BEST OBSTACLE RECOGNITION
ROBOROCK S6 MAXVPrice: $600 / Navigation: LiDAR, plus
vSLAM / Brush: 1 / Side brush: 1 / Exclu-
sion zones: Yes, virtual / Voice control: Via
Alexa and Google AssistantWhen we set the S6 MaxV loose in our test
corrals, it was the fastest to complete vac-
uuming our laminate floor and concrete
area with obstacles, finishing in nine and
14 minutes, respectively. In the laminate
corral, it vacuumed everything clean, leav-
ing no trace of the debris we had strewn.
The S6 MaxV finished our carpeted cor-
ral in nine minutes as well, with just a trace
of sawdust left behind. Our concrete area
presented a challenge with grains of rice
we spread, and some got left behind where
the vacuum transitioned from the floor up
onto the mat we’d placed.
The S6 MaxV impressed us during prac-
tical testing in our homes. In the Roborock
app, we watched as the vacuum quickly
created accurate maps of our rooms. It
also recognized and avoided sneakers, a
power strip, and some wooden prop dog
poop we threw down.LOWEST MAINTENANCE
IROBOT ROOMBA S9+Price: $1,000 / Navigation: vSLAM /
Brushes: 2 / Side brush: 1 / Exclusion
zones: Yes, virtual / Voice control: Via
Alexa and Google AssistantThe S9+ clocked the fastest time to finish
the carpet area, leaving just a trace of saw-
dust after nine minutes. In the concrete
area, it took more time navigating around
the wooden stool but was delicate in doing
so, cleaning around the legs thoroughly.
Like the others, it did leave some rice at
the edge of the floor mat. In the laminate
corral, we couldn’t find any debris except
for a dusting of flour in one spot. Keep in
mind that the S9+ has flexible ridges and
paddles instead of bristles. This appeared
to be a little less effective with very fine
particles on the smooth, hard surface.
This Roomba has a slightly different
design than most other robot vacuums,
in that it has a flat front with squared-off
corners. We found two advantages of this,
the first being that it got into corners bet-
ter, and the second that it allows for wider
brushes—about 30 percent wider.BEST VALUE
EUFY G30 EDGEPrice: $350 / Navigation: Advanced
bump-and-go / Brush: 1 / Side brush: 1 /
Exclusion zones: Yes, physical / Voice con-
trol: Via Alexa and Google AssistantThe G30 Edge is the least expensive model
from our test, but you wouldn’t know that
by how it cleaned our test corrals. It was
slightly slower than the others, sure, yet
it effectively and methodically vacuumed
each area. It left barely a trace of debris
on both the carpet and laminate floor
and missed some rice transitioning from
the floor to the mat in the concrete area.
We did notice the G30 Edge bump things
slightly harder than the other vacuums—
not surprising, since its navigation is an
enhanced version of bump-and-go.
Testing in our homes, we used the app
to view progress in real time. While we
could view completed vacuuming and
maps in the cleaning history, we couldn’t
save or edit them. To set no-go zones, we
laid down the included magnetic strip to
create physical barriers. While this worked
well, we did need to remember to put the
strip in place every time we had the vac-
Read about all the vacuums we tested at popularmechanics.com. uum scheduled to clean.B E S T O F
THE TEST
November/December 2021 71