I have had a Platinum 10 days now
I wanted to have some time with the vacuum before I made comments about it, so that it might be grounded in experience rather than first impressions. A Miele Aquarius, the S5 model under the Capricorn, has been the daily machine since I bought it early 2008. It replaced a White Pearl after the motor went south. I began looking for a new vac a year after moving into a large mid-50's ranch style home. The rooms are big and the outlets are fewer than you would find in a new home. The Miele became a chore to use due always running out of cord, and I have never really liked the price of the bags.
After hearing positive comments about the Platinum, I decided to buy one. Both my local branches were out of machines, so I contacted David Smith in Winston Salem and bought one. He is an asset to Aerus, very pleasant to deal with! My experience has been very positive: solid construction, quality attachments, best gas pump hose out there, powerful suction (maybe too much for my needs), and excellent emissions. This is the only vacuum beside the Rainbow that does not cause my sinuses to act up.
Our house is 95% hardwood flooring so the power nozzle doesn't get a workout, but it performs well on the two Turkish rugs we have. I bought a 16" commercial horsehair floor brush that works nicely. You have to use the dusting brush adapter to make it work. It is more efficient for my purposes than the old style flip over floor tool.
The only deterent would be the leaking dust bags - I have only used the revised style in my machine and the filter is getting dusty. I don't think it is the paper leaking, but it is the disk or collar deforming under suction and allowing dust to escape. An official response from Aerus said as much. I believe that they will come up with a remedy to it. At any rate, no dust will make it through the HEPA filter into the motor, and I am satisfied with that.
Even though it is hard to get it all right on a first-run machine, Aerus has a winner in the Platinum. I don't find its shortcomings outweigh its advantages and I consider it an excellent machine. It won't make me sell the Aquarius, though. I will still use it on occasion...