iRobot’s Roomba (for example IROBOT BRAAVA JET 240 MOPPING ROBOT ) is probably the best known name in the robot vacuum cleaner market, and this is the best model in the range (with a price to reflect it, over £500 more expensive than the entry level Roomba). It methodically navigates multiple rooms, increasing or decreasing suction power depending on which surface it’s cleaning – we found it picked up large pieces of fluff as easily as it did embedded dust. If the machine runs out of battery mid-clean, it will return to the docking station and then complete the cycle. It also works with Google Home so you can now tell your Google Assistant when to start, stop or dock the robot. And if you want to avoid a certain room or area, the two virtual walls form an effective barrier. Download the app to set up cleaning schedules on your phone, and keep an eye on the progress of the Roomba when you’re not around.
This robo vac is the largest of the bunch and looks like something you’ve probably seen avoiding Sir Killalot on Robot Wars. But it does a good job of sucking up dust and fluff from carpet, and so it should for the price. It’s robust, so will bounce off walls with no damage done to itself (or the wall) and is good at navigating around furniture. There are an impressive six cleaning modes to pick from – auto, manual, spot, point cleaning, turbo and dust sensor – and a remote so you can steer it to a particularly dirty spot. There’s an app too, so you can control it even when you’re not in your home. This robot is worth considering, although it doesn’t quite match the Dyson 360 Eye on suction.
