Philips is trying to capture the robot vacuum cleaner market and is launching its first model with or near fully automatic maintenance with the HomeRun 9000 Series XU9100/10. In any case, it comes with a new station that can not only empty its collector like the HomeRun 7000 series, but also wash its mop and fill the water tank. And the new Philips robot also deserves a new washing system, which is not yet common in the market.
Up to 3 weeks of completely independent cleansing
To fulfill all these functions, this HomeRun Series 9000 station integrates a 3l dust bag and 3.5l and 2.7l clean and dirty water tanks. According to Philips, the first is enough to support up to 7 weeks of cleaning, but the second should still be filled and emptied every 3 weeks. Let’s point out in passing that the station can also dry the mop with hot air (50°C) after washing, but it seems that the washing is done at room temperature while the higher efficiency Hot water is common in comparison.
A roller for washing floors…
It must be said that the station should not contribute much during washing, the robot strictly speaking relies on a self-cleaning roller system. We have already encountered this system on the Switchbot S10: the roller rotates with small tanks of clean and dirty water that are integrated directly into the robot, and which allow it to wash continuously to ensure that That the part in contact with the ground is always there. Clear in any case, this is the promise; The Chinese robot didn’t quite convince us. So let’s hope Philips does a little better. While waiting to test it, we can in any case add that it can extend this mop roller to vacuum carpets without wetting them for a full house cleaning in a single pass. .
…but no camera to identify obstacles.
The Home Run Series 9000 is a bit more classic in terms of suction, but it promises to be the most powerful Philips robot yet and automatically gets rid of hair that wraps around its main brush thanks to an integrated comb. does And to allow it to go anywhere in the house, it can rely not only on a 6500 mAh battery, but also on a number of sensors, including LiDAR on the front.
Thanks to the latter, the robot can more accurately map the house and improve its mobility, while the frontal position prevents it from being on top like most competing models. The latest HomeRun thus measures (slightly) less than 10cm in height and should be able to pass under furniture more easily. Phillips added that his robot can detect obstacles 2.5 centimeters and larger, but is not very specific on the sensors deployed. It seems to primarily use LiDAR. In any case, there is no camera plan. One is found on most competitive high-end robots; This allows them to identify some barriers to adopting avoidance strategies.
The HomeRun 9000 series was launched at a price of €1199. There are definitely more expensive models, but there are also cheaper ones with similar or even more complete equipment.
