Having passed the Shark Ion Robot RV750 through a series of professional test programs, we can say that it’s an impressive product with amazing price to performance ratio. But then again, it’s not entirely flawless as you will discover much later in this shark ion robot 750 review. This model is good at cleaning dense messes on the furniture, because it won’t ram your furniture.
It features straightforward and intuitive apps alongside voice controls that are compatible with Alexa and Google Home. For pet hair cleanup, the unit is equipped with hair detangling technology which works in cahoots with a self-cleaning brush roll to capture pet hair, dander and related allergens. On the downside, the small dustbin means frequent trips to the dumpster.
In our shark ion robot vacuum reviews, we explore this model in detail so that you can choose if it’s good for you.
Table of Contents
About the Shark ION RV750 Robot Vacuum
The Shark Ion 750 is the first robotic vacuum from SharkNinja, a renowned home appliances manufacturer that has been around since 1995. The company has grown aggressively in recent years, with their vacuums competing with premium models for a common market share. The new robot vacuum from SharkNinja is facing a stiff competition from dominant brands like Ecovacs, Neato and iRobot.
Shark’s robot vacuum range is rather limited compared to iRobot in particular. There are about 5 main robotic versions bearing the Ion nameplate from the Shark brand, in addition to a premium IQ vacuum range. Nevertheless, their names and availability vary depending on region.
The Shark Ion 750/R75 occupies the lower end of the R700 Series range. It sits in the same class with the Ion 761/R76 and Ion 780/R78. It is also slotted behind the Shark Ion 800 Series models, such as the Ion 850/R85.
Who is Shark ION Robot 750 Designed For?
The Shark Ion Robot 750 is great for folks looking for a low-profile robot vacuum that can clean hard flooring and low-pile carpeting with no noise. With about 2.6 inches from the ground, this nimble little bot can get under furniture and clean the surface with a low hum, so it won’t disrupt a sleeping baby. It requires some supervision though, and can’t be trusted to do a thorough job on its own due to its random patterns.
What makes this vacuum great is an optimized cleaning path; it does cover a huge surface area on a single charge. And there are fantastic sensors whose role involves safeguarding the unit when it bumps into obstacles. It won’t easily fall down the stairs either.
Even while this robot vacuum offers easy scheduling through wireless communications, not everyone can benefit from it. This would be a wrong option for homes with mainly medium-pile or higher carpeting. Also, it isn’t a great choice for people who need a robot vacuum that can clean the whole floor, recharging and resuming work.
Shark Ion 750 Review – Features & Specs
Design & Weight
The Shark Ion 750 borrows a lot of design cues from the Roomba 690 with a slightly better battery life and extra features built into the unit. It also brings some vacuuming smarts of the brand’s upright and cordless models albeit in a compressed, circular package. In terms of dimensions, this vacuum measures 12.6 inches long x 12.6 inches wide x 2.6 inches high.
With a minimum clearance of 2.6 inches, the device is low enough to fit under almost all cabinets, bedding and furniture in an average home. It is both shorter and slimmer than a standard Roomba model, which means it can easily squeeze into narrower spaces to provide thorough cleanup throughout your home. Shark Ion Robot’s weight tipped a mere 5.5 pounds on our scale, so users will find it easy to lift it up off obstacles in the event it gets stuck.
Wi-Fi Supported
The Shark Ion 750 Robot connects to a 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi network so that you could program and control it using the Smartphone app. You can also choose to schedule your cleaning using voice control through the Shark skill for Amazon Alexa. To set it app, simply plug it in and download the mobile app on your phone.
Then, connect to the companion app via Wi-Fi. You can use the mobile app to create cleaning schedules, whereby the vacuum will automatically start cleaning remotely even when you are far from home. Although the robot vacuum has lights that indicate an error, you might find it confusing to remember the meaning of each light.
Fortunately, the mobile app will be able to tell you exactly what each light means, so you don’t need to master the error codes any more. For example, the Dock and the SPOT lights flashing together indicates a problem in the brush roll, but if they flash alternately shows that one of the edge brushes is stuck. You can also consult the mobile app to show you how to rectify any possible error alerts.
Up To 3 Control Options Available
Using the Shark Ion 750 Robot feels like a king with three control options available. Unlike the older ION Robot 720 model, it supports wireless capabilities and can be controlled and programmed through the Shark Clean mobile app. The first control option involves using free mobile app to perform a lot of controls such as scheduling, starting, stopping, pausing or resuming cleaning sessions. The app can also help you to force the vacuum to retreat to the docking station.
We dare say in our shark ion robot review that the app shouldn’t overly excite you, though. Unlike other robust robot vacuums on the market, this one doesn’t supply detailed reports, including maps of where it has covered and where it hasn’t. It’s functional but doesn’t provide push notifications alerting you when the cleaning cycle begins or stops.
The second control option involves issuing voice commands to the robot using a Google Home Assistant or an Amazon Alexa speaker. Through voice commands, the robot can be ordered to start cleaning, pause or return to the charging base. The third and last way to manage the robot is through local control.
There are three push buttons for different purposes on the vacuum. The first button sends the little guy out to take a cleaning cycle; the second one instructs it to retreat to the charging base; and the third button orders the vacuum to perform a spot cleaning session. The spot clean option is great when you notice a little spill or a dirty spot in your carpet.
You can simply lift up the 5-pound unit, place it on the dirty spot and choose the spot clean button. It’ll start spiraling around the spot for a few minutes to have that general area cleaned. These three control options provide an easier way to manage the Shark Ion 750 Robot.
Battery & Charge Time
When using robotic vacuums, the dreaded idea of having to constantly unplug and plug into a new outlet is the thing of the past. The Shark Ion 750 Robot operates on a rechargeable 2,600-mAh Li-Ion battery pack with an average of 70 minutes continuous runtime under optimal conditions. As an overhauled version of the Nickel-Metal Hydride batteries, the Lithium-Ion battery lasts longer, recharges faster and has a more extended charging cycle.
From complete dead, the battery takes less than 3 hours to fully charge. This is an average charge time for the market, because some models tend to charge quicker while others take hours longer. Like most other shark ion robot reviews have pointed out, the overall runtime will depend on the floor type being cleaned, dirty or blocked filter, the amount of debris sucked up, and maintenance issues like a full collection bin.
When all is said and done, these factors may contribute to faster draining of the battery down to an average of 45-50 minutes. This runtime is adequate for most floor layouts and plans as it can clean the entire surface on a single charge. However, it may not be sufficient for anything more than 800 square feet (or 600 square feet for carpeting), and a recharge will be necessary to complete the cleanup.
What we liked about this robot is that it automatically returns to the docking station when the battery runs low. As soon as the battery level reaches 15% or lower, the cleaning session stops and the robot retreats back to the charging base. On the downside, the vacuum won’t resume cleaning even after the battery is fully charged, and the user must start it again by pressing the clean button on the unit or by using the wireless control options.
Smart Sensor Technology
Unlike more sophisticated robovacs that are equipped with cameras that intelligently generate virtual maps of your home, the Shark Ion 750 Robot uses more basic Smart Sensor Navigation. It comes with an array of proximity sensors that detect obstacles to avoid falling down the stairs and elevations. It can seamlessly navigate surfaces and adapt to surrounding obstacles using three types of sensors – collision sensors, drop sensors and dirt detection sensors.
The collision sensors, which Shark calls the proximity sensors, are mounted around the vacuum’s perimeter. These sensors detect obstacles (like table legs, walls, and obstacles) to help the robot navigate your landscape smoothly. Upon detecting an obstacle, collision sensors alert the robot to slow down and cover as much floor as possible. It gets as close to the obstacle as possible and retreats before making contact.
However, this robot uses random patterns to clean, which isn’t particularly accurate as collisions do happen albeit less frequently. But since the robot has a rubber bumper around, and the sensors notify it to slow its speed when an obstacle is detected, damage is virtually nonexistent. And it rarely leaves scuff marks.
On the bottom of the robot are drop sensors for detecting places that could probably be a fall. When it detects a fall, these sensors instruct the robot to stop, take another direction or lower the pace until it passes the detection. Drop detect sensors prevent the robot from tumbling down stairs or falling off ledges, and the robot response is near perfect.
On the downside, however, these sensors may detect dark spots on your floor. Black tiles, dark-colored carpets and strips in linoleum tend to absorb infrared beams and transmit a false positive to the robot making it believe there is a ledge in place. This problem isn’t exclusive to the Shark Ion 750 Robot as other robotic vacuums experience the same.
Finally, there are dirt detection sensors positioned on the bottom of the robot. They’re seated close to the brush bar, and their role is to detect the amount of dirt in that area. Dirt detection sensors send constant signals informing the robot when an area is spotlessly clean.
Cleaning Technology
The Shark Ion 750 Robot features helix-pattern brush roll with high-tensile bristles that provide a thorough clean up of large debris, dirt, pet hair and dander on carpets and hard floors. This brush roll can effectively agitate and remove unwanted particles. In addition to the main brush roll, there are two side brushes dedicated to cleaning the floor edges more effectively.
This robot vacuum operates on two cleaning modes; the default mode and the spot cleaning mode. It uses the default mode to start cleaning – whether via the mobile app, manually, or as per the schedule. The spot cleaning mode is ideal when you need the robot to concentrate on a smaller (and dirtier) carpeted area in a spiral pattern.
It’s also important to mention in our shark ion robot 750 review that the Shark Ion vacuum cleans in three stages. The first stage involves brushing or sweeping the floor using the dual side brushes. As the robot runs along the floor, it unleashes two rotary brushes on the edges which pick up dirt, dust and debris from baseboards, edges and corners. It focuses on the edges because that is where a majority of the pet hair ends up.
After pulling out all the debris along the edges, it then places it in the center to await the second stage. What takes place in the second stage is something experts refer to as “grabbing”. The fancy terminology aside; grabbing is a stage where the main brush roll picks up all the dirt and debris in its path. It grabs all the dirt from the sweeping stage, combines it with any particles in its path, and sends it into the suctioning chamber.
The third and last stage is the suction and collection. In this stage, all the dirt and debris collected in the first and second stages are suctioned up by a powerful motor. The sucked up debris now flows through the ducting and is damped into the collection bin to be emptied.
Using the detangling technology, the Shark Ion 750 Robot untangles the stupid hairs that get wrapped around the brush roll. This is an innovative self-cleaning system that lets the brush roll manage and untangle long pet hair, fibers and strings so that you don’t have to do it manually. With the self-grooming system, you’ll be able to spend the least time maintaining your vacuum since the brush roll can untangle just about anything that gets tousled in it.
Certified HEPA Filtration
The Shark Ion 750 Robot is suitable for people who have small children, pets or allergies. It comes with HEPA certified filters that have been approved for allergen collection. In simple terms, these filters can capture and retain up to 99% of particles down to 0.3 microns in size.
Even while HEPA filters are becoming a common necessity, a lot of vacuums are lacking them, including some Roomba models. HEPA filtration is designed to seize a whole lot of allergy-causing particles, from pet dander to dust mites, blocking them from re-circulating into the indoor air. You’ll require HEPA filtration if you have persistent allergies, or if you have small kids that still lay or crawl on the floors.
In the same breath, HEPA filters are a must-have for people who have pets that shed as they’ll collect the dander from shedding pets and from carpet fibers. Advanced HEPA filters can even collect air born allergens like pollens on the floor. Allergens can become airborne due to playing, walking or crawling on the floor causing you to develop a reaction.
The Shark Ion’s HEPA filters safeguard against recurrence of allergens in your home. These filters aren’t washable though, and the filter material is likely to break down if it gets wet. The manufacturer recommends replacing the filters at least once or twice every 6 months depending on usage frequency.
Dustbin Capacity
The Shark Ion 750 Robot comes with a smaller dustbin size than those of other robot vacuums on the market. It has a 380-mL dustbin which tends to fill up quickly. Therefore, you’ll need to empty it out every time and again especially when cleaning a wide floor area.
The good news is, the dustbin is very easy to empty with a simple press of a button. The easy-access dustbin detaches from the side for effortless emptying without a mess. It simply clips out in an instant, allowing you to dump the contents into the trash easily and hygienically.
What We Loved
What Could Be Better
Our Take
The Shark Ion 750 Robot is an excellent first impression from Shark, but the company must make some crucial improvements if it wants to become a household name in the world of robotic vacuums. Sure, it has the advanced technology, power and efficiency to give other high-end machines a run for their money. It cleans quietly, and its low-profile design facilitates a thorough cleaning of areas where other models can’t.
However, it finds it difficult to clean high-pile carpets, and you must use the BotBoundary strip to block the robot from going over high pile carpeting. Also, this robotic vacuum cannot resume cleaning after charging, which can be a huge drawback because constant supervision is a must. And with a small dust bin, you’ll have to make several trips to the trash.
Even though the Shark 750 Robot has a couple of flaws, we noticed it cleans bare floors and low-pile carpets exceptionally well. It gives you the Smartphone compatibility, impressive battery life and good average performance all at a much lower price than the competition. We honestly think that this model is a good start, but if you need a premium robot vacuum that supports advanced mapping features, better suction and greater cleaning at room edges, you might want to try the Roomba 960.
It offers improved suction, smart mapping and recharge/resume feature but it costs twice as expensive. The Shark Ion Robot 750 is generally a solid pick for buyers on a budget. This cheerful Wi-Fi enabled robot vacuum combines smart and simple controls with good overall cleaning performance.
