Just wanted to add in my $0.02, now that I've had my Seagull SE for about a month.
So far, I've been really impressed. This thing isn't a big leaf eater or anything, but it wasn't advertised to be. It shines with the really fine stuff that just goes through the net on my Polaris 280. I run it every day and it lasts around 90 minutes or so. When I clean it, it always has a lot of fine sand in it, plus a few roly polys and 3 or 4 decent sized hackberry or pecan leaves. The pic below is a typical haul, plus there were a few leaves that I pulled out so you could see the sand. Also, on the day this picture was taken, I ran the 280 for about 2 hours, then threw the Seagull in for it's normal cycle.
I'm also using it in a pool that doesn't meet Aiper's rule of "for flat bottom pools only." I'm mostly 3.5 feet with a gentle slope down to 5.5 feet for a small area around the drains and a pretty steep radius where the floor transitions to the wall. For the most part, the Seagull SE handles the slope just fine. It moves slower going up and faster going down, but I've never seen it get hung halfway up or anything like that. The only problem I've had with it is that it can get hung up if it zooms down the slope just right and gets wedged between the wall and the raised drain. The drain cover keeps it from going forwards and it can't push itself up the wall enough to break free from the back. It's happened a couple of times, but that's on me and my misuse of their product.
Overall, I'm thrilled with the Seagull SE. It does exactly what I thought it would do and doesn't get hung up *every darn day* like my 280. It never fails - I can tinker around the pool for an hour or more and the 280 just cruises around, but the moment I walk inside, it runs straight to one of the barstools and wraps itself around one. I'll keep my 280 and throw it in during the few weeks in the Fall where I'm buried in leaves, but will use my Aiper for day-to-day. Plus, I don't have to worry about dodging the Polaris hose or taking it out when we're in the pool - the Seagull can just do its thing and not be in our way if we happen to be in at the same time.
There's still the question of longevity, but I'm thinking if I can get 2 years out of it for under $200, I'll don't mind replacing it every few years to keep from wrestling with a pressure side cleaner like I've been doing.
