Robot Vacuums with Cameras: Advancements and Privacy Tradeoffs

Modern advances in smart homes have made everyday tasks easier—but also raised privacy concerns. Robotic vacuums are no exception. Especially following the related incidents reported by iRobot and Ecovacs. Yet camera vision is increasingly common, more advanced capabilities may not be achieved without cameras. Therefore, balancing these benefits and risks is a key focus in the industry.

Robot Vacuums with Cameras: Advanced Visual Navigation

Camera-equipped robot vacuums leverage visual navigation technologies like vSLAM (Visual Simultaneous Localization and Mapping) – simultaneous localization and mapping via onboard cameras – to create detailed floor maps and detect obstacles. Camera-based navigation can recognize fine features in the environment (corners, edges, clutter) and build highly accurate maps. Cameras (especially with AI) are key for spotting low-profile items like wires, socks, or pet messes. This is something that robot vacuums relying solely on LiDAR navigation struggle to achieve — they won’t detect any object that’s lower than the LiDAR turret on top. LiDAR excels at precision and works even in the dark, while camera-based vSLAM is faster to process and can exploit rich visual detail in well-lit rooms. In practice, high-end models often combine both: pairing a LiDAR unit with vSLAM cameras lets the robot benefit from LiDAR’s accuracy and vSLAM’s adaptability.

Roborock Saros Z70 scanning small obstacles

Privacy and Security Considerations

The use of cameras raises valid privacy concerns. Camera vacuums map your home layout Even beyond images, these devices collect data like home maps, cleaning schedules, and device usage patterns, which together form an intimate profile of household life. To address this, manufacturers have adopted multiple safeguards: end-to-end encryption for data, TÜV Rheinland certifications for cybersecurity and privacy (Notably, Roborock was the first robotic vacuum brand to earn TÜV Rheinland’s “IoT Privacy Protection Service” certification under the EU ETSI EN 303 645 standard), user controls to limit permissions, and recommendations for

strong passwords with two-factor authentication (2FA).

To meet the growing need for more advanced cleaning performance, robot vacuums increasingly rely on cameras. However, out of concern for personal privacy, some users remain hesitant about camera-equipped models. Although manufacturers continue to strengthen data protection measures, it is still impossible to guarantee absolute security of users’ personal information.

If you share these concerns, you may consider the following LiDAR-based models and accessories instead.

	Roborock Q10 S5+	Dreame L10s Plus	Narwal Freo Z10
Self-emptying	yes	yes	yes
Mopping	vibration technology	Dual Rotary Mops	spinning mops
Suction Power	10000 Pa	7000 Pa	15000 Pa
Height	99.06mm	97mm	107.7mm
Price	200+$	200+$	500+$

Cost-effective model

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techTongBo (also named: Nanjing TongBo / NJTB) is a Chinese company specializing in the manufacture and sales of vacuum cleaner accessories. We offer replacement accessories for the global market that are compatible with mainstream vacuum cleaner brands and have stronger price advantages.