If you’ve had enough of pushing a vacuum cleaner around the house every now and then, you are not alone. In most cases, that will mean that will mean your home will start piling up dirt. In other cases, you can just get a robot vacuum cleaner to do the cleaning for you.
These are autonomous vacuum cleaners that will clean your floors without your help. They will clean while you’re home or out. You can program a robot vacuum cleaner to make the rounds at certain times.
They have an advanced mapping system and AI technology that lets them sense the spatial environment which enables them to navigate around your home. Cameras and sensors help them avoid obstacles such as you and detect a fall.
Some high-end robot vacuum cleaner models have Wi-Fi connectivity that lets you interact with them via an app. You can monitor their cleaning progress, get notifications, and issue commands remotely.
A lot of these robot vacuum cleaners will work well on all floor types. You can also find some that have a special brush tool that lets them pick pet hairs.
There are robot vacuum cleaner models that have HEPA filters to get rid of allergens in your home while you’re not around.
If these features excite you, continue reading as well go into details explaining the benefits you stand to get from owning a robot vacuum cleaner.
The Robot Takeover
First, it was the cordless experience that took away wires from vacuum cleaners. We all enjoyed and are still enjoying the benefits they brought.
Just as cordless vacuums became popular with its great benefits, something else is gaining popularity among the vacuuming circles. It is even making those who are not fans of cleaning floors show interest.
You don’t need to get involved in the vacuuming process anymore! Robot vacuums will clean your floors all on their own. There are even some models that will empty their own dust cup which takes autonomous vacuuming to the next level.
Before we go any further, let’s take a quick look into the history of robot vacuum cleaners.
A little history
The first robot vacuum cleaner was introduced by Electrolux way back in 1996, it was called the Trilobite. That model had some problems as it often bumped on walls and object.
It also didn’t do a successful job of cleaning. But that unsuccessful attempt didn’t kill the advent of the robots.
Later in 2001, Dyson demonstrated with its own ‘robovac’. But it eventually did not hit the market because it turned out to be too expensive.
Shortly after, in 2002, iRobot, an advanced technology company in America came up with its own robovac. This one was called Roomba.
As you might have guessed, this one went ahead to become successful. It actually sold a million units in 2004!
From then on, the rest, as they say, was history as more and more variations of the Roomba were released by different companies.
Now we are here, the autonomous vacuums are gaining position in the mainstream vacuum cleaner industry.
Now let’s dive into the experience that only robot vacuum cleaner models have to offer.
Autonomous
This is the most obvious advantage you get from having a robot vacuum cleaner. This is the feature that takes the people out of vacuuming. These mini machines clean your floors on their own with no intervention.
Robot vacuum cleaner models are fitted with sensors that let them identify obstacles and floor levels. That way they won’t bump into walls and furniture, or you. When these robot vacuums get to a ledge, they can detect it, stop and turn back.
Free up time
Those who don’t have the time to clean do not have to watch their homes pile up dirt until they find the time to vacuum. These robot vacuums can do the cleaning while you are away or even while you are home but busy.
This brings a whole new dimension to domestic help. Just imagine not spending every weekend cleaning up the floors anymore.
These robot vacuum cleaners have an advanced mapping technology while others use an AI learning system. It allows them to get a spatial positioning of the room and the obstacles in it while they clean up.
That way they can tell what part of the room they have covered and the parts they have missed.
A lot of these vacuum cleaner models do a fantastic job of completely cleaning the floors without leaving any patch untouched.
Different models approach this in different ways depending on how they are programmed. So you wouldn’t be wrong to say these robots have different attitudes to their jobs.
Connectivity
If it’s a robot, it has to be smart, right? Well, these ones are and they follow commands to the letter. Some of them come with a remote control that you can use to change their settings and dictate how they vacuum.
There is a limit to the distance a robot vacuum cleaner can get messages from a remote control. This is why most robot vacuum cleaner models have gone Wi-Fi.
If you get one with Wi-Fi connectivity you can easily access it through an app from anywhere. That’s right, schedule cleaning routine for your vacuum cleaner from anywhere through Wi-Fi.
You can even integrate your robot vacuum cleaner to smart home connectivity. Connect the robot vacuum to Amazon Alexa or Google Assistant for a smoother and more unified experience. Internet of Things (IoT) is really doing great for us.
Convenience
If your time truly is worth money, a robot vacuum cleaner will definitely help you get a lot of it. Do a rough estimate of how much time you spend vacuuming your home.
Now put some monetary value to that time. That is how much a robot vacuum cleaner can help you make, or save.
If you are the type that vacuums your home once a week, a robot vacuum cleaner can easily turn that into once a month. And no, there’s no trade off a slightly dirty home.
For the most part, it will be cleaner. If you’re trying to buy back some of your time, this is a good idea if you spend a good amount of time cleaning.
The robot will help you clean your floors when you’re home or not but you will be the one to clean the robot.
You will get an alert on your smartphone when your attention is needed for a jam or when the dust bin is full. This saves you the stress of checking every now and then.
A robot vacuum cleaner will automatically switch modes for different floor types. For instance, it will switch itself to high-performance cleaning when it is going from a hard floor to a carpet.
Great access
How many regular vacuums can get under your bed or furniture without having to move something? Well, this one will get there and more without even involving you. Are you noticing the convenience possibilities yet?
Even if you have one of those cordless vacuums with an ingenious design such as a Shark MultiFlex, you will still need to bend.
A robot vacuum cleaner knows where its docking station is and will go plug itself in when its battery is running low. That way, you almost won’t need to do anything.
Multi-floor cleaning and HEPA Filters
We had to put this here, that it is smaller compared to the regular vacuum cleaners does not mean too much difference. Most robot vacuum cleaner models will go from hard floors to carpets without any hassles.
They have enough suction power to clean even medium-pile carpets. You won’t have to bother about your floor type with a robot vacuum cleaner.
Most robot vacuum cleaner models have HEPA filtration system. The will clean dust, dirt, and allergens from your home and trap them in. The robots are ideal to help people who are asthmatic and suffer from allergies.
Types of Robot Vacuum Cleaner
Most robot vacuum cleaner models look the same but the difference is often inherent in their performance. In that case, we will categorize them based on what they can do just like we did with cordless vacuum cleaner guide.
This approach will make it even easier for you to choose a robot vacuum cleaner for your needs based on its functionality.
Pet Hair
Cleaning pet hair from carpets can be a menace sometimes. Some regular vacuums aren’t even fit enough to pull it off. This is not because it is difficult to get rid of pet hair, it just comes down to having the right tool to do the job.
There are certain robot vacuum cleaner models that are fit enough for this task. They have good suction power and brush roll that are designed for that type of job. Such a robot vacuum cleaner will clean up after your pet getting rid of hairs and dander.
Neato Botvac D80
This is one of those robot vacuum cleaner models that are not circular in shape.
This one comes in a D-shape and that in itself is an advantage.
The shape allows it to get into tight corners that the circular ones might not.
So, with this one, you’re more likely to get a thorough cleaning than most others.
The D80 has a specialized combo brush that is designed for picking pet hairs. It also has a spiral blade brush that deep cleans rugs and carpets.
With this robot vacuum cleaner, you can rest assured pet hairs and dander will not litter your floors anymore.
iRobot Roomba 960
It has unique tech advancements over its previous versions. It is Wi-Fi enabled so you can command your robovac from your smartphone via the app.
For pet hairs, this is a great choice. It sports tangle-free rubber rollers that makes it easy for it to deal with pet hairs on all floor types.
Its spinning side brush allows it get to corners for an extensive cleaning.
If you have a smart home, you can consider this Roomba an addition to your smart things. It is equipped to be easily integrated with Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant.
Samsung Powerbot R7070
This is another robovac up there on the pecking order. It features the Fullview 2.0 and the Visionary Mapping Plus.
With these, it can create near perfect cleaning paths without leaving patches untouched.
It is advanced at avoiding obstacles and will even show you on the map where the robot vacuum cleaner has cleaned.
Samsung made sure this robovac is great for pet owners as well by adding a self-cleaning brush to its arsenal.
This brush is designed to pick up hairs whether tangled or not. The robot vacuum cleaner automatically removes any tangle on the brush and sucks in the hair.
One special feature of this robot vacuum cleaner is the Edge Clean Master. This feature automatically drops a shutter once the robot gets to a wall and suction power increases by 10%.
This shutter sweeps dirt towards the robot and the sucks it all up. This approach ensures that the robot does not leave any area unclean.
HEPA Filtration
Proscenic Robot Vacuum Cleaner
This robot has a powerful 1500pa motor that makes it capable of picking up any dirt, dust, and even hair.
It is highly effective on hard floors, low pile carpets, and rugs. Its sensors allow it to detect obstacles and avoid fall offs.
It can go over obstacles that are up to 0.4 inches high and 25 degrees slope.
This robot vacuum cleaner has a HEPA filtration system that traps in dust and allergens.
So, if you have allergic or asthmatic occupants, this is a good robot vacuum to keep your home safe for them. This robot can sweep, mop and vacuum your floors without your intervention all at the same time.
eufy Robot Vacuum Cleaner
The best types of vacuums are those with powerful suction and this happens to be one of them.
The suction power alone ensures that this robot will leave your floors spotless.
It has multiple cleaning modes to choose from. You can set it to auto, edge, spot, and single room modes which will cover most vacuuming needs.
This vacuum is programmable via its remote control and whichever mode you set it to, you can rest assured it will deliver without your help.
It will also get back to the docking station on time for a recharge when its battery is running low.
It has a highly efficient filtration system that keeps dust, debris, and allergies in where they belong. With this robot vacuuming your home, you don’t run the risk of inhaling the contaminants you were trying to get rid of.
How To Choose The Best Robot Vacuum Cleaner
As with anything worth buying, it is important to know how you intend to use it. This will help you determine what features to look out for.
With the number of robot vacuum cleaner models out there, if you don’t get this cleared up, you will be overwhelmed.
We will help you streamline things a bit by highlighting the common things that should be considered. With these, you will find it easy to align your needs and confidently decide on which model to go for.
Do you have a big space?
This is one o the most important questions to ask before you start going through Amazon. The reason is simple; not all robot vacuum cleaner models are great for large spaces.
If you need a robovac for a large house, you would want to consider things such as battery life, bin capacity, and its mapping system. You want a robovac that will clean a substantial part of the house before it needs to charge.
One great option for a large house is the iRobot Roomba 980. This robot vacuum cleaner has all the features required to let it clean a large house effectively including the charge and resume function.
This is a feature that lets a robovac remember where it has cleaned before it needed a recharge so it can move on. That is quite smart, right?
This Roomba has a lot more suction power than its predecessors and can work for up to 120 minutes before it needs to recharge.
Those with a small house or apartment don not need to invest as much money. The Eufy Robovac 11 is less expensive and is more ideal for smaller spaces.
What is your furniture setting like?
It is hardly possible for anybody to design their home in favor of the robot vacuum cleaner they intend to buy. So, you have to think about how your home is set up to determine the type of robovac to go for.
If you have a lot of furniture, you need to get a robovac with advanced mapping system to navigate through the many obstacles.
Otherwise, you will notice many unclean patches all over the place.
In the same vein, if the furniture in your home is low to the ground, you have to pay attention to the height of the robovac you get.
The Dyson 360 Eye is more than 4 inches high which might not fit under most furniture.
In that case, you might want to go for the Shark ION Robot which is about 3 inches high or the Neato Botvac which is even lower.
Cats and Dogs?
If pets live with you, or possibly the other way around, you will have hairs lying around. This might be a trigger if you have occupants with allergies. So, you need a robot vacuum cleaner that is good for pet hair and has HEPA filter.
There are quite a number of them available, so it might come down to other features you want or just your preference.
The Pure Clean Robot has dual rotating brushes which do great for picking up pet hairs and its HEPA filtration seals away allergens.
If you really want to pay for the extra quality, the Samsung Powerbot R7070 is ideal for this situation.
Are you tech savvy?
You are the type that goes all out with technology, you might not be truly satisfied with a robot vacuum cleaner without Wi-Fi connectivity. This feature adds the extra convenience we talked about earlier in this article.
Most of the advanced robot vacuum cleaner models we mentioned earlier have this feature. As you know, these tech-savvy models command higher prices.
Price
In the case of a robot vacuum cleaner, you mostly pay for what you get. The more features you need in your robot vacuum cleaner, the higher you must be willing to pay.
However, this does not mean that the less expensive ones do not work well. Most of them truly do what they say and serve their purpose. In all honesty, you can still get the best robot vacuum cleaner for your need without breaking the bank.
Personally, we would love one of those sophisticated robot vacuum cleaner models. But at that price, it won’t be bad if it would make a cup of coffee and run other few errands. Or at least be able to climb the stairs on its own. Is that too much to ask?
Once you are clear on what you need a robot vacuum cleaner for, stay focused on the features that will give you that. That way, you won’t be paying for features you don’t need.
That brings us to the end. It is our hope that this information would have deepened your understanding of robot vacuum cleaners. We also hope it will help you find it easier to decide if you want one and which one to go for.
