The Best Shark Robot Vacuum
Shark's robot vacuum checks all the boxes you would expect from a product in this price range. It provides reliable cleaning performance and an easy-to use mobile app. It also provides precise home maps.
It also comes with Matrix Clean navigation, a system that allows two passes going back and forth before moving from side to side to provide complete coverage. And its base is bagless, unlike many other robot vacuums.
1. Roborock S4
This is a top-notch robot vacuum for bare floors that sucks up debris and has a huge dirt storage compartment. Its smart pathing works very well and the app allows you to manage cleaning and docking. The app also provides 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 S4's side brush and combo brush are closer to the front of the machine than other Roborock models. This may be to prevent clogging.
The S4's advanced navigation system can digitally map a home up to four levels and will remember the areas that it has vacuumed, making it easy to set up cleaning schedules without having to manually move the robot around rooms. You can also mark off zones that are not allowed to enter, which will prevent the S4 from entering these areas during a cleaning cycle.
It was able to vacuum an entire level of our home easily and was extremely effective on flooring that was not clean. However, it struggled with cleaning up dog hair, which is a common issue for a lot of robotic vacuums. It only 8.5 percent of the dog hair it picked up was actually collected in the dustbin and much of the rest was clumped in the brushes and suction inlet.
In comparison to other Shark vacuums, the S4 is noticeably more compact and lighter, which enhances maneuverability. It can turn more quickly and avoid obstacles that slow down other robots. Additionally, its low-profile design makes it easy to get under furniture. It has improved climbability for navigating flooring transitions as well as different flooring levels. It can even reach the bottom of the stairs and is an excellent choice for homes with multiple levels. The app lets you set a timer and also includes an automatic control for vacuuming. It can also return to its charging station to recharge 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 recharges in normal mode.
2. Shark EZ Robot Self Emptying
This Shark robot vacuum is a fantastic option for pet owners who want an efficient, user-friendly machine. Its bagless self-emptying base is a major benefit in comparison to other models that utilize disposable dirt bags on their bases. It is easy to remove the bin and then empty it over a trash can; this could be messy, but it also saves you money on bags to replace.
The bin is also large, meaning that the EZ Robot can handle a lot of dirt. It also does very well on floors with no carpet. However, it has a difficult time with dirt embedded in low-pile carpet. It's got good navigation capabilities and a small footprint.
The EZ Robot may not be as efficient as Roborock S4, but it is still a great option for those looking for a robot that can perform well and is reasonably priced. It's built well, comes with a wide range of automation features, and has impressive cleaning performance on both bare floors and high-pile carpet. Its maintenance requirements are high and its ongoing expenses are very high.
Another fantastic feature of the Shark robot is its capability to recharge and resume automatically where it began when it returns to its docking station after a full cleaning session. This is a fantastic feature, particularly if your home is large.
The IQ XL also comes with various other useful features. These include the ability to schedule whole-home cleanings remotely and review cleaning reports via the SharkClean App. You can also begin, stop and resume cleaning sessions with voice control through Amazon Alexa or Google Assistant. The row-by-row cleaning feature is a major benefit, too - it cleans your entire home in neat rows instead of a back-and-forth snake pattern like many other robots.
The biggest drawback of the IQ XL is its inability to scale obstacles like power cords, which it could identify as solid barriers and not climb over. It is also less effective or efficient in navigating space if it's stuffed with pet hair. This can cause tangles on the brushes and slow it.
3. Shark AI Robot
This is a solid robotic vacuum from Shark, offering a good combination of features. It has a self-emptying base that holds up to 30 days of debris. It combines the cleaning capabilities of an automatic vacuum and a mop. It offers a matrix grid robot cleaner with mop cleaning mode, and is equipped with advanced smart home integration that supports Alexa and Google Assistant. You can set it to clean on a schedule or on demand or set virtual boundaries to keep it from entering rooms that may contain rugs or fragile items.
The Shark AI Robot carries out an impressive job of cleaning floors, picking up debris like rice easily. However it has a difficult to remove larger, bulky debris from carpets with low pile and is not capable of maneuvering around large furniture. It is in a"do not disturb" mode which allows you to use it at home without it interrupting your daily routine.
Another advantage is that it uses LiDAR technology to map your home, allowing it to detect and navigate around obstacles with greater precision than units that rely solely on gyroscopes and infrared sensors. This helps it avoid collisions with delicate objects as well as optimize dirt pickup on various surface types. The LiDAR system also performs faster than gyroscopes, which can cause the robot to slow down and lose control when it encounters uneven surfaces.
Other features include remote control, automatic mopping, and a variety of vacuum modes. It can recharge and charge itself while it is working. Its biggest flaw is that it only maps out one floor. If you have two floors, it's required to be manually transported to those areas, and then programed to repeat.
Another issue is that it can be a little noisy, especially in mopping mode. It also has many parts which need to be cleaned or replaced regularly, which increases its recurring cost. The base self-empty function helps to reduce some of these expenses. It is also compatible with a bagless filter, which further lowers the cost per year.
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 robotic vacuum, with solid cleaning capabilities and a fantastic mobile app that can create precise home maps. It also has a bagless base which eliminates the need for annual dust bags replacement. In our test of cleaning performance it was able remove 97.8 percent of dust from hardwood floors and low-pile carpeting although it wasn't as effective on high-pile carpeting. Its maneuverability is solid and it can navigate through furniture, climb onto high-pile carpeting and go over things like rug tassels, electrical cords, and rug tassels without getting stuck.
Its high-tensile bristles in a helix pattern are durable enough to untangle and manage long hair, string, and other fibers. The brushroll also has an adjustable side which can be used in the event that it encounters obstacles. Its thin design lets it slide under furniture and proximity sensors monitor and adapt to surrounding obstacles. The app allows you to schedule cleanings and trigger the machine using one button press. It has a moderate sound level, but can be quieted by using the do not disturb mode or custom scheduling.
The RV700 is more manual than the Roborock S4 or iRobot Roomba j7+. This is to be anticipated from the fact that it does not self-empty. It's nonetheless more durable and easy to maintain. It charges faster and gets rid of more dirt from high pile and bare floors. Its navigation system can create virtual boundaries, detect and avoid obstacles, and also create virtual boundaries. This makes it the ideal choice for robotic cleaners that you can "set and forget".
The RV700 Series doesn't have a the cliff sensor, which prevents it from falling down stairs, which may be a problem for those living in homes with higher ceilings. It's also not able to mop and vacuum at the same time and requires you to switch between two modes of its application. The RV700 Series offers a cheaper alternative to more sophisticated Roborock and iRobot robots that come with self-emptying features and cliff detection. Its main selling point is the possibility of being recharged and empty while docked at its base. This makes it a great alternative for those who do not wish to empty the onboard dustbin every time they use it.