D1994..
I think they're all great for the price!
I really liked the original model.. I wanted to try the evolutions!
Part of the reason I ended up with the model that you own, is because when I saw it in stores, I noticed the brushroll was more aggressive than the Air Pro. The Air Pro is great in most applications, but on thin (particularly cheap, in my case) rugs, the Air Pro literally glues itself to the carpet. It comes to a screeching halt, and the only way to make the carpet cleanable, is to adjust the 'floor/tool' dial, so that it cuts off enough airflow from the base, to become movable again (Hoover has been combating this complaint from consumers, by saying things like "We made that machine, with POWER in mind!"). It's a glaring issue! I found an Air Steerable for a bargain, and decided I wanted to see if I would like it more.
In the end, the original is still my favorite. I like how compact the machine is. Cleaning a car out with the Air is about as easy as it gets (with a modern upright). The mid-range model has the best brushroll for carpeting, but the hose setup is much better on the Pro, and it has more suction. The Air Pro is higher-maintenace, thanks to a surprisingly-inferior multi-cyclonic filtration setup. This is due to a cyclone exit chamber, that doesn't give most of the cyclones the necessary room, to spit out the dust they're trying to filter from the air-stream.
Sebo_fan, I think the Vax equivalents look pretty nice! I was dismayed when they first introduced the new Hoover Airs, because I thought the Air3 looked so much cooler. America's first Air model was almost a direct copy of the Vax Air Reach, and it has been a big success here for Hoover. Hoover was a company here which not too long ago, proudly advertised the "S.U.V. of Vacuums," with the enormous and flawed Hoover Z.
