If you’re after a household gadget that has a list of technological smart features as long as your arm - the Karcher RCV 3 Robot Vacuum may be just what you’re after. The robot vacuum has been designed with two main features - to vacuum and mop - and you can even do both simultaneously if you choose.
Once unboxed, I took a good look at the device to see if I could figure out how to get it up and running without any assistance - not fully, but I was thankful there weren't too many technical looking accessories and attachments that I had to get my head around.
Included in the box was a charging station, 2 ‘pure dustbin’ tanks - one to collect dust, and the other to collect dust and water for the mop feature. There was also a brush roll which was already attached, 2 side brushes, a cleaning tool to clean the filters, and an attachment to place the 2 mop cleaning cloths to.
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Getting started was fairly easy. I charged the vacuum for the recommended 2.5hours. Within the charging time I set up the smart app connection which allows you to control the RCV 3 vacuum from your smartphone. All that was required was a name and password sign-in, and a Bluetooth connection.
Having attempted to connect the device to the app several times unsuccessfully, I finally figured out that the vacuum had to be at least two metres from the WiFi router.
As I worked my way around the app I discovered there were many impressive features.
There’s a scaled floor plan of the area you are located in, this will highlight exactly where your Karcher RCV 3 Robot Vacuum is located, and the area it has covered.
It also gives you the option to vacuum or mop, or do both simultaneously as mentioned earlier.
You can also choose from four suction power options, ranging from silent mode, standard and medium suction, to turbo.
If you’re wanting to mop you also get the option of low, medium and high water level. There’s also a black icon with squiggly lines that will allow you to choose an energy-efficient or thorough mop.
Displayed on the same screen, you can also see the battery level, how long you’ve been using the device for and the area measurement (metre-squared).
There’s also an option that allows you to customise how you want to use the vacuum that best suits your needs. To do this you need to “turn on the ‘upload map to cloud’ function.” This however was one step too far for me and I didn’t even attempt to give this feature a go.
At the bottom of the screen in the app, there are three options - 'charge', when pressed the vacuum will make its way back to the charging station. 'Adjust', this will show you the area that has been vacuumed, and 'play' - this one’s obvious.
I decided to start with the vacuum only option, so I pressed play and off the Robot Vacuum went - up and down the hallway, bumbling over the carpet runner, making its way into the living room, back and forth it went over the rug and as it bumped into furniture and the walls it readjusted itself and carried on.
Underneath the vacuum there’s also a light that highlights minute debris particles. It also includes a ‘cliff sensor’, to prevent it from heading down the stairs. And as it made its way through every room there were some areas with quite a lot of debris that it just didn't make its way to, even when given a little nudge, and pausing it via the smart app and placing it in the area I wanted cleaning it still missed key areas.
It’s a great gadget for those who like gadgets, and a great option for people who have a studio flat or a large open plan space.
The downside, if you’ve got multiple rooms with lots of furniture and objects, including kids and pets, it just won’t make its way to all areas that need a vacuum. And if you're after a thorough vacuum of the entire house, nooks and crannies included - the Karcher RCV 3 Robot Vacuum unfortunately just won’t do the job.
And since it's circular in shape, its ability to pick up dirt alongside straight objects such as walls, in between furniture and in corners, is pretty much impossible.
There are some positives - when I took a look in the pure dustbin filter tank I was stunned! I couldn’t believe how much dust, dirt and debris had been collected covering such a small area, considering my home gets a thorough vacuum once a week. It had by far exceeded my expectations.
If you have pets or people with long hair in your household, you will end up having to clean your brush roll. I did have to unravel hair and bigger bits of debris, but it did come away easily so thankfully it wasn't a big task.
Next, I tried out the mop function, I was apprehensive about this as I had visions of adding the water and flooding all the mechanisms inside the vacuum. Thankfully this didn’t happen.
I added the pure dustbin tank required for the mopping feature. I found the area to add the water to be very small, it reminded me of where you add water to an iron, but there was no indication to tell you when to stop adding the water, so it was a bit of a guessing game.
I attached the cleaning cloth attachment, selected the mop feature via the smart app and pressed play. And off it went…
If you’re after a thorough mop, in a large area, the RCV 3 definitely won’t do the job. This feature definitely didn’t impress, and it was very difficult to see the water that was being dispensed from the vacuum. I could only spot a very, very small amount, nowhere near enough to get tough dirt and grime off the floor.
Next I tried the mop and hoover function. I had to keep my eyes on the vacuum at all times when using this function to make sure that it didn’t get my rug wet. Like a small child or pet, I had to keep picking it up and moving it away from the rug. I tried to find out whether the water would stop being dispensed if it was on the rug or carpet, but I could find such information. It was all very confusing at this point so I called it a day and sent it back to its charging station. Sort of like a time out.
As said previously, the Karcher RCV 3 Robot Vacuum is ideal for those with a studio flat or large open plan space, especially if you’ve got tiled or laminate flooring as the suction power is outstanding. It will also do a good job of whipping up dust, debris and more from a rug and on carpet where there are not obstructions.
If you’ve got small kids, pets, multiple rooms with the normal amount of furniture and objects in your home and require frequent, thorough vacuums, then the Karcher RCV 3 is far from ideal.
If you want to get your hands on the robot vacuum, it's available to buy at Karcher and Amazon.
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