EXPLAINED: Shopping for a vacuum cleaner in Czechia

Robotic vacuums are taking over the market, outselling other formats because of their convenience, technological advances, and adaptability to every home.  

Although we’ve been using vacuum cleaners since the early 1900s – the first vacuum, a luxury item, was sold in Ohio in 1907 – it wasn’t until a few decades later that they became common household items. We had to wait until 2001 to get robotic vacuums, great time savers that sweep floors on their own while you’re busy doing something else. 

These turned out to be a particularly great invention for women, since, according to a 2020 Gender Equality Study, “in every second Czech household, most of the housework is done by women. And it doesn't matter whether the women are employed or not.” 

Although in recent years the division of "invisible work" between men and women has become fairer, women still spend more hours on housework and childcare than their partners, regardless of who works the longest outside the home. 

The global robotic vacuum cleaner market reached a value of US$ 5.55 Billion in 2021, with an 18 percent growth expected by 2027. The massive growth is a clear answer to the needs of a market where both adults usually work, people are looking to complete household chores in less time, and everybody demands convenience – because of their compact size, robotic vacuums can easily get under cabinets, tables, and beds to clean. 

Shopping for a vacuum in the Czech Republic

Did you know that there’s a significant difference between American and European vacuum cleaners? In the U.S., the typical canister vacuum cleaner that is common here (with a wheeled body attached to a flexible plastic hose) is often referred to as the “European vacuum cleaner.”

The European vacuum cleaner is better suited to the types of floors common here – which are either tile or wood rather than long-pile and low-pile carpet (which an upright vacuum cleaner is often better suited for). 

Something else that’s different about European vacuum cleaners is that they must adhere to specific regulations, such as not producing more than 80 decibels of noise, producing less than 900 watts, and having a motor that last for at leasts 500 hours. 

Just something to keep in mind when you’re out shopping and you seem to run into the same models over and over!  

Choosing the right vacuum 

When it comes to vacuums, not all are created equal. And in addition to different sizes, formats and motor power, you should also be looking at the type of floors you have, who you share your home with, and even the size of your property to choose the right one. 

Households with small children or pets would benefit from a vacuum cleaner with a HEPA filter that captures even the finest dust mites. You can also purchase a robot with a built-in UV lamp to help destroy bacteria and allergens – the perfect solution if you have a baby crawling all over the house. Some vacuums also come with special PET brushes made with rubber slats, which are easier to clean after they pick up tons of hair from a shedding pooch. 

The other major consideration is your floor. Carpets require a vacuum with a bristle brush, as they not only pick up dirt but also fluff up the fibers. Some robotic vacuums can now vacuum and mop at the same time (perfect for wood or tile floors), while others come equipped with intelligent navigation guided by a camera or laser sensors to move around busy apartments with lots of furniture. Other robotic vacuums also work with “virtual barriers” which create an invisible obstacle that the vacuum cleaner can't cross, which prevents them from falling down the stairs or approaching fragile objects.

Symbo, a Czech-made robotic vacuum can be operated using your smartphone and an application (with a choice of many languages including English, German and Czech). Their high-end models like the Symbo LASERBOT 650 WiFi and the Symbo xBot 5 PRO WiFi sell for CZK 7,000-8,000 and come equipped with laser or gyroscopic navigation, are easy to control via your phone, and clean using both mops and a standard vacuum system. More basic models without an app connection sell for as little as CZK 3,000.