Knowledgeable’s Score
Execs
- Vacuums and mops
- Compact charging station
- Turbo mode
- Mops giant areas with out refilling
Cons
- Not efficient on mid-pile carpet
- No automated emptying
- Doesn’t recognise carpet when mopping
Our Verdict
There are some helpful options packed into Aeno’s RC2S: a big water tank for many mopping, controls for the fundamentals so that you don’t have to choose up a tool, and loads of app performance. Nonetheless, in different methods, it’s restricted: you’ll have to inform it to not mop rooms with carpets, it may get caught simply, and it’s restricted to both mopping or vacuuming, not each concurrently.
Sensible residence equipment maker Aeno provides merchandise as numerous as sous vide and electrical toothbrushes however one among its specialities is preserving your flooring clear.
Its robotic vacuum cleaner RC2S is one among 4 robotic vacs supplied by the model (the RC3S has the identical spec however is in black), and packs in all the things you’d anticipate – app management, Lidar room mapping and a boosted suction mode – in addition to some you won’t, equivalent to mopping and chunky wheels for climbing obstacles. Different highlights embody a compact charging base that’s something however a ground hog, and spoken alerts that let you know what it’s about to do.
Design and Construct
- Low profile at 9.6cm
- Compact base
- 0.6L dustbin swaps out for 350ml mopping module
White and shiny, Aeno’s Robotic Vacuum Cleaner RC2S follows a normal robotic vac construct by way of its spherical form, nimble weight (2.87kg) and dimensions (Dia33 x D9.6cm). Nonetheless, there are some notable design options. Flip it over and also you’ll discover a pair of chunky wheels with a tread, so it may climb onto rugs and carpet from exhausting flooring, two spinning brushes and a brush bar.
Flip it the best manner once more and there’s the choice of guide controls courtesy of buttons: one to begin or cease it cleansing, one other to ship it again to the bottom to cost. The charging dock itself is pleasingly compact, measuring H8 x W13 x D13cm, so it takes up much less ground area.
Rachel Ogden / Foundry
Rachel Ogden / Foundry
Rachel Ogden / Foundry
Nonetheless, it’s the mopping module that’s in all probability of most word. It swaps in rather than the 0.6-litre dustbin to show it from a robotic vac right into a robotic mop, full with a detachable, washable pad. Unusually, this has a beneficiant capability – 350ml – giving it the potential to mop as much as 150 sq m of exhausting flooring earlier than needing a refill.
The charging dock itself is pleasingly compact
The extent of mopping could be diversified from low to excessive, as can the suction energy, which ranges as much as 2500 Pa when in Turbo mode. One other plus is the inclusion of alternative brushes, Hepa filter and a second mop pad, so you may preserve cleansing when one has grow to be soiled.
Rachel Ogden / Foundry
Rachel Ogden / Foundry
Rachel Ogden / Foundry
Efficiency, App and Options
- App could possibly be extra user-friendly
- Voice management choices
- A lot stronger on exhausting flooring than on carpets
With the ability to begin and cease cleansing and not using a smartphone at hand is certainly a superb factor with Aeno’s RC2S – as a result of you might run into connectivity points with the app as we did. It’ll solely run utilizing 2.5GHz, so initially rejected the mixed sign from our router, and required some troubleshooting.
As soon as the robotic vac was related, issues ran extra easily, though not flawlessly. For instance, quite than dividing a kitchen and hallway on the doorway, the mapping made the kitchen an ideal rectangle and allotted a part of the kitchen area to the corridor. When you can cut up, merge and identify rooms (or run the mapping a second time to try to right errors), there doesn’t look like an choice to relocate the boundaries between incorrectly divided areas.
You’ll need to dig round within the app to search out the options you need because it’s not all the time apparent. For example, the cleansing schedule, which you would possibly alter semi-regularly, is hidden below settings, which isn’t a pure place to look.
Different options aren’t clearly named, equivalent to Pin and Go, which supplies a focused metre-square clear to wherever you drop a pin on the map. It’s a useful function however dangers being ignored on condition that there’s no clarification of what it does. It is also redundant as you may select a zoned clear, which is just about the identical apart from the scale of the realm is versatile.
Rachel Ogden / Foundry
Rachel Ogden / Foundry
Rachel Ogden / Foundry
There was a lot to love although: the RC2S discovered its base immediately quite than trundling round, and you’ll management its course from the app with arrow buttons if you wish to ship it a selected manner. You can too set ‘digital partitions’ or restricted areas in the event you choose to maintain it out of an area, and it’s suitable with voice management.
We examined it by vacuuming each exhausting and mushy flooring (a medium-pile carpet), in addition to mopping. We used flour to signify mud and oats as particles of particles, and set it to wash the precise space twice.
You’ll need to dig round within the app to search out the options you need because it’s not all the time apparent
On the exhausting ground, a small patch of flour was left behind however in any other case it had good pick-up. It was the same consequence with oats: a number of have been flicked round however majority have been picked up. It was, nonetheless, much less profitable on carpet.
Whereas mud removing was initially good, flour that hadn’t been sucked up into the bin tended to drop off the comb bar again onto the carpet. Some smaller particles of oats have been left behind, whereas once more, a number of dropped out.
Rachel Ogden / Foundry
Rachel Ogden / Foundry
Rachel Ogden / Foundry
Mopping efficiency was good on latest filth, though stuck-on meals was left behind, and we needed to set it to not mop the carpeted room. Nonetheless, the most important problem was that whereas the mop pad was connected, it was vulnerable to getting caught. It grew to become caught on a doormat greater than as soon as earlier than we needed to take away it. We have been shocked that when rescued, the robotic vac didn’t resume its job – one thing you’ll have to inform it to do from the app.
It was pretty sluggish to cost. You’ll want to permit 5 hours to cost it from flat, and though mopping makes use of little energy, the Turbo vacuuming mode does. That is additionally fairly noisy at round 65dB.
We discovered post-cleaning upkeep to be extra concerned than with some rivals. Whereas the dustbin slides out to be emptied, there are not any arrows exhibiting you find out how to open it. And in the event you’re mopping, the pad should be washed and dried, and the module aired out.
Value and Availability
Within the UK, the Aeno robotic vacuum RC2S has an RRP of £399.99 however is usually out there for much less. You should buy it from Amazon for £382.82 or from Equipment Home for £369. It’s not out there within the US.
Robotic vacuums are costly and, for its function set, this one is fairly well-priced. It lacks the superior settings you’ll discover on pricier fashions however you probably have a number of tiled or vinyl flooring, it’s a cost-effective and simple approach to preserve it clear.
Not the best robotic vacuum for you? Take a look at our round-up of one of the best robotic vacuums we’ve examined for extra suggestions.
Must you purchase the Aeno RC2S?
Aeno’s RC2S is a robotic vac of two halves. Whereas it performs nicely in some areas, you’d anticipate a extra seamless person expertise and fewer compromises for its value. For instance, many robotic vacs aren’t nice on deeper carpets, however others recognise them and ramp up the suction, and keep away from getting them moist mechanically. That stated, you probably have giant areas of exhausting flooring, the RC2S’s focused and scheduled cleansing could possibly be invaluable for each spills and on a regular basis sweeping.
