Neato’s robot vacuums come in two lines: the Neato D5 belongs to the Botvac Connected series, and the Neato D80/D85 falls under the Botvac D series. Neato’s aim is to offer superior robot vacuums that do household chores better than any competitive appliances. With this in mind, each Botvac is designed with smart technology that features laser navigation, a Wi-fi connection, and app control. Its unique D shape with so-called CornerClever technology allows the vacuum to get deep into corners and close to walls. The robot knows when to return to its base for recharging. Once it is fully charged, it picks up cleaning where it left off, thanks to its laser mapping capability.
How Botvac Robot Vacuums Work
Each member of the Neato Botvac family uses sophisticated software that maps the floorplan of your home and cleans it accordingly. The technology is based on Neato’s patented BotVision navigation system. The laser scanner that is part of BotVision is built on SLAM—Simultaneous Localization and Mapping—which is the same technology use by Google’s self-driving cars. That Neato has been able to incorporate this technology in its robot vacuums at an affordable is a truly noteworthy achievement. Consequently, any Botvac is able to build detailed and accurate maps of your home, instantly adjust them to any changes you make to your home, and clean it in and organized, straight-lined pattern.
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Neato D5 Compared to Neato D80/D85
Neato D5
The Neato D5 is especially useful for homes with kids and pets. Its combo brush is particularly well suited to picking up crumbs, dirt, and pet hair. The Ultra Performance 3 HEPA filter ensures that even miniscule particles and allergens are removed from the air. The filter is easy to remove and clean, and replacement filters are available for purchase.
Neato’s distinct D-shaped robot vacuums allow them to vacuum close to any wall and in every corner, and the D5 is no exception. It can navigate up to 4,500 square feet per cleaning cycle, automatically returning to its base when the battery needs to recharge. Once that process is done, the vacuum picks up where it left off, making for seamless dirt removal throughout your home. The D5 works equally well on every type of flooring, from hardwood and linoleum to carpet and tile.
What makes the D5 particularly attractive is its connectivity. Once you download the Neato app—available for both Android and iOs—you can see your vacuum’s cleaning history and see the area it has covered during its cleaning cycle. With its 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi capability, you can start, stop, or pause any cleaning cycle via your smartphone. You can further control the vacuum with Amazon Alexa, Google Home, Chatbot for Facebook, or IFTTT. It is a truly modern appliance that fits unobtrusively into any on-the-go lifestyle.
What’s in the Box?
- The D5 robot vacuum
- Charge base
- Power cord
- Combo brush and side brush
- Ultra Performance filter
- Boundary markers
- Brush and filter cleaning tool
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Neato Botvac D5 Connected Laser Guided Robot Vacuum, Pet & Allergy, Works with Smartphones, Alexa,... | 1,437 Reviews | Check Price |
Neato D80/D85
The Neato D80/D85 comes with the same LaserSmart technology as the D5. You an expect the same thorough and precise cleaning performance. It works well on every type of flooring, although it is particularly good on hardwood and tile. Neato has redesigned this vacuum to run quieter, but with the same powerful suction and combo brush that is able to pick up anything from crumbs to pet hair.
The D80/85 can vacuum up to 3,000 square feet per cleaning cycle with a battery run time of up to 60 minutes. It automatically returns to its base to recharge. Its laser navigation system lets it operate even in dim light. The user-friendly LCD screen enables you to stop, start, and schedule a cleaning session at the push of a button. You can even set it to spot clean certain areas in your house that might extra attention.
Like the D5, the D80/D85 has a D-shaped design that lets it vacuum close along walls and in corners. It features side brushes that sweep the dirt into the dustbin and prevent the vacuum from leaving marks should it accidentally bump into any obstacles.
The D80/D85 comes with a High-Performance HEPA filter that can be cleaned and reused. It effortlessly filters out allergens and dust particles to ensure the air that leaves the vacuum is cleaner than before. Replacement filters are available for purchase.
What’s in the Box?
- The D80/D85 robot vacuum
- Charge base
- Power cord
- Combo, spiral blade, and side brush
- High Performance filter
- Boundary markers
- Brush and filter cleaning tool
Performance
Both the Neato D5 and the Neato D80/D85 perform well overall. They have remarkable suction power and are able to navigate any floorplan without too much trouble. The ability to schedule a cleaning session or to remotely start one via the app is a great convenience for any home owner. Likewise, it is convenient that both vacuums automatically return to their base to recharge the battery when necessary. They clean in straight, even lines that are pleasing to the eye when visible on carpet. Unlike other models that vacuum in seemingly erratic movements, both Neato vacuums work efficiently and are not distracting in the way they operate.
The built-in laser technology not only ensures that each room is properly mapped and cleaned, it also prevents the vacuum from tumbling down any stairs or bumping into any objects. With that being said, it is a good practice to move cables or tassels off the floor to avoid them getting tangled in the roller brushes. If you have any particularly valuable pieces of furniture or decorations, consider using the included boundary markers to prevent the vacuum from getting too close to them.
One disadvantage of both the D5 and the D80/D85 is the relatively small dustbin. If you have small children or pets in the house, it might be necessary to interrupt a cleaning session just to empty the dustbin. Once the dustbin is full, the vacuum no longer operates with optimal suction power. On the D80/D85, removing the dustbin can be a bit awkward. It requires some jostling, which could potentially impact other parts of the vacuum cleaner.
Likewise, neither vacuum does particularly well with very shaggy carpet. At times, any Neato vacuum has trouble going from a flat surface onto a thick carpet. And there are times when the machine spreads carpet fuzz around the home after it has worked on a carpet with extra-long fibers.
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Neato Botvac D80 Robot Vacuum for Pets and Allergies | 3,344 Reviews | Check Price |
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Neato Botvac D85 Robot Vacuum by Neato Botvac D85 | 3,344 Reviews | Check Price |
Conclusion
The Neato D80 and D85 are hardly distinguishable. They both do the job they were meant to do. But even though the Neato D85 is touted as an upgrade to previous models, the overall performance has not much improved. It has a pleasing design and does very well picking up pet hair, but otherwise, the higher price is hardly worth it. When you have the choice between these two robot vacuums, go with the D80, unless you have more than one cat or dog in the house. In that case, spend the extra money on the D85.
Likewise, there is little difference in performance between the Neato D5 and D80/D85, aside from the larger square footage the D5 can clean per battery charge. The D5 picks up pet hair as well as the D85. What sets the D5 apart is its connectivity. If you are looking for the convenience of operating your robot vacuum remotely, either via an app or via Amazon Alexa, Google Home, etc., then you should select the D5. But consider that Neato offers newer models that are able to clean an even bigger square footage on a longer battery charge.
Neato Robotics has been developing robotic vacuums range from D80/D85, D3, D5, D7 to Botvac™ Connected, through this review, you’ll find more information about Neato robotic vacuum and know the differences. Still, we posted a single post to compare the model D3 Connected and Neato BotVac D5 Connected, if you are want to know how to choose between these two model, click to check. The neato robotic vacuums are a good brand in Robotic Vacuum market, but there still another company name as iRobot, it’s vacuum series Roomba Vacuum also has good reviews on Amazon. Compared to Neato Vacuum, the obvious difference is that the Roomba vacuum is circle shape, but the neato vacuum is D shape, which is better? Get more information through Neato vs Roomba – Which is Better?
In the end, your choice will depend on your preference and budget.
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