Pet hair can wreak havoc with robot vacuums, with all that stray hair wrapping around the robot’s brushes and robbing the bot of suction power. Eufy’s latest robot vac aims to solve the pet-hair problem by pulling the hair out of its own brush after every cleaning.
Available now for $649.99, the Eufy Clean X8 Pro is a vacuum-and-mop bot that’s a step-up model to 2021’s X9 Hybrid. The bundled self-emptying bin can store up to 45 days of dust and debris, while a laser navigation system lets the vacuum map your floors and find its way around furniture, even in low-light conditions.
The X8 Pro also boasts Eufy’s “twin-turbine” technology, which offers up to 4,000 Pa of suction power per turbine (for a total of 8,000 Pa), or more than double the suction power of the X8 Hybrid.
This news story is part of TechHive’s in-depth coverage of the best robot vacuums.
Most interestingly, the X8 Pro arrives with an “Active Detangling Roller Brush” designed to keep human and pet hair at bay.
The system comprises two components, one being the V-shaped bristles on the roller brush that (according to a Eufy rep) help to prevent hair from getting tangled on the brush in the first place.
The second component is a retractable comb with short, stubby teeth. The comb, which runs along the entire length of the brush, pops out when the X8 Pro returns to its base, or at shorter intervals (up to every 10 minutes) as directed by the user.
Ben Patterson/Foundry
With the comb in position, the brush then runs in reverse, allowing the comb to pull out any tangled hair; the removed hair then gets sucked into the vacuum’s debris bin.
The detangling roller brush is a nifty idea, and one that could cut down on the hassle of flipping over the robot and pulling hair off the brush manually. It’s worth noting, however, that the X8 Pro also has a traditional edge-sweeping brush (the smaller one that’s shaped like a three-armed starfish) that doesn’t clean itself.
Besides the new X8 Pro, Eufy announced some software upgrades for the recently released Clean X9 Pro, including an “edge-hugging deep mopping” mode that helps the robot clean the edges of a room; the ability to alert users when the X9 Pro’s water tank needs to be topped off; and “smart” recommendations for new “no-go” zones.
The new X9 Pro features are currently in beta testing, with the first two enhancements slated to arrive by the end of the month, while smart no-go recommendations should begin rolling out in November.
We’ll have a full review of the Eufy Clean X8 Pro once we test out a review unit.
Author: Ben Patterson, Senior Writer
Ben has been writing about technology and consumer electronics for more than 20 years. A PCWorld contributor since 2014, Ben joined TechHive in 2019, where he covers smart speakers, soundbars, and other smart and home-theater devices. You can follow Ben on Twitter.