Robot Reviews

Five year old Samsung Powerbot 9350 needed new battery, but on replacement would not return to base, ran till battery LO. Too old to repair given cost and possible more failures, replaced with a left-over newer generation discontinued D-shape Samsung Jetbot AI+, self-empty -- runs extremely quiet co...

I think the Neato diagnostic tools Neato Toolio or Neato Control can report signals from the drop sensors and determine whether they are defective. But they are read by components on the system board which might have a defective part. Skilled technicians might be able to trace the signal from the se...

Vorwerk Kobold has never distributed in the U.S., just Germany and some EU places. They have always had a Neato designed bot, then bought the company, but only Neato brand has been distributed in the U.S. Neato an original Silicon Valley U.S.company.

Neato Robotics is known for its flat front, wider intake D-shape vacuums, compared to the round ones made famous by i-Robot Roomba's. Neato is being phased out over the next few years. The only similar bot was from Samsung, which no longer lists any of its flat front models, just new round ones. So ...

Roborock Saros Z70 includes a robotic arm which picks up clothing etc. on floor. At CES 2025 Consumer Electronics Show.
Youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FTbHp6G0EVA

HIgher end Android phones also include a Hot Spot function. These are useful in some hospitals or institutions with less than full indoor WiFi coverage.
Or just internet at home or office without cable connections.

For a couple years at least high end iPhones include a hotspot function and 5G, connect PC's through the phone with WiFi, no additional hotspot device needed.

A hotspot creates WiFi in its vicinity. Usually the phone connects to the independently powered hotspot by WiFi, hotspot a standalone WiFi device with its own cellular network connection. So a separate service contract for minutes etc. needed for the hotspot with its own sim card. Many phone supplie...

Check the voltage delivered to the battery by the charger with a volt meter, may indicate whether charging circuits (on the system board) is defective. Also whether charging dock is delivering any power, can also be defective. Check voltage on the battery removed from bot may indicate whether the ba...

August 2024: Kress announced mowers with GPS guidance replacing need for embedded boundary wires or other markers, more like an indoor vacuum. $2400 for 1/4 acre capacity, more for larger. Typical cost given large battery requirements etc. compared to simpler vacuums. https://www.kress.com/en-us/rob...

Europe blocked the merger, abandoned. Reports IRobot laid off 1/3 of staff.

When on the charging dock it is powered by the dock without need for batteries, so if the USB com port is inactive when on the dock, no lights etc. on the dock then it would appear the main system board has a defect. See if it is still under warranty. Skilled hobbyists can replace system boards but ...

Could be a fault in system board battery charging components or in the power management IC in the lithium battery pack. These lithium Neato batteries have "smart" features with a serial number etc. embedded. "new battery" option in menu when replacing etc. See other thread on D5 ...

Introduced Jan.'24 Consumer Electronics Show (CES) Las Vegas: New expanded Eufy model: https://www.zdnet.com/article/eufy-debuts-the-x10-pro-omni-robot-vacuum-and-mop-at-ces-2024/ Unusual new entry, Matic, very different than traditional design: https://www.wired.com/story/matic-robot-vacuum-first-l...

Sounds like some voltage regulator supplying that resistor may have failed, over-loading it, but not an engineer. Extremely old model, not made for decades use. Could replace that resistor with a higher wattage capacity rating, but issues with how it got over-loaded, what else may be defective. Repl...

I use the iLife W400 Shinebot (also a higher model) years now, which extracts water, spinning mop brush. Some posts on it here somewhere I made. Only one like that found. Amazon distribution developed recent years, or try ebay, mfg. direct, aliexpress. It also has a very low bumper sensor deflecting...

Under European Union review for anti-trust concerns July 2023, expected decision Nov. 15.
https://www.theverge.com/2023/7/6/23628 ... estigation

[edit] News January 19, 2024: European Union likely to block acquisition.

it might be best to tape or something to depress the button. I think the button is pressed when the wheels are up, bot flat on floor. Not sure how this would affect navigation. You might be able to repair the switch, attach some sort of strip. Such switches are inexpensive. You could also short out ...

Possibly the microswitch used to detect the wheel suspension arm is extended (side lifted), but don't have the vacuum to examine. Such switches are standard electronic parts in various sizes and features, not unique vacuum parts. Need to disassemble the wheel mounting further. The thin metal strip i...

Batteries lose capacity as they wear with reduced run time a typical indicating symptom of wear -- it helps to know how many times the robot has been run -- battery life measured in number of charging cycles, maybe only 200 on original NiMh batteries. Most replacement batteries probably have some hi...