Best Robot Vacuums 2018 – Reviews and Buyer’s guide

by David Wright | Last updated March 16, 2018

I’m not even sure whether I should mention the benefits of robot vacuum cleaners or not, because they are obvious – aren’t they? But, anyway, here are the main advantages:

• you have more free time;
• you can clean your home when you’re away;
• robots are irreplaceable for people with limited mobility;
• kids love robots 😉

There are things we have to do regularly at home without exceptions: it’s cooking/eating, laundry/washing and, without doubts, cleaning. And while we can eat and wash things in the laundry outside our house, we definitely can’t clean our home somewhere outside it, right?

Below are the list and quick reviews of the best robot vacuums currently available. Before purchasing you may want to read our buyer’s guide where you will find useful information about the differences, some features and what you should know and consider before buying.

Best Robot Vacuum Cleaners in 2018 – our list:

1. ILIFE A4s – Best Robot Vacuum of 2018

ILIFE company creates robots for over 10 years. Their products are affordable and have tons of positive reviews. This model doesn’t support Wi-Fi and has no app, but this robot’s price/quality ratio is amazing and currently the best among all other robotic vacuums – that’s why we chose it as our best-of-all pick.

ILIFE A4s is the updated version of previous top-rated A4 model – you can see the comparative table below (click to expand).

A4s has a Li-ion battery on board that provides up to 140 minutes of cleaning time and, according to the manufacturer, it covers up to 2100 sq. ft on a single charge. When charging ends, the robot automatically docks and charges then return to finish the cleaning.

ILIFE A4s has a new feature which A4 model doesn’t have – it’s called mini-room mode. With this mode, A4s cleans the room more precisely and diligently by using its advanced algorithm. This is a useful feature when you need to clean some separate rooms instead of the whole house.

There are also other cleaning modes that allow you to adjust the cleaner according to your needs: edge cleaning mode, max cleaning mode, auto cleaning, spot cleaning and schedule cleaning modes. Scheduling can be configured through the remote control.

A4s has double V-shaped bristle brush that provides more efficient cleaning by picking up more dirt, crumbs, dust mites and cereal. With the Max cleaning mode, which can be enabled on the remote controller, A4s robot will clean the house with its maximum pickup power.

At the moment of publishing this article there was a discount for ILIFE A4s on Amazon which makes this robot vacuum is the best one for its price.

2. Neato Botvac Connected – Powerful and Well-Equipped Robot Vacuum

Botvac Connected is a Wi-Fi enabled cleaner. Neato’s smartphone and tablet app allows you to monitor, control and schedule the cleaner. You can set it remotely, clean the whole house or choose some specific area and get notification about the vacuuming status.

Botvac Connected comes with two brushes: the combo brush and spiral blade brush, which are suitable for a variety of spaces and surfaces. It also includes the new filter which provides great performance and is easy to pull out and clean.

This Neato model works with Amazon Alexa – so you can run and control it using your voice.

3. iRobot Roomba 980 – the Top iRobot’s model  

Those who had ever been interested in robot vacuums should have definitely heard about iRobot products. Since the company launched their Roomba series almost twenty years ago, iRobot cleaners became best sellers – and there really is a reason for this.

Roomba 980 is the latest model in its lineup and it comes with all the modern technologies and features. The robot runs for about 120 minutes and then automatically returns to doc station and recharges. This iRobot is also equipped with iAdapt Responsive Navigation (provides better navigation and avoiding stairs), has a low profile design to clean under the furniture and combined cleaning system which uses brushing, suction and agitation.

Among many other features, 980 model has the AeroForce Cleaning System which automatically increase the power on carpets – where it’s harder to pick up dirt and dust. Like many other modern robot vacuums, iRobot has its own Home App that allows to conveniently start and schedule cleaning from wherever you are.

The Roomba rockstar, which has been well-known and recognized for many years by thousands of people around the world, now just surpassed itself with its new 980 “hit”.

4. Samsung POWERbot R9350 Turbo – Very Fast Robot Vacuum

POWERbot R9350 Turbo is the successor of the previous model VR9000. I would like to note that R9350 is the most expensive and the most technically advanced model currently, so you may want to compare between other POWERbot robots to see which one would suit you – on this page you can find a comparison table with different models and their specs.

R9350 has a digital camera and nine smart sensors on board that help the robot to find the optimal cleaning route. Samsung states on their official site that the POWERbot Turbo has 70x more suction power than the leading robot vacuum according to NPD, 2015. In other words, it has enough power to clean the whole house and different surfaces really well.

What I’d also like to emphasize regarding this robot vacuum is that Samsung provides 10-years warranty on motor – which is more than solid and (for me) causes respect for the manufacturer.

5. bObsweep bObi

bObi is the newest model of bObsweep manufacturer who creates affordable yet efficient robot vacuums. For about $300 this beautifully designed cleaner has many high-end features on board: auto docks & recharges, cleaning scheduling and customization via remote, HEPA filter, UV sterilizer.

bObi doesn’t have physical or virtual boundary markers to direct the vacuum cleaner – which in my opinion is absolutely “ok” considering its low and highly competitive price.

Pros	Cons
Affordable price	Sometimes the robot cannot detect some furniture
Very high price/quality ratio	There are no physical or virtual boundary markers
Great company’s customer service
Chic design
Intuitive and easy to use
HEPA filter

In the box

• Main parts:
  • bObi
  • Charging Station + Adapter
  • Remote Control
  • Mop Attachment
  • X-amplified Battery
  • Blö Bristled Brush (installed)
  • Rubber Duster Brush (installed)
  • Side Brush (installed)
  • Hepa Filter (installed)
  Additional parts:
  • Spare Black Bristled Brush
  • Spare Side Brush
  • 2 Microfiber Mopping Cloths (1 spare)
  • Spare HEPA Filter
  • Blindfold Stickers

Specs

Weight: 102 oz (2.9 kg)

Size (LxWxH): 12 x 12 x 3.5 in (30.5 x 30.5 x 8.9 cm)

Warranty: Set – 1 year, Motor – 10 years

Barrery run time: 1 hour (average)

 

6. iRobot Roomba 650

Meet the absolute best seller – Roomba 650. It has so many positive reviews across the world and the web that it’s hard to be wrong in choice if you decide to purchase this robot.

We’ve already covered the latest Roomba 980 – the most modern iRobot model currently. But Roomba 650 is more than twice cheaper than 980 and, despite the fact that it’s not a new model, it remains excellent and competitive robot vacuum. You can see the difference between two models in the table below (click to expand).

Roomba 650 vs Roomba 980 | Comparison table

Features	iRobot Roomba® 650	iRobot Roomba® 980
Run Time	up to 60 minutes	up to 90 minutes
Wi-Fi Connected
Recharge and Resume
3-Stage Cleaning		10X the air power (compared to Roomba 600 series)
iRobot Home App
Scheduling
Carpet Boost
High-Efficiency filter
Self-Charging
Clean Map Reports
Custom Cleaning Preferences
Deeper Cleaning on Carpets

 

Roomba 650 has a 3-stage cleaning system that is designed to pick up easily any kind of pollution by agitating, brushing and suctioning. With its 3.6 inches tall the robot can clean under most furniture. Other features included: iAdapt Navigation (set of sensors to navigate smarter among household items), automatic docking and recharging, auto adjusting to different floor surfaces (tile, laminate, hardwood, carpet and others), scheduling (preset to run up to 7 times per week).

Honestly, with its current price it’s very diffucult to find any objective downsides of Roomba 650. It’s just a great and affordable vacuum cleaner that makes his job extremely well.

7. Neato Robotics XV Signature

Another good robot vacuum by Neato, but much less expensive than the Botvac Connected model. Although this is a more affordable robot, the XV Signature has all the important and useful features.

With its square front XV Signature keeps close to corners, thereby increasing the overall cleaning area. As well as some other modern robots, the XV Signature automatically goes to the base, recharges and then resumes where it interrupted the vacuuming. The robot can also be scheduled for daily cleanings via its control center.

XV uses patented Neato’s laser guided navigation which helps to scan the room, plan the most efficient path and avoid bumping around.

A Bit More About Robot Vacuum Cleaners 

According to the World Health Organization house dust is the number one cause of allergic reactions in the home. That’s why having robot vacuum cleaner is a must for people who suffer from allergies and, at the same time, who wouldn’t like to vacuum manually every day.

Photo: iRobot

Key differences between robot and standard (upright/canister) vacuums

Let’s face it: robot vacuum cleaners can’t completely replace manual cleaning – simply because there are (almost) always hard-to-reach places in the house where no robot can make the vacuuming. But these are the places which usually amount only to 2-5% of total area, so you can easily complete robot’s work and finish the cleaning in just a matter of minutes. (And I think, in the nearest future we’ll see new models that will be able to cover even those remaining 2%)

It’s clear that modern robot vacuums can significantly save time for their owners. However, I personally see one disadvantage in them for some people: it’s a possible decrease in physical activity.

With conventional (manual) vacuum cleaners we have to move – and, even though it takes our time, it’s good for health. So, while using robot vacuums for home cleaning, I strongly recommend everyone to make sure that you devote enough time for sports, outdoors, fitness, yoga, walking or any other physical activities.

HEPA (high-efficiency particulate air) filter

HEPA is a type of highly efficient air filters which must remove 99.97% of particles that have a size of 0.3 micrometers in diameter (in accordance with the US government standards). Unlike some other filtrations – such as Ozone and Ionic – HEPA filtration is safer because it uses mechanical means, so the risk of potential lung diseases and side-effects like allergies or asthma is much lower.

HEPA filter presence in vacuum cleaner can be crucial for people with allergies or asthma, because the filter is able to trap the fine particles such as dust mites and pollen which cause the aforementioned symptoms. At the same time, not all vacuum cleaners that have a HEPA filter on board are similar in filtration efficiency, because there is also an important condition: a cleaner has to be designed in such a way that all the drawn air passes through the filter without any leaks elsewhere. So the best HEPA vacuum cleaners (in terms of filtration) are those that have labels like “True HEPA” or “Sealed HEPA”.

You should know that some manufacturers mark their products as “HEPA-like”, “HEPA-type” and so on. It means that these products don’t satisfy the original HEPA’s requirements and, while some of these filters may have a close to true HEPA filtration efficiency, others will not have anything to do with HEPA. So, if you or your relatives have some kind of pulmonary ailments, make sure you deal with the true HEPA – it will provide you with fresh, clean air and have a positive impact on health.

Do you have personal experience with the above mentioned or any other models of robot vacuums? Then, please, comment below and share your thoughts.