Miele Neptune Canister Vacuum

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 Avg. consumer rating = 81/100 

With a score of 81/100 from consumers the Miele Neptune stands out as a good example of a solid canister vacuum.  The Miele Neptune is lightweight, compact and powerful.  It is not a machine however for deep pile carpet but it excels when applied to low or medium-pile carpeting, area rugs and smooth flooring.

Consumers clearly like the Neptune as can be seen in the ratings below:

We've covered the S4 galaxy series vacuum cleaners in quite a bit of detail in previous reviews but we haven’t dug into each individual vacuum in the series.  And the Neptune is a good candidate to start with.  For those unfamiliar with the Miele S4 series it now consists of the Polaris, the Neptune and the Eclipse.

The Miele Neptune is manufactured in Germany and is powered by a 1200 watt motor.   It also has 6 different suction settings that are controlled by a rotary dial that sits on the canister (from 200 watts to 1200 watts).  This feature is liked by many consumers and it allows one to do heavy duty vacuuming as well as delicate vacuuming of items like curtains or expensive area rugs. 

The Neptune comes with two floor tools, the STB205-3 Turbo Comfort brush and the SBB300-3 Parquet Twister. The Turbo Brush is made for low to medium pile carpeting and has a brushbar that is made to rotate by the vacuum suction (it is not motor driven).  The brushbar is kept a consistent and optimal 1.5 mm from the carpet surface by four rollers.   The Parquet Twister is a bare floors brush with an extremely maneuverable head.  It uses both polyamide and natural hair to help clean wood, tile and other bare surfaces carefully.

The Neptune comes with several accessories including a dusting brush (made with natural bristles), a crevice tool and an upholstery brush.  Additional features include automatic power cord rewind (which consumers really like), a thermal shut-off that will turn off the motor if it begins to overheat, and a stainless steel telescopic wand.  A sealed-system also ensures that all of the air that enters the machine is passed through the “Air Clean filter” before it is exhausted.  The “Air Clean Filter” removes 94% of all particles with a diameter of 0.3 microns or larger.  The life of the “Air Clean Filter” is estimated to be the time it takes to go through 5 dustbags.  An optional HEPA filter can also be purchased for the Neptune.  A HEPA filter will remove 99.5% of 0.3 micron particles which includes many common household allergens. 

Keeping dust away from the user is a priority with Miele vacuums and the Neptune features an “AirClean” bag that is also a key player in the vacuum filtration.  The bag has 9 layers of electrostatically charged material that helps trap dust and it also comes with a self-sealing collar so that dust will not escape during a bag change.  The volume of the bag is 3.7 quarts and a dustbag change indicator on the vacuum tells you when a bag change is needed.

The Neptune weighs a paltry 14 lbs and also comes with a noise insulated motor.  Many consumers mention how incredibly quiet the vacuum is.  It is also a relatively compact machine and with dimensions (H x W x L) 8.25 x 10 x 19 inches, it is fairly easy to store.  Miele market the S4 vacuums as having an operating radius of 29.5 feet but a little digging indicates that the power cord is about 21 feet in length.  This is a little short and several consumer comments indicate that a longer cord would almost universally be preferred.  The Miele Neptune vacuum comes with a 1 year warranty on the vacuum and a 7 year warranty on the motor.

A review of consumer comments from several quality sites has indicated the following common vacuum likes and dislikes:

PROS
- Sturdy and well-built
- Suction control (can even vacuum delicate curtains on the lowest settings)
- Very quiet
- Expensive but worth every penny
- Extremely lightweight
- Retractable cord
- Very maneuverable
- Compact
- 7 year warranty on the motor
- Rubber wheels do not scratch floors
- Wheels turn very easily

CONS
- Power cord is a bit short
- Brushbar is not motor driven so not so effective on some carpets
- Bags somewhat pricey

Vacuum Manual
For those that want to learn more about the vacuum you may want to check out the Miele Neptune Owners Manual.