Have you always wanted to own a Roomba? Robot vacuuming is one of the newest ways to keep a clean home and it might be one of the most effective as well. The modern robot vacuum can run for several hours at a time, manage multiple floor transitions, and even return to its home dock automatically and charge up for another cleaning the next day. If you’ve avoided robot vacuums in the past, now is the time to give them a second look.
The Best Chart For Robot Vacuums
As with any other type of vacuum, robot vacuuming is affected by the quality of the machine that is being used. Some are just plain better than others. This chart will help you be able to separate the best from the worst so your needs can be met.
Picture | Name | Our Rating | Price |
---|---|---|---|
Picture | Name | Our Rating | Price |
iRobot Roomba 770 Vacuum Cleaning Robot for Pets and Allergies | 4.4 | $$$$$ | |
iRobot Roomba 630 Vacuum Cleaning Robot for Pets | 4.6 | $$$$ | |
Mint Automatic Hard Floor Cleaner | 4.0 | $$$ | |
Neato Botvac 80 Robot Vacuum | 4.1 | $$$$$ | |
iRobot Roomba 650 Vacuum Cleaning Robot for Pets | 4.5 | $$$$ | |
Neato Robotics XV Signature Robotic Vacuum | 4.1 | $$$$ |
Why Choose a Robot Vacuum?
In the past, robot vacuums were more of a novelty than anything else. Users could let them loose in a room, let them bounce around in there for an hour or two, and the floors would wind up being mostly clean. Because the bounces were random, the robot vacuums didn’t have any way of knowing if the entire floor had been covered.
The Roomba was particularly bad at this in its early days. It would often clean in random straight lines and could sometimes get stuck on the same path, just vacuuming one spot for its entire charge. Those days are now gone. Some robot vacuums are able to plot out the size of a room and its obstacles with laser positioning and then automatically calculate the best cleaning paths. Others will actually polish the floor for you so that mopping doesn’t have to happen.
Robot vacuuming just makes life a lot easier. Just make sure the pets are locked up while the vacuum is running because otherwise you might wind up with a $400+ paperweight that isn’t covered by your damage warranty.
What Are the Advantages of Robot Vacuuming?
For homes that have a single floor, a robot vacuum like a Roomba can effectively eliminate the need to manually vacuum when it is time to clean the house. The robots can be scheduled for daily services at a specific time to keep a clean home. There are also on-demand commands available on many of today’s robots so that any time is a good time to be cleaning. All you’ve got to do is sit back, relax, and put your feet up so you’re out of the robot’s way.
For homes that have multiple stories, robot vacuuming can still happen. Most robots are equipped with what is called a “cliff detector.” If an edge is sensed, the robot will turn away from it and begin cleaning in a different direction.
The modern robot vacuum can also sense edges and corners and effectively clean them. Robot vacuuming has brushes that extend from the machine into the edges and corners to sweep debris into its collection bin. Many are designed to run the full length of the edge when it is encountered to make sure all of the debris has been picked up.
The final advantage is in the placement of the charging station. Although there are a few robot vacuums that must be plugged in manually, most of them just come home to their dock and will charge after putting in a hard day of cleaning work. Just watch your step when the vacuum is running and your floor cleaning needs will be taken care of automatically.
How Do I Find the Best Robot Vacuum For Me?
Roombas and other robot vacuums sometimes struggle with very dark carpeting. Anything in the navy blue, dark gray, or black range can interfere with the cliff detection sensors and make the vacuum think that there isn’t a safe place to travel. Look for a vacuum cleaner model that won’t be affected by color, but by open space, to counter this issue if your home has dark carpeting.
Robot vacuuming is sometimes done by cleaning pads instead of suction. This is useful for homes that have bare floors, but not so useful for carpets. If you find a really great deal on a robot vacuum, make sure that it can meet your specific needs. Otherwise you might just be running a wet cloth on your carpet and that does no one any good.
To find out this information, you could go to each manufacturer’s website and read up on the specs of the robots. You could then go to consumer websites where reviews have been left that may or may not be authentic. We prefer a more convenient option than this, which is why this site was put together in the first place. You can find reviews, vacuuming guides, and other useful information that will help you discover the secrets of robot vacuuming today.
What Are the Prices of Robot Vacuums?
Robot vacuums that clean based on suction usually start around the $400 mark. They may go up to above $700 in price depending on the amount of features that are desired. On the cheaper end of the spectrum, single function robots that wipe or polish floors can be found for less than $200. These have ongoing maintenance costs, however, because they typically use cleaning pads and those pads have to be replaced as often as every use.
A fair, competitive price on Amazon today would be around the $480 mark.
What Do Our Reviews Have To Say?
Roomba 770
The one thing we do enjoy with this particular robotic vac is that it can self-adjust to handle multiple floor types. This means it will clean a bare floor and an area rug at the same time. Users can also set up a virtual wall for the Roomba to detect so that it won’t enter certain rooms or areas of the home. It will follow along walls instead of bouncing as well, preventing that ring around the collar look. It also comes equipped with dual HEPA filters so that allergens, dust particles, and other forms of small debris stay trapped inside the unit.
Click here to look at the price on Amazon and find a great deal.
Mint Hard Floor Cleaner
The Mint automatic hard floor cleaner isn’t actually a vacuum cleaner. This means there aren’t any dust bins that need to be changed or filters to clean out, but it won’t suck up any pet hair from the corners of your floor either. It runs using microfiber cloths that affix to the bottom of the robotic unit. It then runs the cloth over the floor to make sure it gets clean. This means you’ll need to handle and dispose of these cloths instead of the dust bin.
Click here to look at the price on Amazon and find a great deal.
Neato Botvac 80
Vacuuming the floors can be a ridiculous chore some days. Between the pet hair, the leftover cereal from the kids, and the dirt that gets tracked in, there are days you could vacuum three times and never really have a clean floor, right? This is where the Neato Botvac 80 robot vacuum promises to be of help. It’s priced at $490 on Amazon right now and is powered by a laser-guided navigation system so that it can map out and clean any room methodically instead of ramming into your tables and chairs.
Click here to look at the price on Amazon and find a great deal.
Roomba 630
For those homes that like the idea of an advanced Roomba, but not the premium price that comes with it, then the 630 model is a solid option. It offers the patented 3 stage cleaning system and dirt detection technology that allows a floor to become truly clean. At the core of the 630 is an acoustic sensor system that will locate dirty areas of the floor and then clean them. There is also the iAdapt system included with this Roomba model so that the robotic vacuum can be programmed for whole room cleanliness.
Click here to look at the price on Amazon and find a great deal.
Neato Signature
If your home has a lot of dirt, then you need a vacuum cleaner that has a lot of power. That’s what you’ll find with the Neato Signature. It offers the strongest suction that is available on a robotic vacuum right now for a price that is competitive with the Roomba. Robotic vacuuming has never been easier because the laser-guided navigation on other Neato models has also been built into this one. Use the control center to plan a weekly schedule for vacuuming or spot clean. Take advantage of the high performance filter to limit allergens and dust for better breathing.
Click here to look at the price on Amazon and find a great deal.
Robotic vacuuming could be the future of maintaining cleanliness. Comparably priced with other premium vacuums, Roombas and other robots are able to take much, if not all, of this chore away from being manually completed. Take a look today at these modern robots, use our reviews to find the one which best meets your needs, and you’ll be able to sit back and relax in your clean home.