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      01-26-2020, 09:29 PM   #1
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Robot vacuum anyone?

If you have been shopping for a robot vacuum, you might have guessed, there are 3 types of robot vacuums.
1. random navigation (dumb bots & including some iRobots)
2. Camera (iRobot & others)
3. Lidar (invisible laser, Neato etc.)

I had a chance to test out all three and ended up with the 3rd choice.

My first one was a Deebot N79SE. It did a decent job cleaning but it was so stupid, it couldn't even find its way back to the charging station. It navigates by bumping into things (sometimes very hard) and kept getting stuck in the same place over and over. This machine would only work if you have a completely clutter free house.

Next I tested the camera bot Samsung R7040. There's the obvious security issue of having a robot looking up at crotch level. It was smarter but doesn't work when the room isn't well lit. The odd D shape (similar to the Neato) made it clean corners a bit better than most. But it was also too thick and kept getting stuck under chairs and couches. After it was done cleaning, it created a map of where it had been but you couldn't do anything with this information.

Finally, I tested the LIDAR bot Deebot N901 and loved it. It was super quiet, you can set it to vacuum in the dark. It shows you in real time while it's running. Plus it will create a map of your home that you can choose to draw virtual barrier for it not to cross. Best of all, it doesn't have a camera. It even vacuum in a straight line. My cat loves it. She's always trying to pounce the thing.

Obviously there are vacuum bots that have built in trash bin but I don't find that it's a chore to empty the dust bin every 3-5 days.

If you were thinking that robot vacuum is gimicky, now is the time to look at one. They've come a long way from 2010.
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