The Best Robot Vacuums
A good robot vacuum does the bulk of the work and nabs pet hair, lint and surface dirt before it adheres to furniture or be sucked into carpets. Many robot vacuums integrate with smart assistants like Amazon Alexa or Google Assistant to provide a hands-free clean experience.
Many models include the ability to map, which allows them to create a map of your home. This helps them to avoid falling off ledges or moving through clusters if the cords for your device are.
What to Look For
Some robots have advanced features, which allow users to control them with voice assistants like Alexa or Google Assistant. These include smart mapping, spot and zone cleaning and the ability to avoid objects. These machines could also have larger dust bins and longer-lasting batteries.
Select a model with an extensive brush that can remove large particles, and is thin enough to fit underneath furniture. Find out if the vacuum is able to clean various kinds of floors without changing suction settings or brushes. This can reduce its cleaning efficiency and shorten its lifespan.
The best robot vacuums come with top-quality filters that can trap fine particles and protect your home. They also come with an ample, easily accessible collection bin so you can empty it often. Some models come with an additional side brush for sweeping up pet hair and other debris in difficult-to-access places such as under and behind furniture. The dustbins are usually transparent, which means you can see the amount of dirt in the bin and when to empty it.
You can also make use of the app to establish boundaries around furniture and rooms that you don't want it entering. Certain models also recognize the kind of floor and adjust their brush and vacuum settings to match.
There are robots that can recharge and continue cleaning the area they left after their battery has run out. Some robot vacuums come with a camera built in that lets you see the route that your robot has taken and what it has collected.
Some robots are controlled via voice commands but not all. Be sure that the robot you choose is compatible with your voice assistant of choice, and test out how it responds to various commands during the purchase process. Some robots even empty their trash bins or clean their docking station, which can reduce the chore list. This feature is expensive, as are a larger container for collecting waste and a more rapid charging speeds.
Cleaning Performance
Robots aren't the same as for a vacuum or broom. However they can be extremely efficient and effective in keeping your floors spotless. If you're looking to keep track of dirt as well as pet hair and crumbs or nab bigger debris like metal screws and wood shavings, most top-rated robotic cleaners are capable of picking up various materials in the first go-around and without causing damage to the flooring or furniture.
They will often register the type of floor they are cleaning and adjust their suction/brush settings accordingly to clean your floors more thoroughly. This is particularly important when you have various flooring types across your home. Many models also come with many options for setting up virtual boundaries, which allows you to tell the robot to stay away from certain areas of your home. This can help keep your pets or children from getting in areas they shouldn't. It also ensures that your entire home is kept clean during each scheduled session.
You should also think about the level of autonomy you're willing to give your robot. Certain models require you be active and attentive, while others operate independently. They can change cleaning modes and schedules via the mobile app or via voice commands via an integrated smart assistant. Some will map and learn your home and allow you to define zones and tell the robot to clean certain areas of your home on a weekly or daily basis.
In our tests the iRobot J7+ was the most efficient "set it and forget it" robot. It excelled in mapping, forming virtual boundaries and eliminating obstacles better than the other robots we tried. It also has the ability to empty itself so that you aren't required to manually do it. And, the side brushes can help clean debris from edges and corners that a vacuum cannot reach.
Its slim profile and infrared sensors also enable it to reach under and behind furniture for more thorough cleaning than other robots, and its advanced navigation system allows it to be more capable of cleaning the entire floor of your home on a single charge as compared to other devices we've tried. It's a tough one to beat even at its price.
Battery Life
A robot vacuum can make cleaning your floors feel less of a chore, and more like a treat. Quickly removing dirt, crumbs, and shed pet hair can make a huge difference in how clean your home is every day. While a basic robot can handle most cleaning tasks, those looking for an extra hands-free experience should choose models that double as a mop.
Ecovacs Deebot T10 ONI offers excellent performance both in vacuuming and mopping modes. It can handle pet hair, dirt and even cat litter. The feature to avoid objects is particularly impressive, enabling it to steer clear of objects and not get stuck on them.
It also comes with a long battery life and a huge dust bin that allows it to cover a considerable amount of space in a single session. It also functions as smart vacuum, meaning it can create maps of your home and work with applications, such as those provided by Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant, to let you control it using voice commands.
The app that comes with the robot check here lets you 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 then return to the docking station to recharge.
The robot can also differentiate 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 surface and then accidentally tearing furniture. It's not able to detect seams or carpeting with high pile in rooms, so it is important to be cautious when picking up large objects.
All robot vacuums require some degree of maintenance, for example removing hair from brushes and emptying (and occasionally rinsing) the dust bin after each cleaning session and wiping down cameras or sensors between uses to ensure they are in good condition. The manufacturer will offer specific guidelines for these and other maintenance steps, which may vary depending on the particular model.
Cost
The top robot vacuums aren't expensive, but they're cheaper than a professional carpet cleaner or an entire stand-up vacuum. They require less maintenance than traditional vacuums, as they only require you to empty and sometimes clean their dust bins after each cleaning session.
Many robot vacuums come with clever features that make them more efficient within your home. For instance mapping technology lets you tell the vacuum where to go through an app, which means it doesn't run into the staircase or under furniture, where there may be an unclean mess. Other robot vacuums can detect the kind of flooring they are cleaning so that they can adjust their suction and brush capabilities to ensure the best results.
Some models feature objects avoidance. This uses sensors (or a camera) that detect toys and other objects lying on the floor. The robot is instructed to stay clear of them, rather than crashing into them. This is a great solution when your pets or children tend to leave toys all over the home.
Another smart feature that may be important to you is voice control which allows you to operate the robot using your voice instead of using the buttons on the board. This can be beneficial if you have little ones who aren't yet old enough to use the controls, or if you are looking for a hands-free option.
How often you need to use your robot depends on the amount of dirt and debris is usually found on your floors. The majority of experts recommend using your robot vacuum at least once a week to keep your floors spotless and to get rid of pet hair, lint and surface dirt.
If you only have a limited amount of floor space and don't plan to use the robot for any other purpose and you're looking for you should consider a budget model like our top choice Eufy 11S is a great choice. It's affordable, easy to set up and use and can complete the task with little noise interference while you watch TV or work.