The Neato XV-11 is a new generation robotic vacuum cleaner that was released towards the end of 2009. It boasts the most powerful vacuum with the strongest suction as well as the largest dustbin of all robotic vacuums on the market today. It was designed to be a true vacuum, not a floor sweeping robot or a “sweeper-vac” and its suction power can be compared to that of any upright vacuum. The XV-11 cleans with a rotating silicon brush ensuring that hair strands end up in the dustbin and not around the brush.
Using the Neato is as simple as 123. Once fully charged, simply put it on the floor, press the orange start button twice and off it goes.
Unlike all its predecessors, the Neato XV-11 is not a round robot vacuum. It’s round at the back but flat in the front. It is 13 in (33 cm) wide, 12.5 in (31.8 cm) long and 4 in (10.2 cm) high and weighs 9 pounds (5.9 kg).
Read the rest of the Neato XV-11 review:
Table of Contents (click ahead!)
Navigation
Scheduling
Maintenance
Accessories & Tools
Customer Reviews
Pros & Cons
1. Neato XV-11 Navigation
The Neato XV-11 uses a technology called Room Positioning System, RPS, to navigate its way around the house. It has a laser that rotates 360 degrees and rapidly scans the room. It measures precise distances to the walls and any objects in the room. The Neato then creates a detailed and very accurate map of the room. It now knows the exact position and dimensions of all obstacles as well as any doorways.
The Neato cleans one room at a time. Once a room is scanned and mapped, it starts off cleaning
the perimeter. It then continues to clean in methodical straight overlapping lines, similar to how a human would vacuum. It knows precisely where every obstacle is and will not bump into it but will carefully clean around it. It also knows where the doorway is but won’t leave the room until the cleaning is complete.
The Neato won’t fall down stairways. It has cliff sensors that detect the stairs. It will clean up to the ledge and then back away.
If the XV-11′s power runs low, it will return to the docking station, dock itself and recharge. Once fully charged, it knows exactly where it left off and will return to that position and resume cleaning.
The Neato XV-11 will continue in this fashion cleaning one room after the next until it has cleaned the whole house. When the job is done, it will return to its docking station to recharge.
2. Neato XV-11 Scheduling
The Neato XV-11 can be operated manually or it can be scheduled to start cleaning every day at a designated time. This implies that you can schedule it to clean when you are at work, coming home to a freshly vacuumed house.
3. Neato XV-11 Maintenance
The Neato is a very low maintence robotic vacuum. With its strong suction, the Neato gets all the dust, debris and hair in the dusbin and not around the brush. The only maintenance required is to empty the dustbin when it is full.
4. Neato XV-11 Accessories & Tools
- Docking station
- Extra Filter
- Magnetic Boundary Strip
- User Manual
- Quick Start Guide
Neato XV-11 Customer Reviews
“Overall, this is the best investment I’ve made in cleaning my house. I have two cats who shed a lot and I hadn’t run the vacuum in 6-8 weeks before I bought this thing. After 3 passes it looked as good as if I had used a real vacuum. If I run it daily which I do, it looks fresh everyday. This thing does a great job getting the lose cat hair on the hardwoods as well (not blowing it around like some vacs do)…(read more here: Neato XV-11 Review)”
“In all the Neato XV-11 definitely deserves a five star rating. It performs as promised and is fascinating to watch as it goes through its paces. Once you tire of this, it’s a workhorse suited to independently clean a home. It sounds like several other reviewers may have had QC-related issues early on, but my unit bought about a month after release seems problem-free. While somewhat expensive, if it can continue working as it has, the Neato XV-11 will provide a lot of value by independently keeping my apartment clean…(read more here: Neato XV-11 Review)”
Amazon Rating: 4.2
Neato XV-11 Pros & Cons
Pros:
Suction Powerful suction with amazing cleaning ability; Able to clean a ridiculous amount of pet hair and dust from a carpet.
Pet & Human Hair – NO Problem Hair ends up in the dustbin, not around the brushes.
Low Maintenance Zero maintenance apart from cleaning out the dustbin when it is full. This is fairly easy, although a bit messy and should be done over a bigger bin.
Scheduling The onboard display is easy to use and scheduling takes about a minute.
Battery Life Is about 60 to 80 minutes depending on the surface it is cleaning; Fully charged it will complete about 600 sq ft floors with thick carpet and about 800 sq ft of floors with wood or rugs; Will dock itself when it runs out of power, recharge and resume and complete the job where left off.
Efficiency It quickly cleans in straight lines according to a floor plan and does not wander randomly around; Although it misses very small parts of the room, coverage is very good; It avoids bumping into furniture; Most reviewers reported that it had no problem returning to the docking station.
Cons:
Reflective Surfaces The Neato won’t work if there are any low – less than 4 inches above the floor – reflective surfaces. Any low windows or mirrors will confuse the Neato’s laser and it will stop working.
Noise There were some complaints about the noise. The noise level seems to be acceptable when cleaning a carpet but very loud when cleaning hard wood. The scheduling could be a solution – either schedule it when you go out or schedule it to clean downstairs while the family is sleeping upstairs.
Scheduling Can only schedule 1 cleaning per day for 7 days in advance.
Boundary Marker Some reviewers preferred the Roomba’s lighthouse to the Neato’s magnetic strips.
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Manual available online here: Neato XV-11 User Guide