ECOVACS DEEBOT N79 Robotic Vacuum Cleaner with Strong Suction, for Low-pile Carpet, Hard floor, Wi-Fi Connected

Updated: 6/15/2018. My original review follows this update. I returned the first N79 and because I believed this robotic had so much promise, I ordered the follow-on model, the N79S model. Sure enough, it delivered everything I hoped it would. So, indulge me, as currently, Amazon has limited posting reviews for the N79S for some reason due, it says, to possible "posting activity". In any case, the new model worked beautifully for both rug and tile floors but it developed a problem in short order and I don't know why. It began beeping two times in succession while spinning in a clockwise circle, then stopped. No matter what I did, including shutting it off and on to reinitialjze it, it repeated this behavior. I was disappointed. Nothing was caught in it's drive-wheels or was an apparent obstruction. I note various complaints about Ecovacs customer service. I had just the opposite problem. Too many customer service reps, each trying to be helpful but countermanding each other with regard for comments and instructions of othercreps. Apparently, each communication wasn't synchronized with another, causing duplicative requests for model, serial number, and asking for descriptions of the problem. After a week of this and my plaintiff cry in an email expressing my frustration that too many were involved, all "killing me with kindness", trying to help. Finally, one agent took charge, mailed a new unit with tracking number, then followed-up until it was delivered.Bottom line? the final, but third unit arrived and it's been bliss for the past several weeks of use 2-3 times a week. Was the hassle worth it? I tend to persevere when I believe there may be an anomaly and not systemic defect in a product. So, one Amazon return, one Ecovacs return, with a supplied prepaid label seem to have paid off. And, without duplicating the various other ratings which praise this unit, I must say the bother was worth it. It hugs the walls to clean baseboard when set in thatvmode, spins in ever-widening circles to clean a spot or dry spill, never gers stuck under our furniture, has suprisingly long battery life, is easy to remove debris it picks up, never fails to find home, and even has win over my wife who is not enomored with guy-gadgets, because it reduces the work of cleaning her kitchen and preparing her tile floors for occasional steam cleaning, And, ignore those who try to compare this unit to upper-end hjgher-cost brands. My great satisfaction is derived from what it accomplishes for such and affordable price. Critics aren't wrong when they complain about certain problems because homes are not alike and offer different challenges and improvements are continually being made as evidenced by the new series. And, except for erratic cleaning of certain of my rugs, my N79 worked flawlessly, too, as my home is predominately hard floors.Original N79 Review:I'm sad that I returned this robotic vacuum. It worked ALMOST as well as any could be expected to work. In my case, it didn't work well with my low-pile carpet and became very slow. If it had a little more power, I think it would have. Fortunately, I gave it a thorough, whole-house test and returned it, but in in near-pristine condition.If it had encountered berber or other tight weave carpeting, it would performed flawlessly. Here's my overall assessment and as a techno-geek, I have high expectations.*On tile and hardwood floors, it never faltered, and when it encountered an obstacle such as end table legs, it kept trying, looking for a way around or under them.*It has difficulty with throw rugs, but so does both my upright vacs. Just remove them before setting Mr. Deebot loose.*Be sure to close doors to rooms you don't want cleaned and put a small barrier in rooms with archways without doors that lead into other rooms if you set cleaning on the remote to one room.*Occasionally it would get hung up in small bathrooms between fixtures and the wall. But, it beeps 4 times in succession, repeatedly, to ask for help.*The remote has plenty of features including wall edge setting, room, (whole home), auto, and park. The smartphone app also works on android and Apple tablets. I could start Mr. Deebot (my affectionate term for this clever orb) from across the house through the WiFi connection. Never failed to respond.*I never set it to clean my 2700 sf home at one time because I was busy evaluating it's efficiency in cleaning rooms of different shapes and different furniture arrangements, but not once did the device need to return to the home charging station for a battery recharge.*Surprisingly, it is easy to clean and features a pull out box which contains the debris but also the filter.*I was delighted at the hardiness of the device. It looks fragile but is built sturdy. I doubt it would survive being dropped, and it avoids bumping against most obstacles but when it does, the bumps are gentle to avoid damaging the vac or furniture.*I learned to rearrange dangling cables like phone and speaker cords that are just above the floor although the device is amazingly low in height. Preparing a room for Mr. Deebot was just a matter of minutes, and took far less effort than the manual operation of a corded traditional tank or upright vacuum.*There is a time setting on the remote and app which allows you to have whole house cleaning commence everyday at the same time.*It is well-engineered in design, function and appearance.*The manufacturer includes a spare set of rotating cleaning brushes and a spare filter set. Nice touch.*I can not envision a more expensive brand or model costing 3-5 times this device that could do anything any better.*After cleaning to a point the battery needs to be recharged, it is supposed to return to the home charger. As I never got that far, I manually tapped the return to home icon on the remote or app, and it began to search for a path to the charger. Be sure to put the charging station somewhere against an unobstructed wall. It may take some maneuvering, but the robotic vac will find it, line up, drive straight to it, and park which starts the chargjng. Amazing.So, my conclusions? This robot vac did most things as well as a manual corded vac, some even better. It's not a toy, although my cat tried to stalk and stare it down.It is strictly to the consumer's benefit that this device is one of those rare instances where a much cheaper than other brands device is hundreds and hundreds of dollars cheaper, yet is so well- designed and constructed, you feel like bragging.Although the manufacturer states it is designed to operate on low-pile carpets, it wasn't to my satisfaction but I believe it may have been my carpet pile characteristic. Likely this would not be a problem for others, and, it never stopped on my rug, just huffed and puffed.Now, I've saved my best surprise until last. This pint-size pie plate cleans. After just three rooms, I pulled open the little drawer to check how much debris had been sucked and brushed into the bin. I thought I had run over a small cat, as it was full of cat hair, lint and dirt tracked into the house, although we had recently vacuumed. Imagine setting this device to clean everyday. The challenge at first would be emptying the bin of trash, but done frequently, it should actually make your house cleaner. If obstacles are removed for unobstructed travel, and doors closed where you don't want it to go, I have no doubt this little sucker would operate perfectly everyday while you are away.Now you can understand my withdrawal symptoms after sending it back. But, I'm sold on this company and am considering replacing the N79 with another model, albeit more expensive.My recommendation is try it, and if doesn't perform up to it's stated standard and your satisfaction, exercise the best feature of Amazon within 30 days. Bet you keep it.

I have to admit I was a bit dubious that a robot vacuum cleaner could handle my house which is overstuffed with furniture, high threshholds and throw rugs (not to mention the two long-haired cats and two medium-sized dogs that shed constantly). I am however thrilled with my Ecovacs Deebot N79. It gets over my i/4 inch thresholds and rug edges that are at least 3/8" higher than the floor with no problem. I run it every morning for 20-30 minutes while I get ready for work and I am continually amazed that it never fails to fill. ( I generally empty it twice during that period.) I considered buying the more famous brand, older cousin of Deebot, but after reading reviews about Deebot being quieter, I decided to risk less money as I was convinced nothing would really get the pet hair and dust from our country roads that well. I was wrong and am so pleased to have rugs and floors that look clean and improve the appearance of my home immensely.Quality of vacuuming: Hmm, yes, some say not as good as a full-sized machine (how could it be?), BUT... I have yet for the machine to come back to me without the drawer being full, so it is definitely cleaning stuff. If it ever comes to me empty, then I will open a bottle of champagne and celebrate having absolutely clean floors. Then I will lock the doors so no more dirt can get in and we will go live somewhere else so I can crow forever about having a completely clean house! In other words, I am very happy with what Deebot manages to pick up every single day!Only twice has Deebot had to issue a help call - once when it swallowed a ball of yarn and once when it got very long human hairs caught in the rollers. I have on a couple of occasions used the remote to steer it clear of a narrow canyon of furniture, just because it was painful to me to see it backing and turning over and over (even though I suspect the randomized path programming would mean that it would eventually have found its way out of the tight spot.). I admit to being a bit of an over-protective mother and have nudged it at a threshhold or redirected it when I worried that it might have difficulties, but even so, it has spent many hours wandering around un-supervised in a home full of knitting, art supplies and atypical furnishings and it has always been fine. I confess to helping guide it to the recharge station at times, since it seems to look for it randomly and when I push the return home button on the remote it sometimes trots offf in the completely wrong direction. I have never been brave enough to let it run until it ran out of energy to see if it actually could find the charging station rather than getting stranded. (Guess I'll try that today. - Hmm. well I ran it for more than an hour and it didn't run out of power, so I sent it to its docking station - I may never know the answerto this one! ;-))I really like the different modes:..One is for perimeters - meaning the Deebot veers to the right consistently so that it can do all the baseboards and make a huge circle of the house...One is a spiral (so-called spot cleaning) - Just set the Deebot on spiral and it will make large circular spirals from the spot where it starts and pretty much covers every inch of a room or area...One is the random path (which I am convinced is necessary to help to keep the machine from getting stuck in tight places and simply making exactly the same moves over and over.) I use this one the most.I got this type of vacuum because I have cats and a very skittish bulldog (who all hate the noise of the reguar vacuum cleaner.) While my animal companions are not really fond of the Deebot, it is quiet enough that nobody is bothered by it - (cats usually relocate to another room), I have watched as dogs simply stood where they were as the Deebot approached them, and then when Deebot sensed the dog, it would turn and thus go around the "blockage". The Deebot has run into my Pompug's foot and then turned and the dog didn't even seem to notice or care. Generally the Deebot senses walls and things blocking its way and doesn't even touch them before it turns and follows another course.Tip about placing the docking station: The leaflet says you need a clear meter length of wall for the docking station. I do not have that - every inch of my walls is obstructed by furniture or air ducts. So, I got an extension cord and a wooden board. I set the board (for stability) in front of the back two legs of a wide chair and then ran the extension cord to the board and thus placed the docking station under the wide chair. The board gives the Deebot something hard to press up against (so that the docking station doesn't move around while it is trying to dock) and the chair has enough space for the Deebot to maneuver under to dock (and Deebot is also out of sight while still being stored in the living area - which is where it needs to do the most work.)Tip for those who are driven crazy by the randomness of the Deebot path: (Put the Deebot in the middle of your room and set it on spot clean/spiral. Then it will cover almost all of the floor methodically. Once a week or so (YMMV) set it on perimeter so it will pick up stuff that has drifted to the walls. Voila! Full coverage vacuuming!I have to admit the funness of the Deebot makes me a much better housekeeper. I think twice about putting stuff on the floor (because I use the Deebot everyday), so I have developed better "putting things away" habits. I also clean more frequently (every day) because I don't have to lug a heavy vacuum cleaner up and down the stairs to use it. (Plus, like the animals, I have always hated the noise of the vacuum cleaner!)Here's the "Down and Dirty":Pros:∆. Gosh, my whole house looks better with clean floors!∆. Robot vacuum cleaners are fun to watch! (Maybe that's a con - I certainly have better things to do with my time than watch a robot, but...)∆. Quiet enough not to upset the bulldog or cats! (A huge plus!)∆. Manages unexpectedly high threshholds∆. Guidable/programmable with remote so you can clean specific areas, do perimeters or avoid annoying areas.∆. Rarely hits walls or objects, but senses them and turns in advance. (It will bump things that have a small footprint sometimes).∆. Does a surprisingly good job with pet hair.∆. Does sense large heights - doesn't fall down stairs.∆. Filtering system seems to work pretty well and prevent dust from being raised the way larger vacuum cleaners do.Cons:∆. Probably isn't as thorough as a regular full-sized vacuum cleaner. It doesn't notice when it misses something the way a person behind the machine does.∆. Drawer for dust is sometimes hard to maneuver into slot.∆. No towers to block of "dangerous" areas (Personally I don't feel I need them)∆. Dust drawer is small, (athough I haven't ever let it get so full that something happens - so I don't know what happens if it gets overfull.)∆. Takes a long time for Deebot to find the recharge station.∆. Brushing off the filters when you empty the dust can get old, but I assume it prolongs the life of the mechanism and is a small price to pay really.

The media could not be loaded.  I don't know know I put this off for so long. I finally cracked when I became so busy with a masters degree and the cat hair/my hair got out on control.This bot came to Nova Scotia in 2 days. It's not loud and obnoxious like some of the other ones (I did my research before I bought this). Some settings are louder than others (Edge and Spot settings=louder but not obnoxious). I have all laminate and tile floor through my apartment, so I knew I didn't need a crazy expensive bot. This has plenty of suction to take care of the fur/hair. I now only feel the need to vacuum independently once every 10-14 days (that's a huge improvement from every 4-5 days). On the standard (auto) setting, this bot lasts a little over an hour. On the higher settings (ie. Edge) it will last about 30-45 minutes. This bot doesn't pick up every single spec and keep the floors immaculate but it prevents me from having to dedicate so much time to keeping the floors clean, and that's all that I was asking for. I am very pleased with the amount it does clean.The bot comes with an App that works flawlessly. It also comes with a standard remote that works just like the App for those who don't have compatible phones (no biggy). I've attached photos of both, along with videos of the bot in action.I currently have some issues with the bot finding it's charging base, but I think that's my fault. I have the base behind my kitchen table which is throwing the bot off ... I'll probably end up moving it. But regardless, it's pretty easy to pick it up and move it to the base with my own two hands (I haven't become that lazy... yet). It sometimes gets caught up in cords I have lying around the floor. But again, I can move those lol. I don't put the bot on a daily schedule because I've heard the horror stories with pet vomit/poop and I'd like to stay clear of that. I only run it when I'm home and when I've taken a peek around the place for surprises first. On a side note, if you're wondering if this bot will terrorize your pets... my 2 cats were nervous at first, but then they became curious and stalked it. I think they're getting to the point now that it's not even of any interest though, which is good (I didn't want to cause any stress).UPDATE: Changed rating to 1 star. Broke after a year. Hair got caught around brush pieces (even with me cleaning the hair out of the bristles out of each use) and eventually the motor seized. Luckily I bought insurance and for once it came in handy (I find most insurances offered are usually a money grab). I was reimbursed the full amount paid. I used this money to buy a Roomba that has silicone brushes and pieces that come apart and allow you to fully remove captured hair. Also bought from Costco as they have a very good return policy if things go wrong. So far so good with the Roomba! Been over a year of use with no issues.

Update: After six months, my Deebot ceased to function, always giving me a low battery warning and shutting off promptly after. I contacted Ecovacs and they happily sent me a replacement (the N79S, actually) with free shipping and no return necessary. They had very courteous customer service! As a warning for buyers though, keep in mind that the Deebot only has a short one year warranty. My Deebot failing might've been an isolated issue, so make sure to check other the reviews first before you buy.---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------An excellent bang-for-your-buck "Roomba" that gets the job done. This Deebot is extremely easy to use and even comes pre-charged right out of the box. If you want a replacement for your old conventional vacuum cleaner that'll clean your room better than you ever could, this is the answer.Although it doesn't really have the fancy-schmancy features high-end Roombas have, don't let that deter you from buying it. This buddy comes with several cleaning modes you can choose from (most of the ones on the Roombas), but the default Auto is still the best to use for a whole room. You just need to press Auto on the Deebot itself or on your remote, and it'll do its thing.Some things to keep in mind is that the Deebot gets into "deep cleaning" mode on Auto after around 30 minutes of non-stop cleaning. Deep cleaning is when it really tries to scrub every inch of your room by gradually turning a bit at a time, rather than cleaning randomly by going all over the place. If you pause it any time before then and don't resume, it'll "reset" the timer and will start over with random cleaning again.As well, it has a little difficulty getting back "home" (the charger), so you may need to guide it using the remote until it is in clear sight of the Deebot, or just pick it up and put it there. The Deebot does come with a scheduling mode available, and it does know how to return home on its own to charge when it's used up its (rather long) battery.The Deebot can navigate in the dark (while it can't under glaring sunlight, odd), and automatically stops whenever it hits something dangerous, or reaches something uneven (tries to go off a stair). To keep the environment safe, you can place some objects down to prevent it from going where it shouldn't. Also, make sure it doesn't run into any cords.Lastly, although the manual instructs otherwise, you really don't need to bother cleaning the filter or replacing it. I'm not even really sure what it's used for, frankly. Just cleaning the dust tray every so often is more than enough. Sometimes hair gets caught in the roller, but it's not hard to remove.

When it detects an obstacle within the same level range height as itself, it will rotate left or right 30 degrees; this causes it to miss some areas if you place pot plants equidistantly, since it won't circumscribe the area between the pots if they are equidistantly placed with a diameter slightly larger than this robot.Secondly, if you have a fridge, it might get stuck underneath without being able to pull itself out.Since it randomly moves in all directions and bounces back or rotates only when detecting an obstacle, it takes three times as long to do the same amount of cleaning. The tray however, is easily removable.Fourth, in order for it to go back in 'battery/home mode' or when on low battery mode after spending 75-90 minutes cleaning, it will first have to randomly maneuver itself to in a position that is linear to the robot's sensors to dock, otherwise it will keep moving randomly - so if you have a table and the dock is placed on a corner, it would not be able to 'go back' automatically. It would have to travel randomly along the perimeter of your wall, inner lining of your tables, or mid-section of your room before it sees past your 'obstacle' and automatically docks; it is quicker if you just manually rotate it yourself using the app or remote.For competing products, you can probably get one at $150-$200 or probably cheaper, with the same functionality. There is a D95 model that apparently does sweep and have smart mapping features, but I have yet to try that. It would be an upgrade to $400 CDN when it is on sale apparently. Anyhow, I would abstain from this robot or the overpriced $750-$1000 Roomba/Dyson robots and go with the chinese Xiao Mi Robots for a more robust feature set (home mapping, sectional cleaning, memory/resuming functionality after auto-docking, proper navigational system for more time-efficient cleaning).That being said, if you don't mind the cost, this robot is sufficient for a single person home with 2 or 3 rooms max, since you can schedule it to run daily or multiple times a week. It's the equivalent of hiring someone to sweep your kitchen for 25 minutes quickly per 1.5 hours of robot run time.

Note: This is my first robot vaccum cleaner experience. After using for 5 days...Pos:1. Great price for the product2. Does OK cleaning if you give it enough time and move all the clutter off of the carpet3. Easy to use and setup by reading their instruction manual4. Has mobile app for ease of use and control5. Goes from room to room without much trouble and normally senses obstacles in its path very well6. Catches a lot of dust, hair and small debris7. Good battery life for long time cleaning8. Able to find base to recharge quite well - even for large size apartmentsCons:1. Not the smartest cleaning algorithm - it will, at times, clean a small area of the room in a loop beacuse it is unable to find a way out of the area; likewise, it will not clean certain areas enough. However, like I mentioned before, if you give it enough time, it will do an OK job2. Would get stuck in certain bases of furniture or equipments - it attempts to climb low raised equipments in the house and gets into trouble too often - this is a big problem I would say since this will require human intervention3. Scheduling does not work on the app - the schedule gets cleared for no reason and you end up not getting it started at desired time. I have not seen this device wake up at 6am for the 5 times I have set it! May be there is a better way to do this?4. Dust container gets filled quite easily - I have read other feedbacks about it being too small5. Not always easy to clear the dust container - expect to get your hands dirty6. The filtres seem very thin - having dust allergies, you may sense some dust in the air over time (I should stop complaining about hepa filtre based cleaning systems as I do have experience using a water filtration system)7. Side brushes get tangled with each other quite easily and may loose efficiency over time

Wow. I admit, this is my first foray into these robotic vacuums. After only 3 days - I don't see why I would ever need to pay any more money for something more expensive. At least, for my one bedroom apartment with laminate floors. Here's how it works for me:I guess from above, not including the bedroom and bathroom my layout of my apartment is like a big letter P. The living room is at the bottom, the kitchen as at the top, and there is a hallway that runs between them that leads to the other rooms. So, the setup of the vacuum was simple. assemble, put on charger for 4 hours. It's ready to go. I decided to just try the included remote. I pressed "AUTO" and off it went.This thing was brilliant. It found it's way to every room, every corner and into every space it could fit. I have a motorcycle in my living room. The way it's set up - the vacuum was able to go underneath it to the other side where it's just a triangle shaped dead end against a way - it did its thing - and found its way back out. That is what sold me on this. My place is 700sq feet. After about 45 minutes I just tell it to go back to the charger as it's finished cleaning everything.With cat fur shedding season coming up - this is going to save me a lot of hassle and time. I've since set it up on my phone. Works perfect.It did get caught one time, but not its fault. I have network cables running across the living room floor. They are all sealed down - except at the edge of the wall. The vacuum got a brush caught under that. I've since sealed that down and no more problems.Again, I can't see why I'd sepnd anymore at this time. This works great. Best purchase this year so far.