Robot vacuum cleaners have steadily moved from novelty to necessity, especially in urban Indian homes where dust, fine sand, hair fall, and daily foot traffic are constant challenges. Over the past few years, the category has matured enough to offer a completely automated solution like self-emptying docks, advanced mopping systems, and smarter navigation, becoming more common. The Forbes SmartClean enters this space positioned as a fully automatic, hands-free solution, promising minimal intervention through its cleaning station, strong suction, and an India-focused feature set.
And, I have been using the Forbes SmartClean as the primary floor-cleaning device across different rooms, surfaces, and daily routines. The goal is simple: does it genuinely reduce daily cleaning effort, and does it make sense at its asking price of Rs 71,999 for Indian homes?
Design and build
The first thing that stands out with the Forbes SmartClean is the sheer presence of its fully automatic cleaning station. This is not a compact dock that quietly sits in a corner. It is tall, solid, and clearly designed to house multiple functions — dust collection, clean and dirty water tanks, mop washing, and drying. In a typical apartment, this means you need to plan placement carefully. I kept it in the kitchen area, but you can choose your location as per the house, with enough clearance for the robot to dock smoothly.
The robot itself follows a familiar circular design, with a raised LiDAR module on top and a matte finish that resists fingerprints reasonably well. Build quality feels sturdy, and nothing about the construction feels flimsy or cost-cut. Buttons on the robot are minimal, reinforcing the idea that this is meant to be controlled primarily through the app.
The base station houses a 3L dust bag, a 4L clean water tank, and a separate dirty water tank. In daily use, the tanks slide in and out easily, and there is no awkward force required. Forbes has clearly designed this system with infrequent maintenance in mind, which becomes important over weeks rather than days.
One thing that I like a lot about the SmartClean is the choice of colour – Black. It gets less dirty and is also easy to clean.
Set up and initial mapping
Setting up the Forbes SmartClean is straightforward, but it does require patience during the first run. Once the robot is connected to the Smart Life app and placed on the dock, it begins its initial mapping process. In my experience, it took under 10 minutes to map a mid-sized apartment – 1800 sqft – moving methodically and avoiding random zig-zag patterns.
The LiDAR 3.0 system does a reliable job of identifying walls, furniture edges, and room boundaries. What stood out was how quickly the robot recognised darker areas and activated its night vision assist. In rooms with heavy curtains or limited natural light, this feature helps the robot avoid slowing down or misjudging obstacles.
Room segmentation was mostly accurate, though minor corrections were needed in spaces where open kitchens and living rooms blend into each other. Thankfully, manual room editing within the app is intuitive and doesn’t feel like a chore. Also, the app offers map management, room naming, and boundary management. In fact, you can manually edit the map and create segments that are not even there in the real world. For instance, my living room and dining area are connected, but I like the robot cleaner to clean them separately on different cleaning settings. So, I created the segment – named them accordingly – and also created separate cleaning settings for both. This is a very handy feature to have.
Navigation and obstacle avoidance
In daily operation, navigation is one of Forbes SmartClean’s stronger areas. The AI TRU Visual Sensor works alongside LiDAR to detect common household obstacles such as footwear, charging cables, table legs, and low furniture. In an Indian home where slippers are often left near doors, and wires snake across rooms, this matters a lot.
During testing, the robot consistently avoided cables and did not drag them along, which is still a problem with some competing models. It slowed down near delicate furniture and adjusted its path instead of bumping aggressively. That said, extremely thin objects, such as lightweight plastic wrappers, were occasionally missed but that’s just me nitpicking here.
Not only this, you also get the notification in the app that there was an obstacle which is again a good feature to have.
The navigation pattern is logical and systematic. Rooms are cleaned in straight lines, with edge passes done carefully. There’s no sense of randomness, and the robot doesn’t repeatedly revisit already-cleaned areas unless instructed.
Vacuuming performance
With a rated suction power of up to 7000Pa, the Forbes SmartClean is clearly targeting homes that deal with fine dust rather than just visible debris. On tiled and marble floors, the robot picks up dust, hair, and small particles efficiently, even in Standard mode. Quiet mode is usable for late-night runs, but it is best reserved for maintenance cleaning rather than deep cleaning.
On carpets and rugs, the auto suction boost feature activates automatically and reliably. The increase in noise is noticeable, but it is short-lived and purposeful. Embedded dust and pet hair are lifted better than expected, though thicker rugs still benefit from an occasional manual vacuum session.
What I appreciated was the consistency. Cleaning results remained uniform across rooms, without patches being missed or debris left behind near corners. Edge cleaning is supported by the mop extend mechanism, which physically reaches closer to walls than traditional fixed mops.
Mopping system and real-world results
The mopping system is where the Forbes SmartClean differentiates itself. Unlike basic drag-mop robots, this one uses hot water mop washing at 50°C and hot air drying at 60°C within the base station. In daily use, this translates to a mop that doesn’t develop odour even after multiple cycles.
The robot lifts its mop by 10mm when it detects carpets, preventing accidental wetting. This works well on standard carpets and thin rugs. On very thick rugs, manual no-go zones are still advisable.
Actual mopping performance is consistent rather than aggressive. Sticky spills require either a second pass or manual spot cleaning, but daily dust, footprints, and light stains are handled well. The Forbes GermGuard cleaning solution adds a subtle citrus scent without leaving residue or making floors slippery. One thing that I noticed is the Y-style cleaning mode. This mode mimics the manual mopping style rather than the zig-zag style. This gives more seamless results overall. Fully automatic cleaning station experience
Living with a fully automatic cleaning station changes the way you interact with a robot vacuum. Dust is emptied automatically into the bag, which in real usage can last over a month, depending on home size and usage frequency. The dirty water tank fills gradually and needs periodic emptying, but this is far less frequent than daily mop cleaning.
The hot water mop wash and drying cycle runs after each cleaning session, and while it adds to the overall runtime at the dock, it significantly improves hygiene. There’s no need to remove and wash mop pads manually, which is a genuine quality-of-life improvement.
Noise during dust emptying is noticeable but brief. It’s best scheduled during daytime hours, though it doesn’t last long enough to be disruptive.
App experience and smart features
The Smart Life app serves as the control centre for the Forbes SmartClean. From scheduling and room selection to suction levels and mop intensity, most settings are easy to access. Creating no-go zones and virtual walls is straightforward, and the app responds quickly to changes.
Room-specific cleaning is particularly useful in Indian homes, where kitchens often need more frequent cleaning than bedrooms. You can assign stronger suction and deeper mopping to specific rooms without affecting the rest of the house.
Voice assistant integration with Alexa and Google Assistant works as expected. Simple commands like starting or stopping the cleaning function reliably, though advanced controls still require app access. Battery life and charging behaviour
The 5200mAh battery delivers solid endurance. In Quiet or Standard mode, the robot can clean a large apartment on a single charge. In Max mode with mopping enabled, it may return to the dock once to recharge before resuming.
Recharge-and-resume works seamlessly. The robot remembers where it left off and continues without redoing cleaned areas. Charging is quiet, and heat management appears effective, with no noticeable warmth buildup during long sessions. Maintenance and long-term usability
Maintenance requirements are minimal for a robot of this complexity. The auto hair-cutting system at the base station reduces brush tangling significantly, especially useful for homes with long hair or pets. Brushes stay cleaner for longer, and manual cleaning is reduced.
Consumables such as dust bags and cleaning solution will add to long-term costs, but they are offset by reduced daily effort. Filters and brushes are easy to access and replace when needed. Verdict
The Forbes SmartClean is designed for users who want to minimise daily involvement with floor cleaning. Its fully automatic cleaning station, reliable navigation, and balanced vacuuming and mopping performance make it well-suited for Indian homes dealing with dust, hair, and mixed flooring.
It is not a compact or budget-friendly robot, and it demands space for its dock. However, if your priority is hands-free operation, hygiene, and consistent cleaning rather than aggressive stain removal, the Forbes SmartClean delivers on its promise. For busy households looking to automate routine cleaning with minimal compromises, it fits comfortably into daily life rather than feeling like a gadget that needs constant attention.
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