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- Neato XV-21 Pet and allergy automatic vacuum, charging base, boundary marker
- Features: Powerful cleaning system specially designed for pet owners and allergy sufferers
- High performance vacuum removes all kinds of dirt and cleans all floors: carpets, rugs, hardwood, laminates, tile, and stone
- Schedule automatic cleanings while you’re away via simple user interface
- Automatically returns to charging base when vacuuming is concluded
The Neato XV-21 Automatic Vacuum Cleaner is specially designed for pet owners and allergy sufferers. With the most powerful suction of any robot vacuum, the XV-21 picks up dirt, debris, and even the toughest pet hair. The Neato XV-21s special filter retains more than three times the amount of fine dust particles as standard filters, which is perfect for removing allergens from the home. A new combination bristle and blade brush improves the pick-up of pet hair, dander and fibers.
Box Contents: Neato XV-21 Robot Vacuum, Home Charging Base, 2 Brushes, 1 Filters, 6′ Boundary Marker, Owner’s Manual Weight – 8.6 lbs. Dimensions – 12.5 x 13 x 4 inches
Love this vacuum,
As someone who has owned many models of the Roomba over the years it was time for another Robotic Vacuum. I have 3 dogs and 4 cats so I have constant fur balls and toy shreddings around my house. I have not been impressed with some of the newer Roombas compared to the older ones as believe it or not the newer versions would get stuck on rugs easier. I did some research since there are now many brands of Robotic vacuums on the market to choose from.
I have tile throughout with occasional area rugs. I got my Neato last night and already I’m in love! Compared to the Roomba, it is smart! it scans my rooms, knows where to go, when it’s time to charge it returns to it’s base remembering where it left off. All the while it hasn’t gotten stuck on anything and it’s not constantly banging against my furniture and cabinets. It has suction which none of my roombas have ever had. Already between playing with it last night, and then again this morning I can see what a superior job it’s doing at picking up the furballs and toy shreddings and navigating through my house. And as far as cleaning the machine it’s a snap compared to keeping the Roomba clean and fit. I think even my dogs are appreciating the fact that it’s not constantly running into them!
Absolutely love this vacuum!
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|The combination of an upright vacuum’s beater bar with robotics,
I did not realize how big my XV-21 would be until the package arrived from Amazon. Unpacking it, I realized that the robot is essentially the base of an upright vacuum cleaner combined with suction pump, sensors, computer, and battery. The beater bar is as large and powerful as any upright vacuum cleaner. I think this explains why previous generation XVs got such great reviews, and those reviews drove me to pre-order the XV-21.
Startup was fast; I just plugged in the dock to an wall A/C outlet, brought the robot near the dock, and discovered that the robot’s batteries charge wirelessly. Very cool.
After fully charged, I pushed a button on the robot, and it proceeded to clean one floor of my house, requiring several re-charges (it automatically returns to base when it needs to recharge).
The robot is very user friendly. It tells you when it needs its dust bin cleaned, its brushes unclogged, when it is blocked, etc. It emits chirps to tell you when something is amiss.
It is much quieter than a conventional corded upright vacuum or a central vacuum that has a power beater bar. Turn the TV on the volume a little higher and you can watch TV while it works.
As heavy as the XV-21 is, it isn’t as heavy as an upright vacuum nor as bulky as the hose and attachments for a central vacuum system. So it is easier to carry up and down stairs to clean other floors.
I bought the robot because I don’t wear shoes in the house and was tired of stepping on crumbs or food scraps in the kitchen. The robot keeps the kitchen floor clean, and does just as well in other parts of the house.
Some things to keep in mind:
– Allow for plenty of clearance between the base and and any obstacles. The manual says 3 feet; I’ve had better luck with 5 feet. Otherwise the robot will have trouble returning.
– The beater bar is very effective, and on a new carpet or rug it will be picking up lots of carpet fibers. This requires frequent cleaning of the dust bin. The first time you use the robot on a carpet, I suggest pausing the robot once in a while to inspect the dustbin, and empty if needed.
– Related to the above point, I wish the passage way from the beater bar to the dust bin was wider; hair often gets clogged in the passage way. I have found that this problem diminishes as the robot cleans a floor each time. Frequent cleaning is goodness.
– Place your base as close to center of the floor the robot will be vacuuming so that it has a higher chance of finding base when it is done, or it needs to re-charge. Note that the robot does not get a “fix” on the base until it swings by the base on a cleaning run, so this is another reason to aim for center.
– Whenever the robot gets stuck or can’t find its way back, if a human doesn’t attend to the problem after a few hours (such as when setting the robot to vacuum a large area over night or while at work), the battery will drain. The robot will then forget the time of day and how much of the area it vacuumed. In addition, after bringing the robot to the dock, I’ve yet to master the trick for getting the robot to reliably sense the dock and start charging.
– Yes you need to pick up off the floor stuff like socks that might get jammed in the brush. Well dirty laundry belongs in a washer or bin, so think of this as discipline, at least until engineers invent a robot that picks up laundry. That the robot drives you to keep your house tidy is a good thing.
Despite the above, providing both minimal supervision over the robot and cleaning its dustbin between charges or cleanings together beat vacuuming manually. Overall, I think the robot does a better job than manually vacuuming since the robot is designed to clean every surface it can see and access. You can be doing something else, whether it is another chore that engineers haven’t yet figured out a robot for (e.g. vacuuming stairs), or something fun. And it is simply fun to watch the robot do its thing, whether it is setting up for a series of parallel cleaning runs, finding and turning corners, avoiding obstacles, extricating itself from a tangle of chair legs, or returning to home base.
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