The Best Robot Vacuum For Carpet
Whether you've got low or high-pile carpet there's a robotic vacuum for you. These machines are intelligent and can automatically navigate your home, suck up debris and even clean under furniture.
They come with advanced features such as mapping that helps you navigate around your home and remember where furniture is. They can also boost the suction power in order to tackle dirtier surfaces.
iRobot Roomba 694
The Roomba 694 from iRobot is an entry-level robot vacuum that performs well on both carpets with low pile and bare floors. It is able to suction well, but struggles with larger debris like sand or grains of rice. It also does a decent job at cleaning pet hair, but it's not resistant to tangling like the top Roomba models such as the I6 or j7.
The Roomba 694 is simple to use. It has three buttons on its top cover. 'Clean,' which initiates a cleaning session, 'Dock,' which places it in its charging station and 'Spot,' which activates a targeted cleaning. You can control it via an app for smartphones that lets you to schedule cycles, stop/start them and adjust settings. It can also be paired with smart home devices like Alexa or Google Assistant for voice-controlled operation.
This vacuum cleaner is slower than some others, but it is able to reach most corners and crevices. It comes with a large bin, which makes it easier to empty. It's compatible with virtual barriers and digital mapping, which allow you to make it impossible to clean certain areas or stop cleaning altogether in order to prevent it from getting stuck on something.
While it's not the best model in its price range, it's better than many other alternatives. The Roborock E4 has a better cleaning capability than the Roomba 694 and it's able to clean low-pile and bare carpets. It also follows a more efficient cleaning path and has longer battery life. It is also more robust, has fewer parts that require regular maintenance, costs less over its lifetime and charges faster than 694.
It's also worth considering other models that are more expensive in the iRobot line, such as the 981 or the v7. They're more expensive, however they are significantly better than the 694 in terms of performance on both low and bare floors, follow the most efficient cleaning method and come with a larger dirt compartment, are more efficient to charge, move more easily, and are easier to pair with smart home devices.
Shark RV1001AE IQ
This budget self-emptying robot does a good job on hard floors as well as low-pile carpet. Its combinator brush gets to corners and edges, and it automatically increases suction when it senses carpet. It also does a great job of cleaning dirt on carpet in the middle. The IQ has a tiny footprint and has a self-emptying feature. If you want to change the floor's levels or define zones that aren't allowed, you'll have to manually reset the map.
The IQ's app has some advanced mapping and automation features however, it's not able to access no-go zones, which are available on iRobot models. The smart-pathing navigational system results in superior maneuverability and its high-pile carpet mode cleans well, though it does have a tendency to get caught up on rug tassels, and its iHome speaker lets you control the robot using voice commands.
In our tests, we found that the IQ handled pet hair well. It was able to eliminate a large amount of debris on floors that were unfinished, and a fair amount on medium-pile rug. It was less efficient on shag carpets, where it struggled to reach dirt and dust that was embedded in the fibers. It was able to maneuver the legs of a chair, tiny spaces as well as the base of an IKEA wooden step stool. It was slower on bare flooring but it was able to recover speed and performed better than other robots we evaluated.
The IQ is a better choice than the iRobot Roomba 694 for most uses. It has a bigger dustbin and a longer battery life and is more adept at navigating obstacles. It comes with mopping tools that are able to remove sticky mess. The iRobot on the other hand feels better constructed and has fewer parts that require replacement or maintenance and incurs fewer cost per year, and can create virtual no go zones using its companion application. It can even resume cleaning from the point it started if it runs out of battery before it has completed the task. The iRobot can also be controlled using voice, which is a huge plus for many users.
Eufy 11S
The eufy RoboVac 11S robot vacuum isn't one of the most feature-rich models, but it provides powerful cleaning power at a low cost. The RoboVac 11S is made for those who are budget conscious and do not require a complicated mapping system, or even an app, to control it. The robot is able to last for over an hour. It includes an remote control, a cleaning tool, and AC power adapter.
The 11S is slim and sleek with a tempered glass upper deck that covers plastic and is made to look like brushed aluminum. It's a nice contrast to Roomba, Samsung, and Neato designs that are more practical and industrial.
The eufy11S did well in our tests of removing larger debris and fine dust from hard floors. It struggled to deep clean carpets with high and medium piles. The device is prone of bumping into furniture and people along its course. However, it is able to detect obstacles with sensors. It ceases and emits a loud noise when it encounters an obstacle. Then, you can manually steer the device around it and get it to work again.
The BoostIQ mode is another fantastic feature of the eufy11S. It allows you to set up the robot to automatically adjust suction strength based on the floor type and the level of mess. The remote control makes it simple to guide the 11S to the desired location.
If you don't have many furniture in the space where you're looking to vacuum Single Room Mode is an excellent alternative. The eufy can spend 30 minutes cleaning the area it's assigned.
You can also opt for Edge Cleaning which restricts the time spent in each area to 20 minutes for optimal battery life. If you select this option, the eufy will move in a spiral pattern to clean edges and corners for a thorough clean.
Miele Complete C1
The Miele Complete C1 is an excellent mid-range canister robot vacuum that can be a great performer on carpet. Its performance is also excellent on floors that are not bare. It can remove small particles such as rice with ease, and it doesn't lose suction power even when its dirt bin gets full. Its air-sealed design and allergy-friendly design traps allergens, keeping your family healthy. It has an onboard HEPA and self-emptying bin which means you don't require additional filters or vacuum bags.
It's not as powerful as pricier models, but it's still great for tackling stains and deep cleaning. Two front cameras provide live feeds of images on your smartphone, and it has one of the best obstacles-avoiding systems we've seen. It has a large bin, a long runtime and an easy, bump-free clean-up.
Unlike most other robots, unlike other robots, the Complete C1 can switch between the standard powerhead and the turbo head for different flooring types. The turbo head works best with high-pile or low-pile carpeting while the standard powerhead is good for floors with no flooring and light rugs. It also has an automated height adjustment system, which allows it to easily adapt to different types of flooring without any manual adjustments.
This model is bundled with the SBD 285-3 Classic Combination Floorhead, which can be used on both carpets with a hard surface and carpets with a medium pile. The motor can also be easily moved around and get into difficult areas. It comes with five different surface adjustments and an off-brush switch to avoid tangled hairs.
The Classic C1 has a self cleaning brush roll and the UtraClean Mode that cleans the same area up to three times, and a self-emptying bin that you can empty by pressing a single button. The volume of noise produced by this model is higher than other models. However, its powerful motor with 1,200 watts and robust construction are worth the additional cost.
If you're willing a little more then the Miele Complete C3 is an excellent all-round robot vacuum that performs better on carpet than the Classic C1. It is more efficient on all floors, feels more info more solidly built, and includes a HEPA filter.