Does the cleanmate qq-2 clean better than the qq-1?

[Fraggboy]

Adam,

Thank you for the information. Those other robots seem interesting. Just like you said, it seems the Cleanmate does well on a hard surface with no transitions. It doesn't do well on carpet due to the brush not being able to adjust.

[adam_lux]

Yep, well a combination of things, the brush design and the small intake space for the vacuum.

Having said that the the CleanMate's brush is a lot softer too, so where CleanMate does shine is in a house/apartment with delicate parquet or hard floors. It's UV light is a plus too and possibilities to maybe use in a clinical environment like a lab maybe.

1 point I forget to mention was that CleanMate has the ability to finish in a light area should it not be able to find it's charging base, so no crawling under beds to retrieve it. Surprisingly, this is not mentioned in its manual or onthe box which I find a bit odd as it is a good selling point and something Roomba does not have.

Compared to many other robot cleaners (notably some dodgy Chinese ones) CleanMate is very solid and well made with many replacable parts. I haven't experienced the dsplay burn out issue that Galmok mentioned earlier on the QQ-2L, but would be interested to hear from other users if this is a general problem!

For more info on CleanMate look at this website which is actually taken from my "work in progress" website so is a test right now. http://www.eurobotiks.com/CleanMateQQ-2L.html

P.S. Where is QQ-3 ? Has anyone heard anything? Apart from the photo I posted some time ago from a Chinese website, I have not heard or seen anything. The Metapo guy who has commented here is keeping quiet too. So if there is any info anywhere, I'm eager to know!

Adam

[Fraggboy]

Adam,

Thank you kindly for sharing that information with us!! The Roomba's 5xx stock brushes were on the softer side also, which I thought wasn't enough to brush the carpet to get deep hair/debris. The newly designed CHM comes with the stiffer bristles, which I like to see.

The UV light would be a great asset to have in a robotic cleaner, especially if a home has small children, or people who want that feature.

That's cool that the Cleanmate has the feature of finishing in a light area. Some of the Scooba models have this feature, where it will seek out light before it stops the mission. Unfortunately the Roomba will stop under beds/furniture if the battery dies. I had a Lighthouse operate erratically due to low battery. It trapped my Roomba in the second zone, and died under the bed. Oh well. I think the robotic vacuum that is above the rest is the Karcher. Unfortunately, the price keeps it out of reach of some consumers (Like myself). Thank you for the link that describes the QQ-2L!!

Hopefully this thread will be updated with the new model QQ-3 very soon.

[BrokenRoomba]

Adam,

Does the cleanmate work on industrial type carpet?

[adam_lux]

Hi there

I guess on hard-wearing tough low carpet, it should be ok, it certainly does quite a good job on my thin woven straw-like tough rug so yeah. Its good for small dust particles, but nothing too big as that intake space is quite small

Hope that helps.

[adam_lux]

I was just thinking, maybe I should let the CleanMate run over my body with the UV light on. That way I get a massage and a tan at the same time! MMmmm.. maybe I've just invented something there..

[BrokenRoomba]

Thanks Adam,

It seems the cleanmate will be a good roomba alternative for my environment, when my 570 breaks down. Hopefully by then the QQ3 will have been released (or even better, the dyson robot).

[adam_lux]

Hi there

Yes I think you're right. It does all depend on where you want to use the CleanMate. As I mentioned before, if you have lots of carpets, rugs etc then don't go near the CleanMate, if you have hard floors and very low hard-wearing carpet, it should be fine.

I mentioned its navigation is not as intelligent as Roomba before, but then I thought so what? As long as it gets the job done does it really matter how it does it? I think that's the point and many of the more sophisticated robots have become really tied up on how the robot navigates, ultimately making them more expensive. If it covers the entire floor, personally I don't particularly care how it does it.

Adam

[BrokenRoomba]

I agree, only the end result is important. After all, I am not even there when the robot vacuums (for me, the point of having a robotic vacuum is to be able to do something else, not monitor it).

One thing I am really curious about the Cleanmate is it's durability vs Roomba. Though one thing I have noticed is that at Robotshop, they offer Roomba spare parts (not the officially available ones like filters, brushes, CHM, etc.), and repairs services for Roombas, but the same thing is not available through the website for the Cleanmate. I wonder if it's because they sell a lot more Roombas than Cleanmates, or if it's because the Cleanmate doesn't break down as much as the Roomba. Guess I will have to try it out.

[THX-1138]

Metapo does have some great ideas implemented within their QQ1 and QQ2 Cleanmate series robots but they fail hugely on cleaning floors of any type, much less anything with carpet. I have posted this information with detailed observations and suggestions on how to fix this engineering design failure. Here is proof of what I am talking about, you will see pictures of a Roomba and a Metapo Cleanmate QQ2 cleaning a hard floor surface with normal household dust:

[adam_lux]

Well I'm not in total agreement. After considerable testing I find that on hard floors cleanMate does work generally well. The other thing you have to remember is that CleanMate does take a bit longer to clean than Roomba, moves more slowly and goes for 80 minutes, i.e. generally longer than Roomba does. Thus, covering the floor several times, so if it doesn't get all the dust the first time, it probably will the second or third time.

If you run Roomba, over a dirty area once, and CleanMate also once over a same level of dirty area, Roomba will do better that's for sure, as the "under the bed" test shows, but it is the end result of the cleanliness of the room that's important. As I said before, it's not important how the room is navigated or cleaned, just as long as the final result is good.

As for spare replacement parts, these are also available for the CleanMate, here is one such site that offers parts This is Metapo themselves: http://store.cleanmateus.com/sppaofclvacl.html

So in conclusion after my testing, CleanMate produces good results on hard floors if left to clean for the full 80 minutes, however is not very effective on carpets.

Adam

[THX-1138]

After considerable testing I find that on hard floors cleanMate does work generally well.

But that is not the only thing wrong with the cleaning mechanism found in the Cleanmate QQ1 and QQ2. The other big factor is the very small opening that is available for the collected dirt to pass through. The opening is able to be easily clogged with accumulated household floor particles which in turn make the robot cleaning ineffective. Do not get me wrong, I applaud the many other features that Cleanmate QQ1 and QQ2 introduced and still are not available on any other floor cleaning robot but Metapo engineers lack an effective cleaning mechanism for any type of floor. Also bear in mind that a cleanmate QQ2 is about the same price as an entry level Roomba and parts & service are not easily available. I have posted my comments on this forum and have directly interacted with Metapo management in regards to their robot flaws which I hope they take into consideration. Personally I would only recommend the Cleanmate QQ1 and QQ2 to anyone who has money to spare, wishes to collect robots or already has other floor cleaning robots effectively doing the job.

So in conclusion after my testing, CleanMate produces good results on hard floors if left to clean for the full 80 minutes, however is not very effective on carpets.

The Cleanmate QQ1 and QQ2 will only produce "good" results if fine dust on hard floors is all that you wish this robot to pick up. If you have pets, kids and the usual typical family home then I recommend you look at other robots like the Karcher RC3000, Electrolux Trilobite, iRobot Roomba, Mircrorobot Ubot or even the Samsung Hauzen VC-RE70V.

[adam_lux]

May I also point out that Metapo are only 1 "Brander" of the CleanMate, unlike Roomba, the CleanMate is made by a lot of manufacturers in China, Taiwan & Indonisia unbranded that are 100% identicle (I have both an Infinuvo branded CleanMate & QQ-2L unbranded direct from China) In fact one of the manufacturers in Taiwan, explained to me that they make CleanMates for Infinuvo, IVO (I guess is the same thing) for others, and for me if I order enough and can stick my logo on! . I can not find 1 difference, cheaper materials etc and looks like these units are simply branded "Infinuvo" at a later stage.

Why am I telling you this? Because the price of the unbranded models of CleanMate is considerably cheaper than Metapo/Infinuvo, thus making the CleanMate cheaper than any Roomba model.

You are right about the small intake too, but for small particles is does do a good job. I would also recommend the CleanMate for delicate areas & furnutire as it is a lot more gentle than Roomba can be. One critisism though, is that if CleanMate gets into a tight spot/stuck, it gives up very easily, beeps and switches off. Roomba is far more adventurous and fights a bit more before even thinking about emitting the "oh-oh" tone. But maybe this fits in with the whole delicate CleanMate approach.

You mention other models other than iRobot, but all these are, quite pricey models.

I want to some info about QQ-3! The Metapo guy here mentioned this some time ago, I have written to him to ask about it both in forum and privately but no answer as of yet. If you hear any news of the QQ-3 THX-1138, please let us know ASAP!

Adam

[adam_lux]

As mentioned in previous message, CleanMate is made for Metapo/Infinuvo and is also sold unbranded- Below are photos for comparison. For your info, I could have equally ordered QQ-1 and QQ-2 unbranded models.

Please note that for the bottom photos, the cliff sensors are covered in tape for both units, as I tested them in black floor environments and we all know auto vacs hate black floors (including Roomba). This tape method works perfectly with CleanMate, but don't let them go near stairs like this! You'll also notice a replaced screw in the spinning side brush of 1 unit - that was me, as I managed to lose the original screw.

QQ-2L on left with box, QQ-2 Infinuvo on the right.

Top view: QQ-2L unbranded on left , QQ-2 Infinuvo on the right.

Bottom view QQ-2L unbranded pn left , QQ-2 Infinuvo on the right. (Tape covered cliff sensors for use on black floors)

QQ-2L unbranded - label underneath the unit

QQ-2 Infinuvo - label underneath the unit

[Traveler]

I am from Metapo.

The weakness of QQ-1 and QQ-2 will be addressed in our next model - QQ-3.
I will definitely send you a sample for review as I did for QQ-1.

By the way, Craig visited my booth at CES Show 2008.

It's 2010, when will QQ-3 ever come out?
It'd be easier to get one if lives in China.