Superb quality, great power, and very quiet

I'm one of those people who likes to thoroughly research major purchases. Since you are reading this, I would say that would describe you as well. Anyway, vacuum cleaners (or at least GOOD vacuum cleaners) are major purchases. If you are looking at the Bissell 5770, then you probably have looked at more expensive alternatives like the Dyson models. Well, this Bissell is a much better purchase than any of those Dyson's.

This thing has a lot going for it. Right out of the box you notice the quality build - which, unfortunately today, is increasingly hard to find. Even the feel of the plastic conveys quality. The unit IS pretty heavy - but I think thats a good thing. A vacuum is only as good as its motor and a good motor is going to weigh a good bit. The fact that Bissell provides a 5-year warranty seems to indicate you can expect years of good service.

ASSEMBLY:
The thing is pretty much ready to go out of the box. Just pop in the upper handle, screw in ONE screw, attach the hose, hang the accessory power brush, non-powered V-shaped brush attachment, and wand in their appropriate places, and you are done.

ONCE YOU TURN IT ON:
While plugging it in you first notice how LONG the power cable is. This was a pet peeve I had of the unit I retired. This is the longest power cord I think I've seen on a vacuum. It does not automatically retract, which would be nice, but its been my experience that those retraction systems tend to break after not much time. The next thing you notice, when you turn it on, is how quiet the unit is. I mean it is VERY quiet. I would guess this thing makes less than a third of the noise of the unit I replaced. You could easily talk to someone while vacuuming. In fact, when I first turned it on it was so quiet it was a bit disturbing. How could something so quiet be doing a good job??? Rest your mind, this thing cleans wonderfully. My carpet, which I thought was pretty clean already, was - obviously - not. The Bissell picked up a tremendous amount of dirt. It didn't take too long to fill the basket. Emptying the basket in the trash was very easy - and much less messy than my old bagless unit. If you have a pet I can imagine fur could cause debris to accumulate in the narrow space and it might be a bit harder to empty - but, still, this thing is about as simple to empty as a bagless can be. My carpet is pretty old - and was fairly cheap carpet the previous homeowner installed to make the home more marketable; however, the vacuum was able to life the pile and make the carpet look very nice indeed.

NICE FEATURES:
* Two buttons - one for power and another right beside the power button for the brush. Makes it very easy to go right from the carpet to hardwood floors.
* The unit has a nice light to illuminate dark areas and make anything on the carpet easy to spot.
* A very long hose and a powered brush. It made it easy to clean my staircase. I could go way to the very top of the stairwell.
* Supposedly, the belt on the unit is a "lifetime belt." Of course, I can't vouch for this yet - but my previous vacuum ate belts and often my home stunk with the smell of burning rubber.
* HEPA filter. Yes, they are expensive to replace, but they do a wonderful job filtering the exhaust. Especially if you have allergies, you should strongly consider a unit with a HEPA filter.

NEGATIVE FEATURES:
* Like I said earlier, this thing is heavy. While I don't think this is a bad thing (but, to me, an indicator of quality), some - particularly those who are elderly or who have limited strength - might find the thing too heavy to push for long periods, and might especially have problems if they have to carry the unit up and down stairs.
* HEPA filter expensive to replace. This is a necessary evil for almost all units with HEPA filters. Bissell recommends changing the filter every six months. If you go longer than this, you will perhaps notice a loss of cleaning ability. The filter runs (at the time I wrote this) about $21.00. This isn't TOO bad, especially when you consider you don't have to buy belts for the unit.

CONCLUSIONS:
I consider this a solid choice for those who want a quality vacuum cleaner. Its solid, well made, cleans well, is easy to use, has a number of thoughtful features, and is extremely quiet.