Trifo Ollie vacuum review: pet-friendly performance
MSRP $300.00
“Some bonus features are lacking, but Ollie is a reliable vacuum that each one pet owners should consider.”
Pros
- Reasonably priced price
- Easy to make use of software
- Tons of additional features
- Eye-catching design
Cons
- Creates loud and high-pitched sounds
- Some features seem underdeveloped
- Mapping and navigation issues
Ollie is a robot vacuum from Trifo that’s designed for pet owners. Specifically, it’s built to drag loose fur out of each nook and cranny in your own home, using a mixture of powerful suction and unique add-on accessories. It also comes with a couple of pet-friendly features, corresponding to a laser pointer to maintain your babies entertained and ease their vacuum-induced anxiety.
Considering it costs just $300, Ollie performs as much as its price tag. It suffers from navigation and mapping issues, and a few of its pet-friendly features seem half-baked, but pet owners should definitely include Ollie of their robot vacuum search.
Easy setup, intuitive app
Getting Ollie acquainted with your own home is a painless process. After finding a spot for its dock and installing the accompanying smartphone app, you’ll have the opportunity to get Ollie arrange in minutes. From the app, you’ll be able to start your first cleansing — and this initial cleansing will map out your own home for subsequent runs.
Setup takes not more than a half hour, and operation is a breeze because of the smartphone app.
Once this process is accomplished (it took a couple of half-hour for my tiny condo), you’ll have the opportunity to dive into all of the customization options offered on the Trifo app. You’ll be able to change suction levels, designate specific cleansing areas, arrange restricted zones, check on past cleansing stats, or view Ollie’s maintenance history. You’ll be able to even prepare a cleansing schedule, having Ollie clean whilst you’re at work.
The app gives you remarkable control over Ollie without feeling bloated. Intuitive menus, a minimalistic UI, and a house screen that shows just the essentials make this a robot vacuum anyone can use without hassle. And if you wish to activate its advanced features, they’re only a screen tap away. For just $300, I used to be impressed by the premium software.
Loaded with additional features
Jon Bitner / Digital Trends
Ollie is a robot vacuum initially, but Trifo decided to bundle in a ridiculous number of additional features. These are largely gimmicks, and most of them don’t seem nearly as well designed because the smartphone app or actual vacuum. For instance, Ollie comes with a laser pointer attachment that clips on the side of the vacuum — however it has a penchant for falling off while in use and wishes to be manually activated. It’s an amazing toy for my dog (who thinks he’s a cat), however it would have been great if Trifo managed to automate its performance.
The clip-on attachment tends to fall off, making the laser pointer and air freshener unreliable.
The identical goes for the air freshener, which is contained in the identical clip-on gadget because the laser pointer. When Olli is in motion, the air coming out the back is purported to waft over the air freshener stick and eliminate odors. But since the clip-on attachment tends to fall off or spin misplaced, I’ve never noticed more energizing air after an Ollie run.
Rounding out the list of extras is a true-color camera to capture video, two-way audio, and motion detection. These features work significantly better than the above, and pet owners will probably get some good mileage out of them. They don’t quite work in addition to a dedicated indoor camera, but they’re a pleasant bonus for folk who don’t have already got the tech.
Pet hair, beware
Jon Bitner / Digital Trends
Pet hair is the bane of any pet owner’s existence, and Ollie’s central purpose is to remove all traces of it from your own home. The robot vacuum comes preinstalled with the usual rotating brush, but there’s the choice to put in the Pet Hair Extractor — a tool that permits for 4,000Pa suction and easier access to pet hair lurking in your floors.
Installing the attachment is remarkably easy. After powering off Ollie and flipping it on its back, all you’ll want to do is push a quick-release lever, remove the rotating brush, and clip within the Pet Hair Extractor. The device is tangle-free and is meant to supply increased suction to drag up every little bit of pet fur in its path.
Pet owners with hardwood floors will love the Pet Hair Extractor.
Unfortunately, my results with the attachment were mixed. Testing revealed that it worked best on laminate or tile floors, whereas carpeted areas still had fur embedded even after several passes with Ollie. Because there may be minimal oscillating motion with this attachment, fur that’s been trampled into your carpets simply can’t be removed — even when pulling at maximum suction.
Nevertheless, pet owners with hardwood throughout their homes will love the device. Not only does it work wonders on loose fur, but there’s literally no maintenance required for the device. And for the reason that Pet Hair Extractor doesn’t have a brush, there’s nothing to detangle or clean. Just empty the dustbin after each cleansing, and also you’re able to roll.
Since my home is basically carpeted, I stuck with the usual rotating brush. Each cleansing resulted in a dustbin stuffed with fur (gross), which is straightforward to empty without getting your hands dirty. That’s the one routine maintenance you’ll have to perform after each cleansing. You’ll periodically want to examine the roller brush for hair accumulation and clean off a couple of internal filters, but Ollie is surprisingly self-sufficient.
No matter which attachment you’re using, Ollie does a solid job cleansing your entire home. I did run into a couple of navigation and mapping issues (corresponding to getting confused on its way back to the dock or missing a small portion of my kitchen), but I discovered that simply remapping the room restored Ollie’s sense of direction.
Our take
Although Ollie isn’t perfect, it continues to be an amazing alternative for pet owners on a budget. The Pet Hair Extractor is great for maintenance-free operation on hardwood floors, the easy app makes it easy to schedule your cleanings, and all of the quirky extras make it stand out within the crowded mid-range marketplace. When you’re not a pet owner, nonetheless, consider an alternative choice — your $300 is paying for plenty of features you just don’t need.
Are there higher alternatives?
Yes, but they have an inclination to hold hefty price tags. The iRobot Roomba s9+ is arguably the most effective overall robot vacuum, but you’ll pay nearly $1,000 for its performance. When you don’t need all of the pet-specific features, we found the Yeedi Vac Max to supply similar performance and pricing.
How long will it last?
Trifo offers a one-year limited warranty for the product, although we’d expect it to last for much longer. The entire lifespan of the device will largely come all the way down to how often you perform maintenance and the way often you vacuum.
Must you buy it?
When you’re a pet owner on a budget, yes. When you’re not a pet owner, consider testing another robot vacuums that provide the same price tag but don’t come bundled with features you won’t use. Our roundup of the most effective robot vacuums is an amazing place to start out.
Editors’ Recommendations
