ILIFE V5s Plus Robot Vacuum and Mop Combo, Works with 2.4G WiFi, Alexa/App/Remote Control, Automatic Self-Charging Robotic Vacuum Cleaner, for Pet Hair, Hard Floor, Low Carpet (V5s Pro Upgraded)

For the price point, works very well on hardwood floors. Will get stuck easily under furniture or on curtains. Mopping works well for an every day mop, but not a deep clean

The media could not be loaded. This is part 1 of what may end up a much longer review. For those in a rush, read this summary and watch the very short video!Summary: At about 1/2 the price of the two “big” brands (both of which I have used) this one is quieter and easier to clean. There are far less fidgety parts to unsnap to simply empty the container holding the debris. The remote control does a fine job when needed, and the vacuum does actually return to the docking station when needed. It is quiet, not frightening to cats and comes with spare parts. The “damp mop" does exactly that. It is not a scrubber, but a micro-fiber damp cloth that picks up fine dust. A solid unit. Now, if you want more info, read on.###First, a few points: I am not a robot enthusiast who is forgiving of robotic devices that don’t work well. I also do not expect any robot to do heavy housework, especially at this price point. If you are expecting a robot to relieve you of household drudgery, come back in 50 years.At about 1/2 the price of the two “big” brands (both of which I have used) this one holds it’s own and more. It is more attractive, more effective and less trouble to use and clean. This unit is logically designed, easy to maintain and, again, also quiet.Because it is designed for WOOD and TILE floors, NOT CARPET, it does not have the rubber rolling beater that others use to get debris out of carpet pile. It uses an effective vacuum built into a mobile chassis. If you imagine a decent “Dustbuster” type mechanism on wheels, you get the idea.The center of the unit has a box-like chamber a bit smaller than a 1 lb butter package or 3x5“ card recipe box. If you put the vacuum module in, it collects debris and exhausts air through a small HEPA filter. The filter is cleanable and comes with extras. You can order more if needed.In vacuum mode, the unit moves around the room at a steady pace with two brushes spinning that direct debris towards center vacuum area. While it will gently bump into chair legs, etc., it seems to sense walls and backs away without touching them. It also has a mode that hugs the wall to brush debris out of the edges of the room into the unit. There is also a “spill” mode where the unit circles around in an ever-larger circle for those times when dry coffee grounds, flour, ashes, etc. are dropped. There is also a “turbo” mode where the vacuum strength is increased. This produces more noise. As our 1900 farmhouse is mostly troubled by road dust and cat hair or tracked litter, the regular setting was fine.You will need to check the debris container fairly often. Even in a well-maintained house like ours, it is surprising how quickly the iHome “Beetle” fills up with found dust and fur!Yes, it would be nice to have a larger debris receptacle, but then EVERYTHING would have to be larger..larger vacuum motor, larger housing, larger battery, larger motor for transport, etc. You would end up with something bigger and heavier than a Thanksgiving turkey that could not get into tight places.I did bring the iHome Beetle into what call my “torture track.” My home recording studio is often messy with extension cords, twist-ties from product packaging that missed the trash can and just the stuff that gets left in my sort of technological “man cave.” The Beetle handled it well, getting over wires and dealing with just about everything...except those twist ties, which it ignored. By the way, there have been no jam-ups plugging the vacuum path as it is pretty straight. The only time I thought it was jammed turned out that the debris chamber was full!Replace the vacuum box with the water box and you have a damp-mop system AFTER you add a simple bracket to the underside to hold the micro-fiber cloth. It takes a bit, but the cloth does get damp and collects fine dust as the Beetle makes it way around the room. Damp-mopping is not the same as scrubbing! This is not going to take a dingy kitchen floor, clean it and make it sparkle! But being very, very familiar with damp-mopping Army barracks floors, I can tell you that it does make floors look better!This unit comes with a dock, or you can plug the charger directly into the unit. I’m not sure how it works, but when you hit the “home” button on the remote, the Beetle stops what it is doing and heads right over to the dock and settles in. Fascinating! It even did it when certain wise-guy cats tried to knock it off course.Speaking of cats, I repeat that there is no rapidly spinning rubber axel on the front used to beat carpet fibers because this is not for carpets. The first time I used another brand (we’ll call it “R”), a cat got in the way and got it’s tail yanked by the vacuum. My other vac (we’ll call in “N”) never got that far, as the electronics were all messed up from the moment I opened the box.Using the dock and the remote, you can tell the Beetle when to start and when to quit and go back home. I have not used it long enough to make use of this, but from what I can see, there is no reason to doubt it works. I have also not tested the “cliff detection” and note that even the instructions caution it may not work in all circumstances. The edges of our steep wood stairway have rounded edges after 117 years, and the Beetle might not realize that!The instructions are quite good and the unit, in it’s attractive box, is very easy to set up. Great wedding gift!A final important note: This is not one of those products, like so many coffee makers and kitchen items, that are sold “generically” to an importer and found with five brand names and no support. iHome is making a very serious effort in this marketplace and has a website and help, not just a name attached to a product that nobody knows much about. Definitely worth your consideration.This is part 1 of what may end up a much longer review. For those in a rush, read this summary and watch the very short video!Summary: At about 1/2 the price of the two “big” brands (both of which I have used) this one is quieter and easier to clean. There are far less fidgety parts to unsnap to simply empty the container holding the debris. The remote control does a fine job when needed, and the vacuum does actually return to the docking station when needed. It is quiet, not frightening to cats and comes with spare parts. The “damp mop" does exactly that. It is not a scrubber, but a micro-fiber damp cloth that picks up fine dust. A solid unit. Now, if you want more info, read on.###First, a few points: I am not a robot enthusiast who is forgiving of robotic devices that don’t work well. I also do not expect any robot to do heavy housework, especially at this price point. If you are expecting a robot to relieve you of household drudgery, come back in 50 years.At about 1/2 the price of the two “big” brands (both of which I have used) this one holds it’s own and more. It is more attractive, more effective and less trouble to use and clean. This unit is logically designed, easy to maintain and, again, also quiet.Because it is designed for WOOD and TILE floors, NOT CARPET, it does not have the rubber rolling beater that others use to get debris out of carpet pile. It uses an effective vacuum built into a mobile chassis. If you imagine a decent “Dustbuster” type mechanism on wheels, you get the idea.The center of the unit has a box-like chamber a bit smaller than a 1 lb butter package or 3x5“ card recipe box. If you put the vacuum module in, it collects debris and exhausts air through a small HEPA filter. The filter is cleanable and comes with extras. You can order more if needed.In vacuum mode, the unit moves around the room at a steady pace with two brushes spinning that direct debris towards center vacuum area. While it will gently bump into chair legs, etc., it seems to sense walls and backs away without touching them. It also has a mode that hugs the wall to brush debris out of the edges of the room into the unit. There is also a “spill” mode where the unit circles around in an ever-larger circle for those times when dry coffee grounds, flour, ashes, etc. are dropped. There is also a “turbo” mode where the vacuum strength is increased. This produces more noise. As our 1900 farmhouse is mostly troubled by road dust and cat hair or tracked litter, the regular setting was fine.You will need to check the debris container fairly often. Even in a well-maintained house like ours, it is surprising how quickly the iHome “Beetle” fills up with found dust and fur!Yes, it would be nice to have a larger debris receptacle, but then EVERYTHING would have to be larger..larger vacuum motor, larger housing, larger battery, larger motor for transport, etc. You would end up with something bigger and heavier than a Thanksgiving turkey that could not get into tight places.I did bring the iHome Beetle into what call my “torture track.” My home recording studio is often messy with extension cords, twist-ties from product packaging that missed the trash can and just the stuff that gets left in my sort of technological “man cave.” The Beetle handled it well, getting over wires and dealing with just about everything...except those twist ties, which it ignored. By the way, there have been no jam-ups plugging the vacuum path as it is pretty straight. The only time I thought it was jammed turned out that the debris chamber was full!Replace the vacuum box with the water box and you have a damp-mop system AFTER you add a simple bracket to the underside to hold the micro-fiber cloth. It takes a bit, but the cloth does get damp and collects fine dust as the Beetle makes it way around the room. Damp-mopping is not the same as scrubbing! This is not going to take a dingy kitchen floor, clean it and make it sparkle! But being very, very familiar with damp-mopping Army barracks floors, I can tell you that it does make floors look better!This unit comes with a dock, or you can plug the charger directly into the unit. I’m not sure how it works, but when you hit the “home” button on the remote, the Beetle stops what it is doing and heads right over to the dock and settles in. Fascinating! It even did it when certain wise-guy cats tried to knock it off course.Speaking of cats, I repeat that there is no rapidly spinning rubber axel on the front used to beat carpet fibers because this is not for carpets. The first time I used another brand (we’ll call it “R”), a cat got in the way and got it’s tail yanked by the vacuum. My other vac (we’ll call in “N”) never got that far, as the electronics were all messed up from the moment I opened the box.Using the dock and the remote, you can tell the Beetle when to start and when to quit and go back home. I have not used it long enough to make use of this, but from what I can see, there is no reason to doubt it works. I have also not tested the “cliff detection” and note that even the instructions caution it may not work in all circumstances. The edges of our steep wood stairway have rounded edges after 117 years, and the Beetle might not realize that!The instructions are quite good and the unit, in its attractive box, is very easy to set up. Great wedding gift!A final important note: This is not one of those products, like so many coffee makers and kitchen items, that are sold “generically” to an importer and found with five brand names and no support. iLife is making a very serious effort in this marketplace and has a website and help, not just a name attached to a product that nobody knows much about. Definitely worth your consideration.

This is my second iLife, the V5sPlus (Purchased 02/2024). I also have the Noisz S5 by iLife (Purchased 05/2020), and they are basically the same machine. What I like about it, they go for a long time and sweep up the dust very well. They don't have a rotating carpet brush but I don't have carpet. I have also pretty much robot-proofed my house by raising the furniture, getting rid of most rugs and keeping electric wires off the floor. My house is about 1500 sq feet with 3 bedrooms, a mostly open setup with furniture all around. It is a must that the robot be able to negotiate furniture and travel into bedrooms and bathrooms.I bought a different brand earlier this month, but reluctantly returned it. It used a straight line back and forth method of sweeping, and this just didn't do at all. It just stayed in one room most of the time and sometimes went into a second room and after so much starting and stopping, it was drained within an hour with half the house not done. It had a nifty app which showed the coverage and allowed you to schedule it, etc, which was great but mostly it just showed me that it hadn't done the job.The iLifes that I have use a random motion and go hither and yon but pretty much cover the whole house within a couple of hours. If you do it every day or 3-4 days a week, you can be pretty sure it got to everything. I definitely think random is better.The app that comes with the iLife Plus is very basic. You can turn it on and off and schedule, and that's it. It shows no coverage or anything like that, but I know that it is covering the floor plan so I am happy. The new iLife V5S Plus also mops, and for me it is fine. Once a week, I replace the dustbin with the water bin and put on the mop cloth and it goes for a long, long time and pretty much mops my house. I just use plain water on my floors and laminate. It goes even longer since the suction is off and only uses battery to move.So I am very pleased with my iLifes. Sure you can get more features for more money including a mapping function, better app and better carpet cleaning if you need it, but this one is just fine for a little house with wood or tile floors. And by the way, I bought a new battery for my old one ($22) and it is back to working great. I may give it away but sometimes I just turn them both on and let them go.

I've had this robot for just shy of 2.5 years, and I have to say I'm quite impressed. It's been using the same exact parts since the day I bought it, with little indication of replacement: same sweeper blades, same dust catch, same filter, same everything. I still have the spares it came with! Sure, it might be a dumb robot that sometimes cleans one area more than others just by chance, but I'm fine with it, especially for the price. The battery is still just as strong too!Of course, after all this time, I have a few qualms with it. The mop feature is awful and barely works. If the bot was heavier, it might apply more pressure for a more consistent mopping, but then again, I've only needed to use this feature 2 or 3 times. The robot doesn't do well on carpet either, but I almost exclusively use it on hardwood, which is where it really shines. When used on carpet, I generally have to let it run twice as long for good results.It also doesn't do well with heavier debris, like chunks of cat litter and pebbles. Thankfully, the robot generally sweeps these debris into small piles, which makes it easy to hand sweep later on. A bit annoying that long hair is twisted into the sweeper blades, so I have to routinely flip the bot over to remove the blades and then the hair. A quick release function would be nice instead of screws, but oh well.Although not perfect for everyone & certainly isn't the best in its class, for the price, you cannot beat it. Fits my needs perfectly and I don't regret a cent spent on it, nor do I plan on upgrading it any time soon!