Kenmore 600 Series Canister Vacuum
Verdict
The Kenmore 600 Series Canister Vacuum pairs strong cleaning performance with a powerful Pet Powermate tool, longer hose, and convenient handle-mounted controls plus onboard tool storage. It is heavier and more expensive than the 200 Series, so it makes the most sense for pet owners and convenience-focused buyers who will really use the extra tools and are willing to pay a bit more for them.
Pros
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Carpet — High-Pile Pickup ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 2 reviews 5.0Provides excellent cleaning on thicker carpets, with its powered head and strong suction working effectively even on shag and other high-pile surfaces.
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Suction & Airflow ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 3 reviews 4.5The 600 Series delivers strong suction in the low-20s kPa range and, when paired with its powered head, provides robust real-world pickup and deep carpet cleaning that closely matches the 200 Series.
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Carpet — Medium-Pile Pickup ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 2 reviews 4.3On medium pile carpet, the 600 Series delivers solid cleaning power and handles fine sand very well—matching the 200 Series in tests—though its older powerhead design can snowplow cereal and leave a bit of cat litter and pet hair behind compared with the best-engineered canister heads.
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Controls & UI ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 2 reviews 4.3Controls on the 600 Series are straightforward, with a clearly labeled carpet and hard floor switch and an on handle variable speed dial that make it easy to change power and floor type while you clean.
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Pet-Ready Features ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 3 reviews 4.2For pet owners, the 600 Series combines decent pickup from its main powerhead with a dedicated Pet Powermate tool that can deep clean cat trees and upholstery better than most cordless tools, though hair still tends to wrap on the main brushroll and some units report the small powered tool stalling or failing over time.
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Accessories & Tools ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 3 reviews 4.0The 600 Series offers a generous tool set that includes a dusting brush, crevice tool, Pop N Go floor tool, and a powerful Pet Powermate upholstery tool that can deep clean pet furniture, but the hard floor head is undersized and uses a proprietary fitting and the small powered tool has been reported to stall and even fail early, so overall versatility is tempered by some design and reliability compromises.
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Cord management ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 3 reviews 4.0The 600 Series includes a retractable cord that winds fully into the canister to cut down on cord clutter, and while its spring feels stronger than on the 200 Series the rewind is still slow, requires holding the pedal, and works best when the cord is pulled completely out first, so cord management feels more fussy than on many competitors.
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Overall durability/longevity ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 3 reviews 4.0Although the 600 Series continues a long running Kenmore canister design and some users report many years of use, technicians point out taped together internals, non modular wiring that limits the number of viable repairs, and accessory tools that can fail early, suggesting that long term durability and serviceability are more modest than its heritage alone would indicate.
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Filtration / Dust Containment ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 3 reviews 3.8While the 600 Series uses a multi-stage bag and HEPA exhaust layout that performs like a truly sealed system in recent leak tests and keeps fine dust inside the canister, technicians have noted that the bag and housing do not always form a perfect seal and cabinet dust can build up over time, so real-world filtration is excellent overall but not flawless.
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Price & Value ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 3 reviews 3.8Often selling under three hundred dollars, the 600 Series can represent fair value for shoppers who catch it on sale and want more power and pet tools than most big-box vacuums, but reviewers note that the 200 Series delivers similar cleaning for less and that better-built, more pleasant-to-use canisters in the five- to eight-hundred-dollar range usually justify their higher prices.
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Overall opinion ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 3 reviews 3.7Overall, reviewers see the Kenmore 600 Series as a powerful but flawed canister that offers strong suction, a useful Pet Powermate, and respectable cleaning for the price yet suffers from extra weight, leaky-feeling ergonomics, and weaker accessories than ideal, making it a reasonable option on sale for pet owners who value its tools but a less compelling choice than the better-value 200 Series or more polished high-end canisters.
Cons
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Cord length ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 2 reviews 3.3The 600 Series has a retractable cord of about 26 feet that still feels a bit short in everyday use, often forcing users to change outlets more frequently than with some rival canisters even though it offers slightly more reach than the 200 Series.
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Stair Cleaning ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 2 reviews 3.0The canister body can brace itself on stairs using its molded stair grip, but the included motorized stair or pet tool often stalls or cuts out under load, making stair cleaning more awkward and less effective than the tool layout suggests.
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Hair-Wrap / Tangle Resistance ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 1 review 3.0The main brushroll tends to resist pet hair wrap fairly well but longer human hair can tangle on the bristles—and even the Pet Powermate may pick up a few wraps—so occasional manual hair removal is still needed.
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Ease of use ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 2 reviews 2.8Ease of use is a weak point for the 600 Series, as its stiff hose, dated wheelbase, slow cord rewind, and finicky Pop N Go hard floor tool make everyday cleaning more cumbersome than with many modern user-friendly canisters, even though on-handle controls and onboard tool storage provide some welcome convenience.
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Weight ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 3 reviews 2.5The added tools and onboard storage make the 600 Series several pounds heavier than the 200, so it can feel a bit cumbersome to carry and pull.
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Hard Floor — Fine Dust Pickup ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 1 review 2.5On hard floors, the 600 Series has mixed results with fine debris: the powerhead can leave a narrow strip of dust where the belt runs and sometimes drops material back out of the nozzle, while the separate hard floor tool does a better job on fine dust but may scatter a little cat litter.
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Tool-change simplicity ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 1 review 2.5Tool changes on the 600 Series are a mix of pros and cons, with convenient foot operated wand and nozzle releases offset by a Pop N Go hard floor tool that does not always pop up reliably and a proprietary hard floor fitting that limits easy upgrading to larger third party tools.
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Maneuverability & Handling ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 2 reviews 2.3Reviewers describe the 600 Series as cumbersome to handle, with a stiff wire-reinforced hose, a dated three-wheeled chassis, and awkward weight distribution that make it harder to pull and steer smoothly than most modern canister vacuums, though its longer hose and powerful 14-inch head still let it cover large carpeted areas efficiently once you get it moving.
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Hard Floor — Large Debris Intake ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 1 review 2.0Large debris pickup on hard floors is weaker than many canisters, as the main nozzle tends to snowplow cereal and allow heavier particles to bounce around inside the head instead of cleanly carrying them away on the first pass.
