Eureka's J15 Pro Ultra Robot Vacuum Promises More Power And Smarter Cleaning

Eureka is a North American (founded in 1909 in Detroit, Michigan, specifically) company most of us are bound to know of — what with it being around for well over 100 years. In that time, it's produced classic upright and canister vacuum cleaners, stick vacuums, hand vacuums, cordless varieties of an assortment of model types, and, of course, robot vacuums. Lots and lots of robot vacuums, currently spanning three different series with prices ranging from $599.99 to $1399.99 and all with dedicated customer support six days a week.

A recent product launch event held in Berlin for 2024's IFA saw the reveal of a number of new models — seven individual devices in all — from RapidWash 360 and Stylus Series uprights to new robot vacuums like the E10s, E20 Plus, J20, and J12 Ultra. At the top of that list sits the Eureka J15 Pro Ultra robot vacuum, boasting a number of mechanical and software upgrades over both its predecessors and J Series contemporaries.

These aren't your typical incremental improvements between new models, either. The J15 Pro Ultra boasts more powerful suction than some traditional canister vacuums, a self-cleaning base station, and smarter smart mopping technology. There's even a new AI system being rolled out to improve the vacuum's ability to deal with stains and large clusters of dry debris. Making it one of the well established manufacturer's most exciting automated home cleaning devices yet.

The J15 Pro Ultra boasts 16,200 PA (pascals of air pressure) worth of suction, thanks in part to its aluminum fan structure. The material difference provides better heat dissipation, which allows for better use of motor power, resulting in extremely thorough (99 percent) cleaning in Eureka Lab tests using cereal, crushed potato chips, and other dry food bits.

To put it another way, one of Eureka's best-selling canister vacuums (i.e., traditional, non-robotic models) is the NEN180, which reaches 16,000 Pa. Meaning the J15 Pro Ultra has 200 Pa more suction power, on top of being able to do the floor vacuuming for you by itself. So on top of already being more powerful than the average robot vacuum (which are typically between 6,000 and 10,000 Pa), it manages to eclipse even a popular canister model.

Eureka's J15 Pro Ultra also utilizes an anti-hair tangling system called FlexiRazor™ to deal with possible clogs and tangles caused by pulling in too much hair. Or rather, it stops these literal snags from building up in the first place with an assembly of 4 mm high-density blades that runs 400 times per minute across the entire brush. In SGS lab testing, this amounted to a 99-percent reduction in hair tangles—zero-percent with dog hair, and only one-percent with human hair.

As a high-end automated vacuum, the Eureka J15 Pro Ultra can also double as a mop. Only now it also uses Eureka's new ScrubExtend technology, which lets the vacuum extend the mop surfaces outward on a swing-arm system. This allows the J15 Pro Ultra to get much closer to the edge when dealing with corners, furniture legs, and other spots where its physical bulk might make things a little awkward.

ScrubExtend is also designed to keep both the arms and your furniture safe. The system knows not to push too forcefully into corners and against other heavy surfaces as a way to protect the arm's motor, while a soft rubber edge on the mop pads cushion and protect furniture and wall trim from damage. In fact, it protects the mechanism so well that Eureka Lab testing indicates a likelihood that the arms can withstand 36 months (minimum!) worth of daily house cleaning.

Despite using a more delicate touch, the Eureka J15 Pro Ultra still manages a deeper clean than you might expect from a robot mop. It achieves this by applying 7 N (approximately 1.5-pounds) of downward force as it extends and retracts the mop arms. Working in conjunction with the ScrubExtend system to really get into those edges and corners.

Yet another new addition to Eureka's vacuum technology that's being introduced with the J15 Pro Ultra is its IntelliView™ AI. This intelligent system allows the J15 Pro Ultra to distinguish between wet and dry messes, which it can then adjust to accordingly.

It's more than simply switching between vacuuming and mopping, however. Eureka knows that robot vacuums can sometimes mix things up a bit — such as pulling in wet or damp messes with the brush — and that these oversights can cause clumping in a vacuum's dustbin, making it a real pain to clean later. With IntelliView™ AI, the J15 Pro Ultra knows to rotate over to its mop side to prioritize a wet mess, while also using Eureka's FlexiRise™ technology to pull up the brush. Thus, effectively preventing any of the bits that require mopping from ending up in the dustbin in the first place.

This also lets the J15 Plus Ultra identify stains and other more complicated spills, then change its cleaning strategy to better deal with them. Rather than a simple one-off mopping pass, IntelliView™ AI will have the vacuum return to the base station and rinse the mop off with hot water, then go back to the mess to keep cleaning — repeating these steps as many times as necessary.

IntelliView™ AI can also reduce the irritation of dry debris being scattered by an overzealous brush. Now the J15 Pro Ultra can detect dry debris and slow down the brush speed (to keep it from flinging bits outward). Once the debris is dealt with, the brushes speed back up to better deal with dust and smaller particles once more.

Even the Eureka J15 Pro Ultra's base station goes the extra mile by cleaning itself. Of course, it does still empty out the vacuum, too, but the big change is that now it can take care of itself.

Many other robot vacuums include a base station that collects all of the dirt and debris (wet or dry) that are taken in during a regular home cleaning. However, the base stations themselves can sometimes suffer from a buildup of dirt and other substances that didn't make it inside the vacuum's dustbin or other internal collection areas.

Now, though, the base station includes a designated area for debris collection, a tray scraper, and a channel to move that debris. All of these elements work together so that, once the J15 Pro Ultra is finished mopping, any leftover debris sitting in the cleaning tray is scraped into the debris collection area. That debris is then dried out, ready to be pulled into the base station's internal dust bag the next time it performs a cleaning cycle.

So instead of having to worry about cleaning various mop leavings around the base station every so often, all you need to do is empty and replace the dust bag from time to time. Making for less time spent scrubbing the vacuum's dock and a much more streamlined user experience overall.

Learn more about why Eureka's J15 Pro Ultra earned a SlashGear Innovation Award at IFA 2024 in Berlin – the world's largest consumer tech showcase.