The most advanced models can now empty their own bins, mop the floor and refill their water own water tanks. (The Independent)

Robot vacuum cleaners are more advanced and more affordable than ever. Once a novelty gadget, these household helpers are now an essential piece of kit for busy homes and pet owners, ensuring your floors stay dust and dirt-free without you having to lift a finger.

Although the Roborock S8 Pro Ultra is priced on the higher end, it has a bunch of perks. For instance, once the bot is docked, a vacuum in the docking station automatically sucks the contents from the bin into the base. It also features WiFi connectivity and performs superbly at cleaning carpet, bare floors, and pet hair, as well as navigating under furniture and around obstacles.

The Roborock Qrevo Curv is Roborock's latest robot vacuum mop combo with innovative features and impressive performance. It excels in debris pickup and carpet cleaning with its tangle-resistant DuoDivide brush, as well as mopping with advanced spinning pads.

The Roborock Saros 10R features a 3.14-inch profile and StarSight Autonomous System 2.0, eliminating the need for a raised LDS unit and allowing it to clean under low-lying furniture. It excelled in our obstacle avoidance tests, demonstrating reliable 3D sensing and a VertiBeam Lateral Obstacle Avoidance system that navigates cables and various types of furniture.

The Roborock S8 MaxV Ultra is one of the more expensive robot vacuum cleaners on the market, but it’s packed with enough premium features to justify its price. It mops and vacuums, switching modes depending on the surface.

The Tapo RV30 is also quieter than most, particularly when on the weakest setting. Noise isn’t a concern if you set your vacuum to do its thing while you’re out of the Automatic Vacuum Cleaners house, but a less cacophonous vacuum should benefit those who spend more time at home.

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The mopping function is basic enough. You need to manually swap in the attachment any time you want to mop, and it will happily try to mop your carpets and rugs given half the chance.

In a separate 4x5-foot framed area, they note whether the vacuum gets caught on power cords or carpet fringe and whether it can transition over different materials. They also measure the height of the vacuum to determine how likely it is to glide under furniture.

Finally. A robot vacuum you can rely on to get the job done. The Roomba j7 + robot vacuum packs 10x the power-lifting suction and comes with unique intelligence to avoid cords and pet waste.

Even if you have one of the best Roombas, robot vacuums are recommended more for light, everyday cleaning, rather than for handling really embedded debris.

And many of the better-performing models come at eye-watering prices. This includes the $1900 Roborock S8 MaxUltra with Refill & Drainage System, which connects via tubing to a plumbing hookup, allowing the machine to refill the tank, clean the mop pad, and empty dirty water automatically.