I've souped up my XV-11 with some VR100 parts

[micheleFrance]

Hi everyone, i'm new on this chat !i'm very interested in getting returns from members having experienced the new VR 100. Its really attractive, gets a lot of improvements but is it really so good ? So before fighting with my husband, i would like to know your experiments. I apologize for my style but (as fore) i'm French, loving English but having few opportunities to talk.
650 euros is a great deal, you know, moreover nowadays with our new AA+ ... Thanks alot for the return from the VR100 owners !

[regnep]

I don't own a vr100 but you can read dinkydongs post here and get some impressions:

http://www.robotreviews.com/chat/viewto ... 18#p101433

There is a drawback with the vr100 as you can not update its software and get new improved performance.

[fore]

I understand the software upgrade is possible at the Vorwerk Service outlets that Michele will be able to drive to. Not so easy as upgrading at home though, granted. It does sound like if it's possible to catch the 2.4 firmware equivalent, it would be pretty much good to go (Vorwerk edit the Neato releases to handle Li-ion).

[dinkydong]

The VR100 is probably one of the best performing robotic vacuum cleaner on the market at this time. Though it shares a similar platform as the Neato XV11, it has additional enhancements such as a side brush, lithium battery (longer lifespan), better suction (better filter), etc. I have installed the VR100's filter and main brush into my XV11 and they made a big difference. In terms of cleaning performance, i'm sure its hard to find a better bot at this moment though its probably one of the more expensive cleaner at 649 Euros! That said, u should be aware that there appears to be 2 unresolved issues with the XV11:

1) RPS errors
2) Broken drive wheel mounting.

Of these 2, it seems that the VR100 is also affected by RPS errors. Issue No. 2 remains to be seen, though i have sources telling me that the VR100 shares the same wheel and chassis as the XV11. A visual confirmation seems to say the same thing. If u are in Germany, u are covered by a local 1 year warranty. Since u are from France, i am not sure if the same warranty applies. In addition, if the bot breaks down, are u prepared to deal with the hassle of sending it back to Germany for exchange or repairs? Are u prepared for the additional costs involved? If not, i would suggest that u wait for these issues to be resolved before getting one.

Hi everyone, i'm new on this chat !i'm very interested in getting returns from members having experienced the new VR 100. Its really attractive, gets a lot of improvements but is it really so good ? So before fighting with my husband, i would like to know your experiments. I apologize for my style but (as fore) i'm French, loving English but having few opportunities to talk.
650 euros is a great deal, you know, moreover nowadays with our new AA+ ... Thanks alot for the return from the VR100 owners !

[Chron12]

Any German users wanna help someone from the states? Pm me if you can!

[dinkydong]

Since u are asking for assistance, IMO u should PM our German friends instead of asking them to contact u. If u have been following this thread, u'll know who are the users to contact. Just this once, the 2 active German members to contact are:

1) fufu
2) tonius

Any German users wanna help someone from the states? Pm me if you can!

[fore]

That's a good summary dinkydong. The spring mount issue doesn't worry me too much, as the DIY fix seems good. The RPS error on the other hand is a major issue IMO. How can one buy a product that would seem to be a ticking time bomb? There seems no fix, just a replacement option; no good at all if outside warranty.

I'm taking a long time over my deliberations, but the 5 year warranty offered by some sites on the XV-15 means you can be confident that it will last at least that time. That's the direction I currently lean, with a Mint to finish the corners and mop.

[Plague]

There's the main cleaning brush and 2 filters inside the box ...

Anyone think it's weird for these parts to be from Germany but the labels on the filters are in english? I just thought that was kinda weird.

Anyway I was curious about the VR100 parts in the XV-11. So it's quite obvious from Dinkydong that the brush and filters fit the Neato without any issue, but what about the extended life Lithium batteries the VR100 has? Would those also fit the XV-11 without any issues?

[vic7767]

I'm sure the batteries will fit but until the firmware is changed the LI-ions won't charge correctly.

[Neatorobot]

As an electrical engineer I have to tell you the Lithium battery will not charge correctly, even with updated firmware, it needs different charging electronics, however the build in protection mechanism will prevent the Lithium battery from exploding so you could theoretically use it, at least as long as the protection mechanism is working, if it gets damaged the battery will most likely explode.

I also ordered a Vorwerk brush and one filter (I am from Germany) for my Neato-XV11 and it works fine with firmware 2.6, even when the filter is new (I run the Neato 5 times now with the new components).
My only concern is that the new brush is harder to spin for the electrical motor so it may overheat, but no problem so far.
I think there is no proper translation for all changes of the Vorwerk Kobold VR100 compared to the Neato XV-11 in the forum so here you are. A Vorwerk engineer explained the differences in a german forum (http://www.roboter-forum.com/showthread ... to-Vorwerk).

1. They modified the fan (I think they mean the suction power) so they get an increased efficiency of 28% instead of 12%. They also optimized the air flow path.

2. The brush is completely new with bristles and non straight silicon plates (as the Neato, I hope you understand what I mean, because the direct translation makes no sense). This reduces the niose and also increases the pickup of hairs etc.

3. They added a side brush to improve the edge cleaning. They claim that Neato could not use a side brush in US because iRobot has a patent on this in US, but not in Europe.

4. They reduced the noise level from 77dB to 69dB by using different brush, acustic damping, other vacuum motor etc.

5. They changed the battery to Lithium one with 64Wh instead of 46Wh but they only use 50Wh to guarantee longer life time. The engineer also sait that the charging firmware is different and there is additional electronic in the VR100 that is missing in the Neato, so do not use the VR100 battery!

6.They have a different filter which can be cleaned without limitation and suction power loss at least several 100 times. They claim Neato filter can handle 25g fine dust until it is blocked, VR100 filter can handle 85g. It is no HEPA filter.

7. The front bumper is made with different softer material to avoid scratches at furnitures.

8. They changed the software a bit but Neato is the software owner and they claim the new Neato firmwares have also lot's of VR100 functions in it, so Neato learned from Vorwerk.

[neato]

The VR100 is developed for Vorwerk by Neato. The firmware does not contain new features except to support hardware differences and languages.

[regnep]

This could be "pimp my neato" on MTV. They have taken a good product and made lots of nice upgrades to it. It looks good too in my opinion. Hope these upgrades will influence the next model from neato.

[acc]

I installed the VR100 brush and filter courtesy of dinkydong and boy do they make a big difference... Neato is much quieter now with just a very cool and smooth vooosh sound without the constant battering noise from the original beaters. Air flow is also significantly stronger; its a big jump in performance in terms of lower noise and increased airflow. Wonder why Neato did not use these designs from the onset.

[voicegy]

Am using the VR-100 brush now with my XV-11 (California, US) and, wow, what a difference. No "chattering" or bouncing along the carpet on a long distance run, an order of magnitude quieter - especially on that transition from the carpet to the hard floor - and along with the VR-100 filter, superior air flow. It makes my little Neato seem so "professional!"