Bissell 5770 Bagless Upright Cyclonic Vacuum

When my bagged Hoover died finally after 10 years this past December, my husband went to the store to get another. He brought home this Bissell instead. I was a bit annoyed, but gave it a try anyway.
I was initially very pleased with the machine. I had good suction, and seemed to pick up a lot of dirt and pet hair. As time has gone on though, more and more things have bothered me with it.
First, the lack of a plain upholstery attachment. I have places I want to vaccuum, like under the guinea pig pen, that I don't want to use the turbo brush for. The turbo brush is noisy and has a tendency to get jammed if something a bit bigger goes into it. Then you have to take the thing apart to clear it and then reassemble. It is a pain, and having a plain upholstery attachment would be much easier.
Second, the storage of the turbo brush, and its own sturdiness. Although you can store the brush on the front of the vaccuum where it is easily accesible, there is no way to latch it in securely. It relies on a small slot in the brush and a small lip on the plastic to secure it in. It is very easy to knock off and eventually, it will break. Well, mine broke and broke that little slot so the brush would not stay in, at all. Once it wasn't on the machine it sort of became out of sight, out of mind. The piece doesn't do me any good sitting in the closet.
Third, the location of the power switch and the brush on/off switch. They are both in a spot where it is easy to inadvertently turn them off or on. Not a huge draw back, but again, a pain.
Fourth, the weight and balance of the machine is terrible. It feels very heavy for a modern vaccuum. I am glad I don't have carpet upstairs as I would not want to have to try and get this machine up there. And the balance on it is terrible. It tips at the drop of a hat when you are using the hose. Now the hose and telescoping wand give you a good reach, but I can't count how many times this has tipped over when I was trying to reach a corner cobweb. In fact, this is how the turbo brush first broke.
Lastly, after less than a year of service, my beater bar will turn off right after you start it. It is not doing this constantly, but it is getting worse over time. I am not sure if its the motor or a stuck or sprung switch, but you would think it would last longer than just a year, especially when you spend over $250 for a vacuum.
I do like the hepa filter , the fact that the belt is sealed and it does have good suction. Being able to turn on and off the beater bar is really nice, but I am not sure I would spend the money again on this machine without Bissell having done some re-engineering on it.