Hi Jen,
Central vac is such a great way to go especially if you're tired of lugging a heavy upright or tripping over a canister vacuum. The canister/barrel is usually located in either the garage or basement, so putting it in your laundry room should be fine. One of the most popular features of a central vac system is the "dustpan" vac which is a small, wide inlet built into the toekick area under a kitchen cabinet. You just have to sweep debris from the kitchen toward the inlet, open the inlet with your toe, and away it goes - no more messy dustpans!
You can have multiple inlets installed in every room, or you can have a single inlet in a convenient location, so your idea of one outlet in the hall sounds great :)
Unfortunately, myshopping doesn't have any merchants that sell these units, so you'll just have to do some shopping around for the best price.
If for some reason you decide to just go with a traditional vacuum, there's a great selection here
www.myshopping.com.au/PT--297_Vacuum_CleanersGood luck!