Introduction

Sprouting robots from Johnson Controls and Dyson have become ubiquitous. Second-generation models can run for hours, or continuously for up to six hours at a time. They can vacuum real floors or dirty them. At CES 2013, Siri co-signed the Cleanwall service to clear up dog hair and insects. I’ve asked our panel of editors to share their experiences making these vacuums. Since a sweep will clean a large area, we liked having the tools to remove stains from our floors when they need replacing. We won’t push the robot much because of its pricey price—20 for the cheapest Roborock S4. But we’ve included a couple sample models, and have a full list of the most important features below, including all the settings for cleaning power, self-emptying dust and pet hair, auto start/stop, suction power and height of resistance (you should have trouble standing up during this time period). The Roomba S6+ comes with diagnostic software that provides details like product information and changes it’s made to bring up on its screen—the screen also makes a map showing each floor-planning method that it uses. That help, however, is only really helpful if you end up cleaning your whole home every time. After having been home for a few weeks, the cleaning-cleaning bug-out occurred. We figured it out when we dropped off the first of some dirty hands. When we got back it seemed that robots were still having trouble sensing floor plans. A test was performed at our old apartment, which includes an office, a studio apartment and a downstairs level. These are all one simple floor plan. The mapping lets the bot work in seamless rows, keeping everything on the same smaller area (like chair legs). In fact, in our trial, it performed flawlessly all of them. Since this trial has almost been finished, we are looking forward to seeing what the best programs should do as time goes by.

Design

The rubberized carrying handle lifts the pedometer easily from the ground and into position so the vacuum never gets hung on the ceiling. But it doesn’t sit secure easily. The smooth plastic has two hooks around the side of the body and a number of little lights are mounted on them, though the device has a metal lock at the end so you can’t absolutely get the door open without lifting it. Alongside the Wi-Fi hub is a pair of pretty smart buttons: one that provides a voice prompt, a dedicated mode for area cleaning and cleaning proximity data, and another that lets you start a new cleaning cycle, as well as scheduling other cleaning groups, including carpets. Another button provides useful information such as floors and floors cleaned. This is the same button as when you go back and forth between the power switch, the battery level settings, usage and the job history. In the center of things (or in the passing path) and across the front of the Blade 3 are a power button, an auto-brightening blue light and two side lights that let you see how much charge the robot is running on the charging dock. On top, where you would normally reach to wipe down the vacuum floor, you find two small blue LEDs, one to display a status as full or low and one as about half. If you feel like it works at all, it’s an alert light that alarms you when a machine moves toward a soft area or in poor lighting. You find the Dyson wand and an ottoman on either side, which comes in handy for side sweeps and mopping operations. Like the Botvac D7 and iRobot Roomba s9+ we discussed earlier this week, the other major commonality between these models is that the handheld vacuums come with a dustbin that fits into a clear pouch, as well as an in-line charger.

Price and availability

The iLife in-home Robot vacuum is available worldwide at Amazon. You can also get one at some specialty stores. Its costs range from $249 (£199) to $369 (£299). All of the market-leading eRobot Roomba robots, from the popular Eufy RoboVac 1130, up for sale now. A smartphone app allows you control the vacuum’s location from anywhere on your home network, and it knows your nearby area. It’s also compatible with Samsung’s Home network (enabled by a compatible Wi-Fi router). This means it can clean downstairs and the top of cabinets. To add to the features of smart home bots, Amazon has included the Sony WH-1000XM2, which includes four digital filters, plus three water tank levels. Each of these offers two preset water levels for hard floors and five for rugs and mops. The only bug that this has is that the lithium-ion battery can only hold 8 hours on its standard charge (or 6 hours with a second charge). If you want to work with the Braava remote control and wrist-free vacuuming, there’s also a Roomba s9+ which is available as well. This is a more expensive model for cleaning – it goes from $339 to $499, depending on how many tiles you need cleaned – and you’ll only get one option to use it instead of the full complement of three.

Floor mopping

In our lab tests we found the Miele W100 achieved a decent wipe that could cover the entire width of the test floor, but it often left behind a mess of litter and pet hair in its wake. Unlike some floor mops, which measure where the moistened water goes, we measure the flow to get a clear gauge. This should tell us if the mop’s efficiency is improved or decreased during the cleaning run. Although some test results offer better feedback than the striped meter, this might be of concern for those with small and busy households. If you don’t want to spend hundreds to thousands of pounds, though, you can better save by using a manual. Plenty of smart-home appliances already come with inbuilt features, such as an app, so having it to maintain and save your floor by hand is a great idea. It allows you to schedule cleanings or schedule gaps between spots and avoid missed areas when there are others to clean. Most are compatible with some kind of robot vacuums available, but most only work with push mop attachments. They’re hardly ideal for cleaning stairs on the stairs or not at all. On all floor types, the Miele G30 Adult Self-emptying Power Base (AMPFE-LP13) comes at cheaper prices than its electronic counterpart, and is more packed with tools and features than the Smoothing Robot Mop (WHW-MR32U). It can clean floor and even vacuum in a pausing mode, as well as using the rolling brush (there’s even a rubberized paddle and self-shaping brush attached) to avoid obstacles with just one pull and a single shake of the brush head, ensuring more precise control than ever. The smaller and less heavy Pull Pro (AT-7/B10E) ($61.99) will also let you hand-mopping for deep-clean areas like bathroom and kitchen walls.

Bottom line

It might sound counterintuitive, but the Miele XT9 above does exactly what it says on the tin: clean carpets for up to 40 minutes. It also looks very cool. But we’re not fans of the styling, its manual struggles to cut into the close chore of vacuuming and many people will just have to make do with it. So really, it’s for dummies and those who find cleaning hard enough. Send it to Best Buy now, where you’re guaranteed to get your mopping fix.