iRobot
Braava Jet M6
- Bottom Line
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Whether it's sweeping up pet hair or wiping away a grease stain, our cleaning expert recommends this for tile, hardwood, and stone.
- Pros
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Optimized for multiple rooms and large areas. Provides a deep clean. Smart Mapping technology. Voice controls via Amazon Alexa and Google Home. Auto recharges. Multiple cleaning modes.
- Cons
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This model does not work well in especially dark environments, so you'll need to illuminate rooms.
About the product
Is the Braava Jet M6 worth it?
The iRobot Braava Jet M6 is a small, quiet, intelligent robot mop that takes an unpleasant task and makes it close to an afterthought. With visual navigation, smart mapping and multiple cleaning modes, it’s an ideal partner to iRobot’s Roombas and a welcome solution to dreaded mopping chores.
The BestReviews Testing Lab put the Braava Jet m6 through its paces, testing it on cleaning performance, intelligence, battery life and more. Despite some reservations about its price and ongoing costs, we feel it’s an ideal robot companion for anyone who detests mopping.
What is the Braava Jet m6?
Product specifications
Battery life: 150 minutes | Dimensions: 10.6” L x 10.6” W x 3.5” H | Weight: 4.85 lb | Mapping: Yes | Modes: Extended, Standard, Deep | Object avoidance: Yes | Scheduling: Yes
The Braava Jet m6 is an autonomous self-propelled robotic mop and sweeper for finished hard floors such as hardwood, tile and laminate. Its compact size and light weight makes it easily portable. It features a spray nozzle and internal tank for cleaning solution. It supports dry sweeping and wet mopping with removable disposable or reusable cleaning pads.
The Braava Jet m6 uses vSLAM (visual simultaneous localization and mapping) navigation with a camera for navigation and object avoidance. It can be controlled over Wi-Fi by the iRobot HOME app for iOS and Android for scheduling and voice assistant control.
Pros
- Hands-free mopping
- Cleans in rows
- Mops and sweeps
Cons
- Pricey accessories
- Can’t work in the dark
- May spread residue
Testing the Braava Jet m6
We tested the Braava Jet m6 on vinyl plank flooring and vinyl tile, with small and medium spills of water, fruit juice and cooking oil. We also tested in open areas, corners, along walls and under furniture and looked for thoroughness, accuracy, speed and quality of results.
Because no one wants to struggle to get their new vacuum to work, we noted how easy or difficult it was to set up, including how to set up app control. Charging time and how long the battery lasted after a full charge were also tracked. Giving it a series of tasks, we tested its navigation, mapping and object-avoidance capabilities. Finally, we noted what cleaning or maintenance it requires and any recurring costs.
Braava Jet m6 price and where to buy
The Braava Jet m6 robot mop costs $449.99 for the white model and $499.99 for black or graphite options. It is available directly from Amazon.
Braava Jet m6 setup
Our Braava Jet m6 test model arrived well-packaged in an iRobot shipping box. The product box opens up like a clamshell, revealing the unit and its accessories. iRobot kept plastic packaging to a minimum, a welcome eco-friendly touch.
Setting up the Braava was straightforward. Its charging station needs to be placed in a suitable open area that’s clear of nearby obstacles. The station comes with a drip pan that prevents a Braava’s wet pad from touching flooring for long periods of time.
Already fully assembled in the box, it just needs to be charged on its charging station for up to two hours. Meanwhile, it’s a good idea to download the iRobot HOME app and activate the Braava on Wi-Fi. It took only a couple minutes to find and add our test unit and 30 seconds to connect it to Wi-Fi.
Design
Just above the rear of the tank lid is the vSLAM camera. In front of the lid is the RCON sensor that helps the Braava Jet find its way back to its charging station. At the front corner are the Braava Jet’s three control buttons: “Clean,” “Home” and “Spot”.
The Braava Jet M6 has a wraparound front bumper with an embedded spray nozzle. Immediately below that is the cleaning-pad release button.
On the underside of the Braava are the tracks and sensor for its removable cleaning pads. The sensor reads what kind of pad is installed and lets the Braava know what functions are available. Also here are the wheels, cliff sensors to avoid drops and metal charging contacts.
At the rear of the unit is its docking sensor. Unlike Roombas, the Braava Jet m6 backs into its charging dock.
Battery life and performance
The Braava Jet m6 comes with a rechargeable 1,775 mAH (milliampere-hour) lithium-ion battery rated for 150 minutes per charge. We never managed to deplete our test unit’s battery, which lasted over 64 minutes without needing to recharge.
The Braava Jet m6’s performance was solid. Our test unit with a single-use wet mopping pad made quick work of spilled water on both hardwood-like vinyl plank flooring and stone-texture vinyl bathroom tile. It took only eight minutes to mop a 20-square-foot galley kitchen and 14 minutes to tackle the layout of a 24-square-foot bathroom.
Wall and corner performance were excellent, with our test model getting right up to the edge in all cases. It had slight difficulty underneath a kitchen chair, but it actually managed to nudge the chair aside to get at the entire spill.
We were equally impressed that the Braava Jet m6 could remove crusted spills in the kitchen, even without using its “Deep” mode (available in the HOME app). Its precision jet spray avoided making a mess, dampening only the area immediately in front without scattering.
We also tested the Braava’s sweeping mode with a dry pad. Navigation and corner cleaning was as good as with mopping, and the pad captured small particles and hair that Roomba models missed. Sweeping also lightly buffed our test floors.
Our fruit juice and cooking oil tests, however, were less impressive. Even with cleaning solution, the Braava’s mopping pad absorbed whatever it contacted and spread the residue wherever it went next. Fruit juice left a lingering scent, while cooking oil left a discernible film. It may be better to mop such liquids with a paper towel and have the Braava clean up the residue, or use the spot-clean feature and change the mopping pad immediately.
Navigation and mapping
The Braava Jet m6 uses a camera for vSLAM navigation. This gives it impressive mapping and allows it to calibrate its cleaning pattern relative to its orientation in a room, but requires natural or artificial light to work. Its object avoidance was good. Our test model detected when we stood in front of it and negotiated its way around us. It always slowed down when it saw a wall approaching and never bumped into anything at full speed.
Our Braava Jet m6 mapped a 20-square-foot kitchen and 24-square-foot bathroom on the same floor in less than five minutes each. It had no trouble finding and remembering an overhang between a range and a refrigerator, or maneuvering around either side of a toilet. It smoothly navigated over and around an ergonomic kitchen mat, although we chose to remove bathroom mats during testing.
The only hiccup happened when our test model tried to dock at the end of its first job. It attempted to back into its charging station multiple times for 10 minutes before finally succeeding. This may have been due to a slight misalignment of the drip pan. This error didn’t recur.
Braava Jet M6 app and voice control
The Braava Jet m6 can accomplish basic jobs with just its three buttons for control. However, taking full advantage of the Braava’s capabilities requires the iRobot HOME app.
The HOME app has a clean interface and guides users step by step through common procedures. It’s the only way to get a Braava to Wi-Fi or access features like mapping, scheduling and settings. The HOME app also allows setup with Alexa or Google Assistant. It’s the only way to use Siri with the Braava.
Features like spray volume or cleaning mode can only be accessed through the app. Starting and specifying cleaning jobs is more convenient than taking the Braava to a specific room and pressing its buttons. We used the HOME app to schedule the Braava Jet m6 to clean in front of the range after dinner every weeknight, which would be impossible without the app.
Braava Jet M6 benefits
Hands-free mopping
Mopping by hand is a messy job requiring filling a bucket, wringing a mop and more. The Braava Jet m6 replaces that with precise, hands-free mopping and spraying.
Cleans in rows
The Braava Jet m6 follows a precise cleaning pattern of overlapping rows. It can adjust its pattern if needed, and it uses its camera to find and keep its place in a room while mopping. This allows it to cover a maximum amount of floor.
Mops and sweeps
With its swappable cleaning pads, the Braava Jet m6 also functions as a dry sweeping robot as well. This provides comprehensive general cleaning for hard flooring surfaces in a single machine.
Braava Jet m6 drawbacks
Pricey accessories
The Braava Jet m6 requires the use of specialized accessories. Replacement single-use mopping or sweeping pads cost $8 for a pack of seven, and you may find yourself using as many as a pad per day. The Braava Jet only uses Bona cleaning solutions formulated for iRobot, which cost $18 per 128-ounce bottle. To economize, use the Braava’s reusable, machine-washable microfiber mopping pad whenever you can.
Can’t work in the dark
The Braava Jet’s navigation capabilities depend on its camera. Unlike some robot vacuums, which use gyroscopes or lasers, the Braava Jet m6 can’t navigate in the dark. You need to have the lights on or clean in daylight to use it.
May spread residue
We noted in our testing the tendency of the Braava Jet m6 to spread traces of fruit juice or cooking oil that it absorbed in its pad. To avoid this, use the spot-clean feature for tough spills and change the pad before doing a more general cleaning job.
Should you get the Braava Jet m6?
The Braava Jet m6 is a little pricey, and its ongoing costs only rise as you go through its specialized supplies. Does its convenient cleaning make up for its costs? For anyone who detests mopping to any degree, the answer is a definite yes.
Hardwood: 8
Mopped effectively but may spread residue if its pad isn’t changed.
Floor transition: N/A
Successfully avoided having to cross onto carpet.
Navigation: 10
Recognized rooms quickly and calibrated its route to match.
Ease of use: 10
Easy to refill and swap pads, it does everything else for you.