I don’t own a home and am unsure if I’m any closer to owning one, so I choose to stay home with my parents. I get warm, home-cooked meals, my laundry sorted at the expense of constant nagging and a vague understanding of privacy. By helping out with chores and keeping their emotions swinging between amusement and annoyance, I am the embodiment of a personality hire, but at home. While I can’t afford the down payment for my own place (for now), the least I could do is make home a more pleasant place to stay for the family. When Dyson offered the opportunity to review the brand-new Spot+Scrub™ Ai robot cleaner, it gave me the opportunity to demonstrate to the family that I’m not just a mere freeloader. The narrative goes as follows: I may not be able to own my home just yet, but could I potentially lighten the load of maintaining the house?
Setting Up
When the large box—and all 21kg of its contents—arrived, I was pleasantly surprised at the number of separate parts. It was a total of 4: the robot itself, the dock, the ramp and the side sweepers, complete with a single printed piece of instructions to attach everything. Setting up was done by the MyDyson app in a relatively straightforward manner. In a time of rampant surveillance culture exacerbated by consumer technology, especially with built-in cameras, the little disclaimer was a pleasant reassurance that the HD camera is only used to map and clean the home, and that the footage is not stored and does not leave the device.
It does a pretty good job at navigating small and tight spaces.
As the family is new to the concept of robot cleaners, watching the Dyson Spot+Scrub Ai Robot Cleaner became quite the event itself. Do we move pieces of furniture, or step out of the way as it starts moving towards us? Where is this green cyclops headed next? It took two rounds on the app to fully map, but it is worth noting that the drop sensors work better on more significant height differences, such as steps on a staircase. My recommendation is to keep the door closed for the toilet and parts of the house that have a sunken level of more than 2cm, as per the sales associate’s recommendation. The Spot+Scrub was not able to climb out from the indoor balcony that is lowered by just under 3cm. However, no issues with a slightly sunken room with a curved tile transition.
Doing the Actual Work
Once it’s mapped, cleaning can start with a tap on the MyDyson app or by clicking on the start button on the robot itself. On the app, you can section out the entire floor and decide between the different cleaning modes. One of the main features of the Spot+Scrub robot cleaner is its ability to vacuum and wash floors at the same time, making it incredibly convenient compared to the standard routine of sweeping, then mopping with a bucket and a mop. On a fixed schedule, I’ve set the living room and the office to just Vacuum mode, while the kitchen goes on Vacuum and Wash mode.
Even from the first round of vacuuming and washing, the effects are pretty palpable. Compared to the conventional dry then wet mopping, the floor looks and is a lot cleaner. Against bare feet, both tile and marble flooring have a smooth, near-squeaky sensation that can best be described as a surface that’s wiped down with a plush microfibre cloth after a glass of water has been spilt on it. Brooms can still leave a powdery feeling after sweeping, while traditional mops often feel like you’re just moving dust and debris around, without being able to ever fully pick them up. With a strong suction power and self-cleaning wet roller that uses fresh, heated water, the robot promises a smear-free cleaning experience.
After the first couple of rounds of cleaning, you’ll start to identify the spots where the Spot+Scrub has trouble reaching. For the most part, it does a fantastic job at identifying obstacles and tough stains, going back and forth until the spots are removed. As a relatively tall robot, it can clean furniture with a height allowance of at least 4.3 inches. However, for pieces with irregular clearance, like our Chinese-style TV console that features a curved apron, would need to be marked as areas on the app for the robot to avoid to prevent it from being trapped.
When it cleans, you also get a live view of where it’s currently cleaning at home. If it identifies an obstacle or a spill, it comes up on the map, too.
Maintaining the Robot
One of the major innovations of the Spot+Scrub is its bagless design, as debris is emptied by Dyson’s signature cyclone technology. After each session, the robot takes a satisfying dump to fill up the transparent bin that traps debris and funnels the dirty water to a separate bin. Factoring in our humid weather that often leaves mops mouldy before they are fully dry, the dock is also where the wet rollers undergo a lengthy drying process, which can be stopped if you are trying to begin another session. The app also pings you to fill up the clean water bin when it’s empty, making the maintenance process a breeze.
During one session, the robot began cleaning at 30% and stopped at 7% before returning to charge. It resumed after it was sufficiently charged to finish the rest of the routine. MyDyson also gives you information about the lifespan of its consumables, which gives you a pretty good idea of when to replace the spare parts when the time comes.
Some Learning Curves
You can absolutely clean multiple floors with the Dyson Spot+Scrub, as it allows you to map and save different floors. However, given the need to empty and replenish the robot with clean water, the Washing function is only suitable for the floor where the dock sits. I once carried the robot upstairs to start a Vacuum and Wash cycle, only to have it tell me it needed to return to the dock to swap out the dirty water. Upon returning, it ended the cycle instead. My recommendation is just keeping the other floors in just vacuum mode, as it does a pretty bang-up job at navigating the smaller, tighter spaces of the bedrooms, leaving the parquet flooring pretty spotless.
Other pretty standard things I have started doing are also removing small rags, rugs, and room slippers to make way for the Spot+Scrub.
Do the Parents Love It?
They are pretty impressed by the cleaning capabilities. My parents also seem to have the tendency to anthropomorphise tech devices, as they were caught saying “they felt bad for the Dyson because it had to clean small and tight areas.” Just out of habit from wanting to cover every nook and cranny during cleaning, they also feel the need to rearrange some pieces of furniture to make way for the Spot+Scrub, say, how the dining chairs tucked under the dining table have made it difficult for the robot to reach. Overall, it’s less about the robot’s capabilities, but more about the changing habits and approach to house chores.
They are also very impressed by the bins for their ability to store dust and dirty water that can then be turned into garden fertiliser.
Overall Thoughts
It’s a pretty nifty device powered by one of tech’s most innovative leaders who have popularised cordless vacuums and hair styling tools globally. Seeing as the good ol’ mop has been dry and unused for the past few weeks, it’s safe to say that the Spot+Scrub robot cleaner has introduced itself as a pretty useful addition to the family. It doesn’t make a whole lot of noise and helps clean the house when it’s told, what’s not to like?
The Dyson Spot+Scrub™ Ai robot cleaner is now available at a retail price of RM5,999. Visit your nearest Dyson store or on www.dyson.my to learn more.
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