Hi Stephen,
I too bought the North American 120volt version of the Electrolux UltraSilencer Green (model 6984A)....and I love it! For the money, it is the best non-carpet home cleaner on the market.
As many of you know, I use Consumer Reports testing a lot to help me save time and money in my purchases. I sold my stainless steel Hoover Constellation because I could not get used to having its exhaust blow the dirt on the floor around before I could suck it up. And so 2 years ago I went on the hunt for a canister vac that could do everything but carpets well (my Hoover Tempo does an excellent job on my carpets).
The Consumer Reports website has a feature which allows you to filter out tested vacuums which don't meet your specific standards. I set the filters for "very good" or "excellent" test results for the following - bare floor cleaning, airflow through the hose for tool use, noise, filtration, ease of use. I left out the following categories - carpet cleaning, pet hair removal - neither of these mattered to me. I then sorted the resulting 9 vacs by cost from least expensive to more expensive.
What I ended up with was the Electrolux UltraSilencer Green EX6984A at the very top of the list (least expensive) and in number 2 place was the Miele S2120 Olympus in white (similar to the red Miele Contour in Canada sold at Canadian Tire for CAD$400).
Both of these vacs have "very good" test results in the category of "hose airflow for tool use" which to me is the primary reason you would by a canister vacuum cleaner. Most canisters seem to do excellent on "bare floor" cleaning these days so it's really not a factor.
So why did I choose the Electrolux over the Miele? First, it was $50 cheaper than the Miele....I bought it for CAD$350 at a local vac store in Toronto. The Miele is always being sold for CAD$400 here in Canada. Second, I actually think the Electrolux has a 7-foot hose when you include the foot long hose handle at the end. Third, the Electrolux is quieter than the Miele believe it or not! Even on the high power setting, I can listen to music or carry on a telephone conversation while vacuuming. On low power, the sound of air rushing through the hose is actually louder than the motor's noise. Finally, I chose the Electrolux because the hose end has a standard diameter and can take any standard attachments. The dusting brush does not have a thick enough set of soft bristles for scratchfree furniture dusting but I can easily fit a nice Sears Kenmore dusting brush with real horse-hair bristles onto the Electrolux hose for dusting. In upholstery nozzle mode, the Electrolux combo tool is great! The adjustable wings make it extremely efficient to dust the "ridges" and folds of draperies and curtains.
This Electrolux also has a washable HEPA exhaust filter which is nice to have.
My only gripe about the UltraSilencer Green is that there really is no on-board tool storage like the Miele. The combo tool hangs precariously on a clip on the hose handle and there is no provision whatsoever for the little crevice tool. This is astonishing considering both are very small and light and could have fit nicely in a tool compartment on the canister itself. But not a big problem for me - I have always used a separate box for all my vac accessories and I use a covered Rubbermaid plastic file box to hold all the tools and my vacuum bags and filters and belts for my Hoover. I plan to buy a little Electrolux turbo nozzle which will go there as well.
I love the "Dust Magnet" carpet/floor nozzle on this vac! The neck articulates beautifully so that it stays flat on the ground no matter what angle you have the wand, and the internal floating suction channel actually does a pretty good job of cleaning surface litter off carpets! Consumer Reports rated this vac as having "good" carpet cleaning ability in competition with other power nozzle canisters. So it's actually quite useful to do the little mat inside my entry door and to even dust my bed's comforter in a few passes.
It's important for all to understand that Electrolux now uses the label "UltraSilencer" on a variety of canister vac models that are not even similar to the EX6984A. The black UltraSilencer Green we are talking about in this thread is almost identical in body style and form to what we in North America know as the Electrolux Harmony - sold at first in North America in dark orange, then in silver/lime green at Lowe's. For some reason, Consumer Reports tests show better airflow for tool use on the black version compared to the orange and silver/lime green Harmony version. So if you can find this black one made of the recycled plastic, you'll get better airflow for above the floor cleaning.
I am really pleased with this Electrolux! It's a pleasure to use! Here is a video clip of someone using 220volt European version - model ZUSG3000:
