Five Features I’d Like to See in a Robot Vacuum Right Now
I am often asked to recommend which robot vacuum cleaner to choose. Although I have favorites, I usually respond with a list of features that I need. Every year, robots become so advanced that their functions change. But if I were shopping for a robot vacuum tomorrow (or at the next big sale), here’s what I’d be looking for.
If you don’t have wall-to-wall carpet, invest in a vacuum and mop combination.
Generally, people avoid combination products because every new functionality is an additional feature that may break. There is also a belief that one feature will not be as good as the other. For a while, it was unreasonable to expect a robot vacuum cleaner and mop to be equally good, but that’s no longer the case. What’s more, starting in 2024, the robots had artificial intelligence added to their little robotic brains, which no longer switches between vacuuming and mopping – instead, it identifies dirt/detritus and uses whatever tools it has to solve the problem. The mops are also much better than before. One of the favorites in this regard is the Dreame X50 .
Robots that only vacuum are not even cheaper in most cases. For every vacuum cleaner, there is a vacuum cleaner and mop combination in the same price range. Unless you only work on carpet in your home, equipping your robot with most of your floor care tools means it’s a combination.
Get a robot that can reach
Robot vacuum cleaners are typically 11 to 14-inch pancakes of various shapes that crawl across the floor. In a large open space, they work well, moving over and cleaning up debris and stains on the floor. But a few years ago, robots had difficulty getting close to the wall and/or other objects on the floor. There was a trail of trash left there, so new robots started appearing with sweepers and mops on their arms that could reach out from under the robot and get close to places the robot couldn’t. Over the past two years, the reach has become longer and more precise, so in most cases today’s robots can get close to walls, but their arms can reach places the robot can’t reach. Even the Dyson 360 Vis Nav , which I wasn’t particularly fond of, had a very effective side extension that went all the way to the wall. Robots like the Roborock Saros 10R and Eureka J15 Ultra have very effective retractable arms.
Doc has the same meaning as a robot
Much attention is paid to the robots themselves: their suction power , mop pads, how low they are to the ground, whether they can climb stairs. However, the docking station is an equal partner in how well your vacuum cleaner performs. To ensure your robot performs at peak performance and makes your life easier, you need to look for certain features. I recommend docks with removable trays in the base so you can pull them all the way out for cleaning, rather than having to stand on the floor and try to reach into the back of the dock to try to clean it, as was the case on pre-2024 models. All modern Roborock models have this, as does the Eureka J15. But not all vacuum cleaners do this.
I’m also currently looking for docks with a container for cleaning fluid. This will automatically inject the cleanser into each batch of fresh water, so you don’t have to add it manually. At best, it’s a container that you can fill with the cleanser of your choice (like the Eureka J15) instead of a disposable, branded cleaner cartridge from the company (like the Dreame models).
Finally, I cannot stress enough how important it is to check your dock’s water supply. In both Narwal models, Freo Z and Freo X, I had to change the water every time I started the robot, which made it much less autonomous.
The design of the rollers determines how autonomous your robot will be.
Underneath all robots are single or double rollers that sweep debris from the floor into the robot itself, aided by the robot’s suction. Hair also gets caught in the rollers, debris gets stuck, and paper clogs the robot. The design of these rollers has changed a lot over the years, but the most effective rollers I’ve seen recently were the Roborock split rollers, where the two rollers don’t meet in the middle, making it easier for debris to get into the robot. I have seen this design on Saros 10 and Saros 10R .
The Dyson 360 Vis Nav roller was also great because it had big fluffy brushes, but the robot sat so low to the ground that the roller couldn’t reach much debris and was pushed around instead.
The silicone-finned rollers found on most older models (and all Roombas) are easily cut through by human and dog hair, meaning they need to be replaced frequently.
The lifting chassis will make the mop more efficient.
There is a lot of focus on robots that can “climb,” which we hope will become robots that can climb stairs. The closest we got were the Saros 10 and Dreame X50, both of which can break the several-inch threshold (the Dreame handled this task much more competently). More important than climbing, the technology that robots use to lift themselves, when the front of the robot’s chassis rises, puts pressure on the back of the robot where the mop is located. This has the much-needed effect of helping the mop pads dig into the dirt on the floor, providing more contact and pressure. While most robot mops glide across the floor and can pick up stains from the surface, especially wet ones, they struggle with dirt. But robots like the Saros 10 and Dreame X50 did a better job than other mops because of the pressure exerted on the mop pads.