The Best Shark Robot Vacuum
Shark's robot vacuum checks all the boxes you would expect from a product in this price range. It is reliable in cleaning as well as a mobile app that is easy to use and produces accurate home maps.
It also has Matrix Clean Navigation, a system which performs two passes back and forth, before moving to the side for full coverage. And its base is unbagged, which is different from other robot vacuums.
1. Roborock S4
This is a top-quality robot vacuum for bare floors that sucks up debris and has a huge dirt compartment. The smart pathing feature works well, and the app lets you to manage cleaning and docking. The app also provides an easy overview of cleaning, including maps of the areas that the S4 has been cleaned, the cleaning duration and battery life.
The S4's maximum suction is 2,000Pa, which is comparable to full-sized vacuums. With 19CFM the S4's side as well as combo brush is located closer to the front than in other Roborock models, which could be a way to cut down on the possibility of clogging.
The S4's advanced navigation technology can digitally map a house up to four levels and will recall the areas it has already vacuumed, making it easy to create an agenda for cleaning without having to manually move the robot from room to room. You can designate certain areas as "no-go zones" to prevent the S4 from cleaning those areas.
It was able to vacuum all floors of our home with ease and was extremely efficient on floors with no carpets. It had a tough cleaning up dog hair. This is a typical problem with robotic vacuums. Only 8.5% was captured in the dustbin. The remainder was clumped together around the brushes and the suction inlet.
In comparison 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 makes it easier to fit under furniture. It has improved climbing capabilities for navigating flooring transitions as well as different flooring heights. It can reach the lowest point of the stairs and is a great option for homes with multiple levels. The application allows you to set a schedule and includes an automatic control for vacuuming. It is also able to return to its charging station to charge automatically between cleaning cycles. It has a large 5200 mAh battery that is designed to last for 150 minutes or 2691 square feet between charges in normal mode.
2. Shark EZ Robot Self Emptying
This Shark robot vacuum is a great option for pet owners who need an efficient, user-friendly machine. The self-emptying bagless base is a wonderful convenience, especially compared to other vacuums that have disposable dirtbags in their bases. You simply detach the bin and empty it over the trash can. This may be messy, but it also saves you money on new bags.
The bin itself is also quite large, which means the EZ Robot is capable of handling a large amount of debris. It also does very well on floors with no carpet. However, it struggles with dirt embedded in low-pile carpet. It also has decent navigation capabilities, and a tiny footprint for docks.
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 affordable robot. It's well-built and has a variety of automation features. It also has an impressive cleaning capability, both on bare floors and carpets with a high pile. Its maintenance requirements are high, and its recurring expenses are very high.
Another great feature of this Shark robot is its ability to recharge and then resume where it left off when it returns to its docking station after a full cleaning session. This is an extremely useful feature, especially if you have an extensive home.
The IQ XL also comes with many other useful features. This includes the ability to schedule whole-home cleanings remotely and review cleaning reports via the SharkClean App. You can also initiate clean, stop and restart cleaning sessions with voice control through Amazon Alexa or Google Assistant. The row-by -row mode is an advantage. It will clean your home in neat rows, not an in-between snake pattern like other robots do.
The IQ XL has a major disadvantage in that it is unable to climb over obstacles like power cords. It could consider them to be solid barriers and fail to climb over them. It is also less effective or 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 solid robotic vacuum from Shark and offers a great combination of features. It has a self-emptying bottom that holds up to 30 days of debris and it combines the capabilities of the robot vacuum and mop. It also comes with an exact matrix grid cleaning mode and advanced smart home integration with support for Alexa and Google Assistant. You can set it 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 best robot vacuum for dog hair thorough job of cleaning floors, removing debris like rice with ease. However it has a difficult cleaning larger bulky debris off carpets in low pile and does a poor job of maneuvering around furniture. It is in a do not disturb feature so you can use it at home without it interrupting your routine.
It also makes use of LiDAR to map your home. This allows it to detect and navigate obstructions more precisely than units that rely on gyroscopes alone or an infrared sensors. This lets it avoid hitting delicate objects, and optimize dirt collection on different surfaces. The LiDAR system also performs faster than gyroscopes, which can cause the robot slow down and lose control when it comes into contact with uneven surfaces.
It has a fair number of other options, including an automatic mopping feature, a remote and various vacuum modes. It is able to charge and recharge while it's working. The biggest issue is that it only maps only one floor. If you have two floors, it will need to be manually transported to those areas, and then programed to repeat.
It can also be quite loud, particularly when in mopping mode. It also has many parts that must be cleaned or replaced regularly, which increases its recurring cost. The self-empty function is the basic feature that can help reduce the cost of these items. It's also compatible with a bagless filter, which further lowers the cost annually.
4. Shark ION Robot RV700 Series
The Shark ION Robot RV700 Series ticks all the boxes you would expect from a midrange robot vacuum, including high-quality cleaning performance and a superb mobile app that produces precise home maps. The bagless base removes the need for replacement dust bags every year. In our cleaning performance test it was able remove 97.8 percent of the debris from carpeting with low pile and hardwood floors, though it wasn't as effective on high-pile carpeting. Its maneuverability makes it simple to maneuver around furniture and climb onto flooring with high pile. It is also able to pass over things like rug fringes and electrical cords without getting stuck.
The bristles with high-tensile in the helix pattern are sturdy enough to manage and untangle long hair, string and other fibers. The brushroll also has a retractable side that can be used when it comes across an obstacle. Its thin design allows it to slide under furniture, and proximity sensors allow it to adapt and analyze obstacles. The app allows you to schedule cleaning times or trigger the machine using a single button press. It has a moderate noise level, however it can be quieted by using the do not disturb mode or the custom scheduling.
The RV700 is a bit more manual than the Roborock S4 and iRobot Roomba J7+, which is to be expected from a non-self-emptying model. But, it is more robust and easy to maintain, and charges faster and gets rid of more debris on the floors, including high-pile carpeting. Its navigation system can create virtual boundaries, detect obstacles and avoid them, 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 safety cliff sensor to prevent it from falling down the stairs, which could be a problem for those living in taller homes. It's not able of mopping and vacuuming simultaneously and you must switch between modes in the app. However the RV700 Series is a less expensive alternative to the more sophisticated Roborock and iRobot models that offer self-emptying capabilities and cliff detection. Its most appealing feature is the possibility of being recharged and emptied while docked at its base. This makes it a great alternative for those who do not wish to empty the onboard dust bin every time they use it.