What to Look For in a Good Robot Vacuum

A quality robot vacuum will help you stay on top of pet hair, lint, and dust on a regular basis. Many work with apps to let you schedule cleaning sessions and set virtual boundaries or 'walls' to keep them from areas that you don't want to be cleaned.

This smart vac-mop will create the map of your home using its first run. It then remembers the space to be used for cleaning tasks in the future. It comes with a huge dust bin that automatically emptys and a self-cleaning, brush roll.

Object Detection

When you are choosing a robotic vacuum, choose one that can take in big items, such as lamps and toys and also dust particles. This will ensure that the items don't get stuck in the roller brushes or left on your floor. This is especially important if your robot will be cleaned regularly by pets or children.

It's recommended to choose a model with strong motors and plenty of suction power. This will make it more efficient in removing pet hair, dust and lint from your hardwood and carpet floors.

Another factor to consider is the size of your home. If you have a large house, you may choose models with multiple cleaning zones that can clean the entire house in a single session. Some models come with a mopping feature that can be used to keep floors looking fresh and clean.

Robot vacuums are tough but they need to be maintained and cleaned regularly. Cleaning the rotating brushes and emptying the dust bin and wiping the sensors clean regularly will keep your robot functioning efficiently for many years to be. Many robot vacuum owners we speak to have been using their machines for 10 years or longer (and have replaced motors, brushes, and batteries along with time).

A basic robot will cost less than a large-sized vacuum cleaner, but they'll still do an excellent job at keeping up with dirt on the surface, pet hair, and dust. You can use them to sweep your floor several times a day. The drawback is that they don't offer as much technological innovation, and robot vacuum may be prone to getting stuck or requiring human intervention.

Object Avoidance

The best robot vacuums use cameras, sensors or lasers to help you navigate your home and avoid getting stuck or falling on the stairs. Some models will return to their base or dock when the battery is low. They can also stay clear of obstacles such as furniture cords and legs. The ones that are more expensive usually have mapping capabilities that allow them to learn the arrangement of your home, and spend less time hitting walls.

If you don't want splurge on the most advanced robotic vacuums, you can find one that does an excellent job of picking up pet hair dirt, dust, and dust from floors made of tiles and wood, as well as carpets with a low pile. They also can handle larger debris such as nails that are rusty, metal screws or discarded toys. Some even come with a self-emptying base which is helpful for those who don't want to empty the dustbin after every cleaning run.

Many robotic vacuums also come with smart features that make your standard stick vacuum seem prehistoric such as schedules, zone targeting and the ability to control them via an app or voice assistant like Alexa. You can also create cleaning zones and 'virtual walls to block off areas you do not want the robots to venture.

Certain robotic vacuums, such as the Eufy 11S and my former favorite, the Roborock S8, have obstacle avoidance technology that prevents them from derailing by running into furniture or tangling with cords. Some robot vacuums, such as the iRobot Roomba j7+ have more sophisticated AI obstacle-avoidance technology which uses sensors, cameras and intelligent algorithms to avoid objects like lamp cords and pet waste. It's a little more expensive than other bots I've tested, but it did an impressive job of avoiding obstacles within my home and rarely got derailed or trapped while working on my flooring.

The iRobot J7+ was a fantastic obstacle avoidance robot, but it did not always do a good job at avoiding crumbs and dirt on my carpets. It also had a tendency to over-vacuum certain areas which resulted in dust accumulating in the filters and a less tidy home.

Smart Mapping

The best robot vacuums come with an app that lets you set up cleaning modes, set schedules and see an outline of the flooring area that the machine covers. This is an extremely useful feature that some competitors don't have. This lets you create profiles that automatically start the robot at specified times, and keep it running continuously. For example, cleaning the living room every day or before dinner.

A good app will also allow you to control your robot with voice commands. Some models are compatible with Amazon's Alexa and Google Assistant, which allows you to control your robot using voice commands.

Choose the model with an enormous dust bin. This will allow you to do many cleaning sessions without having to empty it. You can find models that self-empty, which eliminates the need to empty the robot after every vacuuming session.

If you're looking for a robotic that can do more than vacuum, think about a model with mopping capabilities. They are usually larger than the robotic vacuums and come with an internal water tank that can hold multiple cleaning sessions worth of dirt and other debris prior to needing to be emptied.

The most advanced robots can create their own maps of your house and can even keep track of the layout from one cleaning to the next which can help them avoid getting lost or stuck in corners. This can make a significant difference in the effectiveness of your robot vacuum since it won't have to go back to the beginning when it encounters walls or furniture.

Our test participants found that the robots with this feature were extremely efficient. They could sit and watch television or perform other tasks while the robot cleaned. Some models employ laser navigation and can make an exact map of your entire home, meaning you can program them to clean just the bedroom after dinner, or every room in the house when you're at work.

App Control

It is recommended to select one that comes with a mobile application if you want to customize the frequency of cleaning and select cleaning mode. Through the app, you can also check the status of your vacuum and its dust bin. The best robot mop and vacuum combo robotic vacuums can be controlled using Alexa, Google Assistant, or Siri Shortcuts.

A robot that has a self-emptying bin and washable filters is easy to keep clean, especially if you can easily access the filter and remove it to wash it. Another great feature is a powerful brush that gets into corners and along baseboards which makes it easier to get rid of dirt and hair. Certain robots are more adept in avoiding the chair's legs than others, and some also have a self-cleaning sensor that prevents the clogging of brushes that can happen in other robots.

Certain robo-vacs come with navigational tools that help them navigate around obstacles and to learn about your home. High-end models have sensors and cameras that can detect obstacles like furniture, stairs and cords, whereas cheaper models sometimes use boundary strips that you put on the floor to mark areas where you don't want it to enter. Avoidance of objects is crucial for families with children who leave socks and toys scattered around the house, since it helps your robot vacuum and mop nab the objects instead of scattering them.

We're seeing more robots that have mops, which are great for people who have hard floors and require to clean them 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. These robots may require refilling frequently, but are ideal for homes with hard floors that aren't easily cleaned by a vacuum.

These robots come with some impressive technology, and robot vacuum cost much less than you'd expect. In fact, you can get a good one for under $200 that can do a decent job of removing pet hair and crumbs from hard floors, and also navigating the edges of lightweight carpets or area rugs. You can schedule the robot to sweep a room regularly and can be controlled remotely via the app or by pressing buttons on its side.