that the Miele had missed, it lifted the entry rug. But much of this is the “Power Nozzle” floor tool, which is an appliance in its own right.
* FORM FACTOR: All three of the vacuums consists of a small-ish teardrop-shaped body containing the motor and bag, along with a hose, extendable wand, and various cleaning heads. All three have hoses that do 360-degree rotation. The hose bearing on the Miele is metal (not sure if that’s true for the newest models), on the other two it’s plastic. The hoses on the Electrolux and Miele are corrugated polyethylene, which on the Miele has lasted 15 years. The hose on the Panasonic appears to be vinyl over wire. The Miele wins here, with the Electrolux a close second.
* ATTACHMENTS: Both the Panasonic and the Electrolux have a powered floor tool, with a light and beater bar. (This model Meile has just an unpowered wide broom head with a pile height adjustment – the other two have plain unpowered broom heads as well). The Panasonic also has a small turbine floor tool that’s perfect for stairs. All three have the typical upholstery tools. The Panasonic turbine tool is a major plus, but the floor tool on the Electrolux feels quite a bit more substantial. (I would totally buy an optional stair tool if Electrolux had one).
*ERGONOMICS: The Electrolux has its on-carpet/on-floor/off switch on the wand handle, as does the Panasonic (for the Miele it’s on the vacuum body). The Electrolux also has an intensity wheel on the vacuum body, as does the Miele (the Panasonic has none). All three have a foot-friendly pile-height lever on the floor tool as well. The wand release on the Electrolux floor tool is also foot-friendly, which is a bonus. Point to Electrolux.
* WEIGHT: The Electrolux weighs a bit over 21 pounds with all the attachments (including a little mesh bag I’m now using to store some of them). Almost half of this, however, is the floor tool and wand. The Panasonic weighs about 24 pounds with all the attachments on board, and the floor-tool-plus-wand weighs more than seven pounds. The Miele weighs about 19 pounds, but the (unpowered) floor-tool-plus-wand is only about three pounds. This is a mixed bag. On the one hand, the Electrolux will be easier to carry around if you’re only using the smaller attachments (the body is really quite light), on the other hand the floor tool is a beast. This is mitigated somewhat by the floor tool’s wheels and power bar, which at one point tried to take off without me.
* LOUDNESS. All three vary depending on attachments and intensity setting. The Panasonic is by far the loudest of the three. The Meile is quietest, but has a higher pitch than the Electrolux. Sorta like the difference between a Vespa and a Harley. Again, the powered floor tool makes noise all on its own.
* STORAGE. It is here that the Electrolux loses. Unlike the other brands, the Electrolux attachments aren’t stored in the vacuum body – two are clipped onto the hose handle (which is actually quite convenient), and for the rest you’re on your own (which is not). In addition, if you set the Electrolux floor tool down with the wand attached and extended, it falls over. The other two brands have a little notch on the vacuum body that the end of the wand fits into to keep everything together. The Electrolux has a notch, which got my hopes up, but there’s nothing that fits into it. Am I missing an adapter ring? Are they using the same body chassis for several different models? I have no idea, but I’ll have to remember to collapse the wand when I’m done.
Overall, I found this to be superior at cleaning high-traffic carpets when compared to the other two models. The storage issues are annoying but not a deal-breaker. If you don’t have wall-to-wall carpeting (which will benefit greatly from the “Power nozzle” floor tool), however, it may not be worth the price.
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