What to Look For in a Good Robot Vacuum

A good robotic vacuum can assist you in keeping track of pet hair, lint, and dust on a regular basis. Many robot vacuums have apps that allow you to schedule cleaning times. You can also set virtual boundaries, or "walls," to keep the vacuum away from areas you don't want cleaned.

This smart vac-mop will create the map of your home's layout with its first run. It then saves the area for future cleaning jobs. It comes with self-cleaning brush rolls as well as an large dust bin that is empty automatically.

Object Detection

When selecting a robot vacuum cleaner, choose one that is able to pick up big items such as toys and lamp cords as well as dust particles that are fine. This will ensure they don't get caught in the roller brush, and don't end up on your floors. This feature is especially important if your robot will be regularly cleaned by pets or children.

It's also a good idea to choose a model with an efficient motor and lots of suction power. This will help it be more effective in removing pet hair, lint and dust off your carpets and hardwood floors.

Another important consideration is the size of your space. If you have an area that is large, you may want to pick models that have multiple cleaning zones, so you can clean the entire house in a single session. Some models come with a mopping feature that can be used to keep floors looking clean and fresh.

Robot vacuums are durable but they need to be cleaned properly and regularly. Regularly cleaning the rotating brushes, emptying your dust bin, and wiping the sensors will ensure that your robot is running smoothly for a long time. Many of the robot vacuum owners we speak to have owned their machines for 10 years or more (and have replaced motors, brushes, and batteries with time).

A basic robot will cost you less than a full-size vacuum cleaner, but they'll still do an excellent job at keeping up with dirt on the surface, pet hair and lint. You can use them to clean your floor several times a day. They do not have as much technology and are more susceptible to get stuck or require manual intervention.

Object Avoidance

The most effective robot vacuums make use of sensors, lasers, or cameras to help them navigate your home without falling off or getting stuck on the staircase. Some models can return to their base or dock when their battery is depleted. They can also stay clear of obstacles such as furniture legs and cords. Some of the most expensive models come with mapping capabilities that allow them to memorize your home's layout and therefore spend less time bouncing off walls.

If you don't want spend the money on the most sophisticated robotic vacuums, you can still find one that does an excellent job of removing pet hair, dirt, dust and debris from floors that are hard like wood and tile and carpets with low pile. They also do a good job of handling larger objects such as metal screws, rusty staples or discarded toys. Some come with a base that automatically empty itself, which is a great feature when you don't need to empty it every cleaning session.

The majority of robotic vacuums have innovative features that make a standard stick vacuum seem prehistoric such as schedules, zone targeting and the capability to control them using an app or voice assistant such as Alexa. You can also design cleaning zones and virtual walls to block off areas you don't want robots to access.

Certain robotic vacuums such as the Eufy 11S and my former favorite the Roborock S8, have obstacle avoidance technology that stops them from derailing by running into furniture or tangling cords. Certain wirecutter robot vacuum vacuums, such as the iRobot Roomba j7+ have more advanced AI obstacle-avoidance technology which uses cameras, processors and intelligent algorithms to avoid objects like lamp cords as well as pet waste. It's a little more expensive than other bots I've tried, however it does a fantastic job of avoiding obstacles and rarely is stuck or tripped while working on my floor.

While the iRobot j7+ was a good obstacle avoidance bot but it wasn't always able to do an excellent job of removing dirt and crumbs off my rugs. It also was prone to over-vacuum specific areas, which resulted in dust accumulating in the filters, and an unclean house.

Smart Mapping

Some of the best robots vacuums come with an application that lets you alter cleaning modes, create schedules, and see a map of the floor area covered by the machine. This is a great feature that some competitors don't have. This allows you to create profiles that will automatically start the robot at specified times and run it regularly. For example, cleaning the living area every morning or prior best robot vacuum for pets to dinner.

A good app can 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 with voice commands.

Choose the model with a large dust bin. This allows you to complete numerous cleaning sessions without having to empty it. You can find models that self-empty, which eliminates the need to empty the machine after every vacuuming session.

If you're looking for a robot that is more than just vacuum, you'll want to look at one that can mop floors. These are usually larger than robotic vacuums and have a water tank that can store multiple cleaning sessions' worth of dust and dirt before having to be emptied.

Robots that are more advanced can develop their own maps and keep track of the plan of your house from one cleaning session to the next, preventing them from getting lost or stuck. This can make a huge difference in how efficiently your robot vacuums because it won't need to spend time returning to the beginning of the room if it comes across walls or furniture.

Our test participants who utilized a robot with this feature found it to be very efficient. They could easily watch TV or do other chores while the robot cleaned. Some models employ laser navigation to create the map of your home. You can then program them to clean your bedroom after dinner, or all rooms while you're working.

App Control

If you want to customize the frequency with which the robot cleans your house and select the cleaning mode it is recommended to purchase one that works with a mobile app. You can also view the state of the vacuum and the condition of its dust bin in the app. Some of the best robot vacuum for pets vacuums that are robotic can be controlled using Alexa, Google Assistant, or Siri Shortcuts.

It is easy to maintain a robot that has the ability to wash the filter and a self-emptying container, particularly when the filter can be easily removed and rinsed. A high-powered brush is a great feature that can reach into corners and along baseboards to remove 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 obstruction of brushes that may occur in other machines.

Some robot vacuums come with navigation tools that help them navigate around obstacles and to learn about your home. High-end models have sensors and cameras that recognize obstacles like stairs, furniture and cords, whereas cheaper models often use boundary strips you place on the floor to mark areas you don't want to go. Object avoidance can be especially beneficial for families with young children who scatter socks and toys around the home. This can help your robot to gather these items, instead of scattering them.

We're starting to see more robots equipped with mops which are beneficial for those who have hard floors and require to mop them regularly. These robots have a water reservoir built into their chassis or as a separate piece you swap in when they're ready to mop. They may need to be refilled more often than other types of robots, but they're ideal for homes with floors made of wood that can't be easily cleaned using a vacuum.

We've seen some amazing technology in these small robots and they're less expensive than you might think. In fact, you can get a decent one for less than $200 that can do a decent job of cleaning pet hair and crumbs from hard floors, while traversing the edges of lightweight carpets or area rugs. The robot can be programmed to vacuum a particular room on a regular basis. It can also be controlled remotely using an app or by pressing buttons.