Neato XV-11 Product Review: Neatoooooooooooo! Who Knew Vacuuming Could Be Fun (With Laser Guided Neato XV-11 Robotic Vacuum Cleaner)
July 27, 2010 • Atlanta, GA USA – Neatoooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!
On a scale of 1 to 10: my new, first-off-of the production line* Neato XV-11 All Floor Robotic Vacuum System
is an 11. It’s an understatement to say, I am thrilled with my Neato that arrived Tuesday, July 13th. Who knew that vacuuming could be so much fun.
In the last few months, my wife and I noticed that she had been coughing a lot in the bedroom, so we (or I should really say she) did a deep clean of the bedroom: tumbled-dusted the curtains in the dryer; vacuumed under the bed (with our Oreck XL PRO PLUS Vacuum
Neato XV-11 Robotic All-Floor Vacuum System
Then, “I” vacuumed the bedroom with my Neato XV-11 (including under the bed). I couldn’t believe how much dirt was in the dirt bin. So, “I” immediately vacuumed the bedroom with Neato a second time, and, while not as much dirt, enough that I ran Neato two more times: four times in all. The result: my wife no longer coughs in the bedroom. Period. That’s huge! My wife agrees that Neato’s best feature is its ability to vacuum under our bed (and do a deep clean of the carpets. (A close second is that “I” vacuum more more frequently!) We love that Neato does base boards, corners and cleans around bed legs and support posts. It just works!
I suspect that even if Neato hadn’t done such a great job in the bedroom, I’d still love it for its geek-chic appeal. I’m a (relatively) early adopter of new technology. I have an iPhone 4 (love it); I have a Flip UltraHD Camcorder
That’s a long way of saying, it’s fun to watch Neato vacuum. (“I am” vacuuming now.) Press the start button, and Neato comes alive. First, Neato starts out slowly to get the “lay of the land” and then – those nice, neat(o) rows that gives the carpet a “racked” look like a lawn that has been professionally cut. Plus, “I” can vacuum while we’re out to dinner. In my home office, about the size of four bedrooms, Neato needs to re-charge once to complete the space. That said, Neato “knew” it needed to re-charge (in its charging based station); re-charged and remembered where it left off to finish the cleaning – all on its own. “I” vacuum frequently, now that we’ve got Neato. (Hopefully, I still get household “points” for vacuuming!) You can get the Neato specs; see videos; and answers to frequently asked questions on the Neato Robotics home page. Below this video is more on my first-person experience vacuuming with Neato.
[Video: To get this "Neato-Cam" video, I mounted my FLIP HD Ultra to the top of the Neato XV-11.]
The first time “I” vacuumed, I wasn’t sure if the laser-guided Neato would be misguided by my movements in the room. (So far, my sense is that I am free to wander the room while Neato vacuums: just not get in its “face” …)
I mentioned that I received Neato on a Tuesday. I held off until that weekend to take it out of the box (that’s five years in Geek years) figuring that I would have to do some assembly; and, (aghast) read the manual ’cause this was new, new technology that would be hard to figure-out and use. Guys and their high-tech gadgets. It takes so little to entertain us. It’s part of our DNA. Well, I couldn’t be more wrong about ‘our” new Neato. Getting started with Neato, was as easy as … 1-2-3:
- Charge Neato into the charging base station
- Fully charge (solid green light) Neato before “you” start vacuuming
- Press START to wake-up Neato and then press START again to vacuum. Now that’s out-of-the-box thinking! (And, beautifully and safely packaged.)
I do recommend reading the 50-page (big print) manual. It’s a fun, helpful and light-read. “Though it may seem pet-like, do not bathe or otherwise submerge your Neato XV-11 vacuum in water. … It doesn’t mind being cleaned and groomed with a damp cloth, however.” (Thank you Neato Robotics for having a sense of humor!)
Neato XV-11 Box
Neato doesn’t like curtains, so I used monster clips to “pin-up” our bedroom curtains before letting Neato do its thing. Plus, I picked up some small area rugs; and used the 15-foot Boundary Marker (included) to “rope-off” the ’spaghetti’ of cables under my desk in my office.
In an anthropomorphic moment, my wife asked me what name I would give “our” Neato. (She named her Cello … Monte … so it was a given that Neato would get a new name!) First, some backstory. I grew-up watching the “futuristic utopia” Hanna-Barbera animated TV series The Jetsens featuring “elaborate robotic contraptions” living in “Skypad Apartments in Orbit City” cleaned by “humanoid” Rosie the Robot Maid (XB-500). Rosie was – “an old demonstrator model hired by the Jetson family from U-RENT A MAID.” So, in an homage to Rosie the Robot Maid in The Jetsons, I’ve named “our” Neato … Rosie! (Not to be confused with, Rosie, one of my fashion and glamour photo shoot models.)
And, should our every-other-week housekeeper be concerned about her job being replaced? Not just yet. Among other things, Rosie doesn’t create a rose out of the end of the toilet paper. (Note to Neato Robotics Engineers: we’d love a robot that can change bed linens too please.)
So, after two weeks of Rosie vacuuming, here are some suggestions for Neato Robotics:
- Add an iPhone mount. I’d love to stream live video from our Neato XV-11. (Really! Geeks will inherit the Earth.) Or, now that I have an iPhone 4, add a FLIP HD mount so I can re-purpose my FLIP camcorder.
- Add a “detailing” kit. Ala Pimp My Ride on MTV and Trick My Truck on CMT, I would like to give Rosie some character.
- Offer prizes for YouTube videos featuring Neato. (I’d love to see a short-film of a housekeeper that arrives with her Neato; reads a magazine; and then leaves once Neato finishes cleaning. I wonder if someone has beat me to an eye-level view from the “cockpit” of the Neato. No doubt we’ll see unofficially sanctioned cat-riding-Neato videos on YouTube.) [I've had more than 1,000 views of my "Neato-Cam" videos on YouTube in less than two weeks!]
- License sounds – from R2-D2, C-3PO, Rosie the Robot Maid, The Robot in Lost in Space. When the sweeping brushes got stuck with an object (until I removed it), I would have loved to hear, “Warning Will Robinson. Warning! Warning! Warning!” Or, when Neato enters a room, it would be great to hear the “swish” of the doors opening/closing on Star Trek. Or, how about Dōmo arigatō, Mr. Roboto when Neato finishes vacuuming. License fees can “pay off” in buzz, word-of-mouth next generation Neatos …
- Create a design challenge for well-known designers. After showing off the designs at Fashion Week cleaning the cat walks, auction off the one-of-a-kind designs for the charity of each designer’s choice.
- Ship the Neato XV-11 with three extra filters (rather than just one) that need to be replaced every three months. “Your package includes extra filters,” says the Manual (page 42).
- Include Quick Response (QR) codes: 1) on the outside of the box [to help sell at retail]; 2) in the manual: 3) and on Neato. Scanning the codes on any smartphone would launch videos such as: how the laser-based room positioning system works (ala the videos that are on the Neato Robotics home page); Neato Robotics YouTube Channel and media coverage such as ABC News showcases the Neato XV-11 at the 2010 Consumer Eelctronics Show.
- Give Neatos to key-influencers – like Oprah, The Daily Show Host Jon Stewart and Ryan Seacrest. They will gush about it on their shows. [I look forward to Walt Mossberg's review in The Wall Street Journal.]
- Promote a Neato Friendly badge for furniture manufacturers that the height is sufficient for Neato to pass under safely without getting stuck. Since we’re hooked on Neato, we’ll want to know if Neato will fit under that new sofa, for example. (now; Neato gets stuck!)
- Add a Neato Loaner Program for obsessed Neato XV-11 fans! (Like me!) Soon, you’ll figure out who-loves-ya-baby and offer to provide a second Neato so (fans like me) and loan a Neato to a friend to take a test drive. Neato fans will naturally “pull-in” the next round of buyers: a loaner program will make the “adoption” rate faster.
Per-orders now through 8/10/10:*** At $399 from Neato Robotics (0r $399 from Amazon
While the Roomba robotic vacuum had always been on my radar (Reminder: I’m a Geek – I am expected to know these things!), my sense is that the Neato is in a (cleaning) class by itself. Like the Neato Robotics website says, “Smart. Powerful. Methodical.”
In a word, how do I feel about Rosie, “our” new Neato XV-11 ‘housekeeper’?
Neatooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!
# # # # #
Suggested Reading/Viewing:
- BotJunkie – BotJunkie Review: Neato Robotics XV-11 (5/18/10)
- The New York Times – Neato Introduces the XV-11 Vacuum Robot (6/29/10)
- Neato Robotics Press Release – Neato Robotics Ships Smart, Powerful Robot Vacuum Cleaner To Keep All Types of Floors Meticulously Neat (6/28/10)
- Gizmodo – Robot Vacuum Cleaner. With Lasers. Robots. Lasers. Cleaning. Awesome. (12/16/09)
- Wired: Gadget Lab – Neato Robotic Vacuum Cleaner Challenges the Roomba (12/16/09)
- ABC News/Technology – Neato Robotic Vacuum Cleaner Challenges the Roomba (12/21/09)
- RobotShop Community Forum – Neato Robotics Vacuum Cleaner Available at RobotShop.com (7/16/10)
- Engadget – Neato XV-11 ships out next month, will assassinate dust bunnies for money (6.29.10)
- BotJunkie – iRobot Roomba 560 vs. Neato XV-11 (6/4/10)
- All Business – How the Digital Revolution (and Uncle Sam) Can Revive the Economy (7/15/10) – an interview with Neato Robotics CEO Max Saffai
- Engadget – Neato XV-11 robotic vacuum review (8/24/10)
- Neato Robotics – Home Page
- Neato Robotics – Facebook Page
- Neato Robotics – Twitter
Notes:
- Once you buy your Neato, please Comment (below). I’d love to hear your thoughts …
*Disclosure: I won the first-off-the-production-line Neato XV-11 at the Last Gadget Standing competition at the 2010 Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas by screaming the longest and loudest that I want the robotic vacuum cleaner. (I lost my voice for a day!) For details, please see my blog post: First Ever Booth Babes Bingo Held at 2010 CES Trade Show in Last Vegas – ‘We Have A Bingo!’ In my YouTube video that looks like the Blair Witch Project, you’ll hear me scream for “our” Neato XV-11 vacuum cleaner.
PostScript (7/28/10)
Chinavasion – Intelligent Robot Vacuum Cleaner with Wireless IP Camera (via Yug’s Comment to this blog post)
**PostScript (8/5/10)
In my July 27th post, I said “the Neato XV-11 is pricy: particularly because you (probably) still need a regular vacuum, even if it is just to do steps or area rugs. …”
Since that post, I would revise that to say the Neat XV-11 is either a “great value/must buy” or better than our Oreck XL PRO PLUS Vacuum with 8 Attachments and an Oreck XL Handheld Vacuum ($384.95 from Amazon). Here’s why:
- “I” vacuum frequently now that Rosie does all the work. Our home is cleaner and feels cleaner. (And, my wife is still not coughing!)
- Rosie does a better job meticulously getting all possible areas than I did with the Oreck: especially under the dust collecting bed and cabinets (even though the Oreck is light and is relatively easy to vacuum under the bed)
- It’s easy for “me” to vacuum
So, looking back to when we purchased our Oreck to replace a heavy (failed) “self-propelled vacuum, we – both of us agree – would buy the Neato XV-11 vacuum and the lightest/cheapest handle-held canister vacuum I could find – (the Dirt Devil Breeze Bagless Canister Vacuum at $81.54 from Amazon) – for vacuuming drapes, door frames and inevitable cereal spills in the kitchen.
I incorrectly observed that since our Neato is so small, it can’t be as good as our Oreck vacuum. My mistake. The world of vacuum cleaning is likely to undergo a shift to robotic vacuum cleaners just as we are shifting to HD from analog; and to digital from film. It’s just a world of difference having Rosie vacuum for us; it just may take awhile for every to recognize the difference. (It night take everyone to recognize the change. My “Neato-Cam” videos have had more than 700 views in the first week. That’s 700 views watching the carpet in my office being cleaned! How crazy is that!?)
PostScript (8/9/10)
[Video: To get this video, I used my FLIP HD Ultra on a micro-tripod]
Short URL For This Story
- http://j.mp/NeatoXV-11Review
Categories: Entertainment Marketing, Ideation Tags: CES, dan smigrod, GREAT!, Neato, Neato XV-11, robot, robot vacuum, roomba, Rosie The Robot, The Jetsons, vacuum
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