14 Misconceptions Commonly Held About Robot Vacuum

The Best Robot Vacuum Cleaner

Vacuuming is a major cause of a lot of people's lives, but robot vacuums make it a little easier. Today's models also mop and even climb (small) stairs.

Some have a small trash bin which they empty themselves. Others are controlled with an app on your smartphone instead of a physical remote. Some have mapping capabilities that aid in navigating your home more efficiently.

1. Power

With an impressive 8,000Pa of suction Our top pick for robot vacuums is strong enough to take care of the most difficult dirt patches and hairs. The ultra-thin design of the square allows it to slide underneath furniture, such as beds and sofas and its Dual-Laser LiDAR technology provides precise navigation and obstacle avoidance. It is also great at cleaning baking powder, pet hair, and other debris near corners and baseboards.

Aside from the DEEBOT X2 OMNI, the other high-powered bots on this list include the IRobot Roomba J7+ as well as the Roborock S8 Pro Ultra. The Roborock S8 Pro Ultra has a docking station which automatically handles maintenance. It also comes with mopping capabilities. Its powerful suction and effective mopping made sure my floors were free of pet hair and muddy footprints and other debris throughout every floor type test we ran.

A model with 2500Pa suction should be sufficient for homes that are in the lower price range. These models are quieter, which makes them a better option for people with hearing issues. These units are not silent but they're not about the same as normal conversations at home.

For the best mix of power and usability take into consideration your cleaning needs and budget. For light-duty cleaning that is frequent it is recommended to have a longer runtime and less suction is needed. For heavy-duty cleaning, weekly runs require maximum power. Then assess your flooring, home layouts, and cleaning schedules to choose the right model for your needs. We suggest looking through our full list of robot vacuum reviews and ratings to get more details about the latest models available. Many customers report having their carpets and floors looking much cleaner after introducing a robot vacuum to their home.

2. Navigation

A robot vacuum isn't able to do its job if it does not know how to navigate around your home. The best robots employ sophisticated navigation technology to scan rooms and create a map, ensuring thorough cleaning without getting stuck or hitting obstacles. There are three kinds of robot navigation that include LiDAR, camera and sensor.

The most expensive models employ LiDAR to build a virtual map of the room, offering the highest levels of precision and efficiency. Cheaper models rely on bump sensors, which can be more inaccurate and can miss many debris in dark spaces. The majority of robots have cliff sensors to keep them from falling down stairs or other drops.

Many of the robots that vacuum and mop I tried used object recognition to navigate around things like cords and fake dog turds. However, the Eufy X10 was the best. It was equipped with powerful oscillating mop heads and a user-friendly app, and superb mapping capabilities.

Other features worth looking into include sensors for floors that can recognize hard floors and soft carpet automatically increasing suction power when needed. Certain robots, like the Roborock mop, make use of mopping pad lifts to reach corners and eliminate dried spills. Many hybrids are able to apply cleaning solutions to tough staining.

A smaller dustbin will require less frequent emptying while bigger ones will cost less to replace. The cheapest robotic cleaners usually utilize a small disposable dust bag, whereas the mid-range models typically have larger dust bins of 3L that last for decades. Some premium robots like the ECOVACS DEEBOT OMNI Station are able to self-empty and refill their water tanks for hands-free convenience.

3. App control

The best robot cleaner robot vacs have an app that lets you monitor cleaning robot mop and vacuum progress and schedule sessions and connect to your smart home devices to allow hands-free control. They also connect to Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant to allow voice-controlled control. Some have a dedicated remote control that allows you to start, pause and return to dock. Choose a model that has an extra large dustbin and is able to self-empty, rather than one that needs manual emptying.

Some robovacs come with mapping technology that helps them recognize obstacles, such as the stairs, and also avoid hitting furniture. Others allow you to designate no-go zones and targeted rooms, so that they only clean areas that require the most. They also have a cliff detector to prevent them from falling, which is particularly beneficial in multi-level homes.

If you plan to utilize your robot vacuum to clean rugs choose one that is capable of dry mopping as well as wet. You'll get better results with a robot vac that can remove its own mop pad, too, which you can then wash and reattach when it's time for another cleaning cycle. Find robots that have the rubber roller. It is less likely to become tangled from pet hair or other particles. It's a good idea inspect the robot's brushroll as well as side brushes for stuck-on debris every week or once as well. If you notice that they're starting to get blocked, it could be time to replace parts.

4. Debris collection

Robot vacuums are created to, as the name suggests, to gather dust and debris on your floors. The best ones are able to pick up fine particles like baking soda and sand as larger pieces such as orzo pasta, metal screws and pet hair. They also provide better pick-up results on low-pile carpets than manual vacuums.

The top-performing robots across all flooring types had scores over 95%. The ECOVACS DEEBOT X2 OMNI and the Roborock Q Revo were the two top-performing robots in this category. Both are highly automated, with docking stations that perform maintenance on their own, and app features which make them extremely user-friendly.

Both have self-emptying bins that eliminate the contents of the wastebasket. They can also clean the washboard while they mowing. They also have an 8,000Pa vacuum, smart mapping technology and advanced obstacle avoidance to help them navigate through the most difficult of spaces. The ECOVACS model is also among the few robots we tested that can remove its mop pads and vacuum carpet, making it the ideal choice for those who have to change between mopping and vacuuming regularly.

If you're looking for a less expensive option, look into the iRobot Roomba Combo J7 Plus, our budget choice. It features LIDAR navigation for an affordable price and decent debris collection performance. It can be a bit slow when it comes to mapping rooms and is prone to hitting obstacles, but the cost is lower than our other picks.

5. Battery life

The most effective robot vacuums are designed to let you go to work while keeping your floors in tip-top clean. Although you'll need to give your home a manual sweeping every now and again robot vacuums can help you keep a certain level of cleanliness, and even wash when you're away.

To maximize the time you can use your robovac, choose an advancé with a long battery life. A good rule of thumb is to expect a model to last for around two complete cleaning sessions if you use it at the maximum power setting. This is not as long as a size vacuum cleaner, however it will be sufficient to be sufficient for most homes. If you don't like to be waiting around while your robovac charges, you can also opt for an automatic model that makes its way back to its base station to recharge.

If you're looking for a robot that has a little bit of everything in it, then think about one that is able to mop. Eufy's X10 is the most effective model in this category has self-emptying and self-refilling for the dust bin as well as the water tank and mop pad. It can be programmed to refill and wash its mop pads when they run out.

Its respectable carpet and hard floor pick up excellent hair pickup, tangle prevention, and its an almost perfect auto empty score makes it the clear winner of our test scores. It's not cheap and unless you have an apartment that is small and has no pets, it may be too costly for certain. The runner-up one, the Dreametech D10+, has identical performance, but is priced 25 percent less.