Panasonic canister vacuum cleaners are much more compact than their upright counterparts. However, many of them are just as powerful and they also tend to last longer than upright vacuums.
When you think of Panasonic as a brand, vacuum cleaners probably do not come into your head. Panasonic is most well-known for quality consumer electronics. Therefore, it would make sense that the same quality would go into their vacuum cleaners as well.
