Thread Number: 24895
The Robots are Coming.. |
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Post# 279910   5/9/2014 at 17:57 (3,631 days old) by HenryDreyfuss (Ohio)   |   | |
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With the Neato Botvac, Miele's robot right around the corner, and Dyson hinting at joining the game soon, the next revolution in home cleaning might not be far off. Far smarter than a Roomba, which bangs into things to navigate a room, these new robots actively map out the room, and are far more intelligent than the robovacs of the last 12 years. These next-gen robots look like they're competent filtration away from being a game-changer.
Although I enjoy vacuuming, most consumers dread it, and I could see these being extremely popular. The idea of scheduling the robot to clean your home while you're at work is quite appealing! |
Post# 279911 , Reply# 1   5/9/2014 at 17:59 (3,631 days old) by HenryDreyfuss (Ohio)   |   | |
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Post# 279935 , Reply# 2   5/9/2014 at 21:31 (3,631 days old) by super-sweeper (KSSRC Refurbishment Center)   |   | |
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Post# 279939 , Reply# 5   5/9/2014 at 23:46 (3,631 days old) by HenryDreyfuss (Ohio)   |   | |
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I understand the opposition, but what if they got better? I almost look at it like an automatic dishwasher, or a washing machine. Yeah, I can clean my own dishes, and probably better by hand, but if a machine could do it for me, why wouldn't I let it? Robovacs have been a joke since they arrived, but they're finally getting a lot better. So much better, that people may make the switch soon, and only have to vacuum once or twice a month, instead of a couple times a week (or worse, never).
I feel there's the same animosity toward robotic vacuums now, that I personally felt about bagless vacuums, and department store vacs a decade ago. Complete rejection. They were junk. But they got better, and now bagless vacs have improved a lot, and there's good options out there! The same will happen in robotics. I for one, am excited for it. This post was last edited 05/10/2014 at 01:01 |
Post# 279978 , Reply# 6   5/10/2014 at 08:31 (3,630 days old) by GeorgeCT (Fairfield, Connecticut)   |   | |
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Post# 279983 , Reply# 7   5/10/2014 at 09:53 (3,630 days old) by dysonman1 (the county)   |   | |
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Robot vacuums (if you want to call them a vacuum) cannot clean furniture, cannot clean stairs, cannot dust ceiling fans, cannot clean cars, cannot clean bedrooms because they cannot climb stairs, cannot edge clean, and only go forward (backwards is the deep cleaning stroke, not forward which only wipes the carpet). The brush roller must go against the grain on the backstroke to achieve deep cleaning and to stand the nap upright. I think of robot 'vacuums' as toys. Even a $48 Bissell can clean better and is more useful.
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Post# 280001 , Reply# 8   5/10/2014 at 11:32 (3,630 days old) by HenryDreyfuss (Ohio)   |   | |
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And they're all solvable. Dyson's DC06 robot prototype had a set of attachments that could be plugged into the machine, making above-the-floor cleaning possible. As these machines get more powerful, that could become an option. These robots are also lightweight, so users simply set them upstairs to clean multiple floors. Maybe down-the-road someone will have a robot where the brush spins backwards, or reverses to achieve the backstroke cleaning you mentioned.
Regardless, I'm glad their evolving! Companies like Neato will push the market forward. They're still supplementary, but they've gotten a lot better in the last year, boosting my confidence in the cleaning category. |
Post# 280013 , Reply# 9   5/10/2014 at 12:20 (3,630 days old) by super-sweeper (KSSRC Refurbishment Center)   |   | |
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Post# 280208 , Reply# 10   5/11/2014 at 23:16 (3,629 days old) by HenryDreyfuss (Ohio)   |   | |
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Post# 280217 , Reply# 11   5/12/2014 at 01:30 (3,629 days old) by ManchesterVacs (Manchester)   |   | |
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Post# 280220 , Reply# 12   5/12/2014 at 05:13 (3,629 days old) by gsheen (Cape Town South Africa)   |   | |
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Post# 280249 , Reply# 13   5/12/2014 at 13:57 (3,628 days old) by Kirbysthebest (Midwest)   |   | |
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I hear they are great for entertaining the cat while you are away. Other than than I think, for now, they are still a novelty item. |
Post# 280300 , Reply# 14   5/12/2014 at 21:31 (3,628 days old) by super-sweeper (KSSRC Refurbishment Center)   |   | |
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Post# 280984 , Reply# 18   5/18/2014 at 19:07 (3,622 days old) by sebo_fan (Scotland, UK, member AKA ukvacfan, & Nar2)   |   | |
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It is every possibility that Miele wants a bigger market share in areas of the world where hard floors are more prevalent than carpets, and possibly the knowledge that some continents are happy to overspend on products to keep their homes as clean as possible. One country that springs to mind are Japan - Honda cars for example produce antibacterial steering wheels in their cars in the Japanese market.
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Post# 281033 , Reply# 19   5/18/2014 at 23:19 (3,622 days old) by spiraclean (UK)   |   | |
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The only robot vacuum I would consider would be something like the Deebot by Ecovacs, as linked below. A docking station that automatically empties the robot after each cleaning session is nothing new in itself, but this one also incorporates a detachable mains powered portable canister unit. Not sure if other companies offer anything similar, but it's the first robot I've seen that even addresses above-floor cleaning.
Even then, we're still at the stage where a robot can clean a hard floor well enough, but only make a carpet *look* clean on top. Just like a cheap stick vac, it merely titivates. For the money charged, I'd expect something that performs more along the lines of a high end corded vacuum. Only when that happens will they move away from gadget territory and finally be considered a practical appliance. CLICK HERE TO GO TO spiraclean's LINK |
Post# 281712 , Reply# 20   5/24/2014 at 20:50 (3,616 days old) by Loganvac (Kennett Square, Pennsylvania)   |   | |
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