What testers say about the Shark Matrix Plus 2-in-1
The Shark Matrix Plus 2-in-1 vacuums and mops at the same time: a pad under the robot scrubs hard floors with Shark's Sonic Mopping, which Shark says moves it 100 times a minute, while a 360-degree lidar maps the home and Matrix Clean covers it in a grid. Blasts of air push debris out of edges and corners (CleanEdge Detect), and the XL self-empty base with HEPA filtration holds up to 60 days of debris without bags. Shark rates the battery at 110 minutes. The base empties the robot but does not wash the pad.
TechRadar tested the UK version, which it lists as this model's twin, and calls it an impressive robot with the specifications of models costing twice as much. Its lidar map was right first time and took less than 10 minutes, it never once got stuck or lost, and it climbed chunky rugs, thresholds and even the legs of lounge chairs that had stopped every other robot the reviewer had used. It handled pet hair remarkably well, with only a few hairs around the roller after a month, the air blasts cleared dust from edges and corners, and it was quiet.
The limits: the mopping is fine for light cleaning and no more, a spot test on flour and oats gave average results, and the app was glitchy, slow to connect, sometimes lost the map and maps only one floor. TechRadar measured 85 to 110 minutes of battery life depending on the power setting, enough for 1,210 square feet with one recharge. For a home that wants a self-emptying robot that also wipes hard floors, it is good value, as long as serious mopping is not the aim.
