And if you decide to sell or give away a Wi-Fi robot vacuum, be sure to factory-reset it to remove the Wi-Fi credentials. Many of these robot vacuums can also pair with a smartphone app, which lets you command the bot to clean specific rooms or sections of a room while ignoring other areas. This “smart mapping” tech is particularly convenient, and it’s one of the irobot vacuum cleaner most compelling reasons to spend a little extra on a robot. For example, you could send the robot to vacuum your kitchen and dining room after dinner while skipping the bedrooms and den so that the bot doesn’t disturb you while you’re relaxing or studying or whatever. And then you could tell the bot to clean those rooms at a time of day when nobody is around.
Roborock does a decent job of keeping spare parts like filters and spare brushes in stock for its recent-model robots, which is an improvement over the company’s spotty stock status in past years. Even if you can find something like a spare transmission or wheel, it’s not so easy to just swap it in using a regular screwdriver, as it is with Roomba devices. But we’re happy to report that Roborock seems to be establishing a decent reputation for product quality and support. A possible dyson robot vacuum side effect of the Roomba i3 EVO’s design is that it may be relatively slow compared with other smart-mapping bots, such as our also-great pick, the Roborock Q5. Whereas those other bots use lasers or cameras to help them map and clean areas, the i3 EVO still utilizes gyroscopes and sensors to help it navigate. Laser-nav bots can learn your home’s layout in a single session, whereas the i3 EVO and higher-end Roomba models typically need two or three sessions of training.
It’s no longer one of iRobot’s “core” models and isn’t available through as many retailers as others, 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+ and Roomba i8+. To test the obstacle-recognition feature on some new high-end robots, we use a variety of objects, including shoes, pet bowls, cat toys, and cords. We’ve even put a fake dog turd in the path of a robot vac to see if it can avoid smearing the mess all over the floor. In addition to all the testing, this guide includes feedback from dozens of bot owners who live in all kinds of homes and households. This tried-and-true robot vacuum is much more durable and repairable than similar bots from other brands and is better at cleaning rugs, too.
It earned an Excellent rating from Consumer Reports for bare floors and carpets, and continues to impress customers with inclusions like free boundary strips. We also note whether the robot cleans in a random or methodical pattern. Many of the latest models feature a Light Detection and Ranging laser (the same technology self-driving cars use) to map your home and plan an efficient cleaning route. But some affordable robot vacuums still haphazardly ping-pong from wall to wall, inefficiently crossing over the same space multiple times as they clean. As robot vacuums get more technologically advanced, with laser navigation sensors and home security cameras, they’re also getting bigger and taller.
The Roomba 694, on the other hand, was easy for us to strip down and then reassemble with just a screwdriver. In one test, the basic Eufy RoboVac 11S spent an hour picking up enough debris to fill the palm of our hand. Next we ran the Neato Botvac D7 (usually $700 when it was a current model), and it picked up only enough hair to coat the filter and a bit of dust. Then we ran the iRobot Roomba s9+ (usually $1,100), and it came back with barely anything in the bin. The Roomba 694, like most affordable robots, is what we call a bump-and-run navigator.
In the product health area it would be useful to have reminders to clean the filter every so many hours as well as the reminder when to change it. Also when it comes to the map it would be useful to just delete parts of the map you want to remap or were just an error in the first place. Use Automations to connect to your smart devices and personalize your cleaning experience by scheduling your robot to clean when you leave the house. Models with an interface come with a Mini-DIN connector supporting a serial interface, which is electrically and physically incompatible with standard PC/Mac serial ports and cables. However, third-party adapters are available to access the Roomba’s computer via Bluetooth, USB, or RS-232 (PC/Mac serial). Roombas pre-October 2005 upgraded with the OSMO hacker device allow monitoring many sensors and modifying the unit’s behavior.
When shopping, you’ll want to look for components like battery life, size and suction power. Some of the robot vacuum models also come with special features like WiFi connectivity and built-in mop heads. Similar to other bissell crosswave cordless cordless vacuums, the best robot vacuums have varying runtimes that depend on the battery life. The battery life will generally range from 60 minutes with more basic versions to about 120 minutes at the higher end.
The smart navigation system learns the layout of a home, coordinates no-go zones, and builds smart maps so users can create and automate their cleaning schedule. Programming preferences can be done through the iRobot Home app and through voice prompts with Alexa or Google Assistant. We could see a map generated almost immediately, even after just a 5-minute test run. Most second- and third-generation models and all newer ones have internal acoustic-based dirt sensors that allow them to detect particularly dirty spots and focus on those areas accordingly. Fourth-generation and newer models have an optical sensor located in front of the vacuum bin, allowing detection of wider and smaller messes. Generally speaking, all the vacuums on this list can handle hardwood floors and pet hair without issue.
For example, you can’t use Siri to set up Automations as you can with Alexa and Google Assistant—though to be fair, Automations on those two platforms are pretty limited, as well. Using Alexa, Rachel was able to create an automated Routine that would tell the Roomba i3 EVO to start vacuuming whenever Rachel and her smartphone left her house. However, as with most robot vacuums, you could also set a Schedule to accomplish these tasks. For every robot vacuum, we run at least two regular cleaning cycles across about 1,000 square feet, with lots of obstacles and thresholds.