Overall cleaning performance: 90.7
Pet hair score: 80.6
Self-emptying dock: Yes
Suction power: 5300Pa
Keep-out zones: Yes
Obstacle avoidance: Yes
Bin size: 3 liters
Smart home compatibility: Amazon Alexa, Google Home
Size: 13 x 13 x 3.9 inches
On board dustbin capacity: 300ml
Among the best robot vacuums, the ultra high-end models get all the attention, but not everyone needs a robovac with a robotic arm that can pick up their socks. For those who want something simple and cheap, it can be difficult to figure out what's a good option that will actually clean your floors and what's a device that’s just going to frustrate you..
The TP-Link Tapo RV30 Max Plus is built for those who want basic cleaning performance at a low price. It supports both vacuuming and mopping, has an auto-empty dock, and more – all for less than $300. And while it’s not the best robot vacuum for pet hair, it does an admirable job for the price, making it one of the best cheap robot vacuums we’ve tested.
TP-Link Tapo RV30 Max Plus: Price and availability
The TP-Link Tapo RV30 Max Plus is available right now from the TP-Link website or participating retailers like Amazon. The “Plus” in the name RV30 Max Plus indicates that it's the model with the auto empty dock, but you can also get the Tapo RV30 Max, which is the same vacuum but comes with a dock for charging only. It's available for $219.99. The vacuum comes in black; however, when setting the vacuum in the app, it seemed as though there was a white model too. I was unable to find the white model at any retailer, though.
TP-Link Tapo RV30 Max Plus: Design
The TP-Link Tapo RV30 Max Plus doesn't necessarily reinvent the wheel when it comes to design. That said, it's certainly not an ugly device, and there are some elements of its design that I quite like. For starters, while the vacuum itself is a similar size to most others out there, the dock is pretty compact, measuring only 13 inches tall, 9 inches wide, and 6.5 inches deep.
Now, of course, it’s compact because it doesn't have features like water tanks, but after reviewing higher-end models with massive docks, it was refreshing to see a dock that was a little smaller. Thankfully, its built-in dustbin is still a similar size to others, sitting at 3 liters.
As mentioned, the vacuum itself is a similar size to most other robotic vacuums out there, with a 13-inch diameter and a 3.9-inch height. Unlike other models in this price range, the RV30 Max Plus has a LiDAR sensor, which sticks out the top of the vacuum for more precise mapping and navigation.
On the front of the vacuum can be found a camera, while on the top can be found three buttons for power, spot cleaning, and returning to the dock.
While the auto-empty dock doesn't have a water tank, the vacuum still supports mopping and comes with a mop pad that can be attached to the bottom of it. The mop plate snaps onto the bottom of the robot's built-in water tank and can be detached relatively easily to be washed. The mop pad supports machine washing. It's also easy to fill up the water tank in the vacuum. You can remove the tank by pressing on a latch and pulling it out, after which you can simply unplug the tank using a rubber gasket and fill it up. The water tank and dustbin are built into the same unit, so if you do buy the standard RV30 Max (without the auto-empty dock), it's relatively easy to empty the built-in dustbin.
TP-Link Tapo RV30 Max Plus: Performance and test results
Overall test results
For the most part, the TP-Link Tapo RV30 Max Plus performed very well when it came to basic cleaning. That was especially true of larger debris, like cereal, where it was able to easily pick up the vast majority of pieces on both carpet and hardwood floors. Counterintuitively, the vacuum performed better on carpet when it came to picking up Cheerios, though that's common. That's because the spinning brush pushed Cheerios out of the way at times rather than straight into the dustbin – something that’s not quite as easy on carpet, where there’s more friction. Again, though, it picked up the vast majority of pieces without issue.
It performed pretty well for smaller debris like kitty litter, though it certainly performed better on hardwood floors than on carpet. It struggled somewhat with pet hair on carpet, though given the lower suction power, that's to be expected – and it still managed to pick up the vast majority of the hair on the hardwood floor. Frankly, for a vacuum in its price range, it still did quite well, though not as well as our top budget pick for pet hair, the iLife V3s Pro.
Combined cleaning performance scores
The TP-Link Tapo RV30 Max Plus may not perform quite as well as others in its price range on paper, but there are a few caveats to mention. For starters, the iLife V3s Pro, which is our top pick for budget vacuums for pet hair, works via remote and is very slow. The Shark iQ is a fair bit more expensive than the RV30 Max Plus, so it makes sense that its performance would be a little better.
That said, when it comes to things like cereal and kitty litter – larger debris that can be picked up easily – the TP-Link Tapo RV30 Max Plus still performs competitively. It's really the pet hair that it struggles with the most. If you don't have a pet or you're willing to allow the vacuum to go over the area multiple times, you may find that it's perfectly fine for your needs.
TP-Link Tapo RV30 Max Plus: Mopping performance
In recent years, companies have been innovating quite a lot when it comes to mopping techniques. Some robot vacuums have rotating, circular mop pads, while other new models have a roller mop pad that can apply more pressure to the floor. The TP-Link Tapo RV30 Max Plus doesn't have those. It has a traditional clip-on mop pad that wets with a water tank to clean the floors.
To be clear, that's more than a lot of competitors in this price range can claim. The fact that it has a mop at all makes it much more versatile.
Actual mopping performance, as expected, was only fine. The vacuum was able to clean up some very light stickiness from the floor, but it's not really built to handle larger messes or very sticky spills. If you use it to try and clean those, you might find that it leaves a sticky residue behind. Bu, it does do pretty well when it comes to basic day-to-day cleaning, where there's something lightly stuck to the floor that the vacuum won't pick up.
That said, the vacuum is unable to raise the mop pad when it goes over carpet. You can set the vacuum to avoid carpet when it's in mop mode, or to still go over carpeted areas if you don't mind the carpet getting a little wet. You'll have to manually add carpet to the app, though, as the vacuum doesn't automatically detect carpet like some more expensive models. You'll also have to manually clean the mop pad. I recommend doing so around once every week or two if you use your vacuum to mop on a regular basis. If you don't do so, it will start to smell.
TP-Link Tapo RV30 Max Plus: Setup, app, and mapping
Setting up the TP-Link Tapo RV30 Max Plus is relatively simple, and there's a quick start guide in the box, along with easy-to-follow instructions in the TP-Link Tapo app.
You'll start by unwrapping the docking station and plugging it in, after which you'll unwrap the robotic vacuum, remove any protective packaging, and turn it on. Once that's done, you'll open up the app and hit the “+” button to add a device. Hold down the three buttons for five seconds to enter pairing mode, and the app should find it on its own. The quick start guide doesn’t mention opening the app until you want to pair the RV30 Max Plus, but the app still has detailed instructions you can follow from the beginning of setup, including removing packaging. It was all very simple, and the vacuum connected to the app perfectly.
After the vacuum is added to the app, you'll want to let it map your home. This is, again, very simple. Simply tap the button to start the mapping process in the app, and it will quickly and quietly create a map of its environment. It'll separate things into rooms on its own, but you can also edit the map to join or separate those rooms and rename them.
Generally speaking, the app is well designed and easy to navigate, which is somewhat surprising given the fact that the Tapo app isn't just built for robotic vacuums, but all of the TP-Link Tapo smart home devices. From the home screen, you'll be able to access your favorite devices or all the devices. Plus, you can swipe between rooms to access only the products in those rooms. Once you tap on the vacuum, you'll be shown the map, along with buttons to empty the vacuum's dustbin into the dock, start a new vacuuming job, and edit the map. You can swipe up on this interface to tweak what you want the vacuum to do. For example, you can choose for the vacuum to clean anywhere between one and three times. Plus, there are four suction levels for the vacuum and three water level modes for the mop.
As mentioned, you'll have to manually add things like carpeted areas in the app, though thankfully doing so is relatively easy. Unfortunately, you will have to guess approximately where the carpeted areas are on the map if you have a rug, for example. If instead you have entire rooms that are carpeted, you can apply carpeted area to entire rooms with a tap.
TP-Link Tapo RV30 Max Plus: Verdict
The TP-Link Tapo RV30 Max Plus isn't going to break any records, but for its price, it's an excellent product. It doesn't quite pick up things like pet hair as well as some others in its price range, but those others aren't as easy to use and don't have mopping functionality. In other words, if you want one of the best cheap robot vacuums that can do everything reasonably well, the TP-Link Tapo RV30 Max Plus is definitely a model worth checking out. Just be prepared to clean the mop pad yourself.
