Ecovacs Deebot Ozmo T8 AIVI Review

 Tired of your budget-friendly robot vacuum getting stuck on things like cords, pet toys, and shoes? Perhaps it’s time for an upgrade. The $799.99 Deebot Ozmo T8 AIVI can both vacuum and mop your floors, and boasts artificial intelligence and visual interpretation (AIVI) technology that allows it to 

 

automatically identify and avoid obstacles. It also has a neat Visual Butler feature that lets you view live video of your home from wherever you are, and it works with Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant, so you can start and stop cleaning with your voice. It’s expensive, but it's one of the most 

 

feature-rich hybrid floor-cleaning robots we've tested, earning our Editors’ Choice. The Ozmo T8 AIVI has a sleek design with a matte black finish. Measuring around 13.5 inches in diameter and 3.6 inches tall, it’s one of the larger floor-cleaning robots I’ve tested, but is still short enough to fit under most 

 

furniture. It boasts a number of sensors for mapping and navigation, including the aforementioned AIVI visual detection sensor in front, anti-collision sensors on the sides, a TrueMapping Distance sensor on top, and a carpet-detection sensor plus six anti-drop sensors on the bottom. The AIVI technology uses 

 

an artificial intelligence chipset and a camera to recognize things that can get in the robot’s way like power cords and socks, and builds a database of objects to avoid, so it works better over time. 

 

In the box, you get an extra set of side brushes and an extra filter. You don’t get a remote, but you can control the Ozmo via the Ecovacs Home app (available for Android and iOS), Amazon Alexa, or Google Assistant. Setting it up to work with the app is straightforward. You can scan a QR Code on the robot or manually select your model from a list, then follow the on-screen instructions to connect the robot to Wi-Fi. 

Setting up the Ozmo T8 AIVI to work with Alexa and/or Google Assistant is also quick and easy. For the former, you just enable the Ecovacs Deebot skill in the Alexa app, sign into your Ecovacs account, and select the robot you want to control with your voice. Once I got them connected, I said, “Alexa, ask

 Deebot to go back to its charging dock,” and the robot followed orders and went right there. I then said, “Alexa, ask Deebot to start cleaning,” and it got back to work. It also worked well with Google Assistant, letting me start and stop cleaning jobs with just my voice.