S4 Max

A Little Background: This review is coming from someone who works in the IT industry, so I'm very comfortable with technology. Features and settings that I say work great and are easy to setup may not come so easily to some. That said, I don't have extensive experience with robotic vacuums. I have used the same ole Roomba 670 for the past few years and haven't "upgraded" because, quite frankly, I was never really impressed with the technology. Don't get me wrong, the 670 picks up great, but the pinball cleaning pattern just isn't conducive with whole-home use and made it, at least in my estimation, "good enough for the high spots". Coming from that, what I'm impressed with may not be so impressive to some. There's your context, so apply it to my product review and dissect accordingly.Suggestions:1) Make sure it's fully charged before doing anything. Download the app while you wait so you'll have that handy once it's time to begin setup.2) RTFM. It's a pathetic little guide almost devoid of meaningful information but read it anyway. You may extract tidbits of info that you find useful.3) Once ready for setup, open the app and begin the wireless connection to the robot. Some access points will recognize that the client doesn't support 5 GHz connections and isolate that band automatically, but if yours doesn't choose the 2.4 GHz connection NOT the 5 GHz.Recommendations:1) Update the firmware immediately after setup is complete. This will ensure the latest fixes and features are available, potentially making for a much smoother experience. Access your robot in the app and open its settings. Click on "Firmware Updates" and apply if an update is available. Make sure the robot is fully charged before you start this process and don't touch anything until it is completed. The robot will announce that the update is complete, and the app will indicate that the firmware is up to date.FINALLY! TIME TO CLEAN!*** Not so fast! IF you want to save the map generated by the robot, you'll need to enable that option in settings FIRST! I really debated on whether to share this information or let folks experience the same joy I experienced when the first cleaning was completed, and I went to edit the map. Only then did I learn this setting needed enabling. Once again, access the robot in the app and open its settings. Open "Manage Maps" > Enable "Map Saving (Beta)" > Set the number of levels in your home you'll use the robot in. There, now that I've robbed you of that wonderful experience start the robot and let it clean. Only pick it up or assist it if requested.Now, the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly:Good:1) Cleaning (Grade: A+): Suction is powerful on bare floors and the automatic carpet boost works great on runners and throw rugs. My floors are bare throughout the home with low-cut level loop style rugs scattered abroad. I cannot speak to the vacuum's performance on carpet, but I'd guess it would perform great on low and medium level loop carpets. I'm not so sure about shag or cut pile style carpeting. Thinking about how these robotic vacuums work, I'm not too sure any of them would do much more than tug at the long, thick fibers. You can manually adjust the power of this vacuum in its settings, so a little experimentation might make all the difference between great or poor performance on carpeting.2) Pattern/Navigation (Grade: A+): The sensors on this robot are awesome and that means the software and engineering driving the robot is awesome. The robot cleans in a methodical back-and-forth pattern that overlaps just enough to ensure thorough cleaning, but not enough to amount to wasted energy. It calculates the cleaning area as it maps the surroundings, cleaning in small grids along its path. It does an excellent job of identifying objects and navigating around (or over) them. The cliff sensor works well, and the robot spends less time bumping into and getting stuck under objects, and more time cleaning the floor. It does a tremendous job at edge cleaning as well. This robot has true "smarts". Goodbye pinball wizard robot vacuum.3) Mapping (Grade: A+): It's mind blowing to watch how quickly this thing maps the room and its surroundings. Once you have the damned setting enabled to save the maps, features such as spot cleaning, room/zone editing, and no-go zones seem to work great. I've seen several complaints about mapping, but I'd point out an important caveat to that feature and that would be the word (BETA) beside the setting. When software (or in this case a feature) is in beta, bugs are to be expected as it is rolled out. Because the mapping feature is disabled by default, enabling it means you are agreeing to the UAT (User Acceptance Testing). Sending a detailed email to support about the bugs you are experiencing will help advance the development and push the software stable more quickly. Much more quickly than leaving a product review like "mapping sucks", "mapping is garbage", etc. Until it is stable, issues with mapping are on YOU as soon as you toggle that setting. They seem to be very actively updating and improving the software, so I expect this feature to be stabilized sooner than later. Unfortunately, testing takes the one thing we all hate to sacrifice...time.4) Features (Grade: A+): To highlight a few: Manually adjust the vacuum power, Pin n Go (tap a spot on the map and deploy for spot cleaning), In-app Remote Control, Scheduling, Mapping, No-Go Zones, Room and Zone Editing, Cleaning History, Guided Maintenance Scheduling and Monitoring, Firmware Updates. This thing is packed!5) Durability (Grade: A+): Of course, the true measure of durability is time, but you know how it is when you can tell you're holding and looking at a well-made product. This vacuum has that look and feel that is reassuring that it will last for a long time to come. I've also witnessed it climb in and out of a table stand with legs made of square metal tubing on multiple occasions, and had I not seen it, I'd have placed money against it being able to do so. The legs are black, so I guess it doesn't "see" them? I don't know, but it's tripping. If it were cheaply made there's no way the drive train would be stout enough to traverse that obstacle.Bad:1) Dust Bin (Grade: C+): The dust bin is tiny. I mean really tiny. I mean it's really, really tiny. Roborock has announced an automatic dumping dock is forthcoming, and I hope they have the good sense to make it compatible with a wide variety of their robots, because they'll make a fortune selling the things if the other models have capacities like this one. I'd buy one right now if it were available for the S4 Max. If they rush it or allow marketing to dictate the development and make it only compatible with the latest and greatest robot in a bid to push consumers to upgrade, they're going to miss out on a lot of revenue. They'll be severely underestimating my ability and willingness to push pause, dump the bin, and resume cleaning if they decide to go that route.2) Documentation (Grade: C-): It's thin. It's so thin it's almost transparent. It is the weakest link in Roborock's chain. You can read the manual, in-app help, and every FAQ on the website and hardly glean a single thing of note. Sure, it mentions most every feature but elaborates on almost none of them. It's as if robotic vacuuming with Roborock is a delicacy that you must cook yourself, but they want you to prepare it without giving away the recipe or any of the ingredients. I have no idea why I'm bitching about it though. I've really had no need for it, but it's still true for those who do.Ugly:Absolutely None!Buy it. You'll love it if you're coming from an outdated model with a fraction of the features. I'm sure you'll appreciate all that it has to offer if you're coming from a slighly older model looking to upgrade, or crossing over from a rival brand in search of something better.

The media could not be loaded. [Only 11 days in, so I'll update this as we approach the warranty limit. 2022.02.27]LOVE this machine! Praying it's well-built and lasts, because it is wonderful. Why? Lemme tell ya.First, the miracle: our motor-phobic, prey-obsessed herding dog CAN STAND THIS VACUUM! When I ordered it, family members expressed loving concern that perhaps I'd lost my beans. I had the great hope that maybe, just maybe, I could run the thing inside a closed room while I entertained Mr. Dog far, far away and outdoors. Living the dream, eh? I rather assumed I'd be sending this vacuum back. I visualized the moral struggle of wanting to buff out bite marks while knowing that would be wrong, very wrong indeed.Instead, I'm floored (hahahahah) to report that I can actually run the Roborock S4 Max ("Max") with my dog INSIDE the same room. For real. Nobody who knows Mr. Dog would have have taken that bet.Our long-haired, 68-pound purebred herder hates with a passion lawnmowers, motorcycles, and my screaming-loud upright vacuum cleaner. He can't stand the whines of a hand mixer, electric juice reamer, coffee bean grinder, drill, or manual crank-powered radio. Thankfully, the electric shaver and toothbrushes pass muster; and after much work, over months, I got him able to cope with a popcorn popper.As for things that move, he is an arch-enemy of squirrels, crows, hawks, bees, spiders, ants, slowly twirling ceiling fan blades . . . you name it. He growls at and chases brooms, mops, and long-handled shovels. He has even sometimes attacked the damp paper towel with which I'm attempting to wipe up his hair while crouched on the floor, a wheeze-inducing, poor substitute for the vacuuming I've neglected since his adoption. Until we got Max the Bot, it had been getting really gross around here.Anyway, something about the sound of the Roborock S4 Max motor may be key. It's just not very shrill at all. A quite quiet little whir. Another unexpected blessing is the motion of the machine. For reasons I'll never know, it doesn't set off Mr. Dog. Even the little rubbery, spidery finger things are not triggering. I had to do some desensitization training, sure, but no biggie. Day 1 looked good. By Day 3, we were off to the races! Metaphorically speaking. Mr. Dog does NOT chase Max. Nor bark at it. As I said, a miracle.I've been using this thing nearly every day. It needs two attempts on most rooms, but what do I care? I'm SO fricking happy not to be lugging my mighty, insanely loud vacuum around in a sweaty rush while stowing my dog at someone else's house, or negotiating with another human family member to do it for me. Our household dirt includes a lotta long dog hair plus splotches of potting soil from an enthusiastic houseplant lover who's recently moved back in with her parents. But two passes does the job.You can read the specs and comparisons and pros and cons, but here's the deal for me:(1) Works with nutty dog! That's enough right there.(2) I don't have to interact with any other humans to make vacuuming happen. I just press a button and walk away.As for all the fancy features, yes, they work, but I don't care much. Most important, the thing vacuums well and can usually find its charging station without help. If not, no big deal to pick it up. So far, I haven't even bothered to program the invisible walls and such. I just put the bot where I want it to clean, press the button, and walk away. Easy to block an area with shoes or other objects if desired (e.g. laundry basket at top of stairs allows humans and dogs to pass, but not Max the Bot to tumble). Getting texts from the vacuum when it's done is hilarious.As for human factors, I've asked non-asthmatic family members to empty the wee bin, which fills up quite quickly with dog hair and dust. It's such an easy task, though, they don't mind. We DO have to pull out long hair from the twirling brush and front wheel most days, but no worries. There's no way around that, even with a mighty vacuum.As for models, I picked the cheaper S4 because I wasn't ready to pony up for a unit that can also do wet-mopping. Various reviews made me think S4 would be as good as S5.Can't think of any cons except the cost and wishing I'd got this thing earlier. It's heads and shoulders above the automatic floor dusters we tried 20 years ago.Crossing my finger it lasts! So far, absolutely thrilled.PS: I have a friend with one of these. Same model. She's worked it hard for months with no issues. She reports with delight that her adolescent and adult children now routinely PICK UP their charging cords and hair elastics and earrings and sewing doodads and other goodies from their shared living space every day. Hmm, who know when Mom programmed that thing to go off? Such a bad memory, tch-tch-tch. Yeah, it'll eat a cord. Ya don't want THAT.