ILIFE A10 Robot Vacuum Review

While you may think that one robot vacuum cleaner is just like any other, they have a range of features, and it's a matter of finding the one that will work for you – one that will clean the way you want it to. This review takes a look at the ILIFE A10 Robot Vacuum to see if it's the right one for you.

This is a sponsored article and was made possible by ILIFE. The actual contents and opinions are the sole views of the author, who maintains editorial independence, even when a post is sponsored.

The first thing you’ll notice about the ILIFE A10 Robot Vacuum when comparing it to other robot vacuums on the market is that it doesn't have an auto-emptying feature. Again, it comes down to what you want out of a vacuum, and many don't want the noise from auto-emptying and don't mind getting up to empty it. It also doesn't have a mopping function, but if you have mostly carpets in your home, you don't need that anyway.

The second thing you’ll notice upon unboxing the A10 is that it ships with many spare parts, which just isn't the norm these days. That was a welcome surprise. All in all, the following are included in the box:

The user manual does not include all the steps you need to go through to set up the A10. It does not tell you that you need to install the side brushes, but being that this isn't my first robot vacuum, I knew to do that. I matched the colors, put one on each side, and had two extras, which is great.

I thought the rubber roller that was provided was probably an extra as well. However, it looks different than the one that is preinstalled in the vacuum. The manual doesn't say anything about when you may want to switch to the rubber roller instead of the brush.

However, you’ll notice above that ILIFE helpfully displays its customer service number on the bottom of the vacuum, should you need help. Above, you can also see scan codes for the iOS and Android apps.

Putting the vacuum to the side, you’ll need to assemble the charging station. A plastic mat is provided to serve as a ramp. I’m not sure whether I needed it for my laminated flooring. Some vacuums provide the mat for people with carpeting. I used it regardless.

After inserting the charging station into the mat, you need to add the power adapter. Just plug one end into the back of the charging station and the other end into a wall outlet. A green charging light will come on.

Line up the vacuum with the charging pins on the charger, then turn on the I/O switch on the side of the vacuum.

While you can just go about your business and use the included remote to run the ILIFE A10 Robot Vacuum from this point, you can also opt, as I did, to use the app. The remote allows you to choose the vacuuming pattern and schedule.

To use the app, scan the code from underneath the vacuum or inside the manual to download the ILIFE app to your iOS or Android device. Open the app and register for an account, choose your country/region, then input the verification code once you receive it.

After moving through the account setup process, you’ll reach a page that lists all the iRobot vacuums. Find the A10 and click on it. The app tells you to switch on the power and wait to hear, "please press the button to start cleaning."

However, I had already turned the power on and heard the announcement. I tried clicking the button that I’d already heard the announcement, then pressed and held the button on the top of the vacuum as instructed by the next screen to wait for another announcement.

I failed to connect. One reason was that I was using Wi-Fi with both 2.4GHz and 5Ghz. I had to manually switch off the 5GHz to get it to pair and also had to turn the vacuum off and back on again to hear the announcements.

After signing into my Wi-Fi, I had to find the robot vacuum's network. This also took a few tries, yet the whole experience of connecting only took about 10 minutes. I would suggest that if you use the app, you wait to turn the vacuum on until you have the app ready and your router on 2.4GHz.

The first time the ILIFE A10 Robot Vacuum cleans your floors, it creates a map of your home with laser navigation. Tap the red triangle "Start Cleaning" button to start the process. It will ask whether you’d like to create a map or start cleaning without it.

Scrolling up on the menu at the bottom provides more options that you can use after creating your map, and clicking the hamburger menu on the top right brings up additional settings.

The laser navigation works very well. What looks like a fist below is actually the beginning stages of the map. This is how much the A10 had already mapped out BEFORE it even started, with the finished map on the right.

With your first map created, you can play with it to create the cleaning that you want. The main floor of my home here is one big room. I have my kitchen, living room, hallway, and stairs. The area in pink is my bathroom. It kept the doors to bedrooms closed intentionally.

Robot vacuums often create one big room along with the bathroom when mapping my main floor. Sometimes I’m able to split it up, but sometimes I’m stuck with it. The ILIFE app allowed me to split the big area into smaller rooms. You simply draw a line to split it, then name it. In the two images here, I had already split the kitchen off, and now I split the living room from the hallway and stairs.

Additionally, even though robot vacuums are designed to detect stairs and not go down them, it panics me, so I like to create no-go zones for my stairs, which I was able to do with the A10. It also allows you to create an invisible wall, set a carpet zone, and set a specific area that you want to clean.

In between each cleaning session, it's best to empty the dustbin. Not surprisingly, it's a cinch, as it is with most robot vacuum cleaners. Just grab the front of it the vacuum, press down on the lever and pull it out. Pull it apart to empty all the debris.

Once you get past a couple of hangups in the setup, with the missing information and the 2.4GHz limitation, the ILIFE A10 Robot Vacuum is a joy to use. It cleans well and will do so in the way you want it to. It will allow you to clean without fuss with the remote or exactly where and how you want with the app. It is the most configurable robot vacuum I have used, especially with its map editing.

Pick up your own ILIFE A10 Robot Vacuum for $339.99.

Laura has spent nearly 20 years writing news, reviews, and op-eds, with more than 10 of those years as an editor as well. She has exclusively used Apple products for the past three decades. In addition to writing and editing at MTE, she also runs the site's sponsored review program.

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