The iRobot Braava Jet 240, from the same company behind the Roomba robot vacuums, is a tiny robotic mop for hard floor surfaces.
The Braava dusts, wash and dry floors, using a combination of removable cleaning pads, a vibrating head and jet spray to sweep and scrub dirty floors. The jet is used to loosen dirt and stains, with the cleaning pads then scrubbing and drying.
Sensors and a gyroscope help the Braava 'see' its surroundings, letting it map a room and clean the entire floor. It also learns where furniture is and changes speed to safely navigate cluttered rooms.
The compact, square design also means the robo-mop can squeeze into tighter spaces and corners such as under kitchen cabinets and around toilets.
Little bigger than a cat, the Braava is less advanced than other Roomba models and significantly cheaper. The Braava is out now in the USA and Canada, starting at $199 (£140). Replacement pads cost $7.99 for a box of ten.
Previously, the cheapest iRobot was the Roomba 650, which sold in the US for $375.
The Braava has three cleaning mods: wet mop, damp sweep, and dry sweep. Each requires a different cleaning pad, which once clipped on automatically tell the robot which type of cleaning task to perform.
Wet mop performs a triple-pass cleaning for dirt and stains, damp sweeping is a double-pass mode for everyday dirt and dry sweep is a single-pass for light dusting.
A 'virtual wall' can also be created to stop the robo-mop from entering carpeted rooms. Unlike more complicated Roomba's the Braava can't be controlled from a smartphone, with a 'CLEAN' button on the top all that's required to put it to work.
There's no word on when the Braava will be released outside the US and Canada.
This article was originally published by WIRED UK
