If you write “robot vacuum brands” into the Google search bar, you’ll find all sorts of top-quality robot vacuum models to choose from. However, the longer you search, the more obscure the vacuum cleaner brands become. And the more obscure they become, the lower their price tags.
While the thought of spending close to nothing on a robot vacuum might be appealing, in the end, you may end up with a robot vacuum that disappoints more than it delivers. So, if you’re in the market for a robot vacuum that lives up to its promise, these are the robot vacuum brands to avoid.
Lefant
Lefant isn’t a bad robot vacuum brand per se, but its models are annoyingly inconsistent. There are plenty of faults in Lefant robot vacuums that shouldn’t exist in this day and age, including a lack of avoidance sensors or poor suction power on low- to mid-pile carpeting.
Something some users have complained about is Lefant robots’ lack of bumpers, which, combined with inadequate collision sensors, makes for a bruised robot in its first vacuum/mop cycle.
yeedi
Unless you can read Mandarin, you’ll probably want to avoid yeedi robots. Many of its models come with manuals written only in Mandarin. This forces non-Mandarin-speaking users to look for solutions to their robots’ problems, of which there are many.
For starters, yeedi robots tend to have excellent suction power but poor battery life to back it up. In addition, yeedi robots may end up vacuuming a tiny portion of a room over and over and over again, leaving the rest of your home untouched.
Tikom
Ultra-sensitive collision and cliff sensors aren’t usually a bad thing, but TIkom has proven time and time again that it can turn a good thing into a nightmare. Some of TIkom’s robots consistently misidentify carpet fringe as cliffs, causing them to make a 180° and clean in the opposite direction.
In addition, Tikom robots couldn’t find their way back to the charging station if their lives depended on it.
Additional Robot Vacuums You Should Avoid
While there are certain robot vacuum brands you should avoid, there are other robots that may belong to well-known brands that just aren’t worth the cost. Here are a few additional tips to help you avoid shopping for the wrong robot.
Avoid Ultra-Cheap Robot Vacuums
Again, budget-friendliness is nice, but you really do get what you pay for. A good rule of thumb is that you should spend as much as your budget allows you. This is true for TVs and washing machines, and it’s true for robot vacuums, too.
However, if your budget only allows you to look at robots priced $180 and under, save yourself the heartache and wait until robots from trusted brands drop in price.
Avoid Purchasing Old Robot Vacuum Models
This might be contradictory to the earlier statement, but we’re being specific here. For instance, the iRobot Roomba 690 may cost close to nothing, but they don’t come close to what you would expect from a modern-day Roomba.
Plus, the 690 was released in 2017, and since then, Roombas and robot vacuums in general have grown in quality and convenience and shrunk in form factor by quite a lot.
Avoid Combo Mop/Vacuum Robots If You Don’t Need It
We’ve seen a surge of combo mop/vacuum robots hit the market late last year, and there are probably a handful of such robots set to release sometime this year. While combo mop/vacuum robots can be pretty awesome, you need to figure out where or not you can live without the mopping feature.
Most robot vacuums with mopping functions don’t “mop” as well as you’d expect. Many of them only tow around a mopping attachment, which does nothing to remove caked-on stains. While it can be great for getting rid of the particles the vacuuming function may have missed, you have to decide whether the extra cost is worth it or not.
Avoid Buying the iRobot Braava
This is not a knock on the iRobot Braava jet m6. We’re huge fans of this robot but there are two things you should know about it. First, it’s a MOP-ONLY bot—it doesn’t have a vacuuming function. Secondly, it works as a tag-team duo that is only compatible with the Roombas i7 and S9 and their plus versions. If you want a robot that mops, you’ll end up spending less on a combo mop/vacuum robot.
Avoid Robots Without Self-Empty Bases
Self-empty bases are the future. They make it so you don’t’ have to manually empty out your robot’s dustbin every couple of hours. If you can afford it, you should spring for a robot that has a self-empty base rather than buying the robot and base separately.
Conclusion
In this guide, we showed you a handful of robot vacuum brands to avoid. They’re not all 100% bad, but they’re more of a letdown than anything else. If you found this guide helpful, make sure you share it with your friends, so they don’t make the mistake of choosing a cheap, unreliable robot vacuum brand.
If you have any questions or comments, please add them below in the comment section. Similarly, please let us know if you spot any mistakes or omissions. Thanks!
