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From the Indesit website:

"washing and drying

Indesit Company’s plants produce over five million units every year, all designed to meet consumer needs, safeguard the environment and comply with user safety standards. Its development of appliances that ensure optimum performance with minimum expenditure of energy, water and time, and also offer an impressive array of garment care options, enables the Company to maintain its outright leadership in the washing sector in Europe: every year, out of every 100 washing machines and dryers sold in Europe, 20 are Indesit Company’s. Two of the four washing product plants are in Italy, in Comunanza (Ascoli Piceno) and Teverola (Caserta), the other two being in Radomsko (Poland) and Lipetsk (Russia).
All of Indesit Company’s dryer production is concentrated in Yate (UK), while dishwashers are made in Radomsko (Poland)."

As a brand, I read that the name Creda is part of the Glen-Dimplex ever-expanding portfolio.

http://www.indesitcompany.com/inst/en/vision/indesit_nel_mondo/lineeprodotto.jsp
 
Good info Benny, at least Indesit are keeping production in Europe, rather than China. Regarding Glen Dimplex - they are an Irish company, who started out producing heaters, but as you say, they have taken over a fair few companies, including Creda, Lec and Morphy Richards, but I don't know where they manufacture them.



http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glen_Dimplex
 
They manufacturer from all over and they source goods from others too. Although Beko produce a vast range of products under their own name, a good deal of their production is for others, including, I believe, some Glen-Dimplex owned brands.
 
Arent Beko made in Turkey?


 


I know Morphy Richards use other companies products - they have the Lift away vacuum cleaner in their name, which is really a Shark product.


I would be interested to know who makes Morphy RIchards microwaves and where they are made, as I was trying to find a new freestanding combination microwave that isn't made in China, and not being very successful
 
Beko were always Turkish, yes, I have heard nothing to say this has changed. May I ask why you mentioned this? Genuine question on my part. No sarcasm.

Interesting what you say about microwave ovens. This is an excellent example of a product which can do so much, yet the appetite (no pun intended) of the consumer drove production almost entirely towards an affordable metal box which can reheat cooked food and cooked processed meals etc. rather than the original forecast back in the late 1970's or so when it was suggested that a microwave oven could well take the place of the domestic cooker. Though it's clear that it is possible to make such a thing, it's also clear that it's not what the consumer wants.

I suppose with a "decent" model being available for around £50 or so, we can't ask or indeed expect much service from it. And yet back in the day when domestic microwaves first became available, no one would have predicted for a moment that they'd ever become "disposable" items.
 
I found out myself only recently that Beko were Turkish, and it was a surprise as I thought they were another Chinese made brand.


 


I use my microwave more than any other kitchen appliance with the exception of my kettle. I use it to cook ready meals, chips, pasties etc as its a very versatile machine, and my gas oven is pretty redundant now, as I prefer to use the oven facilty in the microwave. Sadly the quartz grill tube got broken, and I was looking at updating the machine as its now 8 years old and the turntable motor is also getting noisy and jerky. Its an LG model made in Korea. I read so many reviews of different models, from Samsung to Panasonic, and was surprised at how many negative reviews I was reading due to poor quality issues about these machines, which were mostly made in China now. Only Miele make a good quality free standing microwave in Germany, but its not a combination oven, and £500 odd.


I have decided to order a new quartz tube and synchronous motor for the LG, as I am not impressed with the current offerings of cheap rubbish made in China. That old LG model has done me proud for 8 years, so I might as well use it until the magnetron fails.
 
Well its like bread makers - my mother's 15 year old Panasonic cost her £200 brand new - now you can get ones for £50 which is crazy!

If however there is one "domestic" appliance brand name that I feel has slipped in quality big time, it is of that of Sony. Sony audio products used to be the best to buy in terms of sound quality and power.

As soon as Sony changed manufacture from Japan to Malaysia in the early 1990s I noticed a huge drop of sound quality as well as general design.
 
Negative reviews

Ah well you see, there is so much in life now where the consumer pays a 1-star price yet expects a 5-star product or service in return.

Somethings are of course a given; a smile from a hotel receptionist and a warm, clean room is the very least one could expect, be this in a Travelodge or Claridges. Likewise a product should perform it's core purpose, no matter how much one pays. But beyond that, what else one gets could be considered to be subjective and indeed even a bonus. These days few people pay much for the likes of a microwave, but their expectation of all aspects of it is as high as ever.
 
I am prepared to pay up to £300 for a combi microwave, but I refuse to pay that much and its still made in China. The problem is that the choice that we had a few years ago seems to have dried up, and you either have a new Chinese made microwave, or fix your old one, and after experiencing terrible quality of Chinese made goods from faulty Vax vacuums to my latest £150 office chair that's falling apart already, quite frankly I'm sick and tired of wasting my money on Chinese tat.
 
I agree Benny and well said!

I have a Panasonic combo oven. The one before that was Panasonic and the one before that was the cheap Argos-Delonghi model.

Well, the "Japanese" made Panasonic with a conventional door didn't last even when the oven was treated gently. There was also a product recall about it, which Panasonic took away quite happily, fixed and worked for a couple of years before it suddenly began to go strange with its oven element. Then, inexplicably one day, the inner glass door fell out and then the door housing that held that in, began to fail.

My current Panasonic has a flat floor design and pull down door. It is better made and guess what - it is made in China!

The Argos Delonghi, now in its seventh year is STILL going strong and is used in a holiday home.

BUT, I am beginning to wonder that with the weekly use I put my TOL Panasonic model through, perhaps I should be investing in a basic fan assisted main oven rather than continually using the Panasonic purely for its convection/fan assisted oven. I don't know if they are designed to be used so much.

Therefore I don't know if MY EXPECTATION of use of it is too high.
 
It came as a surprise to me that Panasonic were now producing their goods in China, as previously, they used to make them in Japan, or even the UK.


I note that Japan no longer produce as much as they used to - why might that be?


My car - a 1999 Toyota Yaris was made in Japan, and its still going strong, despite hardly ever breaking down and it now being 15 years old. Japanese goods were very good in the past, but UK model Toyota Yaris models haven't been made in Japan now for several years, being made in France instead.
 
Panasonic produce in many Asian countries though, not just China and there are several premium brands who do likewise. Again it is the brand who concentrate on what they want to produce rather than what they need to produce and dependent on the company ethic, quality sometimes gets the top spot instead of quantity, though in terms of vacuums, Panasonic in the UK certainly took their time about it to get a new bagged upright out alongside their current series that has been going on for more than 10 years.

Geographically though Japan is smaller than China and the Yen has a much stronger force than the Chinese currency, there are only so many factories that Japan can have. Parts in China are cheaper to source, so go and figure there.
 
I'd have bought one of the new Panasonic bagged uprights, had it not been for the price of the bags, which was the killer in the end. Whilst I think its a nice slim line looking vac, paying £14.99 odd for  bags for one takes the mick, especially when they are only paper bags and not a patch on the Miele Hyclean bags:

[this post was last edited: 3/10/2014-14:52]

madabouthoovers++3-10-2014-14-38-10.jpg
 
Um, they're not paper bags. Don't know where you got that info from at all. That Panasonic uses synthetic dust bags (code U-13) that cost £5-99 to £10 dependent on seller. Review on Amazon UK (mine!) and prices now range from £5-49 for a pack of 5 from First4Spares. They lack a seal, that's all.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/review/RU4UDCYLHT8AC.
 
As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases.
As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases.
Also the U-13 synthetic dust bags by Panasonic are also made to fit the bagged upright that appeared before the red upright, the MCUG614, which the U.S have under the Kenmore "Progressive Glide" too.

Panasonic's general code for the synthetic dust bags is AMC-D1EP.

sebo_fan++3-10-2014-15-07-1.jpg.png
 
Well, Freenet are just a private company trying to make some money and if buyers are reigned in by that price and free bag offer, let them!

They are not the first company to do so - again, this is what happens when buyers make a search for products and things like that appear. You need to know your salt from your pepper.

As I say in the video and shown up at the end, that Panasonic is made in Mexico. But if you watch the video you'll see that the plastics aren't exactly "quality."
 
I know we've discussed the MC-UG522 before, and I'm sure that back then I said the same thing about the bags being expensive considering they are only 3 litres. Take the Sebo K series, which is also 3 litres - they are the same price, but you get twice as many bags in a box, and they are fabric bags as well.


If Panasonic wanted to sell these vacs, then they should take into account the price of competitors bags. The older Panasonic uprights with bags held nearly twice as much dirt per bag, so made them more economical. I am pretty critical of things like this as you may have now found out, and they are most likely losing sales on these vacs on account of the price of the bags, as at the end of the day, they are not Miele vacs and the bags Panasonic supply are not multi layer Hyclean type bags like Miele sell for the same price.
 
Yes but for the same argument's sake, the best Miele bag for the British pound is the bigger GN series, so you're spending more on either an outgoing S5 model to use that bag, or the cheaper S2 compromising on the lack of an internal tool storage and slightly longer cord and less power, to the new S8 successor model which is more expensive.

Therefore you could eliminate the S6 altogether for having the FJM bag which costs the same as the GN but losing out on the smaller dust bag capacity.

As highlighted before SEBO only make vacuums, so comparing another brand like Panasonic isn't really that fair - fine if it was Numatic - they and SEBO are together in terms of unique vacuum cleaner brands - after all they don't really make anything else that competes with the bigger brands, let alone Panasonic.

Frankly Steve, if you are of the opine that a thin synthetic dust bag that Panasonic supply (interestingly they share the same kind of consistency with both the K series, Felix and now new X bags) are not as good as multi layer, then you clearly don't know the mechanics of air flow and the mechanics of the vacuum cleaners in question.

Miele's vacuums have higher filtration layers because they've always done multi-layer and in some markets the AAC and HEPA filter cartridges are not available as single purchases. Therefore, lower models down the range only benefit from the Super Air Clean filter/standard filter and thus require the higher filtration layers to depend on.

SEBO's current synthetics have tightly packed layers that are not visible to the eye unless you cut the bag open and examine the layers in question. You'll have fun trying to pick it out amongst all the white fuzz, I can assure you!

Panasonic's synthetic dust bags actually have 5 layers of filtration. Coupled with the HEPA filter on board for a lower economical 1200 watt vacuum compared to Panasonic's standard (and May I just say) lower 3 ply paper bags for the 1900 watt uprights is more than sufficient.

You are trying to compare like with like, but what you forget is the high price of the SEBO K series, plus it being a cylinder vac with an air driven turbo brush at best or even the PN, means you're likely to spend more to actually buy the vacuum in question.

Though I paid £114 at the time for my Panasonic upright, the price of nearly 50% off now really isn't that much to moan about. I can't see any Miele or SEBO brand new going for £70, can you?

And whilst we are on the subject of synthetic dust bags, has Hoover launched any for their Purepower/Enigma uprights?
 
Hoover did used to make a Purepower S Bag, back in the day, but not any longer. Oh, and I'm a middle aged man, so its my job to moan lol.


Miele vacs have nearly been as cheap as £70, with the S2 being sold for £99 not so long back. The K series is on Freenet from as little as £125, so they are not all that expensive in comparison, in fact, its a really good deal!


I think on this occasion we will just have to agree to disagree on this subject - no hard feelings.


 


Sebo K1 for £124.99: 



http://www.freenetelectrical.co.uk/sebo/vacuum-cleaners/k1airbelt-9660k1/product-737/
 
End of day it is simpler than you think.

No hard feelings at all - but in a home requiring something compact with the same amount of power cord with a permanent brush roll - the Panasonic merits because it IS an upright vacuum cleaner.

Clearly Panasonic have thought about it wisely offering something with a smaller bag capacity than their white/black uprights with higher motor power and bag capacity just as SEBO have done with their X series versus Felix.

Both the SEBO K1 and Miele cylinders would be better rivals to consider because, after all, they ARE cylinder vacuums and both don't benefit from the added turbo brush as standard, which you'd have to spend £25 to £30 on top of the asking price on both of those German models, substantially taking out all consideration price wise versus Panasonic, anyway!
 
Oh I agree totally that the Panasonic at the sale price of £70 is a very good deal - its cheaper than the older Hoover Purepower, and much more modern looking. I may still consider one for £70 - I was looking at the bagless version of this model, with the twin motors- the MC-UL426, now I do like the design of this model, and if the bagged model had the twin motor switchable brushroll, it would be a definite buy for me.


 


MC-UL426:

madabouthoovers++3-10-2014-17-51-40.jpg
 
I would be more inclined to go for the bagless version of that red upright, the MC-UL424. It is £89 on Amazon UK compared to £116 for that black version.

Has a brush roll on/off pedal too.

However, the Panasonic's main problem, regardless of whether it is bagless or bagged is that it is like the DC01 - it has a pivotal hinge - so whatever angle you hold the handle at, it won't always sweep the floor at the correct height.

Sorry to say, if I was going to go for bagless again it would probably be from the Vax empire. I haven't had problems with my past Mach Air models, so its win-win for me.

sebo_fan++3-10-2014-18-01-21.jpg.png
 
The reason I'd go for the black model is that it has a separate brushroll motor, much like the Vax Mach Air, whereas the white model uses the main suction motor via a clutched pulley system to drive the brushroll.


I still like the design of the original Mach Air - its a very good machine, and has sold a hell of a lot of units for Vax - but its the patchy quality control that let it down - which we have discussed already at length.
 
Check previous post if you haven't seen it - a U.S member found their version (in black and purple) though it is interesting to see there's get a much more reliable metal suction tube compared to the all plastic on the UK versions.

http://www.vacuumland.org/cgi-bin/TD/TD-VIEWTHREAD.cgi?24122_5

Frankly though, Im happy with what I've got -the Slalom is probably going to be the last bagless upright I will own.
 
If it is of any help

I happen to know that the Numatic Henry dust bag fits that red Panasonic cleaner perfectly around the collar. You just have to tuck the edges in. The Qualtex version of the Henry bag is a perfect fit in every way, as it's quite a bit smaller in size and fits inside the cleaner with no bother.
 
Does it really Benny? Those Henry Hepaflo bags are massive - 9 litres AFAIK. and they are good value too at about a tenner for 10.


 


Nar - I really like the US version of the Panasonic in black and purple - those colours go really well together. I see them dissing Chinese plastivacs on that side of the pond as well! lol
 
Yes really. I know someone who has that exact same cleaner and they also have a Henry. They tried the bag and it fits the collar like a glove. Like I said, you just have to fold in the sides of the bag, but the beauty of these synthetic bags is that the air seems to penetrate from every available angle, unlike paper bags which don't like being folded over and which do of course also clog when dusty.
 

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