What to Look For in a Good Robot Vacuum
A good robotic vacuum can help you stay on top of pet hair, lint and dust on a daily basis. Many use apps that allow you to schedule cleaning times and define virtual boundaries or 'walls' to keep them from areas you don't want cleaned.
This smart vac-mop makes the map of your home with its initial run. It then stores the area to be used for cleaning tasks in the future. It comes with self-cleaning brush rolls as well as an extra-large dust bin that empty automatically.
Object Detection
When you are choosing a robotic vacuum, choose one that can take in large objects, such as lamps and toys and also fine dirt. This will ensure they don't become entangled by the roller brush and don't end up on your floors. This is particularly important if your robot will be cleaned regularly by children or pets.
A model that has an engine that is powerful and lots of suction is also an excellent option. This will enable it to be more effective in eliminating pet hair, dust and lint from carpets and hardwood flooring.
The size of your home is another crucial factor to consider. If you have a large house you might want to pick one that has multiple cleaning zones, so you can clean the entire house in one session. Certain models also include a mopping function, which can be used to keep your floors looking fresh and clean.
Robot vacuums can last for a long time however, they must be maintained and cleaned regularly. Cleaning the rotating brushes and emptying the dust container and wiping down the sensors on a regular basis will ensure that your robot is functioning efficiently for many the years to come. Many of the owners of robot vacuums that we have spoken with have owned the same model for 10 years or more (and have replaced motors, brushes and batteries along the way).
A basic robot will cost you less than a large-sized vacuum cleaner, but they'll still do an excellent job at removing dirt and pet hair, and lint. You can use them to sweep your floor several times a day. However, they don't come with as advanced technology, and could be susceptible to becoming stuck or require human intervention.
Object Avoidance
The most effective robot vacuums utilize sensors, lasers or cameras to guide them around your home without getting stuck or falling down the staircase. Some models will return to their dock or base when their batteries are low. They also can avoid obstacles like furniture legs and cords. Some of the more expensive models come with the ability to map, which allows them to learn your home's layout and spend less time bumping against walls.
There is no need to spend a lot of money on the most expensive robotic vacuums. You can still find models that do a great job at picking up pet hair and dirt from hard surfaces, such as wood, tile and low-pile rugs. They can also take care of bigger debris like metal screws, rusty nails or even toys that have been discarded. Some have an automatic base that drains itself, which is great for those who don't want to empty it after each cleaning session.
The majority of robotic vacuums have innovative features that make a standard stick vacuum seem prehistoric such as schedules, zone targeting and the capability to control them using an app or voice assistant such as Alexa. You can also set up cleaning zones and virtual walls to block off areas that you don't want the robot to enter.
Certain robotic vacuums like the Eufy 11S and my former top choice Roborock S8 Roborock S8, have obstacle avoidance technology that keeps them from crashing into furniture or tangling with cords. Other models, like the iRobot Roomba j7+, have more advanced AI obstacle avoidance that uses a camera and processor-powered smarts to see and avoid items like lamp cords, shoes, socks, and pet waste. It's more expensive than other bots I've tested, but it did an impressive job of avoiding obstacles in my home. It was also very rarely stuck or tangled when I was working on my flooring.
Although the iRobot J7+ was a great obstacle avoidance tool but it wasn't always able to do well in removing dirt and crumbs off my carpets. It also was known to over-vacuum certain areas, which resulted in a lot of dust in the filters and a less clean house.
Smart Mapping
The best robot vacuums include an application that lets you modify cleaning modes, make schedules, and view the floor area covered by the machine. This is an extremely useful feature that other models don't have. This allows you to create profiles that will automatically start the robot at specified times and continue to run continuously. For example, cleaning the living room every day, or just before dinner.
A good app will allow you to control your robot using voice commands. Some models are compatible with Amazon's Alexa and Google Assistant, which allows you to control your robot using voice commands.
Look for the model with a large dustbin. This allows you to complete numerous cleaning sessions without having to empty it. There are models that self-empty, eliminating the need to empty the robot after each vacuuming session.
If shark robotic vacuum cleaner looking for a robot capable of doing more than just vacuum, you'll want to look at one which can mop your floors. They are usually larger than the robotic vacuums and include an internal water tank that can hold several cleaning sessions worth of dirt and debris before needing to be cleaned.
Robots that are more sophisticated can develop their own maps and keep track of the layout of your home from one cleaning session to the next, preventing them from getting lost or stuck. This can make a big difference in the effectiveness of your robot vacuum, since it won't have to go back to the beginning when it comes across walls or furniture.
Our testers who used the robot that has this capability discovered it to be extremely efficient, and they could watch TV or do other chores while the robot was cleaning. Some of these models use laser navigation and can create an exact map of your house, which means you can program them to clean just the bedroom after dinner or every room in your home while you're at work.
App Control
If you want to customize the frequency with which the robot cleans your home and choose the cleaning mode it is recommended to purchase one that has an app for mobile devices. You can also see the status of the vacuum and the condition of its dust bin within the app. Some of the best robot vacuums are operated by voice using Alexa, Google Assistant or Siri Shortcuts.
It is simple to maintain a robot with the ability to wash the filter and a self-emptying bin, particularly if the filter can be easily removed and rinsed. Another great feature is a high-powered brush that gets into corners and along baseboards making it much easier to clean up dirt and hair. Certain robots are better in avoiding chairs' legs than others, and some also have an auto-cleaning sensor that helps prevent the obstruction of brushes that may occur in other robots.
Certain robo-vacs come with navigational tools that aid them in navigating obstacles and to learn about your home. The top models utilize sensors and cameras to identify obstacles like furniture, stairs, and cords. Cheaper models may use boundary strips to mark off areas that you don't wish to see it go. Avoidance of objects can be particularly useful for families with children who throw socks and toys all over the house. This can help your robot to gather these items instead of scattering.
More robots are coming with mops. This is useful for those with floors that are hard and need to clean regularly. These robots have a reservoir of water built into their chassis or as a separate piece you can swap in when ready to mop. They may require frequent refills, but are ideal for homes that have hard floors that aren't cleaned easily with a vacuum.
These robots come with some amazing technology, and they are priced significantly less than you'd expect. You can find a decent one for less than $200, and it does a decent cleaning job on hard floors, while also navigating around the edges of carpets and rugs. You can schedule the robot to clean rooms every day and it can be controlled remotely with the app or by pressing buttons on its side.