I’ll be keeping an eye on this space and provide an update when I have a solid recommendation. The Shark AI Ultra XL is an excellent self-emptying robot with high-end features for a lower price. With the same battery as its more expensive S7 sibling that can run for 200 minutes and a huge 640ml bin, the E4 is a workhorse. It’s also very nimble, cleans in methodical rows, and works with Google Home and Alexa voice assistants. The biggest potential downside is that all Roombas are quite noisy — the loudest in my testing — and there’s no option for a quieter cleaning mode.
You can get the robot on its own or with iRobot’s Clean Base auto-empty dock. Several users were unhappy with the occasional connectivity issues, and how the device could lose an entire floor plan from a single piece of furniture dyson robot vacuum being moved. A few also noted a design flaw that required repairs, as fur can get sucked into a gap between the brush and housing. Some people reported issues working on black carpets, due to a malfunction with the sensor.
It’s also Wi-Fi-enabled and Alexa-compatible, it connects to Yeedi’s app, and now there’s a self-empty station ($200.) It works, but I have occasionally had trouble getting the vac to settle properly onto the ports. No robot vacuum dyson robot vacuum can climb stairs , so if you want hands-free cleaning everywhere, you’ll want to budget for one per floor or be prepared to move it around. You can also buy extra charging bases, and some models can map multiple floors.
The iRobot Home App has been rebuilt to deliver an intuitive experience for an intuitive clean. Our sleek, intuitive design allows you to dial in the way you clean, every single day. I’ve covered appliances and other major household fixtures for more than a decade, and I’m excited to help CR’s readers find the right goods for their homes. If you ever get me talking, I’ll probably have a story about some wacky side effects of appliance regulations, or the journey to fully electrify my 100-year-old house.
Multiple small tufts of hair remained after vacuuming low-pile carpeting. Many more and larger clumps of hair stayed behind after the vacuum traveled over this surface. With a competitive price, plus rock-solid performance and intelligent navigation, the Roborock S7 is our new favorite midrange robot vacuum. It demonstrated about the same power to remove sand from hardwood floors (92.8%) as the Roomba S9 Plus (93%) and Neato D7 (95%). The robot zipped through our test room in a short average time of 25 minutes, too.
People also enjoy how it effortlessly navigates between surfaces without becoming confused or stuck. With a rather plain plastic design it’s not exactly an eye-catcher, so it may not be the best choice if aesthetics are a main concern. It may get stuck in more cluttered areas, and connectivity with your mobile device can be buggy at times. With all the cleaning modes available, it may take a while to find the one that works best for various situations.
For the ultimate hands-off experience, consider a model with a “recharge and resume” feature. The iRobot Home app lets owners have complete control over their cleaning schedule and preferences directly from their smartphone or tablet. Users can activate their Roomba while away from home or schedule it to start cleaning at a specified time. Jodhaira (she/her) is a product reviews analyst at the Good Housekeeping Institute’s Home Care & Cleaning Lab, where she tests and writes about home appliances, cleaning products and cleaning tips. Prior to joining GH in 2021, she graduated from Hofstra University with a bachelor’s degree in forensic science and spent two years as an analyst in an environmental lab in Queens.
The Roomba works by using smart sensors that allow the robot to adjust to your home’s features and layout. These sensors also allow Roomba to navigate under and around furniture, and along edges, while the Cliff Detect technology keeps it from falling down stairs. The auto-adjust cleaning head automatically adjusts its height to clean carpets and hard floors.
The Roomba i7 is an older model and tends to cost less than the new Roomba j7. We wrote a review of the self-emptying Roomba i7+ in 2018, when it was brand new, and called it the best robot vacuum that money could buy. The rest of the industry caught up very quickly, so the i7+ is no longer such a standout. As of late 2021, it’s no longer one of iRobot’s “core” products and won’t be available through as many retailers as other models, but you can still find it in plenty of places for now. The functionally identical Roomba i6 is also common, as are the auto-emptying Roomba i6+ or Roomba i8+.