Many models feature smart navigation and home mapping to accommodate your cleaning needs better. Some even guarantee obstacle avoidance by avoiding chair legs or thicker power cords.
If you live with pets, look for a robot vacuum with impressive debris pickup and good maneuverability. Additionally, consider models that automatically empty their bins when complete, as these will help ensure safety and keep you informed when needed.
iRobot Roomba 980
This robot vacuum cleaner is the ideal choice for those seeking an all-in-one solution that covers hard floors and carpets, featuring enough battery life and navigational skills to easily travel from room to room without getting lost. In addition, its innovative features make this an attractive investment, including Alexa** or Google Assistant compatibility so that cleaning starts automatically with voice control.
iRobot’s software powers the 980, helping it better understand your home and determine when you require cleaning. A combination of sensors detect dirt and debris on floorboards while quickly navigating around furniture – even finding its way under it! Furthermore, carpeted areas can be identified, and more suction power can be applied so deep-clean rugs can be cleaned effectively.
It may not be the most advanced robot available, and its navigation may get it stuck occasionally, but overall, the 980 remains an excellent choice. The app used to control it gives you plenty of customization options, such as scheduling recurring cleanings and setting various features such as Power Boost (which automatically increases air flow on carpeted areas), two cleaning passes, and edge cleaning – although sometimes your commands might take a momentary lag before being processed immediately by the robot.
This app is easy to use and packed with helpful information about your home, including what it has been picking up on the floors. You can name your 980 (DJ Roomba is represented by it), control it remotely anywhere with WiFi connectivity, name it (DJ Roomba represents it), name your 980 itself (DJ Roomba represents), and access other features you might not find elsewhere, like spot cleaning that covers up to four square feet per pass spiraling upward. Plus, it is available on iOS and Android, and it has a free version, so you can test-drive it before making any commitments!
Eufy RoboVac X8 Hybrid
The Eufy RoboVac X8 Hybrid stands out as the flagship robot vacuum of their line-up. It is one of a few to be equipped with both vacuuming and mopping capabilities, making it an excellent choice for homes with different floor types and surfaces. Utilizing laser navigation to map your home using laser navigation and remember its maps so it can intelligently move around it, the mapping system allows users to assign names, create “No Go Zones,” as well as set cleaning sequences with ease.
X8 performed excellently during our tests, quickly clearing away pet hair, long strands of string, and other debris with ease. Furthermore, its side-sweeper feature allowed it to clean corners where dust tends to collect. Like most modern robotic vacuums, the X8 features twin turbines for powerful suction.
Not only is the power impressive, but this model comes equipped with other great features that make it well worth considering. For example, it can recharge itself if it runs out during scheduled cleaning, is compatible with Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant for voice control, and offers numerous automation capabilities through its companion app – including setting virtual boundary markers.
As with other robot vacuums, the X8 automatically adjusts its power mode depending on the surface it’s cleaning. Furthermore, its Boost IQ feature amps up motor power whenever carpet is detected to pick up dirt and other debris more effectively.
The X8 offers many great features, but one standout feature is its telescopic wand, which enables users to reach tight spots. Small enough for most tables and chairs, its height of 97mm may make reaching into very narrow gaps difficult. At the same time, its LIDAR dome may block particular objects, such as rug tassels or electrical cords, from being detected by it.
As with the other models in our comparison, the X8 utilizes an easy-to-remove and empty dust container of 0.15 gallon/0.6-liter capacity that uses UltraPack technology to compress debris as it enters its canister – helping reduce the frequency of emptying while prolonging filter life.
Sharkâs RV2502AE
This robot was one of the first to incorporate LiDAR technology, which speeds up room mapping. Additionally, it boasts a self-emptying bin and remote operation through Amazon Alexa or Google Assistant voice controls or apps like the SharkClean app; performance on bare floors was sufficient, but it struggled with pet hair in tight spaces; its vacuuming power exceeded average as an automated cleaner while effectively clearing away debris stuck between cracks and crevices.
The RV2502AE may be louder than other robots, but its LIDAR sensor ensures it remains relatively silent. Its navigation system works flawlessly to navigate your home while avoiding obstacles like furniture and stairs; virtual boundaries allow you to restrict entry to certain parts of the house; its long battery life means it will automatically return to its charging dock when done or needing to be recharged.
Another impressive feature is its self-emptying dirt disposal bin, which works as advertised to remove debris from its bin when its cleaning cycle has finished. This feature reduces maintenance requirements significantly – something we are beginning to see more of among premium robots and one of this model’s larger bins.
In our obstacle avoidance tests, the Shark AI AV2501AE performed excellently, successfully avoiding thick carpets and power cords with ease due to its sensor, which uses top-mounted laser and front-mounted infrared sensors to identify obstacles. Unfortunately, however, there are no accurate bump sensors present – which would detect harmless household items as potential dangers that require avoidance.
The Shark AI AV2501AE features three cleaning modes: Eco, Normal, and Max. Max offers maximum suction power at the expense of quickly draining battery power; scheduling automatic cleaning sessions or creating no-go zones via the SharkClean app is also possible. Its bin can hold up to 60 days’ worth of debris before needing to be emptied; its rectangular black design may seem bulky, but this is typical among self-emptying robots.
Roborock S7+
If you want a robot vacuum that can both vacuum and mop carpet simultaneously without wetting carpet, the Roborock S7+ is an excellent option. Its app offers many advanced features like No-go zones that let you mark off rooms it should avoid entering, an intelligent navigation system, and straight-line coverage rather than ping-ponging around walls like cheaper options do.
The setup of the S7+ robot vacuum is simple, without complex passwords or accounts to set up. All that’s necessary to get it up and running is finding an empty floor space for its dock, downloading its app and connecting to WiFi – then following instructions in its app to open its cover, hold the Spot Cleaning and Dock buttons simultaneously for three seconds until its WiFi indicator light stops flashing blue. At this point, it will reconnect automatically.
This app comes equipped with all of the features expected in a premium robot vacuum, such as scheduling cleanings and voice command capabilities. Users have given rave reviews to its user-friendly interface, describing it as simple and lag-free – even one user noted they hadn’t encountered another robot vacuum with such an intuitive design before!
As anyone leading an active life will appreciate, the S7+’s scheduling and app control features provide automatic cleaning to keep their home tidy. Furthermore, it can remove pet hair and dander to reduce allergen levels in the air. In contrast, its powerful suction can remove sticky spills or stains that accumulate around kids’ rooms – ideal for busy households!
In Consumer Reports lab tests, the S7+ performed well on all criteria tested, from picking up debris on bare floors to extracting embedded dirt from low- to medium-pile carpeting. It is the only robot we tested that was capable of both vacuuming and mopping simultaneously; additionally, its navigation proved superior as it covered more area than any other vacuum we tested and moved more easily under furniture than most rivals; plus, it easily navigated stairs and other obstacles without issue.