I Rated This Tiny, Cheap Robot Vacuum Cleaner Higher Than the Dyson, Which Costs Three Times As Much
If you’re in the market for a robot vacuum, you’ve probably considered the Dyson 360 Vis Nav , a premium robot vacuum. Instead, I’d like to suggest you consider the Switchbot K10+ Pro , a small, nimble vacuum that’s currently on sale for $299.99 (50% off), compared to the Dyson’s $999.99 price tag .
I often read Reddit forums where people search for robot vacuums, and I’m usually surprised by two things. First, the number of people who are still looking for a robot that will only vacuum and not mop floors, and second, Switchbot is almost never mentioned in conversations.
Small size is more important than thoughtful design
Neither the 360 Vis Nav nor the K10+ Pro are traditional robots. The Dyson has a U-shaped form and bright colors. It has a deconstructed look, in gunmetal gray, red, and purple. The Switchbot is a mini robot, just eight inches across. Both designs deviate from the norm to give robots better access to parts of the home, but despite all the research I’m sure went into the Dyson’s shape, the Switchbot achieves the goal with greater success. The Switchbot’s tiny size simply allows it to make a tighter radius around chair legs and fit into smaller gaps between furniture.
A self-emptying tower is always better than no tower.
Personally, I need a really good reason to buy a robot vacuum without a self-cleaning tower — if the point of a robot is autonomy, I don’t want to suffer the indignity of dumping the dust bin over the trash can. The Switchbot K10+ Pro has such a tower, and like the robot itself, it’s delightfully small. Still, it’s effective at emptying all of the K10+ Pro’s debris. The size makes it easy to park the tower almost anywhere; it currently services my bedroom and closet, where the docking station sits nearby and feels tiny compared to a pair of shoes.
The Dyson doesn’t have a tower, but instead has a charging dock. In my review of the 360 Vis Nav, I wrote about how annoying it was that the dock wouldn’t stay in place and was often bumped by the robot trying to dock. While the dock is smaller than the Switchbot’s tower, it’s garishly bright, with black and white checkers that apparently help the robot navigate to the dock. I’d be remiss if I didn’t point out that the Dyson has the best and easiest emptying bin of any vacuum I’ve tried: you hold it in the bin, press a button, and dust is squirted into the bin at incredible speeds. Still, I’d rather not have to worry about it at all.
When it comes to apps, features matter
One of the charms of the K10+ Pro is that it feels like a premium vacuum, especially when you use the app, despite its low price. Likewise, what’s annoying about the 360 Vis Nav is that it lacks many of the features of a premium vacuum, despite being the same price as it is. The Dyson app is certainly beautifully designed, with a clean, dark interface. Dyson has set up the 360 Vis Nav to be easy to use, and so there just aren’t a lot of extra features. You can set a schedule, choose the power level the vacuum runs at, and create/edit maps. But features like Pin and Go (set a point and the robot will start cleaning) and remote control are missing, as are advanced settings for obstacle avoidance or a view from the robot’s camera.
While some of these features, like Pin and Go, are very useful, they are not necessary. However, I should note that most robots in the 360 Vis Nav price range will have these features and more. To be fair, the Switchbot does have a remote control feature (useful when the vacuum is stuck under the couch), and while it doesn’t have Pin and Go, the Switchbot is less than half the price and has some cool features I haven’t seen anywhere else. You can link NFC tags to various functions on the robot, which is great.
Approximately equal in power to a vacuum cleaner
Neither the 360 Vis Nav nor the K10+ Pro are the best robot vacuums I’ve ever tried. Switchbot’s K10+ Pro has about 20,000 Pa of suction power, while Dyson’s 360 Vis Nav has 22,000 Pa. The K10+ Pro does a great job of picking up micro and medium-sized particles, and it struggles with larger ones. What impressed me most was how effective the Switchbot was on carpet, where it’s finally found a permanent home in my home. Despite its size, it effectively picks up pet hair, human hair, dust, and most other abandoned items, and leaves vacuum marks that satisfy the cleaning freak in me.
In contrast, the Dyson did a great job with micro and medium-sized debris, and struggled with anything larger due to the design of the vacuum. The space between the robot’s plastic body and the roller that moves debris into the vacuum is simply too small to allow anything medium or larger in. The robot also left good marks on the carpet, but had a hard time moving across it. The Dyson did have one advantage, however: the K10+ Pro doesn’t have any extendable arms, but the Dyson 360 Vis Nav has a side opening that allows it to get close to the wall while cleaning. In fact, it was most noticeable on the carpet. The Dyson had a lot of dog hair right at the edge of the carpet that the Switchbot missed.
Easy choice
Whether you’re going by name recognition or reputation, Dyson is virtually unrivaled in the vacuum industry for expensive, value-for-money models that vacuum better than others. I was disappointed by how little that reflected on the 360 Vis Nav. In every way that matters, the Switchbot K10+ Pro easily outperforms the Dyson 360 Vis Nav. What’s more, it does so for $700 less.