Hoover innovates to 3 feet.

Hundreds of reporters and excited CES participants clamour to see the new Hoover announcement

Consumers walking through the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas last week may have seen Hoover's stunning new innovation, the vacuum cleaner with a 3-foot cord.

"It's a leap in cord length!" said Hans Frans display attendant for Hoover."Our research has shown that consumers love having to unplug and replug the vacuum cleaner in several times during a session just to reach a new bit of floor, and consequently we - and our competitors have rushed to make the cords ever shorter with each generation of cleaner" However a 3-foot cord is a bold move and critics suggest that perhaps the cord is now too short. Hans Frans responded"Nonsense! These machines will be snapped up by apartment dwellers in the latest boxy apartments."

It remains to be seen how popular the cleaners will be, but if Hans is right, the new cleaner may have a large (or is that tiny) niche in Queen Street, Auckland City.