The Best Shark Robot Vacuum
Shark's robo vac checks off many of the boxes you'd expect from a product in this price range. It provides reliable cleaning capability and an easy to use mobile application. It also creates precise home maps.
It also features Matrix Clean Navigation, a system that performs two passes in a row, before moving to the side for full coverage. Its base is not bagless like many other robot vacuums.
1. Roborock S4
This is an excellent robot vacuum for floors that are not bare with a large dirt container and is able to remove debris. The smart pathing system works well, and the app lets users to control cleaning and docking. The app also gives you an easy overview of cleaning, including a map of where the S4 has been cleaned, the cleaning duration and battery life.
The S4's maximum suction is 2,000Pa, which is comparable to some full-sized vacuums. The side brush and combo brush are located closer to the front of the machine than the other Roborock models. This may be to reduce clogging.
The S4's advanced mapping system can map a house up to four levels deep. It will also keep track of areas it has already cleaned. This makes it simple to design a cleaning schedule without the need to manually move robots around rooms. You can even mark off areas as no-go zones, which will block the S4 from entering those areas during the cleaning process.
It was able to clean an entire floor of our house easily, and was very efficient on floors that were not. However, it struggled with cleaning up hair from dogs that is a common issue for robotic vacuums. The only 8.5 percent of the hair was collected in the dustbin. The rest was clumped up around the brushes and the suction inlet.
Compared to other Shark vacuums, the S4 is noticeably more compact and lighter, which enhances maneuverability. It allows for tighter turning and avoid obstacles that slow down other robots. The low-profile design also allows it to be placed under furniture. It also has improved climbing capabilities to navigate flooring transitions as well as different levels of flooring. It can reach the lowest point of the stairs and is an excellent choice for homes with multiple levels. The app allows you to set a schedule, and comes with an automatic vacuum control. It can also return to its charging station to charge automatically between cleaning cycles. It has a large 5200 mAh battery that is rated to run for 150 minutes or 2691 square feet of space between charges in normal mode.
2. Shark EZ Robot Self-Empty
This Shark robot vacuum is a fantastic choice for pet owners looking for a machine that is easy to use and smart. Its self-emptying bagless base is a great benefit, particularly when compared with other vacuums that use disposable dirtbags in their bases. You can empty the bin over the trashcan by simply taking it off it. It's messy, but you'll save money on the replacement bags.
The bin itself is fairly large, meaning that the EZ Robot is capable of handling a large amount of debris. It also performs well on bare floors. However, it has a difficult time with dirt embedded in low pile carpet. It also has decent navigation capabilities, and a tiny dock footprint.
Although the EZ Robot isn't as good as the Roborock S4, it's still a solid option for people who want a good-performing, budget-friendly robot. It's well-built, offers an array of automation options, and offers outstanding cleaning performance on bare floors and high-pile carpet. However its maintenance requirements are a challenge, and it has high recurring costs.
Another great feature of this Shark robot is its capacity to recharge and then resume where it began when it returns to its docking station after a full cleaning session. This is a great feature, particularly when your home is big.
The IQ XL also comes with a variety of other useful features. This includes the ability to schedule your entire home cleaning remotely and view cleaning reports via the SharkClean App. You can also begin, stop and resumptuate cleaning sessions with voice control via Amazon Alexa or Google Assistant. Its row-by-row cleaning mode is a huge benefit and it also will clean your entire home in neat rows instead of the back-and-forth snake design of many other robots.
The IQXL's main drawback is its inability to climb over obstacles like power cords, which it could detect as solid barriers and not climb over. It is also less effective or robot vacuum deals efficient in navigating space if it's stuffed with pet hair. This can cause tangles to the brushes and slow it down.
3. Shark AI Robot
This is a great robot vacuum from Shark that comes with a variety of features. It has an elongated base that can hold up to 30 days of debris, and it combines the cleaning power both of an automated mop and a vacuum cleaner. It also has an exact matrix grid cleaning mode as well as advanced smart home integration with support for Alexa and Google Assistant. It can be set to clean on a schedule, activate on demand, or set virtual boundaries to block it from entering rooms that may contain rugs or fragile items.
The Shark AI Robot carries out a fairly thorough job of cleaning floors, picking up debris like rice easily. It has a hard time taking large, bulky debris from low pile carpets and isn't able to maneuver around furniture with large dimensions. It does have a quiet mode, which means you can program it to work when you're at home and it won't interrupt your daily routine.
It also uses LiDAR to map your home. This allows it to detect and navigate obstructions more precisely than units that rely solely upon gyroscopes or infrared sensors. This allows it to avoid collisions with delicate objects and also improve dirt pickup on various surfaces. The LiDAR system also works more quickly than gyroscopes, which can cause the robot slow down and lose control when it encounters uneven surfaces.
Other features include the remote control, automated mopping, and various vacuum modes. It can even recharge and charge while working. The biggest flaw is that it only maps only one floor. If you have two floors it's required to be manually transported to the areas, and then programmed to repeat.
Another drawback is that it could be quite loud, particularly in mopping mode. It also has a lot of parts that need to be cleaned or replaced frequently which increases its recurring costs. The base self-empty function assists in reducing some of these costs. It's also compatible with bagless filter, which reduces the cost annually.
4. Shark ION Robot RV700 Series
The Shark ION Robot RV700 Series is a complete package that meets all the criteria you would expect from a mid-range robot vacuum, including solid cleaning capabilities and a fantastic mobile app that can create accurate maps of your home. It also has a bagless base that means no annual purchase of dust bags to replace. In our cleaning performance test it was able remove 97.8 percent of dust from carpeting with low pile and hardwood floors however it was not as effective with high-pile carpeting. Its maneuverability is solid, and it can easily maneuver around furniture, climb on carpets with high pile and climb over objects like rug tassels and electrical cords without getting stuck.
Its high-tensile bristles in a helix pattern are durable enough to manage and untangle long hair, string and other fibers. The brushroll also features a retractable side that can be used if it encounters an obstacle. Its slender design allows it to glide over furniture and proximity sensors allow it to adjust and evaluate obstacles. It can be triggered to begin cleaning at the click of a button or scheduled for a daily schedule through the app. Its noise levels are average however it is possible to reduce the noise with a do-not-disturb feature or a custom scheduling.
The RV700 is a bit more manual than the Roborock S4 and iRobot Roomba J7+ and iRobot Roomba j7+, which is to be expected from a non-self-emptying model. But, it is more robust and easy to maintain, charges faster and clears more debris on floors that are not bare and carpets with high pile. Its navigation system is able to create virtual boundaries, identify obstacles and avoid them, and also create virtual borders. This makes it the best choice for robotic cleaners that you can "set and forget".
The RV700 Series doesn't have a safety cliff sensor to prevent it from falling down stairs, which may be a concern for those living in homes with higher ceilings. It's also not able to mop and vacuum simultaneously and requires you to switch between two modes available in the application. The RV700 Series offers a cheaper alternative to the more advanced Roborock and iRobot robots with self-emptying capabilities and cliff detection. The most attractive feature is that it can be emptied and recharged while docked at its base, which makes it an ideal choice for those who do not want to go through the inconvenience of emptying the dustbin after each use.