Bagless WiFi-Connected Robot Vacuum

This bagless wifi-connected robot has an all-black, utilitarian design. Its price is comparable to other top-of-the-line smart robotic vacuums for home use.

You can control the device using the physical Clean & Dock buttons on top as well as the SharkClean App, or with voice commands with Alexa or Google Assistant. It comes with a variety of smart features, such as home mapping and virtual no-go zones.

Matrix Clean

The most popular vacuum cleaner in America (based on NPD Group/Retail Tracking Services data). Matrix Clean features incredible suction power, Matrix & Precision Home Mapping and a self-emptying base.

SharkClean is an app that you can download on your smartphone to map your rooms. The app lets you create an agenda to keep your home clean or you can choose certain rooms to have Matrix start cleaning automatically. You can also create 'no go' zones like closets or beds which you don't want it to enter.

The app lets you make use of the "spot cleaning" function on demand. You can choose an area that is dirty on your floor map and the robot will clean the area on its own with many swipes of its cleaning pad. It does a great job picking up everything from dog hair tangles to tiny bits of paper cut up from a recent craft project.

When the Matrix is done cleaning the Matrix will return to its dock and empty itself into the bin. This is a nice feature as it eliminates the need to conduct maintenance.

One thing to note about this particular robot is that the LIDAR mapping sensor is located directly on top and could hinder it from easily getting underneath some low-to-the-ground furniture like sofas and tables. However, if you're not worried about it being slightly taller than other robots, this is still an excellent option. Also, be aware that this model isn't equipped with an HEPA filter like some of the other models on this list.

Precision Home Mapping

Shark's Matrix Clean Navigation is a precision grid that ensures no spot is missed. Amazing suction draws dirt, dust and other debris to a bagless self-cleaning robots base with a 60-day capacity. Precision home mapping combines 360deg LiDAR with a precise home map in the SharkClean app to enable completely autonomous movement and intelligent object avoidance. Night or day, it creates an accurate map of your space to allow for complete navigation without crashing into furniture or other obstacles. This means that your robot can be left to finish a cleaning schedule or you can initiate Matrix cleaning on demand and set room-specific targets anywhere through the app.

"The team at Precision is awesome They know that building a house can be stressful and they do an excellent job of keeping you calm during a time that you're worried about permits, weather, timing etc." Josh C.

Powerful Suction

The RV2502AE is a reliable mid-range robot vacuum that checks all the boxes. It's simple to use, produces accurate home maps, and has a bagless floor cleaners base that self-empties. It is also cheaper to run than other robot vacuums.

It has a lot of power. It utilizes its side brushes to move hair and carpet fibers into the brushroll. This prevents the brushroll from getting blocked and becoming messy, like other robotic vacuums. This makes the machine more effective for picking up pet hair.

The robot is equipped with powerful suction as well as a self-emptying base. It also has a high-efficiency HEPA filtration system that captures 99 percent of allergens and dust mites. It also comes with two power modes to fit different flooring types and a remote that lets users to access all its functions. It is also compatible with voice assistants such as Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant, so you can start cleaning without having to touch the robot.

It's a great choice for homes with a lot of space, but its navigation abilities may be problematic for some. Contrary to other bump robots that can steer clear of stairs, this one had difficulty with stairs. It relied on LiDAR sensors and infrared sensors to map my home but it was constantly mistaking my cat condo as a staircase and asked me to move it. It also had a shorter runtime than advertised, which was only 180 minutes.

Self-Empty Base

Certain robots, like this one has self-emptying bases. These bases can be used to vacuum or dump debris from the onboard dustbin to an external dirt compartment. This makes maintenance easier. They are referred to as the Clean Base Dirt Disposal by iRobot, Auto Empty Station by Ecovacs or Bagless Self Emptying Base by Shark. They are a practical option however they can be noisy and messy. They typically require special disposal bags.

This Shark model comes with a HEPA-filtered bagless self-emptying robot vacuum base and has a remarkablely large capacity. It can store debris for up to 60 days and doesn't have to be cleaned daily as other models. Shark's incredible suction can handle even the most difficult messes. The docking station's vacuum system to empty the dust bin is surprisingly noisy.

When the robot is connected and charging it will sound a beep and a green light on its top will pulse to indicate that it's prepared to start cleaning. When the battery of the robot is low, it will dock itself to its base and stop working until it is recharged. It is important that the dock, or Self-Empty Base is set up so that it doesn't get blocked by furniture or other objects and is free of any obstructions.

Although this model is somewhat more expensive than some of the other mid-range robotic mops that we've examined, it is solid and performs better on bare floors and has a longer battery life, less demanding maintenance requirements, and a broader range of automation features, including virtual boundary markers. The iRobot Roomba i7 is still our top pick it's more durable and refined, charges faster, and gets caught on rug tassels fewer often. It also has a larger maximum battery capacity.

Easy Setup

The Shark AI Ultra comes with an easy-to-use schedule that requires just a few inputs. You can choose the date and time of sunrise and sunset. You can also choose the duration of the ramp times (increasing brightness or decreasing brightness) and whether you want to turn on the lights at night.

It doesn't include voice control or smart mapping like Alexa or Google Assistant, but it does feature a very useful free programming suite. This suite has various Windows-based tools to allow for the setting of operating parameters and communication settings, dmXLAN node and switch configuration, real-time tests and rapid replication of the configuration to multiple installations.

Even the most novice of users will have no trouble getting around the interface. It has tabs on the top, which correspond to the various screens that the installer will show as well as tabs that allow you to play with the various options for colors and messages. It's a robust tool that allows you to quickly create a program installation. The application is only 1.3MB in size and works with Windows 7 to Windows 95.