A Review of Our Robot Vacuum, the Shark ION R85
We’ve been the proud owners of a Shark ION Robot Vacuum R85 (wi-fi connected) for almost a year now and I thought it was time to share a review. Both of the vacuum itself and of being a robot vacuum household. This is our first robot vacuum and we definitely use it differently than I expected…
Our Farmhouse entry // vacuum, other sources here
We considered buying a robot vacuum for years, and almost pulled the trigger a couple times, but it wasn’t until Black Friday last year that we finally committed. We got the Shark ION Robot Vacuum R85 (wi-fi connected) and the kids dubbed her ‘Beet IV’. I have no idea where that name came from, but it stuck! She’s a member of our household now.
How we operate our robot vacuum
For the record, Beet IV has not replaced a traditional vacuum. Nor do I think it could. We still use our Dyson canister vacuum for the stairs and any mess that we want to clean up quick. I reserve Beet IV for whole rooms when I have a few minutes to prep and don’t mind a slow clean.
And by prep, I mean we pick up toys, shoes, pillows, lost socks, etc. Then we close off the space we want to vacuum with doors, boxes or even chairs laid down. Then we set Beet IV in the room and turn her on. And an hour later, the room is clean! Magic.
Could the vacuum work in a larger space like a whole house…maybe? But I think it works best going room-by-room when you don’t have an open floor plan like us. And honestly, one or two large rooms is probably all this vacuum can handle between charges. We empty the dust compartment after every use and I’m always shocked (SHOCKED!) at how full it is.
Wi-Fi Capabilities
I downloaded the Shark app shortly after getting Beet IV. And I’ve been impressed ever since. You can set up a schedule, manually operate it, or look at error log. The later is helpful to see what the issue is if the vacuum stopped - usually it sucked up a string or kids sock (it happens 🤷🏼♀️). Of course the log can’t tell you what the vacuum sucked up, but it can tell you where on the vacuum you need to look.
Our recommendation
Do you absolutely need a robot vacuum? No, as long as you have a regular vacuum. But will a robot vacuum make cleaning your house easier? Yes! And that was ultimately our goal for buying the Shark ION Robot Vacuum R85. Beet IV has cut down on our hand-held vacuuming time and made it easier for us to have a clean house. In the end, Beet IV was worth the $199 price tag for us and we’re thrilled to be a robot-vacuum-household!
That’s our review of the Shark ION Robot Vacuum R85 and how we use it. We’d love to hear your experience with robot vacuums. Are you a fan?
