The company spun off its defense robotics division in 2016 to become almost exclusively a seller of vacuums and some other home robots, such as the Braava robotic mop. It planned to launch shark cordless a robotic lawn mower in 2020 but backed off, citing problems tied to the pandemic. It’s not compatible with boundary strips, so it’s best to set it off when you’re in to monitor its path.
Of the three, we’ve tested only the AI+, and we wouldn’t recommend it based on its cleaning abilities. We’re confident that the Shark model and the lower-end Samsung bot will work similarly to all the other laser-nav robots described in the previous few paragraphs. Their “everyday” prices are a bit high, but we’ve seen some pretty good deals on the version of the Shark that comes with a self-emptying dock. Since we know that laser-nav bots are all fairly similar to one another, this Shark model could be a good choice if you see it on sale. As for cleaning, we’ve found over and over again that basic Eufy bots are capable of picking up all the most common types of debris off bare floors and low-pile rugs. It’s actually kind of surprising how effective they are, since the advertised suction is so modest, and the single brush roll is small.
The side brushes made it nimble at tackling crevices, but we noticed it struggled slightly with corners. It took 34 minutes to finish a whole room, but the results were remarkably clean throughout. It’s versatile too; control it via an irobot vacuum cleaner intuitive app, effective voice control or a remote – providing tech that everyone can use. They aren’t the cheapest, but they can bring convenience to your cleaning routine, and our GHI experts were impressed with their capabilities.
We bring this innovation to you by designing and building robots to enhance life for you and your family. IRobot OS works together with your robot and your iRobot Home app—cleaning thoughtfully to deliver a personalized experience that fits your life. Best of all, this vacuum empties itself out at the end of every cleaning task, so you never have to come in contact with the gunk it picks up.
“This vacuum is a lifesaver in sucking up dog hair, especially under the bed where it’s hard to reach with a traditional vacuum,” our long-term tester said. The Roomba 694 uses WiFi connectivity and an easy-to-use app on your phone to complete cleaning jobs. You’ll be able to name your vacuum, start a timed cleaning job, locate the vacuum, and tell it to return to the charging station from within the app, allowing you to run the vacuum even when you aren’t at home. Our top choice is the iRobot Roomba 694, which sucks up debris on hardwood floors, carpets, and tile alike. Only the j7+ Roomba works with the company’s subscription service, iRobot Select. It self-empties, can map your home, and pairs with voice assistants.The iRobot Select add-on automatically sends you a refresh of supplies, makes it seamless to swap out bags, filters, and brushes when needed.
Founded in 1990 by a trio of Massachusetts Institute of Technology roboticists, including Angle, iRobot’s early ventures led to rovers that could perform military and disaster-relief tasks in the aftermath of the Sept. 11 attacks. At Sam’s Club, we carry best-selling cleaners from brands you know and love. In our room test, it did get stuck against a table leg, eventually sending a notification to the app asking for help. The cleaning pattern didn’t look that methodical either, passing over certain areas multiple times and missing some edges – the app allows you to monitor the cleaning history though, so you can catch any spots that may need more attention. There are several factors that can help you find the best iRobot vacuum for your specific home.
However, as with most robot vacuums, you could also set a Schedule to accomplish these tasks. That’s where you’ll connect the vacuum to Wi-Fi so that you can schedule cleanings and unlock support for control by voice commands. The app is also where you can see the map of your apartment the robot is generating with its sensors, and obsessively track how much of your space it’s actually cleaned.
Unlike most hybrid vacuums and mops, the S7+ uses sonic mopping and cleaning solution to keep your floors squeaky clean, while the powerful suction lifts up pet hair, debris and dust. Thanks to its HEPA-quality filters and self-emptying, it’s also the best robot vacuum for people with allergies who want to avoid dust in the air. We’ve spent no end of days testing robot vacuum cleaners to see which models offer the best performance of the bunch. Each robot vacuum cleaner had to collect measured amounts of kitty litter, Cheerios and pet hair from hard floors as well as carpet, to see how it handled varying sizes of debris. After that, we considered the accessibility of the design, the overall ease of use and, of course, the effectiveness of the navigation. If the robot vacuum came with a mopping function, we trialed that too, checking the quality of the performance on our hardwood floors.
While the Yeedi Vac Station robot vacuum performed well on carpets and hard floors—it picked up all of the dirt and sand but left some hairs behind—we particularly loved its mopping feature. It was able to successfully wipe away liquid messes, like spilled coffee, without a trace, and though it took a few passes, the vacuum-mop combo also cleaned sticky syrup off the floor. Whether your home has hardwood flooring, tile, carpets, or rugs, it’s convenient when you can find a device that’s versatile enough to clean all surface types in one fell swoop. That’s why we rated the iRobot Roomba 694 as the best overall robot vacuum after testing; this easy-to-use machine effortlessly navigated multiple floor types while collecting dirt and debris with ease. A consistent cleaner on both hard floors and carpet, this app-controlled robot vac is a reliable addition to your cleaning arsenal. It responded to our voice tests every time, and its app was a similarly reliable way to control it.