Aiper Seagull Pro Review

[tcat]

I wonder if this one does a better job

 

[JackHarkness]

Finally no longer gets stuck on drains! All it needed was an extra 1/4" to radius of rear wheels. Used these, with one side of lip cut off. Perfect fit (with a few dabs of 3M 5200). My drains are a hair higher than the bottom Seagull clearance, these are a good fit.

Amazon.com

Here it is in floor mode. Acts a little crazy the first 5-10 minutes, but after that it just goes back and forth like this:

Betta 2 charging in the sun at the end. Best combo ever!

Can you show how you installed these? Confused what you mean by cutting lip off? Mine seems to sometimes* get stuck on the drain

Definitely don’t judge the wall performance by using only the auto mode without trying the wall only mode…

Mine works great in my 17,000 gal kidney’ish shaped gunnite pool with curved floors up to the walls. Today it ran 2+ full iterations on the walls with one charge.

So far it’s performed very well and 100X better than the Polaris pressure side cleaner that it’s replacing!

As tcat said you must have a dud because it’s actually a good performing robot for the price!

Again - I could understand having 1 dud. But do you think it's plausible I got 3 duds? I bought 3 of them - and have 2 for myself. All 3 have the same issues. That's not a dud, that's a problem and a pattern. 1 has been returned.

Here is a video after a full run with just 1.

SmartPath navigation was utterly BS.

No matter HOW I put it in the corners and make it as straight as possible going in - the jets kick on - it ends up turning in a random direction and zooming off. It has no pattern, and that already is disastrous and unacceptable when all it's doing is Roomba-ing around the pool and going over the same spots 800 times.

If it hits the stairs - it darts off in a random direction. Again - anytime it encounters any sort of wall - it does not seem to follow the pattern they advertise.

Also I put 2 in the water at the same time at different ends of the pool (after 1 cleaned the pool) - they still couldn't get the entire pool clean and missed the same spots - both in floor only mode.

Tbh the fact it's getting raving reviews here shocks me. I was certain a lot of you would recommend the S300/S200 or another vacuum. I thought I bought a crappy brand.

I cannot recommend the Seagull Pro whatsoever. But I see tcat can...but then again - he has 1 and I have tested 3. I can provide proof of my 2 units - as you can see in this pic

TWO running same time - floor only mode.

Shows a clean floor bottom - but only because I had to manually vacuum the missed spots.

Both units exhibited "floating" behavior at times randomly where the wheels kind of kicked up and rotated floating or went forward with wheelies (is this a defect?). Do they do it all the time? No....

I don't know if these vacuums are good compared to lets say the S300 or more expensive vacuums that allow controlling them from a mobile app and manually controlling them also? I would think these AIPER vacuums are considered "budget grade" and not for
serious pro-sumers.

Someone correct me on this comparison....

 

[tcat]

I did get 1 dud, but 2nd seems good. The first just wouldn't charge after first run. As far as cutting off lip, see picture. Since this tire is narrower than Aiper tire, the lip is in the way from sliding it on. A drain clip would probably work too.

No clue why you're having such a hard time with a normal shaped pool. Mine runs length, then width, twice. All at odd angles, but it's smart enough to move over approx 12" each pass. Yeah lots of odd rotating now and then, especially at corners. Why would you buy 3 before testing one for 30 days?

 

[JackHarkness]

I did get 1 dud, but 2nd seems good. The first just wouldn't charge after first run. As far as cutting off lip, see picture. Since this tire is narrower than Aiper tire, the lip is in the way from sliding it on. A drain clip would probably work too.

No clue why you're having such a hard time with a normal shaped pool. Mine runs length, then width, twice. All at odd angles, but it's smart enough to move over approx 12" each pass. Yeah lots of odd rotating now and then, especially at corners. Why would you buy 3 before testing one for 30 days?

I bought them as gifts as they were the rave at CES (where I was). In hindsight, I should have perhaps tested one for 30 days. I have returned the 3rd one (it was so bad that the person gave it back, LOL) and the 2 are currently with me still within the 30 days. I decided not to gift the 2nd one after all....but once I reach Day 25 - back they both go.

Again - I have observed it several times - and they all seem to do the same thing - they hit the wall - they turn randomly - they go over an area - they may rotate around the same area then turn and take off in a random direction. It's very not smart. I'm surprised you are having yours overlap, etc....mine is absolutely not showing behavior of overlapping anything. All 3 showed 0 patterns to even overlap. they take off in random directions based on water buoyancy

Can you show a video of the pattern behavior? I may have to look back at your old posts maybe you already did...

 

[tcat]

I bought them as gifts as they were the rave at CES (where I was). In hindsight, I should have perhaps tested one for 30 days. I have returned the 3rd one (it was so bad that the person gave it back, LOL) and the 2 are currently with me still within the 30 days. I decided not to gift the 2nd one after all....but once I reach Day 25 - back they both go.

Again - I have observed it several times - and they all seem to do the same thing - they hit the wall - they turn randomly - they go over an area - they may rotate around the same area then turn and take off in a random direction. It's very not smart. I'm surprised you are having yours overlap, etc....mine is absolutely not showing behavior of overlapping anything. All 3 showed 0 patterns to even overlap. they take off in random directions based on water buoyancy

Can you show a video of the pattern behavior? I may have to look back at your old posts maybe you already did...

My post above (#139) is typical. Hits wall, backs up, turns 90°, goes forward about a foot, turns 90°, goes to other side, repeat. Does this until it reaches a corner. It's definitely not 100% consistent, especially at corners.

 

[gworrel]

Also I put 2 in the water at the same time at different ends of the pool (after 1 cleaned the pool) - they still couldn't get the entire pool clean and missed the same spots - both in floor only mode.

I wonder if you have unreasonable expectations. I have had several pool vacuums now, and I've never had any of them clean the pool thoroughly in one go, or even 2 or 3. I use them every day, or even twice a day, and eventually the pool is 98% clean. I had a Dolphin Primal X3 that was a step down from the S200 model that just died recently. It was good, but could not get sand off the bottom. I bought a Max Blaster to get the spots that the Dolphin missed.

I bought the Aiper, and then picked up an Aquabot SP200 open box on eBay for $300. The only device I have been absolutely thrilled with is the Betta skimmer. I only wish there was a way to have it coexist with a corded cleaner. I thought the Aiper would be a better match with the Betta, and it is. The Aiper works very well on walls but as it goes around the pool, it often leaves a gap between passes, and one section of the pool, on the slope to the deep end when it is navigating up the slope and climbing the walls, it seems to be too much for its tiny brain and it gives up and skips past it.

I will probably keep both of these cleaners and alternate between them. When I use the corded Aquabot I have to check it occasionally to avoid conflicts with the Betta, or use it with the Betta out of the pool. The Aiper can work without a problem while the Betta is in the pool and it is not a problem if I leave it running when I leave. I agree that the smart navigation is far from being as smart as it needs to be, but even with random turns, it eventually gets to almost everything.

 

[CajunCoding]

Finally no longer gets stuck on drains! All it needed was an extra 1/4" to radius of rear wheels. Used these, with one side of lip cut off. Perfect fit (with a few dabs of 3M 5200). My drains are a hair higher than the bottom Seagull clearance, these are a good fit.

Amazon.com

Here it is in floor mode. Acts a little crazy the first 5-10 minutes, but after that it just goes back and forth like this:

Betta 2 charging in the sun at the end. Best combo ever!

@tcat thanks for sharing your innovative solution! I may get a set if I find my drains keep being an issue but currently only seem to get permanently stuck when the pump is running, otherwise it seems to work its way free eventually; but has me wondering how much battery runtime I’m losing when it gets stuck.

Def. glad it’s working for you, and wouldn’t be surprised if Aiper releases something similar as an accessory!

 

[CajunCoding]

I bought them as gifts as they were the rave at CES (where I was). In hindsight, I should have perhaps tested one for 30 days. I have returned the 3rd one (it was so bad that the person gave it back, LOL) and the 2 are currently with me still within the 30 days. I decided not to gift the 2nd one after all....but once I reach Day 25 - back they both go.

Again - I have observed it several times - and they all seem to do the same thing - they hit the wall - they turn randomly - they go over an area - they may rotate around the same area then turn and take off in a random direction. It's very not smart. I'm surprised you are having yours overlap, etc....mine is absolutely not showing behavior of overlapping anything. All 3 showed 0 patterns to even overlap. they take off in random directions based on water buoyancy

Can you show a video of the pattern behavior? I may have to look back at your old posts maybe you already did...

Yeah what you show in your video would have me miffed also, but it is not my experience either…. but your video is very short and doesn’t really show if the cleaners were running for very long, etc.

But that is Crud load of leaves left if you truly ran a whole floor only cleaning cycle — it looks similar to what my pool looked like, but when finished only 1 single small leaf was left after my first run.

A time lapse of the behavior in your pool would really help you to diagnose if the overall pattern is completely random or what…most phones can do that.

This new review on YouTube shows a time lapse (see the 2m:28s mark) that gives a reasonable idea of the “intelligent” cleaning route…which I agree isn’t as “intelligent” as it is really just systematic accounting for gaps via a cross-cross algorithm…but soo far has been very effective in my case.

As for the wheelies, I saw it once and ever since I do make sure that I get all the air out of it when I put it in the water—twist, turn, angle-it, etc... until I see lots/most of the bubbles come out.

This now has me wanting to do a time lapse of mine now just to see what it’s doing (since I generally walk away after 5 minutes and just let it do its thing)…I’ll def post if I get time to do that in the coming week.

 

[tcat]

That's a representative video, mine is very similar. Wall mode seems much "smarter" than floor mode, it isn't effected by pool shape nearly as much. I'm impressed it handles floor slope very well; spends as much time in shallow as deep. I'm hoping battery holds up over time. Taking less that 2 hours to run for 3 is impressive. I've contacted them a couple times about the finer filter they advertise, but they don't seem to have the demand. Thinking of experimenting with some sort of sock (skimmer sock?).

 

[BC78]

I ended up returning mine. After testing it in numerous locations and different settings I think I figured what's going on with my issues. The robot at times wouldn't know it's hit a wall and would keep trying to go forward and then it would get traction on one wheel and it would spin and carry on in that new direction. Sometimes it would just randomly stop in the middle of the pool and attempt to spin but there was not enough traction to turn so the wheels were spinning faster than the robot was turning so the robot likely thought it was in a different position than it was in. I'm not sure what method the software uses to know when it hits a wall. GPS likely wont work in the pool and there's no kind of base station communicating like cordless mowers have. I'm thinking it goes in a direction and hits a wall and then the software senses the increase in power draw and then changes direction. The problem is the pool is so slick and the rubber not that grippy under water with a very small amount of tread on the pool surface that the power draw is not increasing so it just keeps going in that direction and is the reason it stops in the middle of the pool and changes direction as there's likely a set time or distance it will go in a straight line for this reason. This may not be as much as an issue with pools with more texture. But there's def something up with the way it moves around as it's far from smart. it also couldnt climb my walls even in the areas that it should have been able too. the wheels would just spin at the bottom of the wall and i guess this was a combination of not enough thrust and traction so a combination of both. i think i would be better off with a robot with tracks for more traction and more powerful jets.

 

[tcat]

I ended up returning mine. After testing it in numerous locations and different settings I think I figured what's going on with my issues. The robot at times wouldn't know it's hit a wall and would keep trying to go forward and then it would get traction on one wheel and it would spin and carry on in that new direction. Sometimes it would just randomly stop in the middle of the pool and attempt to spin but there was not enough traction to turn so the wheels were spinning faster than the robot was turning so the robot likely thought it was in a different position than it was in. I'm not sure what method the software uses to know when it hits a wall. GPS likely wont work in the pool and there's no kind of base station communicating like cordless mowers have. I'm thinking it goes in a direction and hits a wall and then the software senses the increase in power draw and then changes direction. The problem is the pool is so slick and the rubber not that grippy under water with a very small amount of tread on the pool surface that the power draw is not increasing so it just keeps going in that direction and is the reason it stops in the middle of the pool and changes direction as there's likely a set time or distance it will go in a straight line for this reason. This may not be as much as an issue with pools with more texture. But there's def something up with the way it moves around as it's far from smart. it also couldnt climb my walls even in the areas that it should have been able too. the wheels would just spin at the bottom of the wall and i guess this was a combination of not enough thrust and traction so a combination of both. i think i would be better off with a robot with tracks for more traction and more powerful jets.

Makes sense. The tires aren't as spongy as most robots, so smooth fiberglass and liners could be an issue. Has no issue with Pebbletek. Pretty sure it has something in it's logic like a phone. It senses its orientation at a wall, once it hits say 30 degrees it knows it's a wall. When doing walls it self corrects to vertical even if radius at bottom throws it off angle. Did you try wall mode?

 

[tcat]

I tried a hair net (like I use on my skimmer). Not sure if it's much finer, but did trap some "muck". I took lid off filter, pulled net over top and elastic over bottom corners. Put lid back on. I only ran it 10 minutes or so, will try full run once pool gets dirtier. Hope they come out with fine filter soon, I really don't like something on the outside that could get sucked into the props if not secure.

 

[tcat]

Here's a 12 minute video at 8x speed (so under 2 min). It would do normal passes for a while, then kind of go nuts, then do normal passes. Very odd programming, but seems to work.

 

[Planoaggie123]

Mine is similar. It starts ok going one way (short side) then gets off and goes the long way up and down pool. Definitely has a "logic" to it but it gets confused / thrown off somehow. Not really an issue yet as I have yet to pull it out with more than 1 or 2 leaves missing at most and some times it gets everything.

 

[gworrel]

I tried a hair net (like I use on my skimmer). Not sure if it's much finer, but did trap some "muck". I took lid off filter, pulled net over top and elastic over bottom corners. Put lid back on. I only ran it 10 minutes or so, will try full run once pool gets dirtier. Hope they come out with fine filter soon, I really don't like something on the outside that could get sucked into the props if not secure.

I was thinking about just sticking a microfiber cloth into the basket. It might pick up some finer particles without cutting off the flow. There is quite a difference between what the Aiper collects vs what is captured by the Aquabot fine filters.

 

[HermanTX]

Here's a 12 minute video at 8x speed (so under 2 min). It would do normal passes for a while, then kind of go nuts, then do normal passes. Very odd programming, but seems to work.

Thanks. A little off subject, but I saw the Bretta skimmer. Do you leave it in the pool full time because it is solar powered? If not, can it be left in the pool for several days? I was thinking of that when I travel as an assistant to my skimmers. Thoughts? You can PM me if you do not what to cloud up this thread.

 

[tcat]

I was thinking about just sticking a microfiber cloth into the basket. It might pick up some finer particles without cutting off the flow. There is quite a difference between what the Aiper collects vs what is captured by the Aquabot fine filters.

Yes, Aiper collects sand, Aquabot collects dust. And yes a cloth inside should collect fine stuff since it would be pushed in the flow. I'm thinking of pulling a wall from an Aquabot filter and cutting it to size against the inside front wall (I have 6 Aquabot filters, 4 from my 4WD).

Thanks. A little off subject, but I saw the Bretta skimmer. Do you leave it in the pool full time because it is solar powered? If not, can it be left in the pool for several days? I was thinking of that when I travel as an assistant to my skimmers. Thoughts? You can PM me if you do not what to cloud up this thread.

My pool is shaded most of the day, so I pull it out first thing in the AM (or at night) and set it in the sun until 11 or 12. Then it runs the rest of the day. If I didn't have trees, or house shade, I'd leave it in 24/7.

 

[JackHarkness]

I wonder if you have unreasonable expectations. I have had several pool vacuums now, and I've never had any of them clean the pool thoroughly in one go, or even 2 or 3. I use them every day, or even twice a day, and eventually the pool is 98% clean. I had a Dolphin Primal X3 that was a step down from the S200 model that just died recently. It was good, but could not get sand off the bottom. I bought a Max Blaster to get the spots that the Dolphin missed.

I bought the Aiper, and then picked up an Aquabot SP200 open box on eBay for $300. The only device I have been absolutely thrilled with is the Betta skimmer. I only wish there was a way to have it coexist with a corded cleaner. I thought the Aiper would be a better match with the Betta, and it is. The Aiper works very well on walls but as it goes around the pool, it often leaves a gap between passes, and one section of the pool, on the slope to the deep end when it is navigating up the slope and climbing the walls, it seems to be too much for its tiny brain and it gives up and skips past it.

I will probably keep both of these cleaners and alternate between them. When I use the corded Aquabot I have to check it occasionally to avoid conflicts with the Betta, or use it with the Betta out of the pool. The Aiper can work without a problem while the Betta is in the pool and it is not a problem if I leave it running when I leave. I agree that the smart navigation is far from being as smart as it needs to be, but even with random turns, it eventually gets to almost everything.

Thanks for this - but again I wonder compared to what is considered the best - like a S300 - how it functions. Are you saying owners of those more expensive vacuums have to do 2-3 cycles also? I think it may be unreasonable to think I'm unreasonable if you haven't personally tested the higher end products that come in above this one's pricepoint. I'd expect for lets say $500 more - there is perhaps a vacuum that CAN clean a pool intelligently and in 1 go? I mean as it currently stands, I wouldn't even recommend the Aiper for $250.

 

[JackHarkness]

Yeah what you show in your video would have me miffed also, but it is not my experience either…. but your video is very short and doesn’t really show if the cleaners were running for very long, etc.

But that is Crud load of leaves left if you truly ran a whole floor only cleaning cycle — it looks similar to what my pool looked like, but when finished only 1 single small leaf was left after my first run.

A time lapse of the behavior in your pool would really help you to diagnose if the overall pattern is completely random or what…most phones can do that.

This new review on YouTube shows a time lapse (see the 2m:28s mark) that gives a reasonable idea of the “intelligent” cleaning route…which I agree isn’t as “intelligent” as it is really just systematic accounting for gaps via a cross-cross algorithm…but soo far has been very effective in my case.

As for the wheelies, I saw it once and ever since I do make sure that I get all the air out of it when I put it in the water—twist, turn, angle-it, etc... until I see lots/most of the bubbles come out.

This now has me wanting to do a time lapse of mine now just to see what it’s doing (since I generally walk away after 5 minutes and just let it do its thing)…I’ll def post if I get time to do that in the coming week.

Ok none of mine do that. That actually looked intelligent....I may have to timelapse...

 

[tcat]

Ok none of mine do that. That actually looked intelligent....I may have to timelapse...

None are so "intelligent" that they spot leaves and fetch them, or even know what hasn't been covered. They are programmed to zig zag in different ways. Pool shape with throw any of them off. I'm impressed at how the Aiper seems to correct itself when it hits a radius at an odd angle. The main goal for me is no cord. This is the best I've tried in that category (I've tried Aiper Elite and Smorobot). If you don't mind a cord, I'm sure some Dolphins or Aquabots do a better job and may be more reliable, time will tell.

You need a time lapse of the entire 3 hour floor cycle to really see what it's doing. It's like it does a segment going back and forth width, then back and forth length, then some dancing, then working on a corner... I believe it hits 95% of my floor, and 95% of my walls. It only misses above lights and above jets, and steps.