Self-cleaning

Roborock is best known for its futuristic and forward-thinking robovacs – but it's out to prove it can be just as innovative in the world of hand-held stick vacuums. The H60 Hub Ultra brings robovac tech to the stick world, to excellent effect.

We review Roborock's new wet and dry stick vacuum, the F25 ACE, which delivers a lot of bang for a reasonable amount of bucks. From powerful suction and anti-tangle tech to auto-dispensing detergent and self-cleaning, it ticks many boxes.

Roborock's handsome Flexi Lite claims 17,000 pascals of suction, 40 minutes of battery, a self-cleaning and drying roller-mop, a lay-flat mode for getting under furniture, and right-to-the-edge cleaning on one side. How's it go, then?

This tech has come a long way since the first Roomba in 2002. Now, the latest in iRobot's vacuum-mop range, the Combo 10 Max, has made some noted advances. But will it be enough to convert me – or any other newcomers – to the robot-cleaner life?

Lots of glass surfaces can brighten up a room, but it also lets in too much heat as well as neighbors’ prying eyes. A new metamaterial is not only more transparent to light, but adds privacy, cools the room inside, and automatically cleans itself.

General Motors has received a patent for a fascinating self-cleaning technology that could eliminate the annoyance of smudgy fingerprints all over touchscreens. It's a photocatalytic system, triggered by ultraviolet LEDs built into the RGB matrix.

Solar panels can’t operate efficiently if they’re caked in dirt, but cleaning them regularly can be a time-consuming process. Engineers in Germany have now developed an ultra-thin coating that can make solar panels and other surfaces self-cleaning.

If you're designing a plastic for applications such as food packaging, you want it to stay clean but you don't want it to stick around for centuries once discarded. A new lotus-leaf-inspired material may fit that bill.

Like anything else, concrete structures get dirty over time, and it's a hassle to clean them. Such chores may soon no longer be necessary, however, as scientists have developed what they claim is a self-cleaning concrete that isn't heavy – or weak.

A revolutionary new type of smart window could cut window-cleaning costs in tall buildings while reducing heating bills and boosting worker productivity. Partially inspired by the reflective properties of moth eyes, this smart window is said to be self-cleaning, energy-saving, and anti-glare.

How would you like to be able to wash your car by just hosing it off – no soap, scrubbing or drying? You may be able to in the not-too-distant future, thanks to an ultra-hydrophobic (water-repelling) paint that can be applied to a variety of surfaces, and that stays on once applied.

With the help of very high-power laser beams, researchers at the University of Rochester have created micro and nanostructures that turn metals black and make their surfaces very easy to keep clean and dry.