I Wish I Knew About These Drawbacks Before Buying a Smart Robot Vacuum

When most people think about starting with smart devices, a smart vacuum is usually at the top of their lists. And while they do offer certain advantages, there are a few things that you should know before you purchase one. Here are a few things I wish I had known before I bought my first smart vac.

1 Smart Vacuums Aren’t Perfect

Often, people believe that buying a smart vacuum will eliminate the need to clean their floors. They get this vision of a robot roaming around the house, tidying up while they spend their time doing more important things.

It’s disappointing to learn that smart vacs still require a lot of upkeep, maintenance, and monitoring. Not as much as a traditional vacuum cleaner, but it’s far from the perfect hands-off experience many smart vac manufacturers are selling.

Smart vacs aren’t perfect. They’re a great tool—and every so often we come across a great one like the Switchbot S10. But if you’re thinking you’ll get out of all your vacuuming when you buy one, I’ve got some bad news for you.

2 Frequent Dust Bin Changes

One big issue with many smart vacuums is they require frequent dust bin changes. Most manufacturers build their device with a dustbin that will hold only a small amount of debris before it requires changing. My Roomba, for example, only holds about two cups of dust, dirt and pet hair.

If you own a larger home, or have many pets, that means you’ll be emptying the bin after every vacuum. If you don’t, your smart vac won’t clean as efficiently. That’s not the case with “dumb” vacuums. For those, changing the bag or emptying the cleaning receptacle is only done every few weeks or months, depending on how often you use it.

Then there’s the issue of remembering to empty the bin. If you’re like most people and your smart vac is cleaning while you’re otherwise occupied, then there’s a strong possibility you have more on your mind than tending to a full bin. This means it’s easy to forget.

3 Added Expenses for Accessories

Here’s another problem: purchasing a smart vac isn’t a one-and-done proposition. You’ll eventually need to replace wearable components like brushes and filters. That adds extra expense to your overall purchase costs when building your smart home.

Buying these items means every few months you’ll be shelling out more cash just to keep your smart vac going. That’s not to say that traditional vacuum cleaners don’t have recurring expenses—especially if you have one that uses special bags. But spending $40 or $50 on smart vac accessories is often a bit more costly.

Additionally, if you purchased a smart vacuum that is from a lesser-known brand, there is always the possibility that the vacuum becomes obsolete and replacement parts stop being readily available. I recently had to retire a smart vacuum because I could no longer get the parts needed to keep it running. After spending several hundred dollars, not being able to keep it going was a huge disappointment.

4 Pet Issues

It’s no secret that smart vacs and pets don’t always mix. If you have fur babies, you know that sometimes accidents happen. But mixing smart vacuums with accident-prone pets can be the stuff of nightmares.

I won’t get into specifics because I’m sure you get the picture. But it’s a very real issue when you are allowing an unmonitored robot unfettered access to your home. That said, many manufacturers recognize the potential for disaster, and have installed sensors into their smart vacs that can help mitigate the problem.

Still, those sensors don’t always work the way they should. As someone who has personally witnessed a sensor failure in that respect, I’ll say that nothing can prepare you for that sort of mess. If you’re looking for a few smart devices that are pet friendly, however, we’ve put together a list of our favorite smart devices for pets.

5 Pre-Cleaning and Post-Cleaning

The last issue with smart vacs is the post and pre-cleaning requirements. As I stated earlier, smart vacs aren’t completely hands-off. You still need to remember to pick up certain items off the floor and ensure the vacuum has a clear path to the spots it’s supposed to clean. Regardless, I’ve come home several times to a stranded Roomba that has gobbled up a forgotten charging cord or a misplaced dog toy.

The pre-cleaning ritual is a bit like mowing the lawn. Before you let your shiny new smart vac do its thing, you should take a lap around the room and make sure nothing can get in its way. You should also pick up any items that might get stuck in the brushes. Pre-cleaning, however, is antithetical to the time savings you probably purchased your smart vac for.

Then there’s the issue of post-cleaning. Smart vacs will not pick up every spec of dust and debris that hides in your home. Often, they will miss tight corners and tucked away dirt. This means you’ll need to do more cleaning after the vacuum has completed its job. Again, if you bought a smart vacuum to cut down on your cleaning time, that certainly could be frustrating.

Overall, smart vacuum cleaners are great devices for many people. But it’s important to understand that they aren’t a turn-key solution to effortless housekeeping. Like most things, you’ll need to be prepared for a little maintenance and upkeep to ensure you’re getting the most from your smart vacuum purchase.