What to Look For in a Good Robot Vacuum
A good robot vacuum can help you stay on top of pet hair, lint, and dust on a daily basis. Many robot vacuums work with applications that allow you to schedule cleaning sessions. You can also set virtual boundaries or walls, to ensure that the vacuum is kept away from areas that you don't wish to be cleaned.
This smart vacuum and mop creates a home map with its first run, storing your space for future jobs. It comes with a large dust bin that automatically emptys and a self-cleaning, brush roll.
Object Detection
When choosing a robot vacuum cleaner, choose one that can pick-up big items such as lamps and toys and fine dust. This will ensure that they do not get stuck in the roller brushes or end up on your floor. This feature is especially crucial if the robot will be cleaned regularly by pets or children.
A model that has an engine that is powerful and lots of suction is also an excellent choice. This will help it to be more efficient in removing dust, pet hair, and lint from carpets and hardwood floors.
Another important consideration is the size of your home. If you live in a large house you might want to choose one that has multiple cleaning zones so you can clean your entire house in one session. Some models also come with mopping capabilities, which can be used to keep your floors looking fresh and clean.
Robot vacuums last a long time, but they'll need to be maintained regularly and in a proper manner. Cleaning the rotating brushes regularly, emptying your dust bin, and wiping your sensors will keep your robot working efficiently for many years. Many robot vacuum owners who we talk to have been using their machines for 10 years or longer (and have replaced motors, brushes and batteries with time).
A basic robot is much less costly than a larger vacuum cleaner. They will still do an excellent job of cleaning surface dirt, pet fur and lint. They're a great maintenance cleaner that you can send out often throughout the week to keep your floor tidy. They do not have as much technology and are more susceptible to get stuck or require manual intervention.
Object Avoidance
The most effective robot vacuums utilize cameras, sensors or lasers to guide you around your home, avoiding getting stuck or falling down the stairs. Some models can return to their dock or base when their battery is depleted. They can also stay clear of obstacles like furniture cords and legs. Some of the most expensive models come with mapping capabilities, which allow them to memorize the layout of your home and spend less time bouncing off walls.
If you don't want spend the money on the most sophisticated robotic vacuums, you could locate a model that does a great job of picking up pet hair dirt, dust, and debris from floors that are hard like wood and tile and carpets with low pile. They can also handle bigger debris like nails that are rusty, metal screws or even toys that have been discarded. Some come with a base that automatically empty itself, which is a great feature when you don't need to empty it every cleaning session.
Some robotic vacuums have clever features, which make the standard stick vacuum look outdated. They include scheduling, zone-targeting and the ability for you to control them using an app or a voice assistants, such as Alexa. You can also create cleaning zones as well as 'virtual walls' to block off areas where you do not want the robots to enter.
Some robotic vacuums, like the Eufy 11S or my former favorite, Roborock S8, come with obstacle avoidance technology that will keep them from tripping over furniture or cords. Other models, like the iRobot Roomba j7+, have more advanced AI obstacle avoidance, which uses cameras and processor-powered smarts to see and avoid items like lamp cords, shoes, socks and pet waste. It's a little more expensive than other bots I've tried, however it does an excellent job of avoiding obstacles and rarely is stuck or derails while working on my floor.
The J7+ from iRobot was an excellent obstacle avoidance robot however, it didn't always do a great job at avoiding dirt or crumbs on my carpets. It also was prone to over-vacuum certain areas, which resulted in dust accumulating in the filters and an unclean house.
Smart Mapping
The best robot vacuums come with an app that allows you to modify cleaning modes, make schedules, and see a map of the area covered by the machine. This is a useful feature that many competitors don't have. This allows you to create profiles that automatically start your robot at specific time intervals and run it on a regular basis, like cleaning your living room prior to dinner or every other day.
A good app will also allow you to control your robot using voice commands. Some models support Amazon's Alexa or Google Assistant and can work completely hands-free, so you can say "start with a clean" or "change cleaning mode" without using the app.
Look for a model that has a large dustbin. This will allow you to perform many cleaning sessions without needing to empty it. You can also find models that self-empty that take some of the burden of emptying the robot after each run of vacuuming.
If you're looking for a robot capable of doing more than just vacuum, you'll want to look into one that can mop your floors. They are typically larger than robotic vacuums, and have a water tank that can hold multiple cleaning sessions worth of dust and dirt before it needs to be empty.
Robots that are more sophisticated can create their own maps and keep track of the arrangement of your home from one cleaning session to the next, preventing them from getting lost or stuck. This can make a significant difference in the effectiveness of your robot vacuum, because it won't need to go back to the beginning when it comes across walls or furniture.
Our test subjects who tested robots with this capability found it to be extremely efficient. They could easily sit back and watch TV or perform other chores while the robot cleaned. Some of these models use laser navigation and can make an exact map of your entire house, which means you can program them to clean just the bedroom after dinner or every room in the house while you're working.
App Control
It is recommended to select a robot that has an app for mobile devices in case you wish to alter the frequency of cleaning and choose the cleaning mode. Within the app, you can also check the status of your vacuum as well as its dust bin. Some of the best vacuums that are robotic can be controlled with Alexa, Google Assistant, or Siri Shortcuts.
A robot that self-empties a bin and washable filters makes it easy to keep clean, particularly when you are able to easily access the filter and remove it to wash it. Another great feature is a powerful brush that can be found in corners and along baseboards making it much easier to clean up dirt and hair. Certain robots are better at avoiding chair legs than others, and some have a self-cleaning sensor that prevents the obstruction of brushes that may occur in other machines.
Some robo-vacs use navigation tools that help them understand your home and navigate around obstacles. High-end models are equipped with sensors and cameras that recognize obstacles such as furniture, stairs and cords, whereas cheaper models sometimes utilize boundary strips that you place on the floor to mark off areas where you don't want it to leave. Avoidance of objects is particularly beneficial for families with children who scatter socks and toys around the house. This allows your robot to collect these items instead of scattering.
We're beginning to see more robots equipped with mops which are great for people who have hard floors and need to mop them regularly. They have a water reservoir that is built into their chassis or as a separate component that you swap in when they're ready to mop. They might need to be filled more frequently than other types of robots, but they're great for homes with hard floors that can't be easily cleaned using a vacuum.
These robots are loaded with impressive technology, and they cost a lot less than you'd think. In fact, you can get an affordable model for less than $200 that can do a decent job of removing pet hair and crumbs from hard floors, and also moving around the edges of light carpets or area rug. The robot can be programmed to vacuum specific rooms on a regular basis. It can also be controlled remotely via an app or by pressing buttons.