Home CasaVerdeSmart ,,,,, We have tried many automatic vacuum cleaners and the latest addition to the editorial office is among the cheapest but functional solutions in small apartments. It is called Alfawise A8S and makes its value for money its main strength: those who want the latest technologies will have to look elsewhere, paying even three times the list price of this vacuum cleaner which, on the other hand, cleans well and is not lacking. the main and necessary automatisms to completely forget to sweep the floor.
In the box
The essentiality of Alfawise A8S is perceived right from the unpacking: compared to other competing solutions there are no brushes or spare filters and the cleaning brush is rather basic (others incorporate a brush with built-in cutter for finishing and remaking the tips to the bristles).
However, there is everything you need: the robot with the two brushes to assemble, the brush, the power supply, the charging base, the remote control and the user manual.
As did
Alfawise A8S is built very well: it has a glass top shelf and the polycarbonate parts also seemed solid and of good quality. It is not very different from robots from other brands that we still use today at home and which in some cases even cost twice as much.
The front flaps are strengthened by a thick rubber reinforcement that prevents scratching the furniture with which it could collide during cleaning and the bristles of the two rotating brushes (purple) and the central roller (yellow) are also very soft.
The rubber wheels are very sturdy, the mechanics are also good and the tank is easy to access, which compared to others is equipped with a small but very useful mobile lid: this ensures that the dust enters during suction but does not come out when it is released to be emptied.
The tank lid is not locked by a push button system – you simply need to lift it to open it. The friction is good as there is a rubber sheath that helps seal the dust inside the tank, but we fear that in the long run it may wear out and no longer guarantee the same grip.
There is also no quick access to the filter: instead of having an external drawer, to remove and clean the filter it is necessary to open the tank and remove the protective grid (yellow), these too interlocked by a rubber frame.
Again there is, mounted on one side, a small speaker to be able to listen to the instructions of the voice assistant: unfortunately they are only available in English and it is a function that, following our tests, we consider rather useless as the noise of the ongoing aspiration makes it practically impossible to understand what we are told.
Furthermore, this function is limited only to announcing the options activated by the remote control, for example by pressing the Auto button the assistant will tell us that the automatic cleaning is about to be started, while if you press Return it will tell us that the vacuum cleaner will search for the base to recharge. battery. But since these functions are already printed on the remote control, the confirmation from the vacuum cleaner is simply redundant.
For the rest it does not differ from others of its kind, having all the sensors, switches, sockets and buttons useful for its correct functioning.
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The cleaning
Due to the translation that is not always precise and reliable, looking at the advertising card one might think that the cleaning methods of the Alfawise A8S are 4 but, after trying it for a few days we can confirm that in reality they are 3.
There is the Auto mode which starts the automatic cleaning. It is identical to that of other robot vacuum cleaners, i.e. suction is started with random movements along the floor on which it is placed.
Then there is the Edge mode, which has the deep cleaning of the frames. Press the relevant button and the robot will go to a wall. At that point he will take measurements and clean the edges following the entire perimeter of the room. If you leave all the doors open, then it will clean the perimeter of all the rooms.
The third and final mode is the one normally defined as Spot: it is also indicated in the advertising images that show the remote control in plain sight and even in the user manual, but in the actual remote control it is instead indicated with the Powerful label. In any case, by pressing this button the vacuum cleaner will start sucking on the point where it is positioned and spiraling outwards. It is very useful when there is stubborn dirt in a specific point or if you shake the tablecloth in the center of the kitchen and want to quickly vacuum the dirt using this robot.
The fourth modality advertised by the technical data sheet and the manual but which is actually missing is the one that might appear the most interesting: Planning. The robot would be given a certain level of intelligence that would allow it to “see” the room it is in and start a zig-zag cleaning, thus methodically sweeping the floor and ensuring that it goes practically everywhere, rather than being left to chance. as it happens with the Auto mode.
This mode should be in a button but it doesn't exist. In our remote control in its place is the Auto button (in red) while here, as reported by advertising photos and user manual, the Planning button should be located. Obviously, by pressing it, as confirmed by the voice assistant (thank goodness, at least it served something) the automatic cleaning is started and actually the robot does not follow any pattern, but moves in completely random directions each time.
Things don't change even with double squeezing or a long press. We tried different combinations on several keys, but without success: not that we expected miracles since the supplied remote control does not correspond to the one represented by the manufacturer.
In fact, there is no intelligent mode and this is also confirmed by the fact that no cameras or other visible sensors are installed, thanks to which we could certify the presence of a system capable of detecting the perimeter of the room by measuring its dimensions and sweeping the floor with a certain criterion.
How are you doing
No Planning mode aside, the vacuum cleaner works very well. The suction is excellent, where he passes not even a crumb remains and the autonomy is average: it completely cleans small apartments of 40-50 square meters while for larger houses it is advisable to start it twice, perhaps leaving it in the living area during one session and then moving it to the sleeping area for the second.
In operation we have not noticed any differences with others of its kind: it recognizes obstacles well and if not, the fins with sensors help to get back on the right path. The height is good and allows it to easily climb over not too thick carpets, but like others of the older generation it can end up getting stuck on chair poles or steps of about 1 centimeter.
It is slightly noisier than others but still remains around acceptable thresholds (and in any case it is much less noisy than traditional vacuum cleaners).
Conclusions
Alfawise A8S is a good vacuum cleaner, cleans well and is aesthetically elegant and beautiful to look at. The automatic mode does its duty and is the one that will be used in 99% of cases. It takes away a job to do especially for those who are away from home all day: just let them start before leaving the house, making sure to leave the doors of the rooms you want to clean open and he will take care of the rest, automatically returning to the base when the battery power is about to run out: when we return we will find it in its place, ready and charged for the next session.
Unfortunately it remains difficult to recommend the purchase mainly for the cost: spending 127 euros (the current price for which the Alfawise A8S is offered on GearBest) something more is expected, perhaps even a Planning Mode that the competition normally charges dearly, with prices tripled or even five times higher when moving to leading brands in the sector.
Instead, the opposite happens here: until a few years ago it was difficult to buy automatic vacuum cleaners at these figures while today it is even possible to find them on Amazon or other e-commerce sites for 70-80 euros. These are products that we have not tried but which may not differ much from the Alfawise A8S in terms of quality of materials and cleaning power.
Not only is there no Planning Mode but it is also not possible to program the automatic daily ignition at a specific time of the day. In short, Alfawise A8S is located in the middle of two worlds: on the one hand there are apparently identical alternatives that cost 70-80 euros, on the other there are products such as the Anker vacuum cleaners (if you want to know more, we invite you to read our reviews here and here) which cost 190-250 euros but are definitely more complete and functional.
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