Free Republic

Following a recent announcement that Amazon and iRobot have terminated their $1.4 billion merger agreement, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Associate Director for Merger Analysis Nathan Soderstrom released a statement expressing the Biden regulators’ pleasure at the dissolution. “We are pleased that Amazon and iRobot have abandoned their proposed transaction…The Commission’s investigation revealed significant concerns about the transaction’s potential competitive effects,” Soderstrom said in the statement. U.S. federal lawmakers, including Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren, previously called on the FTC to block the merger in a joint letter. “iRobot is a powerful market incumbent, and Amazon, given its vast resources, history...

Vacuum cleaners sold in Europe are to be more cost- and energy-efficient, as a result of EU rules which outlaw new vacuum cleaners using more than 900 watts and emitting more than 80 decibels. Updated ecodesign requirements will lower appliances’ maximum power, annual energy consumption and noise levels. The European Commission says it is is making use of latest state-of-the-art technologies to ensure that European consumers have the most energy efficient products available. They will also increase their minimum ability to pick up dust. […] For Europe as a whole, more efficient vacuum cleaners will put it in a position...

Consumers are being urged to buy powerful vacuum cleaners while they can after it emerged that some of the most powerful models on the market will disappear in September when a new EU rule comes into force. An EU energy label, to be introduced from 1 September, means manufacturers will not be able to make or import vacuum cleaners with a motor that exceeds 1,600 watts.The Which? consumer group said many of its Best Buy models had motor sizes that exceeded this, “so if you’re in the market for a powerful vacuum, you should act quickly, before all of the...

Vacuum Cleaners: The Freeper's Guide Here, in a nutshell, are the critical basics on vacuum cleaners. These facts will be of use if you are buying a new or new-to-you one. Thanks to the babel of modern advertising and increasingly shoddy manufacturing standards, FACTS are harder to find, and little known. Here they are. No brand names are mentioned in this piece. There are two general kinds of vacuum cleaners: canister vacs and upright vacs. I will not talk about in-home central vacs. The question of what kind of vac to choose is purely yours, but many who vacuum thicker...