Robot vacuums have reached an interesting point in their evolution. Simply wandering around the house collecting crumbs is no longer enough. If a machine is going to take up residence in our home, we want it to vacuum, mop, avoid the phone charger someone left on the floor, figure out where the rugs are and preferably not interrupt the television while doing any of it.
Enter the Narwal Flow 2.
We had already been intrigued enough by Narwal's approach to smart cleaning to include the brand in our look at the new quiet luxury of home gadgets. After actually living with the new Flow 2, however, we discovered that Narwal has made some meaningful improvements — and added a few features that are simply fun.
Somewhere along the way, we also started calling ours “Mr. Narwal.”
Once you name the vacuum, we suppose it officially belongs to the family.
WATCH: FINE Magazine puts the Narwal Flow 2 to work
Setup Is Surprisingly Entertaining
Setting up a household appliance is rarely something worth writing about. Flow 2 is an exception.
Initial mapping was remarkably easy. After connecting the robot through the Narwal app, we sent it off to learn the house. That's when the geek in us took over.
Instead of blindly bumping around until it eventually understands the room, Flow 2 uses dual 1080p cameras, AI-powered object recognition and additional sensors to understand its surroundings. Watching that information appear in the app in real time is fascinating. Walls emerge. Furniture is identified and avoided. Hard flooring and carpet are distinguished. The robot works around cords and other obstacles while gradually constructing a detailed 3D representation of the space.
There is something oddly satisfying about watching your house appear through the eyes of a vacuum cleaner.
More importantly, the mapping translates into practical control. The updated app makes it easy to see where Flow 2 is, determine where it should clean and customize how different areas are handled. It is part of a much larger shift in smart home upgrades designed to anticipate how a home is actually used. In the case of Flow 2, it feels less like programming an appliance and more like giving instructions to a very small employee who happens to live under a docking station.
It Still Has to Clean the Floor
All of that intelligence would be meaningless if the vacuuming weren't good.
Fortunately, it is.
Flow 2 delivers up to 31,000 Pa of suction, a considerable jump from the 22,000 Pa of the previous Flow. In our household use, it has done an impressive job picking up everyday debris from both hard surfaces and carpet. Narwal's CarpetFocus technology detects carpet and changes how the machine cleans it, while the mop automatically lifts when appropriate so it isn't dragging a wet cleaning surface across the rug.
The mopping system is equally interesting. Rather than dragging the same increasingly dirty pad around the room, Narwal's FlowWash system uses a rolling track mop that continually cleans itself with flowing warm water while it works. The idea is simple but important: remove the dirt rather than redistribute it.
Then there are the places robot vacuums traditionally struggle with. Flow 2 extends its cleaning system toward walls and into edges and uses tangle-resistant brushes designed to reduce the inevitable hair-wrapped-around-the-roller maintenance session.
The Best Sound May Be Almost No Sound
One of our favorite things about Flow 2 isn't particularly exciting on a specification sheet.
It's quiet.
We've run Mr. Narwal while sitting in the same room watching television and haven't needed to turn up the volume. He simply cruises around doing his business without demanding attention.
That matters more than you might think. A robot vacuum is supposed to make household cleaning less intrusive. If you only want to run it when everyone leaves because the noise is irritating, some of the convenience disappears. It's also why the smart home features people appreciate most over time tend to be the ones that quietly improve everyday routines rather than constantly reminding you how technologically advanced they are.
Narwal has even incorporated a Baby Care mode designed for quieter cleaning, with operation around 56 decibels. In ordinary use, what matters is simpler: Flow 2 can become part of the background rather than an event everyone in the house has to tolerate.
Yes, You Can Drive Your Vacuum
And now we get to the feature we didn't know we needed.
The Flow 2's cameras aren't only there to help it navigate. Through the app, you can access video functionality and get a robot's-eye perspective of the house.
It is ridiculous.
It is also extremely entertaining.
Seeing your living room from a few inches above the floor makes a familiar room look strangely different. With remote control, you can direct the robot around the house while watching through its camera. It essentially turns Mr. Narwal into a very short mobile house scout.
The novelty is obvious, but there is a legitimate practical use here too. When you're away, the camera provides another way to look around the house remotely. Narwal also incorporates pet-focused camera functionality, including a Find Pet feature.
Will you spend the first few days driving the vacuum around simply because you can? We certainly wouldn't judge you.
Even the Dock Got a Makeover
Robot vacuum docks have historically looked like something you'd prefer to hide in the laundry room. Narwal clearly understands that a premium appliance may have to live in plain sight.
The Flow 2 station has been redesigned with a cleaner, semi-enclosed silhouette and an ambient LED light bar that communicates the robot's status. It is sleeker and more architectural than the usual utilitarian charging base.
The dock is also where much of the less glamorous work happens. Flow 2 returns to have its mop washed and dried and its debris automatically emptied. Narwal says its 2.5-liter dust bag can provide up to 120 days between changes, depending on usage and household conditions.
That's closer to what “hands-free cleaning” should actually mean.
Prime Day Makes the Price More Interesting
There is no getting around the fact that Flow 2 is a premium household appliance. Its regular retail price is $1,499.99, which puts it firmly into investment territory rather than impulse-buy territory.
The timing of this review, however, is useful.
For October Prime Day, Narwal is discounting the white Flow 2 by $455, bringing the price to $1,044.99 on Amazon October 6–7. Narwal is also running October promotions through its own website, although pricing and bundles vary by date.
We wouldn't buy a robot vacuum simply because it's on sale. But if you've already been considering moving into this category, taking more than $450 off a flagship model changes the value equation considerably.
Our Take on Living With the Narwal Flow 2
The most successful smart-home products eventually stop feeling like technology.
That's where the Flow 2 is heading.
The powerful vacuum and self-cleaning mop are what justify its place in the house. The improved mapping, obstacle avoidance, quieter operation and more intuitive app are what make us actually want to use it. The better-looking dock means we don't particularly mind seeing it. And the camera and remote driving?
Those are the features that make us grin.
There are plenty of expensive gadgets that promise to make a home smarter. The better question is whether they make living in it easier.
After spending time with the Narwal Flow 2, we've found ourselves thinking less about vacuuming and mopping — which may be the best compliment we can give a robot designed to do both.
Mr. Narwal can take it from here.
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