The vacuum captures almost every particle on bare floors, keeping debris contained in its disposable bag. But it’s a little louder and tougher to handle than some others because of its 21-pound weight. Based on our member surveys, Kenmore vacuums as a brand receive middling scores for predicted reliability and owner satisfaction.

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The S8 MaxV Ultra comes with excellent AI-powered obstacle detection, bringing back the camera it last had on the S7 MaxV Ultra. It’s not quite as good as Roomba’s obstacle detection — it sometimes confused a pile of Cheerios for a charging cable and avoided them — but it’s much better than the Roborocks that rely on non-camera obstacle detection.

“Freo” refers to the bot’s ability to make cleaning “decisions,” including going back to clean dirty floors.

The real key to a clean floor with a robot vac is consistency. Run it daily if you can; it won’t keep up as well if it only runs once a week. If you want hands-free cleaning everywhere, you’ll want to budget for one per floor or be prepared to move it around. You can also buy Em excesso charging bases, and most models can map multiple floors.

That level of smarts means a high price tag, although our tester felt it was justified by the build quality and featureset. If you're looking for a truly autonomous cleaning solution, the Roborock Qrevo Curv will deliver.

Over the last few years, they have gone from being utilitarian devices that sweep your floor to full-fledged home robots that can vacuum and mop your home and then trundle off to clean themselves to be Top 3 Automatic Vacuum Cleaners ready for the next run.

If the robot vacuum has a mop function, we see how it copes with fresh liquid spillages as well as dried-on, sticky messes.

cem% of the fees we collect are used to support our nonprofit mission. Learn more. CR tests every type of vacuum cleaner to find the ones most capable of handling whatever mess you encounter at home. Photos: Consumer Reports, Manufacturers

Most are equipped with smaller brushes that extend past the circumference of the vacuum, and the purpose of these is to reach dirt that's settled against baseboards or in awkward places.

While its mapping is very good, it can take a really long time (Roombas use vSLAM, not lidar), and it doesn’t seem to adapt to changes in my home as easily as other robots.

The Dirt Detect feature remembers the dirtiest rooms, and I found that meant it actively seeks out the spots my hairy Wirehaired Pointing Griffon hangs out. The 10 Max can also be set to mop only, which is a new option and is handy for deep cleans.

The corded Shark PowerDetect HZ4002 offers top-notch cleaning for bare floors and pet hair and performs above par on carpets. It features an Automóvel-detect mode that adjusts the brush roll speed to the surface, transitioning efficiently between carpets and hard floors. It also has two brush rolls: one with rubber fins for optimal contact with surfaces and a soft roller to capture small particles.

5 seconds when the system detects more stubborn debris or moves onto carpeted surfaces. This adaptive suction ensures optimal performance across hard floors and medium-pile carpets, efficiently picking up dirt, pet hair, and crumbs.