The Best Robot Vacuums
A robot vacuum will do the majority of the cleaning for you. It will remove pet hair, lint and dirt from surfaces and furniture before they get stuck. They also have smart assistants like Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant to give you an unrestricted experience.
Many models come with mapping capabilities that allow them to create an interactive map of your home. This helps them avoid tumbling off ledges and navigating around clusters of device cords.
What to Find
Certain robots have advanced features that allow you to control them through the app and voice assistants such as Alexa and Google Assistant. These include smart mapping spot and zone cleaning and objects avoiding. They might also have longer battery lives and bigger dust collection bins.
Choose a model with a an extended brush that can clean large particles and one that's small enough to fit under furniture. Find out if the vacuum is able to clean different kinds of floors without changing the suction settings or brushes. This could reduce the effectiveness of cleaning and reduce its life span.
The best robot vacuums have top-quality filters that catch tiny particles to safeguard the interior of your home and a large, easy-to-access bin that lets you clear it frequently. Certain robot vacuums come with an additional side brush to clean pet hair or debris in difficult-to-access places like under or behind furniture. The dustbins are usually transparent, so you can observe the amount of dirt in the bin, and when to empty it.
You can also make use of the app to establish limits around furniture and rooms you don't want it entering. Certain models also recognize the kind of flooring and adjust their vacuum and brush settings accordingly.
There are robots that can recharge and continue cleaning where they left off when their battery is exhausted. Some robot vacuums have cameras built-in that lets you see the path taken by your robot and what it has collected.
Some robots also allow you to control them with your voice, though not all of them do it as easily as others. Make sure that the model you select is compatible with the voice assistant of your choice and then test it to see how the robot responds to different commands before buying. Some robots will even empty their trash bins or clean their docking station, which will help you reduce your chore list. But this feature comes at a premium, as does an extra bin for collection and a faster charging speed.
Cleaning Performance
While robots cannot substitute for a full-on vacuum cleaner or broom, they can provide a practical and efficient alternative to the everyday chore of cleaning your floors. It doesn't matter if you have to keep track of tracked-in dust, crumbs and pet hair or pick up larger debris such as wood shavings and metal screws, most top-rated robotic cleaners are adept at removing different types of debris on the first pass and without causing damage to the flooring or furniture.
They usually detect the type of floor they are cleaning and adjust their suction/brush features accordingly to clean your floors more thoroughly. This is particularly important when you have a variety of flooring across your home. There are many models that offer a wide range of options for setting up virtual boundaries, which allows you to instruct the robot to stay away from certain areas of your home. This can help keep your pets or children from getting into areas they shouldn't. It helps ensure that your house is cleaned at the end of each scheduled session.
Think about how much autonomy your robot will enjoy. Some models require you to be active and attentive, while others work on their own. They can change cleaning modes and schedules via a mobile application or voice commands via an integrated smart assistant. Some models can map and understand your home, allowing you to set up zones and instruct the robot to only clean certain areas of your home on a daily or weekly basis.
In our tests, the iRobot was the most efficient "set it and forget it" robot. It excelled in mapping, creating virtual boundaries and eliminating obstacles better than the other robots we test. It also has the ability to empty itself so you aren't required to manually do it. The side brushes can help clean debris from corners and edges that a vacuum might not reach.
Its slim design and infrared sensor enable it to clean under and behind furniture which allows it to do a better job than most robots. Furthermore, its advanced navigation system allows it to sweep the entire floor of your house using just a single charge of battery. It's hard to beat even at its price.
Battery Life
A good robot vacuum can make cleaning your floors seem less like a chore and more like a luxury. Fastly removing dirt, crumbs, and shed pet hair can make all the difference in the cleanliness of your home on a daily basis. While a simple robot is able to handle the majority of cleaning tasks, those who want more of a hands-free experience should choose one that doubles as a mop.
The Ecovacs Deebot T10 OMNI is one the top models for both as it delivers excellent performance in both its mop and vacuuming modes, and is able to handle dirt debris, pet hair and even cat litter. Its function to avoid objects is amazing. It allows it to keep away from objects and not get tangled on them.
It has a big dustbin and an extremely long-lasting battery, which means it can cover a large amount of space in one session. It's also a smart cleaner, which means it can map your home, and it can be used with apps like those offered by Amazon Alexa or Google Assistant to allow you to control the vacuum with voice commands.
The application that comes with the robot allows you to create schedules, assign specific rooms for cleaning, or the ability to pause and resume sessions. It will alert you when its battery is running low and will return to the docking station to recharge.
This robot can also distinguish between carpets and hard floors and adjust its settings in accordance with the type of flooring. This will prevent the machine from becoming stuck on one type of floor and accidentally tearing your furniture. However, it is not yet able to discern high pile carpeting or the seams between rooms, so you'll still need to be vigilant about picking up large objects.
All robot vacuums require a certain amount of maintenance, such as getting rid of hair from brushes, emptying (and occasionally rinsing) the dust bin after each cleaning session and wiping down sensors or cameras between uses to keep them in top shape. The manufacturer will offer specific instructions for these and other steps to maintain which can differ based on the particular model.
Cost
The best robot vacuums aren't cheap, but they're far less expensive than a professional carpet cleaner, or even a full-size stand-up vac. They also require less maintenance than a traditional vacuum, with most requiring only that you empty (and occasionally rinse) their bins of dust after each cleaning session and periodically wiping down their sensors or cameras.
Many robot vacuums come with clever features that help them be more efficient within your home. For instance mapping technology lets you inform the vacuum of where to go via an app, which means it doesn't go through stairs, or under furniture, where there might be a mess. Others can tell what floor type they're working on, allowing them to adjust their suction or brush features to get the best results.
Some models have object avoidance, which makes use of sensors (or even cameras) to spot objects and toys on the floor and coach the robot to move around them rather than run into them. This can be a huge help for families with children or pets who tend to scatter toys all over the home.
Voice control is another smart feature you may consider useful. It allows you to operate your robot using your voice, rather than the buttons on the board. This can be helpful if you have little ones who aren't quite old enough to operate the controls or just want a hands-free option.
How often you have to utilize your robot is contingent upon the amount of dirt and dust is normally found on your floors. Most experts recommend using a robot vacuum at least once a week to keep your floors looking their website best and nabbing pet hair dirt and lint before it is able to get ground in or become more difficult to get rid of.
If you're only working with a limited amount of floor space and don't intend to utilize the robot for any other purpose such as cleaning, then a budget model, like our top pick Eufy 11S is a great option. It's inexpensive, simple to install and operate and gets the job done with little noise interference while you work or watch TV.