We currently have a Miele "pet hair" version upright. It's 1800W but the only fault is I cant get seem to train the cat or dog to use it. Instructions lost in translation from the German canine I guess.

The Telegraph in 2010 reported that the EU would limit vacuum cleaners to 500 or 750W (depending on the type). The story may have been false, of course. But if true, then this proposal has been watered down greatly.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/eu/7996383/Europe-to-cut-power-of-vacuum-cleaners-to-save-energy.html

According to that story, Dyson vacuum cleaners are among the most efficient, and average 1.2kW.

The Numatic Henry has a motor power of only 580W, and that machine is good enough for many professional cleaners.

I suspect that the power consumption of domestic vacuum cleaners has crept up to 2kW and beyond, for two reasons: (1) noise reduction and (2) trying to force the air through small bags with inadequate surface area. Why are the bags so small? Well, then you buy new ones more often But in fairness the manufacturers may be shrinking the bags to produce compact, manoeuvreable and lightweight machines.

I use a Numatic for building work. Our home machine is a Miele, smaller, quieter and using nearly four times the power. The Numatic bags are large, and heavy when full, but the motor doesn't have to work very hard to suck air through them. The bags are fairly expensive. But unless you are using the machine instead of a shovel to pick up heaps of rubble, they take quite a long time to fill up.

Posted By: fostertomWe had a white Panasonic and a broken black Panasonic. I put the hi-power bits and removeable panels from the black one into the white one - became Pandasonic.

Perfect, I must have one for my Bamboo flooring.

Be careful, It may try and eat it.

I thought that was yer average Aussie male, according to the Aussie gals I've talked to.

I recently bought (£26 on ebay) a Kirby Legend vacuum - it looks like the kind that you'd guess your great-grandmother might have had when the horse and cart with the vacuum engine on it stopped visiting. It weighs about 9kg, ear defenders are a must, and it would very likely suck the skin off a rhino.

It uses about 550W.

Posted By: ActivePassiveMy general view is that new vacuum designs will become more efficient quite quickly as a result of a move to largely battery powered cleaners.

Excellent point. I think the cordless transition is very close. From 'pah, it's just a Dust Bug' to 'why on earth did your electrician put a socket on the stairs?'