Robot vacuum cleaners aren’t quite as attractive a proposition as they once were. The slow crawl back to normalcy has seen many of us go back to the traditional ways of keeping our homes clean. However, there’s no denying the impact of the product segment, and indeed the utility of having a secondary cleaning tool at your disposal. Among the many brands in the segment is Ecovacs, which is a specialist in the space and focuses on robotic cleaning devices across various price segments.

A recent launch by Ecovacs, the Deebot N8 Pro is the product I’m reviewing here. Priced at Rs. 36,900 on Amazon, and compatible with the optional Rs. 17,900 Auto Empty Station, the Deebot N8 Pro promises a more hands-off approach to home cleaning, without having to spend too much. Is it everything it promises, or are more expensive alternatives from brands such as iRobot more capable at the job? Find out in this review.

The Ecovacs Deebot N8 Pro has two sweeping brushes, in addition to a separate, removable mop fitting

Ecovacs Deebot N8 Pro design

The idea of the self-emptying docking station for robot vacuum cleaners isn’t new, with iRobot being a notable name in the segment with this technology. Where the Ecovacs Deebot N8 Pro hopes to separate itself from the competition is in its pricing and capabilities. The N8 Pro offers both vacuum cleaning and mopping capabilities, while the optional Auto Empty Station handles the task of keeping the on-device dustbin clean.

All of this comes at a combined cost of Rs. 54,800, which is a fair bit more affordable than the iRobot Roomba j7+. The Auto Empty Station comes with two disposable dust bags included in the box, and you can purchase more as needed. Each 2.5L dust bag is rated to allow for up to 30 days of dirt disposal before needing to be replaced.

Apart from serving to empty the on-device dustbin, the Auto Empty Station also doubles up as the charging dock for the robot, which is able to drive up and park itself in place with no assistance from the user. It is expectedly large in order to accommodate the suction mechanism, and has a nifty lid at the top to access and replace the dust bag, as required.

The Ecovacs Deebot N8 Pro is like much of the competition in terms of design, with a disc-like shape, a module up top for the laser navigation hardware, and two sweeping brushes at the front, in addition to the main roller brush in the vacuum zone. At the top is the power button (although it doesn’t control the power, as such) and a lid, under which, are the on-device dust bin, Wi-Fi connection button, and sliding power switch that actually powers the N8 Pro on or off.

The device is available in a single white colour option for now, and has a flexible bumper at the front to handle slight bumps and collisions with furniture and other objects at home. The back has a large slot area for the mop fitting to be attached; interestingly, the device works in vacuum mode even with this fitting not attached, although the device admittedly looked strangely hollow when operating this way.

Two disposable dust bags come included with the Auto Empty Station

Included in the sales package of the Ecovacs Deebot N8 Pro are the standard (and much smaller) charging dock and power cable, mopping plate and replacement mopping pads, and the brushes to fix onto the robot. The Auto Empty Station comes with two dust bags, a power cable, and its own on-device dustbin. This will need to be fixed into the N8 Pro for it to work with the Auto Empty Station, since it has the openings for the suction mechanism which the regular dust bin does not have.

Ecovacs Deebot N8 Pro navigation and mapping

Many cleaning robots, including the Ecovacs Deebot N8 Pro, use laser-based LIDAR to navigate; it’s widely considered the most accurate technology available on mainstream consumer-grade devices in this product segment. This also means that while the device has a fairly limited ‘field of vision’ in the traditional sense, it is capable of seeing all that it needs to both, in well-lit conditions as well as in the dark.

Ecovacs additionally touts its TrueDetect 3D and TrueMapping technology, which are said to make the device a bit more effective at navigation. I didn’t often have trouble with navigation on the Ecovacs Deebot N8 Pro, with the cleaning robot able to move around my home fairly easily and avoid heavy collisions with furniture and walls. In fact, in most cases, the N8 Pro was able to stop short of touching any obstacles, and only once partially drove over a minor ‘cliff’ and got stuck.

Mapping was accurate for the large part with the Ecovacs Deebot N8 Pro. Room markings and divisions were well established, rugs were automatically detected and factored into the cleaning tasks, and small changes to the layout (such as moving furniture such as chairs and coffee tables around) didn’t hassle the device too much. The map is also quick to respond to more permanent changes in the layout; changing the position of the dock didn’t create any navigational or mapping issues, fortunately.

Although the difference in speed of movement is not very significant as compared to options such as the 360 S7, the Ecovacs Deebot N8 Pro was somewhat slower to get around and complete cleaning tasks, particularly when moving between rooms. The lack of pace wasn’t inconvenient, but it wasn’t particularly convenient either.

Ecovacs Deebot N8 Pro app

The Ecovacs Home app is used to manage and control the Deebot N8 Pro, as well as the functionality of the Auto Empty Station, when the robot is properly docked in place. The app is available on Android and iOS, and can be simultaneously logged in and used on multiple devices with the same account and device. You can also set the app up for use with Google Assistant and Alexa, with voice commands for limited controls over the device.

The setup process is fairly simple and took around ten minutes to complete for me. The app allows you to manage multiple homes and robots (if you have multiple Ecovacs devices across locations). Once complete, the home screen of the app shows basic details, including the connectivity and battery status of the robot, and lets you either quickly start an auto cleaning task or instruct the Deebot N8 Pro to return to the charging dock.

The app for the Ecovacs Deebot N8 Pro is available for both iOS and Android

There is also a Smart Cleaning section, which is where the majority of the app’s functionality can be found. This includes the map (with real-time positioning and cleaning progress of the robot visible even during tasks), cleaning statistics and preferences, and map customisation settings for things such as virtual walls and no-go zones visible at the front. You can also set preferences for the Auto Empty Station, TrueDetect 3D obstacle avoidance, and scheduling for automatic operation, among other things.

The app is fairly detailed, and provides much control over the operation of the Deebot N8 Pro. It worked reliably even with heavy use, although I did notice some bugs with the map generation and connectivity on a couple of occasions. This is among the better apps I’ve used when it comes to cleaning robots, striking the right balance between simplicity and detailed controls.

Ecovacs Deebot N8 Pro cleaning

Unlike the iRobot Roomba j7+, the Ecovacs Deebot N8 Pro can sweep, vacuum, and mop simultaneously. This makes it a more complete cleaning device, given that all of the functionality (along with the self-cleaning features) are available for much less than what the iRobot suite of products will cost you.

Indeed, the Ecovacs Deebot N8 more closely compares with my current top pick in the cleaning robot space, the 360 S7, but with the notable difference being compatibility with the rather sensibly priced Auto Empty Station. This does give it a bit of and edge in the overall comparison since it makes maintenance a lot easier, but you do need to keep in mind the fairly high cost of the dust bags and consumable parts on the Ecovacs products.

Comparing the cleaning performance of the two devices, the Ecovacs Deebot N8 Pro is a bit more powerful than the 360 S7 on paper, with a rated peak suction power of 2,600pa. However, this level of power is only attained when using the very noisy and power consuming ‘Max+’ power setting in the app; the more reasonable power modes aren’t quite as capable when it comes to vacuum cleaning. I often had to run the device twice over the same area to get a truly clean floor.

Mopping performance was similar — it usually took two runs to do what most other devices would be able to do in one. As mentioned earlier, the Ecovacs Deebot N8 Pro also moves a fair bit slower than competing devices, and thus takes a while longer to complete the task.

You’ll need to attach the special dustbin to the Ecovacs Deebot N8 Pro if you intend to use it with the Auto Empty Station

It usually took around 40 minutes to clean my 900 square-foot home once over, and if I ran the device twice and split vacuum cleaning and mopping in different runs, it took around two hours of use per day to get the job done. This is fine if you have the time or plan to run the device on a schedule or remotely when you’re away, but can be a bit disruptive (and loud) if you’re at home while the Deebot N8 Pro is cleaning.

The Auto Empty Station can be set to automatically clean the dustbin after every task, but I preferred to operate this manually instead, which was as simple as tapping a button on the app when the robot was docked. The suction mechanism of the Auto Empty Station is quite loud, and runs for a few seconds to clean out the on-device dustbin. While much of the dust and dirt was removed, a little bit always seemed to remain in place until manually brushed out every couple of weeks.

The dust bag is rated for 30 days of use, but this naturally depends on the conditions of specific homes and can vary a fair bit based on the usage. I didn’t have to change the dust bag during my time with the Deebot N8 Pro (a little less than 30 days in total), so it’s likely to last for as long as the company claims, or perhaps even a bit longer.

Ecovacs Deebot N8 Pro charging and battery life

Ecovacs doesn’t mention the battery capacity on the Deebot N8 Pro, but the cleaning robot does have a fairly capable battery that can handle cleaning large spaces or making multiple cleaning runs on a single charge. I was able to vacuum clean my entire home once, followed by a mopping run with the vacuum on silent mode, with the battery level dropping to around 35 percent after this. Two simultaneous vacuum runs would leave around a 20 percent charge remaining.

This is pretty good, suggesting that the device could cover around 2,000 square feet in one go. As with competing devices, the Deebot N8 Pro is able to pause its current task to return to charge if the battery is low, and resume where it left off once charged up again. Charging with the Auto Empty Station took around three hours from the 20 percent level, suggesting that it would take perhaps four hours in total to charge a completely drained battery.

Verdict

Ecovacs has been around in India for a while now, but the Deebot N8 Pro puts it firmly on the radar as one of the more noteworthy options that is worth considering. This is largely because of its compatibility with the Auto Empty Station, which makes this among the more affordable options with this functionality that you can purchase right now. A good companion app, decent navigational abilities, and good battery life help as well.

Perhaps the only drawback on the Ecovacs Deebot N8 Pro is the somewhat underwhelming cleaning performance, which compels you to run it multiple times to achieve the same cleaning effect as some competing products. This isn’t a massive setback though, and it might even be worth giving the device the extra time it takes since post-cleaning maintenance is reduced thanks to the Auto Empty Station. On the whole, the Deebot N8 Pro and Auto Empty Station are well worth considering for the value proposition and overall feature set on offer.

Price: Rs. 36,900 (Deebot N8 Pro), Rs. 17,900 (Auto Empty Station)

Rating: 8/10

Pros:

• Very good battery life
• Excellent app
• Good navigation and mapping
• Auto Empty Station works well
• Good value for money

Cons:

• Moves slowly
• Needs multiple runs to clean effectively
• Consumables are expensive

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Among the oldest names in the robot vacuum cleaner segment, iRobot’s Roomba lineup was synonymous with the product category as a whole for the longest time, and many referred to any robot cleaner as a ‘Roomba’. Things have changed now, particularly in India where more affordable, multi-functional options from brands such as Xiaomi and Milagrow have gotten a bit more attention. However, iRobot is still around and its product range is available officially in India, including the newly launched Roomba j7+ robot vacuum cleaner.

Priced at Rs. 74,900, the iRobot Roomba j7+ is the most expensive and advanced product in the company’s Roomba range of robot vacuum cleaners. The j7+ sales package comes with the Clean Base automatic dirt disposal system, which empties the dustbin of the device after cleaning tasks. The Roomba j7+ boasts of improved navigation, object detection and avoidance, and more. Is this the best robot vacuum cleaner you can buy right now? Find out in this review.

The iRobot Roomba j7+ has a forward-facing camera with a ‘headlight’ for navigation, giving it some effectiveness even in the dark

 

iRobot Roomba j7+ design

Unlike many brands that offer robot cleaners which combine vacuum cleaning and mopping in one device, iRobot splits the functions across different ranges. The Roomba range of products only focuses on the vacuum cleaning function, while the Braava range focuses on wet mopping.

The Roomba j7+ is therefore only a vacuum cleaning robot, and comes with the Clean Base docking station in the box. If you also have a Braava device, the two can work through the same app in a coordinated way so that both devices can efficiently vacuum and mop your home simultaneously and effectively.

The automatic dirt disposal system is similar to the iRobot Roomba i3+, but the Clean Base docking station that ships with the j7+ model is considerably smaller than that of the i3+ model. Despite the smaller size, it serves the same function and is similarly rated to be able to automatically dispose of dirt from the robot vacuum for up to 60 days before the disposable dirt bag needs to be replaced.

There is just one key difference between the Roomba j7+ model and the j7 model (not currently available in India) – the former comes with the Clean Base dock with automatic dirt disposal, while the latter has a standard charging dock. The robot vacuum itself is roughly the same size as most of its kind and has a disc shape, but appears just slightly taller than competing devices from brands such as Xiaomi, Milagrow, and 360.

On the top of the iRobot Roomba j7+ is a single button to control the device manually, although detailed and more convenient controls can be accessed through the iRobot Home app once connected to Wi-Fi and fully set up. Unlike some competing devices which have an openable top lid, the Roomba j7+ does not have this and instead, has a removable dust bin at the side. The front has a flexible bumper to absorb the occasional hits, and the primary camera and light which are used for the VSLAM (visual simultaneous localisation and mapping) navigation system.

The iRobot j7+ is available in a single black colour and has three wheels at the bottom to move around, two of which are motorised, and the third is a free stabiliser wheel at the front. On the underside of the vacuum is a single sweeper brush, and a double-roller brush mechanism for the suction area to help capture dirt and impurities. Included in the sales package are a replacement sweeper brush, replacement HEPA filter for the dust bin, and a cable to connect the dock station to a power outlet.

iRobot Roomba j7+ navigation and mapping

The iRobot Roomba j7+ uses a camera-based VSLAM navigation, with a forward-facing camera working as the ‘eye’ for the device. Interestingly, there is also a ‘headlight’ which turns on when the Roomba j7+ is working and illuminates the path of the robot vacuum cleaner. This made the device’s navigational accuracy decent even in the dark, which is where camera-based devices typically falter a bit.

With the front-facing camera, the iRobot Roomba j7+ seems to be much better with navigation than other camera-based devices I’ve reviewed, and indeed on par with Lidar-based navigation in terms of being able to detect obstacles and move through complicated furniture settings such as dining tables and chairs.

The automatic dirt disposal system on the Roomba j7+ means that you don’t have to manually clean out the device’s dustbin as often

 

The greater resolution and visibility of the camera also allowed the device to better scan the environment and adapt its cleaning accordingly, which showed in its effectiveness in cleaning carpets and rugs, and being able to move efficiently within and between rooms. The iRobot Roomba j7+ took a couple of test runs to learn the layout of my home and create a map, which was fairly accurate. It even got the room divisions reasonably on point, and managed to correctly mark carpeted areas, which the device was able to move over effortlessly.

In general, the improved navigation of the iRobot Roomba j7+ helped to ensure a smoother and less clumsy navigational experience, as compared to earlier Roomba devices. Hard bumps against furniture, particularly chair and table legs were largely avoided, and the device moved slowly but calculatedly on the whole.

That said, there was one occasion where the Roomba j7+ fell off a single step dividing two rooms when the door was accidentally left open, but setting a narrow no-go zone here prevented this from happening again. On a couple of occasions, the device didn’t immediately go to the room it was instructed to, inexplicably taking a trip to a different room for a minute or so before fixing its path.

A key feature of the iRobot Roomba j7+ is its ability to avoid obstacles and pet waste on the floor, with the navigation system designed to steer clear of both of these. While I wasn’t able to test the device against the latter, the j7+ was able to properly avoid objects such as cables and towels or clothes placed on the floor.

On some occasions, these were photographed by the camera for review in the app, and I was able to instruct the device whether to permanently avoid the area (in the case of some immovable cables) or to clean over it if the obstruction had since been removed. The Roomba j7+ can generally tell the difference between a temporary obstacle and a permanent fixture, so this isn’t something you’ll find yourself having to do often.

iRobot Roomba j7+ app

The iRobot Home app is used to control all devices from the brand across the Roomba and Braava ranges, and also helps you manage multiple devices together in your home if that’s your use case. The app ties into the simplicity and ease of use of the Roomba j7+ itself, with visual representations of most parameters including mapping, cleaning, battery life, and more. Once set up and connected to your home Wi-Fi, you can control the Roomba j7+ from anywhere, provided both the smartphone and robot are connected to the Internet.

You can set ‘Favourite’ cleaning tasks (the whole house or specific rooms), empty the robot’s dust bin, modify the map to set room boundaries, no-go zones, and clean zones, create cleaning schedules, and control other basic settings of the Roomba j7+. Although there is no option to create a virtual wall, creating a narrow no-go zone across a room essentially served the same purpose for me, and helped to keep the device safe from accidental drops.

The iRobot Home app lets you control the Roomba j7+, and also provides mapping and cleaning details

 

Unfortunately, while the device is working, the map doesn’t show its location or cleaning status, and only updates to show areas cleaned after the task is completed, which is perhaps the only drawback of the app and device. What I did like is how the app calculated an estimated time a task would take to complete based on the rooms selected and cleaning history, which provided a map of the areas cleaned, time taken, and images of any obstacles encountered that needed review.

iRobot Roomba j7+ cleaning

While robot vacuum cleaners from other brands regularly specify the suction power of their devices and also let you modify the power level according to your cleaning needs, iRobot does quite the opposite. The Roomba j7+ instead automatically calculates and decides how much suction power is needed to clean a particular area, moving steadily and carefully to judge these parameters while it works.

On the user’s part, all that needs to be done is to instruct the iRobot Roomba j7+ which rooms (or the whole house) need to be cleaned, and the device takes over from there. While the Lidar-based 360 S7 took around 35-40 minutes to clean my whole home, the Roomba j7+ took around one hour. However, I found that this time difference was because the j7+ did a much more thorough and effective job of cleaning.

I usually found the device to be fairly quiet in operation as for the most part, the Roomba j7+ was dealing with regular, everyday dust particles on the floor of my home. I did notice brief increases in suction power at times when the j7+ was dealing with more stubborn messes, but the increase in noise was marginal and was only audible for short durations.

The device was also particularly effective with cleaning rugs and carpets, as well as moving rather effortlessly over them, which is something that most other robot vacuum cleaners that I’ve reviewed have had trouble with. The HEPA filter is said to be able to capture particles as small as 0.1 microns in size, thus offering some protection against allergy-causing dust mites.

The iRobot Roomba j7+ is only a vacuum cleaner, and doesn’t have the ability to wet mop

 

Connectivity was stable on the device, and the Roomba j7+ was able to continue working effectively even in rooms that didn’t have a very strong Wi-Fi signal and would sometimes disconnect from the router. This naturally meant that I couldn’t use the app to give it any instructions when it was out of range, but it reliably returned to its dock station after cleaning every time during my review, and provided cleaning details on the map even for areas of my home that were out of Wi-Fi coverage.

The Clean Base automatic dirt disposal system that ships with the Roomba j7+ is a significant improvement over the one I tested with the iRobot Roomba i3+. Not only is it a smaller and nicer looking docking station, but also works better. I found it to work much more reliably on the j7+ than on the i3+, and save for a few large impurities such as small pieces of plastic which were too hard to lift, the dust bin in the robot was kept largely clean without any manual intervention.

The dirt disposal system itself uses vacuum suction to empty the robot’s dust bin and this gets quite loud for a few seconds after every cleaning task. However, it takes just a few seconds to complete, so it isn’t too disruptive or bothersome on the whole.

The dirt is accumulated in a disposable dirt bag in the Clean Base docking station, which according to iRobot, is good for 60 days worth of cleaning. Once the bag is full, the app will notify you, at which point you need to remove and dispose of the bag along with your regular garbage. One additional dirt bag is provided with the Roomba j7+, and more can be purchased from the company at a price of Rs. 1,660 for a pack of three. This makes it a bit expensive to operate in the long run.

iRobot Roomba j7+ charging and battery life

As per iRobot’s claims, the Roomba j7+ is capable of running for up to 75 minutes on a single charge, which could cover a 1,800 square-foot home once over. In practice, this would depend on the layout of the home and the order in which the rooms are accessed, given that it typically took around an hour to clean my 900 square-foot home.

The Clean Base docking station deposits dirt from the robot vacuum cleaner into a disposable bag after every cleaning task

 

I can safely estimate that the 75-minute figure sounds about right, but the area cleaned on a single charge is likely to be around 1,200 square feet, a fair bit lower than the company’s claims. On the whole I found the battery life to be quite ordinary considering the 2,210mAh battery capacity and the price of the Roomba j7+.

There is no way to know the exact battery level of the iRobot Roomba j7+ when in operation; the app displays a graphical estimate of the remaining battery, but this didn’t indicate much. That said, the Roomba j7+ was able to clean my home once over on a single charge with some battery to spare. In a larger space, the device will return to charge if needed, before resuming the cleaning from where it left off.

As with most devices of its kind, the Roomba j7+ can find its way back to the docking station on its own, and keep itself charged. Charging itself takes a while, but this is normal for robot vacuum cleaners; after a full cleaning of my home, it took a little over two hours to charge back to full.

Verdict

In a segment where many of the competing devices are capable of both mopping and vacuum cleaning simultaneously, the iRobot Roomba j7+ seems a bit expensive at its price of Rs. 74,900 given that it’s exclusively just a vacuum cleaner. You can, of course, also get a Braava Jet M6 for the mopping functionality, but you’re then looking at a combined price of around Rs. 1,25,000, not to mention the need to make space in your home for two devices.

The automatic dirt disposal system is an impressive feature that seems to make up for the premium price to some extent, and the effectiveness of the cleaning and ease of use of the Roomba j7+ makes the device worth considering. If you have the budget for it, it might be worth looking at, especially if you can also pick up the Braava Jet M6. If you’re looking at something more affordable, the Milagrow iMap 10.0 and 360 S7 are worthy alternatives.

Price: Rs. 74,990

Rating: 8/10

Pros:

• Excellent for vacuum cleaning
• Automatic dirt disposal system works well
• Careful, precise navigation
• Very easy to use

Cons:

• Expensive to buy and operate
• Mapping could be a bit better
• Average battery life

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The best smart home and IoT products of 2021 comprise of various products we’ve reviewed across diverse product segments. We’ve reviewed many smart speakers, robot vacuum cleaners and unique products such as personal tracking devices and air purifiers in 2021, and our list comprises of the best products we’ve tested this year across all of these categories. What is common among all of these Internet-of-Things (IoT) products is the ability to connect to the Internet or another device in some way that offers unique features and capabilities.

The smart home and IoT categories have expanded considerably in 2021, and now include entertainment, health, home cleaning, and personal device security and tracking. Read on for our list of the top smart home and IoT gadgets of 2021.

Best premium smart display and speaker: Amazon Echo Show 10 (3rd Gen)

With an interesting 10-inch screen that can follow your gaze, and a loud speaker system, the Amazon Echo Show 10 (3rd Gen) is the most impressive smart display and speaker we’ve seen this year. Powered by the ever-improving Alexa, the Echo Show 10 can do a lot using voice commands, including play video and music from supported streaming services, control your IoT devices, and even work as a digital photo frame and display general information when idle.

The Amazon Echo Show 10 (3rd Gen) is expensive, and sound quality didn’t quite match up to expectations at this price. However, the excellent camera and microphone capabilities, the many Alexa-based features that come with it, and the unique motion-tracking feature which can track your face as you move around the room, make this a smart home device like no other.

 

Best affordable smart speaker: Lenovo Smart Clock Essential

While the Lenovo Smart Clock Essential is sort of a smart display, the screen is only used to show the time and some other basic information such as the weather. However, what makes it unique is that it’s a full-fledged smart speaker, with access to Google Assistant and the ability to play music through voice commands. Interestingly, it also has a small but very useful night light, making this the ideal device for your bedside table.

Sound and microphone quality aren’t very good, and this is a device best used from up close, but you can use it to play soft music or other audio content by your bedside, or even control your IoT devices through voice commands. It’s reasonably priced and looks good too, making this our top pick among affordable smart speakers in 2021.

 

Best robot vacuum cleaner: 360 S7

Although not launched in 2021, we did review this excellent robot vacuum cleaner this year. Among all of the devices we’ve reviewed, the 360 S7 stands out as the best for a number of reasons. With good cleaning capabilities, a stable and very useful app, quick and accurate navigation, and decent battery life, this device outperforms its rivals in the segment priced at under Rs. 30,000.

Although it was priced higher when we reviewed the 360 S7, it’s now a bit more affordable and much better value for money. Like all robot vacuum cleaners, it requires frequent maintenance, and the mop reservoir is small and doesn’t hold too much water. However, on the whole, it’s a reliable robot vacuum cleaner that truly puts its app and connectivity features to good use.

Buy: 360 S7

Best smart air purifier: Dyson Purifier Cool

Increasing pollution levels in urban areas across India has made air purifiers a popular home gadget, and many of the mainstream options today are connected devices that can be controlled using an app. Our top pick in this category for 2021 is the Dyson Purifier Cool, which looks great, and offers impressive air purification and fan-based cooling. Thanks to the Dyson Link app, you can control the air purifier and view air quality statistics from anywhere, once your purifier is connected to your home Wi-Fi.

Although expensive, the Dyson Purifier Cool is among the most impressive premium air purifiers you can buy in India right now, and its connected functionality works well on its own or with supported voice assistants such as Google Assistant and Alexa. At low fan speeds, it runs quietly, making this air purifier ideal for your home.

Buy: Dyson Purifier Cool

Best crossover smart home device: Amazon Fire TV Cube (2nd Gen)

The Amazon Fire TV Cube (2nd Gen) is primarily a streaming device, but the thing that makes it special enough to include in this list is that it’s also a smart speaker of sorts. With hands-free Alexa capabilities and a small speaker system that lets Alexa give you spoken responses, you can use the Fire TV Cube as a hands-free smart home controller. Of course, you can also use Alexa to fetch specific content on the streaming device through voice commands.

This isn’t a smart speaker in the complete sense, since the in-built speaker can’t be used to stream audio content. However, it will play music on the connected television or home-theatre system. That said, the ability to have two key functions in a single, compact form factor makes the Amazon Fire TV Cube (2nd Gen) our favourite crossover smart home device of 2021.

Buy: Amazon Fire TV Cube (2nd Gen)

Best personal tracking device: Apple AirTag

The Apple AirTag is small, needs an iOS device to setup and work with and is really meant to do absolutely nothing once you’ve set it up and have attached it to a personal item. However, this is what makes it so interesting, since it helps you keep track of and find personal items such as a wallet, keys, or backpack. It runs on the widely available CR2032 battery which is user replaceable, and works with the Find My app on iOS.

It’s expensive and functionality is limited to the Apple ecosystem, but the AirTag is a useful tool to have if you tend to misplace your personal belongings often. Unlike most IoT products that work with Wi-Fi, the AirTag uses Bluetooth to communicate with other devices, but can interestingly use any connected iOS device to help broadcast its location with reasonable accuracy, earning its place on our list.

Buy: Apple AirTag

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Xiaomi and Realme are rivals not only in the smartphone segment, but also in various other product categories that the two companies are a part of. Today, this covers audio products, televisions, streaming devices, tablets, laptops, wearables, and the smart home segment, with Realme usually entering the segment a little bit later, and almost always matching the pricing and feature set of the equivalent products from its biggest competitor. The rivalry has now extended to robot vacuum cleaners as well, giving Realme a much needed foothold in this emerging segment.

Priced at Rs. 24,999 in India, the Realme TechLife Robot Vacuum Cleaner matches up strongly against the Mi Robot Vacuum-Mop P, with laser navigation, simultaneous vacuuming and mopping, and app support among the common features that these two competitors share. Is the Realme TechLife Robot Vacuum Cleaner worth considering over the competition? Find out in this review.

The Realme TechLife Robot Vacuum Cleaner uses laser navigation, which allows for accurate mapping and the ability to work in the dark

 

What is the Realme TechLife Robot Vacuum Cleaner, and what’s in the box?

Realme’s first robot vacuum cleaner isn’t just a vacuum cleaner; it’s also capable of wet mopping, which can be done simultaneously along with vacuuming. The device has two sweeping brushes at the front, the main brush in the vacuum zone at the bottom, and space at the back for one of the two fittings – the vacuum dustbin or a combination attachment that has a water tank, mop cloth, and a smaller vacuum dustbin. These attachments can be removed and fixed in place easily, when the robot is on standby.

The robot is disc-shaped like most cleaning robots available right now, and has a raised module at the top for the laser navigation system. The front of the robot has a flexible bumper, which absorbs impact when the robot bumps into walls, furniture, and loose objects on the floor.

There are two buttons at the top; Power and Home. These can be used to control the core functions of the Realme TechLife Robot Vacuum Cleaner even without needing to set up the app, but the full functionality of the device can only be accessed through the Realme Link app. The device is Wi-Fi enabled, and will need to be connected to your home Wi-Fi to enable app-based controls.

Although the water tank attachment isn’t included in the box, Realme has confirmed that it will be provided with the device at the time of delivery at no extra charge. Also included in the sales package are a charging adapter and dock. Both vacuum dustbins have HEPA filters attached. No replacements for the consumables are included in the box, and Realme hasn’t published information on pricing and availability of these parts at the time of this review.

Realme TechLife Robot Vacuum Cleaner navigation and mapping

The Realme TechLife Robot Vacuum Cleaner uses laser navigation, which makes for accurate movement, organised cleaning paths, and the ability to work even in the dark. The robot and app can store maps, which you can use to set the order in which rooms are cleaned, or have the robot clean only individual rooms, among other functions.

Mapping was generally accurate, and navigation was acceptable for the most part, with the Realme TechLife Robot Vacuum Cleaner moving in efficient paths, avoiding most obstacles, and working quickly. You can select a Y-shaped mopping path instead of the default S-shaped path, which takes a bit longer but cleans more effectively by covering each area with two sweeps instead of one.

There are two sweeping brushes on the Realme TechLife Robot Vacuum Cleaner

 

However, there were some minor issues with the navigation that I noticed during my review. For one, if I selected the Y-shaped path for mopping, this would sometimes remain active even while vacuuming. Carpet and no-go zone detection was sometimes iffy, and some rooms were on occasion ignored completely, even though they were accessible to the robot.

I was also unable to select some rooms in the room selection menu on a few occasions for no apparent reason, and could only clean the missed room by having the device automatically clean the whole house. The remote control mode – which lets you manually drive the robot to clean specific locations – was usually slow to respond to commands, and I found it quicker and easier to just pick the device up and place it in the room I wanted it to clean.

Realme TechLife Robot Vacuum Cleaner app

The Realme Link app is used to control the brand’s range of connected devices, including audio products, cameras, wearables, smart lights, and home appliances. The Techlife Robot Vacuum Cleaner works with this app on both iOS and Android, and appears on the home screen as an option alongside any other Realme devices you have linked with your account. When the Robot Vacuum Cleaner is turned on and connected to your home Wi-Fi, you’ll be able to select it and control it.

Once fully set up and after the robot has mapped your home, the app displays the map with rooms demarcated, and quick controls at the bottom. These include buttons to start and stop cleaning, send the robot back to the charging station, set the suction power, and access the detailed Settings menu. You can also choose different cleaning modes including Auto, Room, Area, and Spot cleaning.

The detailed Settings menu allows you to control schedules, remote control the device, manage maps, select specifics for mopping path and suction controls, and also see the cleaning history and remaining life of consumable parts such as the brushes and air filters. You can also use the home screen to edit room arrangements, set restricted zones, no-mop zones, and virtual walls. You can even define specific instructions for the suction power and water output for individual rooms.

When the mop fitting is attached, you can choose between vacuuming plus mopping, and only mopping. The app also displays statistics such as the area cleaned, time taken, and the exact battery level.

I experienced quite a few bugs during my time with the Realme TechLife Robot Vacuum Cleaner, with a few of them coming from the app. There were times when I couldn’t adjust the suction power while the vacuum cleaner was working; the option to do so was blanked out, and even after pausing the job and making my selection, it still didn’t actually change what the device was doing.

Although the water tank fitting doesn’t come in the box, Realme is providing it at no additional cost with the Robot Vacuum Cleaner

 

On other occasions, I simply could not connect to the Robot Vacuum Cleaner despite having no issues with Wi-Fi or my home Internet connection. I had to restart my router to force the robot to reconnect. There were a few other issues and bugs as well, which are mentioned in the next section.

Realme TechLife Robot Vacuum Cleaner cleaning

The Realme TechLife Robot Vacuum Cleaner is well equipped for the task at hand, in terms of hardware. This includes two sweeping brushes, up to 3,000pa of suction power, a fairly large water tank, and the ability to vacuum and mop simultaneously. For the most part, the Realme Robot Vacuum Cleaner is effective, and gets the job done quickly and efficiently.

It took around 45 minutes for the device to clean my 900-square-foot home, but the quality of cleaning depended on whether I was operating the vacuum and mop functions separately or simultaneously. Obviously, running both of these separately doubled the time taken, but cleaned more thoroughly. Despite having two sweeping brushes, I found edge cleaning on the Realme TechLife Robot Vacuum Cleaner to be somewhat inadequate, and I had to use a handheld vacuum cleaner to get the job done.

There are four suction modes with different levels of power: Quiet mode runs at 500pa; Normal mode at 1,200pa; Turbo mode at 2,500pa; and Max mode at 3,000pa. I usually had the Realme TechLife Robot Vacuum Cleaner running at the ‘Turbo’ power setting, but what you choose depends on the type of flooring you have and other factors such as how dusty it tends to get in your home. Naturally, the more powerful the mode, the louder the Robot Vacuum Cleaner runs, so you might want to use the lower modes on occasion.

I experienced some strange issues and bugs during my time with the Realme TechLife Robot Vacuum Cleaner, which held back the overall experience significantly. On two occasions, the device inexplicably stopped working, with the laser navigation emitter continuing to spin slowly but the robot entirely non-functional otherwise. This could only be fixed with a hard reset, which meant that I had to repeat the entire setup and mapping process before being able to use the device again.

Once a cleaning task is complete, the Realme TechLife Robot Vacuum Cleaner can navigate back to the charging dock on its own

 

Other issues included the device sometimes detecting the mop fitting as the vacuum fitting and therefore not mopping; occasionally not discharging any water even with a full tank and the mop mode active; and sometimes losing its Wi-Fi connection for a few minutes at a time. However, once a cleaning task is in progress, the Realme TechLife Robot Vacuum Cleaner is able to complete the task based on its saved map even if it loses Wi-Fi connectivity. It can navigate back to the dock or next room on its own, and will update its progress on the app when reconnected.

Like all robot vacuum cleaners, this one from Realme needs frequent maintenance in terms of keeping the dustbin and mop cloth clean, the water tank topped up, and the brushes free of tangles. I had to go through this process at least twice a week to keep the device operating efficiently.

Realme TechLife Robot Vacuum Cleaner battery and charging

Battery life on the Realme TechLife Robot Vacuum Cleaner is impressive, primarily because of its 5,200mAh battery capacity. After running it for vacuuming and mopping separately in my 900-square-foot home, the battery level dropped to 70 percent, suggesting that it can clean a much larger space in one go without needing to stop and recharge. This naturally also meant that it needed relatively little time to charge back to full after each cleaning task was completed.

From empty, the device takes around 5-6 hours to charge fully; this is a long time, but is understandable given the capacity of the battery. Of course, this will only be a factor with very large homes, and battery life won’t be a concern for most use cases.

Verdict

Robot vacuum cleaners are still somewhat unusual and uncommon in India, although the segment is growing quickly with brands such as Xiaomi and Realme entering the space. That said, such products are still far from perfect and need regular maintenance to work properly. The Realme TechLife Robot Vacuum Cleaner is a technically adept, well-priced device, but I had to deal with far too many bugs and issues during my experience, in addition to the typical drawbacks of a robot vacuum cleaner.

Its ability to clean is decent thanks to plenty of suction power, the app is excellent, and battery life is class-leading. However, the issues with the app, navigation, and general functionality are too serious to ignore. It might perhaps make sense to wait for Realme to roll out fixes for these issues before considering this model; till then, you could also look at the Mi Robot Vacuum-Mop P or 360 S7, which have similar features and functionality.

Price: Rs. 24,999

Rating: 6/10

Pros

• Powerful suction, effective mopping
• Decent app
• Excellent battery life

Cons:

• Many bugs and issues
• Efficiency drops rapidly if not maintained regularly

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