Eufy's robotic vacuum and mop is the highest-rated of its kind. It takes a lot of the work out of cleaning your floors. It is able to refill its own water tank, empty its larger tower bin and change the dust bag.
Advanced models can map your home and note furniture arrangement. They can also identify hazards and navigate around them, like loose charging cables or unintentional socks.
Object Avoidance
Object avoidance allows your robot to avoid hitting things like cords, toys, and clothing that could be caught in the vacuum. This is especially important if you have children or pets who may be likely to leave items on the floor where your robot will discover them.
Depending on which model you pick, your robot may have various sensors to aid in navigating around obstacles. Some of the most popular include crossed IR sensor beams that are focused infrared lights which scan the room to look for furniture legs or door frames. Many robots have embraced this technology, and you can find it in the flagship models that cost more.
Other object avoidance technologies that are typically found in higher-end robots include 3D Structured Light, which makes use of cameras and crossed IR sensors to map the surrounding area and detect obstacles; and Time of Flight (ToF) sensors that emit light and measure the time it takes for light to reflect off objects, to determine the distance between them. These aren't very common but are a great addition to your robot, if you're looking for extra peace of mind.
The majority of the top-rated robots are also able to mop your floors. Some robots come with their very own water tanks that allow them to clean up messes and spills. You'll need to empty your robot's onboard dust bin and clean the cameras and sensors in between cleaning robot mop and vacuum sessions, but these chores should not take a lot of time.
Mapping
Robot vacuums must be able to map. This lets them navigate your home without getting caught up against walls. They could be tripped by pet toys, cords, or furniture without mapping. This will result in them taking up less space. Most robots employ sensors to map your home and navigate around obstacles. They can clean your floors in fewer passes and help you save time. Many of the top rated robot vacuums can also use this feature to create no-go zones which allows you to designate rooms that you don't want the robot to enter.
Robots with built-in LIDAR system use this technology to map your home quickly and efficiently. The Eufy Clean robot divided my room into distinct areas and cleaned each independently during our tests. This was a huge improvement over the cheaper models that rely on the front bumper sensor. This was a much more precise method to navigate my home and was easy for me to control with the app that came with the device.
While no robot vacuum is able to climb stairs yet, most of the best rated models come with good obstacle avoidance and mapping capabilities. These tools help to remove debris from hard floors and low-pile carpets and also to prevent falling down the stairs. Some have cliff sensors that prevent them from crossing over the edge of stairs, and some have boundary strips that stop them from entering certain areas.
Some robots come with a massive tower base that houses their collected dirt, minimizing the amount of dust and allergens released into your home. These bases can last for several months or even weeks between emptying and are especially useful if you suffer from allergies. Some models have self-emptying dust bins that can empty without opening or closing them manually.
Wi-Fi enabled
Some robot vacuums connect via Wi-Fi with their apps. This lets you control them with your smartphone instead of (or in addition) to an actual remote. These models are more expensive, however, they can save time as they can schedule cleaning times daily, weekly or monthly. They also often allow you to edit and save floor maps, and provide alternative cleaning routines.
The most advanced robot vacuums employ dual sensors, combining a LIDAR system to map your area with a structured light sensor that can see objects and avoid them, even if they're under furniture or power cords. Those features allow your robot to enter tight spaces like the nook beneath your kitchen cabinets and beneath sofas, areas where other robots struggle. They're also faster to get around obstacles and have longer run times due to larger dust bins, which makes them better suited for large homes than entry-level robots.
The top rated robot vacuums are quick, efficient and effective, picking up most kinds of floor debris, including pet hair, kitty litter and other mess. They are also quiet making them a good option for homes with children and pets. Many of the robot vacuum owners we've spoken to report that they appreciate the ease of having their floors cleaned with little effort. This is particularly true when they are used regularly. If you take care of maintenance (cleaning the rotating brushes and keeping an eye on replacement parts) robots can last as long as a traditional full-size vacuum cleaner. PCWorld has a helpful guide that outlines some essential tips to help you keep yours running efficiently for many years to come.
Dust Bags Larger
A robotic vacuum is not as effective in cleaning as a canister or upright vacuum, but it's fantastic at picking up dust and other debris that regular vacuuming has left behind. It is a great tool for quick repairs to floors that are not clean, and can traverse around cords or other obstacles in your home. It is possible to use robots to clean your floors on a regular basis in case you don't have the time to do it yourself.
Some of the best rated robot vacuums have huge, easy-to-empty dust bags that hold more than a single room's worth of dirt. This can help you save time and money on new bags. A number of the models on our list include this feature, including our top pick model, the Ecovacs Deebot T30S Combo. This all-in-one robovac has an excellent performance score and has an auto-emptying bin. It has a mopping feature and a streamlined navigation. It's a close match between this and the iRobot Roomba Combo j9+, which has the ability to avoidance and smart mapping. This model has a greater capacity, but is slightly more expensive.
Another major difference between the two models is the way they deal with hair that is long which can get caught in the rollers of certain robots. The most efficient models, the Roborock Q5 Max+ and SwitchBot K10S Plus, both have excellent hair pickup and tangle avoidance scores, along with fantastic path planning and close to perfect auto empty results. The eufy and Shark Matrix Plus are also great options, with good hair pickup and tangle avoiding, but not as much path-planning or auto empty.
The most recent robots are outfitted with sensors that can detect dirt and debris on carpets and they are more adept at picking up pet hair. Some robots feature a mopping mode which allows them to use the water reservoir in order to remove stuck-on mess and spills. This feature is crucial for families with children as well as pets.
Maintenance
A robot vacuum mop cleaner robot can help keep up with your home. While no robot can replace an upright or canister vacuum for deep cleaning, the highest rated models pick up pet hair, lint, and other surface dirt on carpets and floors with low pile, picking up much more than you can with a Broom. They also have navigational features to prevent them from getting stuck on power cords, rug fringe, or furniture.
According to the model, you can set up the robot vacuum to run several times per day or even observe it in action with an app. These devices are convenient however they can be clogged and require regular maintenance. This includes emptying the onboard dust bin (or in some cases, the base's larger bin) as well as checking the brushes for tangled fur, and regularly washing the filters and allowing them to dry according to the specifications of the manufacturer.
Vacuum expert Emily Rairdin, a store owner apprentice at University Vacuum + Sewing, says a high-quality robot vacuum can last from three to five years or more if it receives regular care and attention. She suggests emptying the bin and the brush roll regularly cutting out hairs that get caught in the brushes, and then regularly washing and drying the filter if your robot is a mop as well. It is a good idea to wipe the sensors and charging contacts on the robot vacuum best or dock with a soft clean cloth every now and then. Then, simply recharge and refill the robot as needed for the next time you clean.