Check 1
A phone that runs the app
Most robots need a phone app and a maker account just to set up. Some people will not want either.
Each robot’s page names its app, and whether it runs without the cloud.
Back to the Robovations™ Robot Gift Guide
Ten checks · Any robot
Before You Gift a Robot
A robot is one of the few gifts that asks something of the person who gets it. These ten checks take a few minutes, and they head off most of the regret.
They work for any robot. For the ones we classify, each robot’s page answers most of them.
Checks 1 to 4 · Their home
Will it work in their home?
Four things about the house and the person, not the robot. Ask them before you buy, or check quietly.
Check 2
Wi-Fi with a 2.4 GHz band
Many robots join 2.4 GHz only. Mesh networks and building sign-in pages trip some up.
99of 119
Ready Now robot vacuums with a band on record connect on 2.4 GHz only.
Check 3
Floors it can cross
Thresholds, thick rugs, dark floors, mirrors and low furniture. A robot that does well in one home can stall in another.
The Fit Check on each robot page asks about these.
Check 4
Room and an outlet for the dock
Self-emptying and mop-washing docks are large. They need clear floor in front, and some need water.
Checks 5 to 7 · After the box
What does it ask for after the box?
The price on the tag is not the whole bill. Three costs land on the person who unwraps it: a plan, parts and their own time.
Check 5 · A paid plan
99%
Three years of Miko Max cost $297. The Miko 3 itself lists at $299.
Each bar is the robot’s own list price. The dark part is three years of its paid plan.
Miko 3 · Miko Max$14.99 a month or $99 a year
Whisker Litter-Robot EVO · Whisker+$7.99 a month or $79.90 a year
Litter-Robot 4 · Whisker+$7.99 a month or $79.90 a year
Whisker Litter-Robot 5 · Whisker+$7.99 a month or $79.90 a year
Whisker Litter-Robot 5 Pro · Whisker+$7.99 a month or $79.90 a year
Sony Aibo ERS-1000 · aibo AI Cloud PlanFirst 3 years included, then $300 a year
Mowers’ data plans run $0 to $186 over three years (26 of 45 state a price); none needs one to mow. PETKIT Care+ has no published price. No robot vacuum rated Ready Now needs a paid plan to clean. 54 of 321 Ready Now household robots on file sell a paid plan. 2 cannot be used without one. What a subscription gate is
Check 6 · Parts
$60a year
The median a robot vacuum costs in replacement parts: bags, filters, brushes, pads. Read across 191 robots with priced parts.
Check 7 · Their time
60minutes a month
The median hands-on upkeep for a robot vacuum in the gift guide, from owner reports and makers’ manuals. Each robot page lists the chores it hands back.
Checks 8 to 10 · After the 25th
What could change after you give it?
A robot keeps changing after it is unwrapped. A successor, a maker’s servers or the store’s calendar can each change what the gift is worth.
Check 8
Is a newer model coming?
An announced successor can mean fewer updates for this one. We rate it Wait until the new one ships.
2rated Wait today
Check 9
Does it need the maker’s servers?
Neato switched its cloud off on October 6, 2025. Check whether the robot can run without it.
25of 323 stop without them
Check 10
Will the window outlast the 25th?
When each store’s window closes, against the day a northern lawn first needs mowing. Pick the day it was bought.
Bought on
- Most makers' own storesDec 27, 30 days; Mammotion, Segway Navimow, Worx, Ecovacs
- Lowe'sDec 27, 30 days for outdoor power equipment
- Best BuyJan 15, holiday purchases from Oct 31
- TargetJan 24, electronics bought Nov 1 to Dec 24
- AmazonJan 31, items shipped Nov 1 to Dec 31
- WalmartJan 31, purchases Oct 1 to Dec 31
- Home DepotFeb 25, 90 days, where the gas-mower exception does not apply
- Husqvarna's own storeMar 7, 100 days, iQ-series Automowers only
- CostcoNo fixed end, no fixed window under its satisfaction guarantee
- Most makers' own storesJan 9, 30 days; Mammotion, Segway Navimow, Worx, Ecovacs
- Lowe'sJan 9, 30 days for outdoor power equipment
- Best BuyJan 15, holiday purchases from Oct 31
- TargetJan 24, electronics bought Nov 1 to Dec 24
- AmazonJan 31, items shipped Nov 1 to Dec 31
- WalmartJan 31, purchases Oct 1 to Dec 31
- Home DepotMar 10, 90 days, where the gas-mower exception does not apply
- Husqvarna's own storeMar 20, 100 days, iQ-series Automowers only
- CostcoNo fixed end, no fixed window under its satisfaction guarantee
- Best BuyJan 15, holiday purchases from Oct 31
- Most makers' own storesJan 19, 30 days; Mammotion, Segway Navimow, Worx, Ecovacs
- Lowe'sJan 19, 30 days for outdoor power equipment
- TargetJan 24, electronics bought Nov 1 to Dec 24
- AmazonJan 31, items shipped Nov 1 to Dec 31
- WalmartJan 31, purchases Oct 1 to Dec 31
- Home DepotMar 20, 90 days, where the gas-mower exception does not apply
- Husqvarna's own storeMar 30, 100 days, iQ-series Automowers only
- CostcoNo fixed end, no fixed window under its satisfaction guarantee
Bought from a maker’s own store on Nov 27, it can go back until Dec 27, 2 days after it is unwrapped.
Bought from a maker’s own store on Dec 10, it can go back until Jan 9, 15 days after it is unwrapped.
Bought from a maker’s own store on Dec 20, it can go back until Jan 19, 25 days after it is unwrapped.
Terms as published for the 2025 holidays, the latest out when checked on September 28, 2026. Many also require the machine unused, and some makers charge a 10 to 20 percent restocking fee. First mow: April to early May for cool-season lawns. Sources: Best Buy, Most makers' own stores, Lowe's, Target, Amazon, Walmart, Home Depot, Husqvarna's own store, Costco, first mow.
Counts are read from our records of Ready Now robot vacuums, window cleaners, litter boxes, companion robots, robot mowers and pool robots, and change as the records do. Owner time and parts costs are our estimates.
One more suggestion
Set it up before you wrap it
Or plan to do it together. The first run is where most robots, and most people, decide how they feel about each other.
