What to Look For in a Good Robot Vacuum

A robot vacuum can keep you on the top of pet hair and lint on a regular basis. Many of them use apps to allow you to schedule cleaning sessions and set virtual boundaries or 'walls' to keep them out of areas that you don't want to be cleaned.

This smart vacuum and mop creates a home map with its first run, memorizing your home's layout for future tasks. It has self-cleaning brush rolls and an large dust bin that is empty automatically.

Object Detection

When choosing a robot vacuum cleaner, pick one that can pick-up large items like lamp cords and toys and fine dust. This will ensure that they don't become entangled in the roller brush, and aren't left behind on your floors. This feature is especially crucial if the robot will be cleaned regularly by pets or children.

It's an excellent idea to select a model that has a powerful motor and lots of suction power. This will make it more effective in removing pet hair, lint, and dust off your carpets and hardwood floors.

The size of your house is another important consideration. If you have a huge house, you may choose models with multiple cleaning zones that cover the entire home in a single session. Certain models also include mopping functions that can be used to keep your floors looking fresh and clean.

Robot vacuums last a long time however, they must be maintained regularly and in a proper manner. Regularly cleaning the rotating brushes and emptying your dust bin, and wiping your sensors will keep your robot functioning efficiently for many years. Many owners of robot vacuums we chat with have owned the same model for a decade or more (and changed motors, brushes and batteries in the process).

A basic robot will cost you less than a full-sized vacuum cleaner, but they'll do a fantastic job at keeping up with dirt on the surface, pet hair and dust. You can use them to sweep your floors several times per day. They do not have as much technology and are more susceptible to becoming jammed or requiring manual intervention.

Object Avoidance

The top shark robot vacuum for pets vacuums make use of cameras, sensors or lasers to help you navigate your home and avoid getting stuck or falling down the stairs. Certain models are able to return to their base or dock when their battery is depleted. They also can avoid obstacles such as furniture cords and legs. Some of the most expensive models come with mapping capabilities that allow them to memorize the layout of your home and spend less time bumping against walls.

If you don't want spend the money on the most sophisticated robotic vacuums, you can still find one that does a great job of picking up pet hair, dirt, dust and crumbs from hard floors like wood and tile and low-pile carpets. They also do a decent job of handling larger debris like metal screws and staples that are rusty or even discarded toys. Some models even have a self-emptying base, which is useful in the event that you don't wish to empty the dustbin after every cleaning run.

Many robotic vacuums also come with innovative features that make a regular stick vacuum appear ancient such as zones, schedules, and the ability to control them via an app or a voice assistant like Alexa. You can also design cleaning zones and virtual walls to block off areas that you don't wish the yeedi Robot vacuum to enter.

Some robotic vacuums, such as the Eufy 11S or my former top pick, Roborock S8, come equipped with obstacle avoidance technology to stop them from falling over furniture or cords. Certain robot vacuums, such as the iRobot Roomba j7+ have more advanced AI obstacle-avoidance technology that uses cameras, processors and smarts to avoid items like lamp cords as well as pet waste. It's more expensive than the other bots I've tested however, it did a fantastic job of avoiding obstacles within my home. It was also very rarely stuck or derailment when I was working on my floors.

While the iRobot j7+ was a great obstacle avoidance bot however, it wasn't always doing an excellent job of avoiding dirt and crumbs from my rugs. It also tends to over-vacuum some areas, resulting in a lot of extra dust in the filter, and a less-clean house.

Smart Mapping

Some of the top robot vacuums come with an application that lets you customize cleaning modes, create schedules, and see an image of the floor area covered by the machine. This is an extremely useful feature that some competitors do not have. It allows you to create profiles that automatically start the robot at specified times and continue to run continuously. For example, it could be cleaning the living room each morning or prior to dinner.

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

To enjoy a hands-free and effortless experience, choose models with a large dust bin that can accommodate several cleaning sessions before having to be emptied. There are models that self-empty. This eliminates the requirement to empty the machine after every vacuuming session.

If you're looking to purchase a robot that is more than a vacuum, you should consider the models that have a mopping function. They are typically larger than robotic vacuums, and come with a water tank that can store multiple cleaning sessions worth of dust and Yeedi Robot vacuum dirt before having to be emptied.

Robots that are more sophisticated can make their own maps and remember the layout of your home from one cleaning session to the next, preventing them from getting lost or stuck. This can make a huge difference in the efficiency of your robot vacuum as it will not have to go back to where it started when it encounters walls or furniture.

Our test participants found that the robots that had this feature were very efficient. They could watch TV or do other things while the robot cleaned. Certain models utilize laser navigation to create a map of your home. You can then program them to clean the bedroom after dinner, or in all rooms while you're working.

App Control

It is recommended to select the vacuum that comes with an app for mobile devices if you want to customize the frequency of cleaning and select the cleaning mode. Through the app, you can examine the status of your vacuum as well as its dust bin. Some of the best robot vacuums can even be controlled by voice with Alexa, Google Assistant or Siri Shortcuts.

A robot that self-empties a bin and washable filters is easy to keep clean, especially when you are able to access the filter and take it off it to rinse it. A high-powered brush is a fantastic feature that allows you to reach into corners and along baseboards to remove hair and dirt. Some robots are more adept in avoiding the chair's legs than others, and some even have a self-cleaning sensor that prevents the clogging of brushes that can be a problem in other robots.

Certain robo-vacs utilize navigation tools that help them understand your home and navigate around obstacles. The most expensive models employ sensors and cameras to detect obstacles like furniture, stairs and cords. Less expensive models might utilize boundaries to mark areas you don't want to see it go. Object avoidance is especially important for families with children who leave socks and toys scattered across the house, as it helps your robot nab those objects instead of scattering them.

We're seeing more robots that have mops, which are great for people who have hard floors and need to clean them regularly. These robots come with a reservoir of water built into their chassis or as a separate piece that you swap in when they're ready to mop. These robots may need to be refilled frequently, but are ideal for homes that have hard floors that can't be cleaned easily with a vacuum.

These robots come with some impressive technology, and they cost significantly less than you'd expect. You can find a quality one for under $200. It does a decent cleaning job on hard floors and can be scoured around the edges of carpets and area rugs. You can program the robot to sweep the room regularly, and it can be controlled remotely via the app or by pressing buttons on its side.