Neato RoboticsD7 Intelligent Robot Vacuum - Compatible with Alexa - Robot Vacuum Cleaner with Charging Station, Wi-Fi and App

After several months of ‘coming soon’ assurances on the Neato web site the Botvac D7 Connected cleaner has arrived and is in stock at amazon.co.uk. As a user of other Neato cleaners I had no hesitation in placing an order as I have found them to be thorough and effective in keeping the house clean. I am convinced that a daily automated clean preserves not only the look but also the life of a carpet.On opening the box I was pleased to see a Customer Care sticker with contact details for UK customers if they require assistance. I have found in the past that owning a Neato cleaner is great until there is need for a repair and the process is then cumbersome to say the least. Long and repetitive phone calls do result in a replacement being provided but the system is far from customer friendly and lacks efficiency and speed. Hopefully this is a step in the right direction. It is also worth noting that the D7 comes with only a 12 month guarantee for UK customers which seems short to me for such an expensive and hi-tech machine. Fortunately Amazon customers can overcome this limitation by purchasing an Amazon Protect Insurance which, although an additional expense, avoids potential problems for 3 years.Those who like to admire the appearance of their Robot cleaners will not be disappointed. It looks neat and smart, though I have reservations about the various indicator lights which seem to me to be less useful than the on screen messages found on earlier Neato models. I do not want to have to refer to the handbook to find out the meaning of flashing lights though I acknowledge that they enhance the appearance. I guess its a matter of style over functionality.Setting up the D7 Connected is straightforward enough though it does seem to require a stronger WiFi signal than the Botvac Connected. I placed the D7 in our kitchen where there is a moderate signal (and where the Botvac Connected has operated from without problem) and could not connect at all. It was only when I placed it much closer to the router that I was able to make the connection.The big step forward with the D7 is the no-go lines. Having performed an initial clean I was able to add lines to the floor plan to prevent it from going to certain areas. We have armchairs that are just the wrong height for a robot cleaner and our Botvac Connected would regularly get stuck beneath them until I put down some of the provided magnetic strip to keep the cleaner away. Our TV cabinet has push-open glass doors at floor level and this also required a magnetic strip. Although this method is effective it is a bit unsightly and I am pleased that with the D7 I can limit its area of cleaning with no visible barrier whatsoever. It is a system which seems to work very well and is the real justification for selecting the D7 over other models.All the Neato cleaners that I have used have been excellent in their primary role of getting up the dirt and dust. The D7 is no exception and with it you have the additional options of an eco or a turbo clean (they both seem to work well though we have chosen the quieter eco option for scheduled night time cleaning) and a ‘Extra Care’ mode which is particularly gentle with navigation. This may be useful (I have turned it on) but Neato cleaners all seem to be much kinder to furniture than some of their competitors anyway.All in all I would thoroughly recommend the D7 connected. It is expensive but is, in my opinion, worth every penny.A Footnote: Browsing through the handbook I noticed that it is recommended to replace the new Lithium ion battery with a Neato Genuine replacement every 12-18 months. I wondered what this would cost and so, out of curiosity, found it under ‘Accessories’ on the Neato web site and clicked the ‘Get yours today’ button. I thought that his would probably take me to Amazon but instead it came back with this message: ‘Retailers for Neato Botvac™ Connected High Capacity Li-Ion Battery. It looks like there aren't any distributors in your country’. This is unimpressive to say the least and really is something that Neato need to sort out!

For the first few months the Neato D7 was incredible. Coming from an old dumb Roomba it made vacuuming a dream, the app integration, mapping and cleaning power are really good. But calling it temperamental is being extremely kind, the software and unit are just not up to the task and after 18 months it's finally reached a point where it cannot be used for anything more than the dumb Roomba it replaced.The biggest problem which if you buy this unit I promise you will face is the inability to use floorplans via the app. I seen reviews talk about this before buying it and did the same as most other people and just assumed that I would be immune to this probably user created issue. From just a few months into ownership you'll find yourself deleting and recreating floorplans just to get it to work. Which will work for a few weeks before happening over and over. Our unit is now totally incapable of running using any floor plan regardless of how many troubleshooting steps we take.Other issues are the WiFi stops working sporadically which requires a unit reboot which isn't the end of the world.For something which cost £530 in 2021 to be throw away in 2022 is shameful and I won't ever buy another product from Neato unfortunately. Great product when it works but overall just not reliable enough.

I have waited quite a while to purchase a robotic vacuum. I tested the Dyson 360 eye (good suction but terrible navigation so back it went). I also tested an early roomba (before they got intelligent navigation) and that went back as well. I always thought having to lay out magnetic strips (older Neato's) or beacons (Roomba) was a poor solution so when the D7 came out with no-go lines I took the plunge...read on for my 1 month review.Unboxing and setupNot overly packaged and no assembly to complete other than removing a moisture absorption pack and a few protective films. Setup was very straightforward via the app. Make sure you site the charging station so that the robot has a good connection to your Wi-Fi. If you want to start cleaning cycles or communicate with the robot during cleaning cycles from the app the robot needs a strong Wi-Fi connection and it supports both 2.4 and 5GHz bands. It will clean without a Wi-Fi signal (I have 1 dead spot in my home) but you wont be able to communicate with the bot via the app.NavigationThe navigation on this unit is excellent. On its first trip out it pauses a bit to scan the rooms as it enters new ones but I found its edge cleaning accuracy, obstacle avoidance and general ability to work a series of rooms in a methodical fashion impressive. It didn't miss any areas. Once you have done your first clean and you have a map saved you can add no-go lines. I had to do these a few times to get the exact placement correct (testing with a cleaning cycle after each change) but once I got them right the robot is very good at skirting around them. Note you can only store 1 map (edit 2 Aug 2018 - you can now store up to 3 maps, each with their own no go lines but always need to start cycle from a charging station which you can now buy separately) so you can only store no-go lines for that single stored map. I have a 2 story place (and don't want to purchase another bot) and set it all up for the lower floor but I then just carry it up to the upper floor and initiate cleaning cycles using the button on the unit. When its done I just return it to its charging station on the lower floor. Note that the no-go lines ONLY work when you initiate cleaning from the app. I use the 'extra care' navigation option which means it runs a little slower to get around the space (around 7%) but is gentler in terms of when it touches obstructions. The unit gets under most furniture in my place - the Dyson 360 eye was quite tall so poor at getting under most units. When the clearance is on the boundary of the advertised height it sometimes get stuck but only where there is a variable height on the underside of a piece of furniture (i.e. where a sofa sags a bit towards the middle). Watch it on the first run and use no-go lines to keep it out of areas where there is potential for it to get stuck.One thing it does experience a bit of trouble with is some narrow, angular chair legs...it tries to climb them for a while before giving up.CleaningSuction is very good in both eco and full power modes. I use eco mode which is sufficient - unless you have pets or just lots of stuff to pickup its probably fine for most houses and uses less battery - do a few runs and experiment. I also tried the full power mode but for me it didn't really pick up much more and it was a little louder and used approx. 20% more battery.MaintenanceI use a handheld mini-vac to clean the filter after 2-3 runs (will depend on how quickly you fill the bin) and also take out the brush to clear out hair caught up in it - it's a 6-7 min job once a week. Its worth doing this regularly if you want this to run efficiently. I do wish the filters were washable (Neato - if you are reading this please consider this as a future feature request!) as they are on the Dyson. Filter replacements are relatively expensive £20+ for 2 original Neato filters and you are recommended to replace every 2-3 months. You are also advised to replace the roller (£25) and side brush (£12.99 for 2) every 6-8 months depending on usage - just consider these costs when looking at total cost of ownership.SummaryI have to say I was reticent about buying the unit, thinking it would not meet expectations and have to go back. I'm pleased to report its a keeper. It wont work for all houses, particularly very cluttered places or places with lots of deep, loose pile rugs (the roller will get stuck on these) but for me it has genuinely made life easier (some 'smart' gadgets just seem to end up being a pain in the butt but not this one).This probably wont completely remove the need for your primary home corded/ cordless vacuum but I haven't had to use mine in a month on the floor the D7 is being primarily used on.Spend the time on setting it up properly, utilize the no-go lines (game changing feature) and maintaining it and it will work a treat. Recommended.