The main downside to smart mapping is that, like anything that increases the complexity of a system, it adds more opportunities for something to go wrong and disappoint you. With the best models, mapping glitches don’t happen often, but problems will eventually crop up for everyone who owns one of these bots. At some point, you might have to erase your old maps and retrain the robot. Even Shark and Samsung joined the laser-nav bonanza (after previously releasing robots that used camera-based smart navigation), with the Shark AI Robot Vacuum RV2000 series and the Samsung Jet Bot and Jet Bot AI+, respectively. 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.
Judging from our experience, it can be useful in spaces as large as 1,000 square feet, as long as you run it most days of the week as a habit and can forgive that it might not thoroughly clean every room every time that it runs. But some people don’t want to deal with unpredictable coverage, and that’s understandable. If you want a smarter robot, take a look at our top pick, the iRobot Roomba i3 EVO, and our also-great pick, the Roborock Q5. If you need to vacuum irobot vacuum cleaner only a few rooms at a time, and you’re looking to save a few bucks, consider the iRobot Roomba 694, or really any model from the 600 series. Bots work on almost any kind of bare flooring and on most kinds of carpets and rugs—though there are some exceptions, such as high-pile rugs and some very dark flooring (which can impede the bots’ infrared sensors). Bots can reliably pick up most kinds of common floor debris, including hair, crumbs, dust, and cat litter.
Unlike more traditional canister or stick models, robot vacuums are autonomous and intelligent. The vacuums we’ve tested are equipped with lasers, motherboards, sensors, and even Wi-Fi to navigate around your home without assistance. While pricey, iRobot’s Roomba j7+ robot vacuum has smarts to spare, with a guarantee to avoid pet waste and a self-emptying base that means you rarely have to lift a finger. Here’s a list of the other robot vacuums we tested besides the models listed above.
It will also link up with a Braava Jet M6 robot mop and tell it to go mop once it’s done vacuuming. Roombas before the seventh-generation models do not map out the rooms they are cleaning. Instead, iRobot developed a technology called iAdapt Responsive Cleaning Technology. This relies on a few simple algorithms, such as spiraling, room crossing, wall following, and random walk angle changing after bumping into an object or wall. This design is based on MIT researcher and iRobot CTO Rodney Brooks’s philosophy that robots should be like insects, equipped with simple control mechanisms tuned to their environments.
The 700 series, introduced in May 2011, though largely similar to the 500 and 600 series, included a more robust cleaning system, improved AeroVac Bin with HEPA filter, and improved battery life. Like the 500 series, the 700 series had models with different technologies and accessories. Besides these two models, Roomba 770 and 782e were available, with scheduling, Dirt Detect, and full bin indicator. Also, the first- and second-generation Roombas can get stuck on rug tassels and electrical cords. Third-generation and newer models are able to reverse their brushes to escape entangled cords and tassels.
Most robot vacuums are equipped with multiroom cleaning features, which allow the device to clean in zones versus one room at a time. An “edge cleaning” mode makes sure dust and debris are picked up along the perimeter irobot vacuum cleaner and around furniture. Some machines will also include app-controlled custom cleaning preferences, which allow the user to adjust cleaning modes, power settings, number of cleaning passes, and edge cleaning.
Also, the Q5 would regularly say that it had completed a job, when a quick look told us otherwise and we knew that we would have to restart the cleaning cycle. We’ve aimed to recommend a handful of robots that should work well in most homes and aren’t wildly expensive. But plenty of models that we don’t explicitly recommend can be good or great, too, and we cite many of them throughout this guide. Wirecutter’s Liam McCabe wrote the previous versions of this guide, evaluating some 200 robots and testing close to 50 models since 2012.