Only Clean Your Windows at Year-End? The HOBOT-S6 Pro Keeps Them Spotless with Weekly Auto-Cleaning
Hi, I’m Hide — tech journalist and part-time house-husband. Especially recommended for readers in houses.
The HOBOT-S6 Pro is the latest model of the window-cleaning robot I swear by. As someone who’s been using them since the early days, it’s evolved so much it makes me a little emotional — “we’ve come this far…”
The flagship S6 ProIt went from one brush to two, scrubbing a 4 mm width 600 times a minute
The early models were already really good, and I’ve written about every new version, but the S6 Pro impressed me like never before, so here it is.
For my articles, I sometimes receive products on loan or as samples from companies, within the bounds of Yahoo! News’ rules. However, if a product doesn’t meet my standards for writing about it after actually using it, or if its downsides significantly outweigh its good points, I return it and don’t write about it. I don’t receive any payment from companies.
Weekly auto-cleaning keeps windows clean
It also neutralizes static so dirt is less likely to stick
First, one thing I want to make clear: HOBOT is great, but **it won’t make stubborn grime on your windows sparkle.**
Dried, oily grime — like kids’ fingerprints on the inside of windows — tends to be hard to remove. But once you quickly clean off the stubborn stuff with sesquicarbonate or alkaline electrolyzed water, you’re good.
It can’t quite reach the very edges, so give them a quick wipe before your first useWindows like this can’t be cleaned from outside at all, so there was no way to clean them. Being able to clean these is amazing
After that, using it regularly — say, once a week — keeps your windows sparkling. As long as you understand how to use it, **it keeps even 2-meter-plus windows in houses spotless**, so I highly recommend it.
Still, it gets them pretty clean
I’d seen reviews saying it doesn’t remove rain spots well, so I tried it without pre-cleaning. This window is one you can’t get to from outside, so even with older HOBOTs it was one I tended to put off. Here’s the before and after.
Before (top) and after (bottom)
There are a few streaks left, but it’s night and day compared to not using the HOBOT-S6 Pro.
The dual-pad cleaning power is the best in HOBOT history
This window can’t be cleaned from outside, and older models needed lots of passes and took forever, so I tended to skip it.
So seeing it get this clean with the S6 Pro was amazing. It does a horizontal zigzag and then a vertical zigzag, so wipe marks are less visible than before — I really liked that.
The pad got this dirty from just one cleaning. Proof it got the window clean
## Way faster than the round model
The R3: small and easy to use indoors
There’s also an earlier round model called the R3, but the S6 Pro felt much faster. As I mentioned, the dual pads clean better too, so if you’re buying now, the S6 Pro is definitely the one.
That said, it’s a bit large, so if you don’t have many big windows, the smaller R3 might suit you better.
It works on frameless windows too — even places that tend to go uncleaned, **like glass-enclosed shower rooms.**
You can also use it to clean lots of other places besides windows, like **mirrors and bathroom walls** — perfect for spots that are a pain to do by hand.
Clean every week, stay clean — the best
I recommend picking a day, like every Monday. While the robot handles the windows, you clean somewhere else — **it’s like adding one more person doing chores.**
I also recommend [keeping extra pads on hand](https://hobot-japan.com/products/マイクロファイバークロス-窓掃除ロボット専用-hobot-s6-pro専用-6枚?pr_prod_strat=jac&pr_rec_id=2417ed8ce&pr_rec_pid=7285966536770&pr_ref_pid=7285961359426&pr_seq=uniform). Using a clean pad every time matters, so with spares you can keep going while the dirty ones dry. Swapping pads for each window and washing them all at the end works well too.
Extra pads: 6 for ¥2,500 (incl. tax)
As long as you use it regularly, it automates tedious vertical cleaning and takes one chore off your plate.
The app lets you set up more complex options, but I also love that you can just turn it on, stick it to the window, and press start.
Especially recommended for houses with big windows.
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[Parenting, chores, cooking, and everyday life]
Tech journalist / part-time house-husband. Renovated a 50-year-old danchi into a smart home. Writes the “Hidenori Kimura’s Tech Magic” column for BCN+R, official Yahoo! News Expert, GIZMODO writer.
