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We all hate hoovering, so why not get a robot to do it? Allow our favourite robot vacuums to take care of it all
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If there’s one thing we adore about smart home gadgets, it's that they make our lives easier. Whether it’s automatically turning on the thermostat when we get home from a long day, or firing up our favourite tunes on a smart speaker, there's nothing better than uttering a quick voice command and having your whole home responding to your every whim. Completing chores is also no longer the arduous task it once was, and while we would absolutely love it if there was a robot that folds our clothes and packs them in the wardrobe neatly, the one device we can definitely get on board with is a robot vacuum cleaner.
But what is a robot vac and how do they differ from a traditional vacuum cleaner? This mostly comes down to a typically compact size and how well they interact with your smart home devices (are all cordless and bagless to boot), but the key thing you need to know is that you won’t need to physically push anything around your home to mop up dust, pet hair or allergens, and rogue mud stains.
You might remember when Roomba’s stormed the home maintenance world and saved tired house cleaners a job with the wonders of wireless hoovering, but since then the technical wizardry has improved dramatically. Now, these smart devices can be set up to roam specific rooms on schedules, scan the floor for potential obstacles, and pop themselves back in their docking station when they are done. They even have months-long battery lives and larger storage bags so you don’t have to keep topping it up or clearing it out every few weeks. Do we need to go on?
What is the best robot vacuum cleaner to buy?
The best robot vacuum cleaner we've used, the X9 Pro excels at vacuuming and mopping, capable of doing both or either, depending on the surface it's on. Superb navigation skills (aided by the latest tech) wins it bonus points, as does its charging station which automatically cleans the mop heads. The battery life is near-unbeatable, too.
Probably the most attractive robot vacuum we've used to date, the j9+ nails everything. Superb, powerful performance from both the suction and dual-mop front, combined with smart navigational skills and self-emptying tricks make for the complete package. Definitely one to splurge on if you want to treat yourself to one of the best options around.
One of the best bang-for-buck models around, you're getting a self-emptying robot vacuum here, with the capability to mop as well. Throw in laser-guided navigation and one of the cheapest asking prices we've seen, and this could be the answer to your easy-cleaning dreams.
Our full guide to the best robot vacuum cleaners is below, but if you're after a quick taste, we've got you covered…
- Best premium robot vacuum cleaner with mop: iRobot Roomba Combo j9+, £1,249
- Best overall robot vacuum cleaner: Eufy Clean X9 Pro, £899
- Best budget robot vacuum cleaner with mop: Proscenic M9, £299
- Best self-emptying robot vacuum cleaner: Samsung Jet Bot AI+, £1,299
- Best-looking robot vacuum cleaner: Miele RX3 Scout, £899
How do robot vacuums work?
The best robot vacuum cleaners are essentially exactly what you'd expect — small, battery-powered vacuum cleaners that use tread mechanisms and/or wheels to scoot around your home with nothing but dust-sucking on their mind.
How do you charge robot vacuums?
Most, if not all robot vacuums are clever enough to return to their charging station for a battery top-up. Think of it like a kennel, but for your vacuum.
How do you empty a robot vacuum?
The best robot vacuum cleaners tend to have a self-emptying feature that automatically empties their small capacity onboard dustbins into a large sealed dust bag that's in the charging station itself. This means you can go a month or more without ever having to empty anything. Models without this functionality are still easy to empty though, normally just by removing a built-in dustbin and opening it over the bin.
How do you control a robot vacuum?
Their biggest selling point is that they control themselves. For the most part. If you get a good robot vacuum, you should be able to let it do its thing without much intervention, although some models also feature a manual remote control mode. If their sensors are good enough (and they should be), then they can avoid obstacles and collisions automatically.
Can robot vacuums clean stairs?
Unfortunately, much like Dalek's stairs are the mortal enemy of robot vacuums. We imagine there are some very clever engineers working on sol.ving that problem though, and we can't wait to see their future efforts come to fruition.