Is Samsung’s JetBot 90 AI+ “the world’s first smart robotic vacuum”?

The JetBot 90 AI+ has advanced navigation abilities: it’s been engineered to respond to its environment better than just zipping around, bouncing off chair legs and running aground on floor lamp bases.

It uses a combination of sensors to identify objects and work out how to navigate around them. First off, there’s a Lidar sensor, which uses a laser to bounce light off objects and calculate very precisely how far away they are. Then there’s a 3D sensor, which helps the cleaner to identify different types of objects.

The JetBot then uses an object recognition algorithm to figure out how best to manoeuvre around items of furniture and other obstacles.

Although Samsung is calling it “the world’s first smart robotic vacuum”, it’s not the first robot vacuum cleaner to use this kind of tech. In fact, it sounds very similar to a few other robot vacs on the market, including the Roborock S6 Max V, which uses both Lidar and object recognition, via a twin camera system.

One of the things the S6 Max V can do with this object recognition (which, presumably, the JetBot will be able to do as well) is avoid pet poop. This is encouraging news for anyone still wary of robot vacuums after hearing horror stories from their early days, when pet owners might come home to find their robot vac had accidentally redecorated their floor with an impromptu Jackson Pollock.

Samsung doesn’t exactly confirm this but it does say that the JetBot 90 AI+ will automatically avoid any objects classified as fragile, dangerous or likely to cause secondary contamination.

We’d also guess that it’ll use a similar AI capability to the S6 Max V, which is a learning machine whose object recognition improves the more it’s used.

Finally, the full-colour camera on both the JetBot and the S6 Max V can be used remotely. In the case of the JetBot, it’s via Samsung’s SmartThings app. This means that, when you’re out of the house, you can drive the vac around your home, viewing everything on camera. It’s a handy way to check up on your pets and ease your mind over any security worries.

As you’d expect from a premium robot vac, you’ll also be able to schedule cleaning, start a clean remotely and designate zones in your home to avoid.

These are all great features, but none are entirely new. In fact, all of the shared functionality suggests that the JetBot 90 AI+ will use similar tech to the S6 Max V.

But the JetBot 90 AI+ has a couple of other tricks up its sleeve, which its unusual design might hint at. It’s not the typical oversized puck – instead it has a sloped wedge on one side.

Samsung says that it can “lower itself under furniture” when necessary. This is something we’ve never seen before. One of the key pieces of advice we give to people buying a robot vac is to measure the height between the floor and the underside of your key pieces of furniture, such as your bed, sofa and coffee table, to ensure that the cleaner will fit comfortably underneath.

But a robot vacuum that adjusts its height could make those worries a thing of the past, although we’d guess that the minimum height won’t be less than that of a standard robot vac.

When it’s finished cleaning, the JetBot docks at the Clean Station, Samsung’s patented disposal system. Not only will it charge automatically (as you’d expect) but the bin will be emptied into a large bag inside the dock. The bag only needs to be changed every month or two and will protect people with sensitivity to dust. (We’ve reviewed the Clean Station that can be used in conjunction with Samsung’s handheld vacuum cleaner, the Powerstick Jet).

So, it’s not entirely new but it does seem that the JetBot 90 AI+ will be combining a number of high-end features to make it one of the most advanced robot vacs around.

Full specs for the JetBot 90 AI+ have not yet been released but it has 30W suction and a Cyclone system for efficiency. There’s no word yet on price but expect it to be at the top end. It’ll be available in the US in the first half of 2021.

For more robot vacuum cleaner information, you can read our full review of the Roborock S6 Max V or, to find out which robot vacuum cleaners we rate the most highly, check out our round-up of the best we’ve tested.