Beatbot AquaSense X Review: A Pool Robot That Cleans Itself

Beatbot AquaSense X 评测：一款能自动清洁的泳池机器人

So, you’ve taken the leap and invested in a pool robot. The robot cleans the pool. But then, who cleans the robot? Surprise! You do. 所以，你已经下定决心投资购买了一台泳池机器人。机器人负责清洁泳池，但接下来，谁来清洁机器人呢？惊喜吧！答案是你自己。

That’s the calculus that has saddled pool-cleaning robots since the beginning, and it’s an awfully tough one to wriggle away from. Just like your terrestrial vacuum cleaner, all that debris has to end up somewhere. With pool robots, that invariably involves an onboard filter that requires your attention each time you retrieve the device. 这就是自泳池清洁机器人问世以来一直困扰用户的问题，而且很难摆脱。就像家里的吸尘器一样，所有的垃圾总得有个去处。对于泳池机器人来说，这总是涉及到一个内置过滤器，每次你取出设备时，都需要对其进行清理。

But what if you didn’t have to clean out that filter basket by hand? What if it could clean itself? Numerous manufacturers have been working on this very problem for years, and while demos and prototypes have been commonplace, none have made it to market until now. With Beatbot’s AquaSense X, self-cleaning technology is finally here. Sort of. 但如果不需要手动清理过滤篮呢？如果它能自动清洁呢？多年来，许多制造商一直在致力于解决这个问题，虽然演示和原型机屡见不鲜，但直到现在还没有产品真正推向市场。随着 Beatbot AquaSense X 的推出，自动清洁技术终于来了。算是吧。

Introducing AstroRinse

AstroRinse 介绍

The AquaSense X isn’t in itself self-cleaning. That job comes courtesy of a second device—which is packaged in an even bigger, heavier box than the robot—that does the job. The AstroRinse station is a massive machine, 42 pounds on its own, reminiscent of an industrial printer with its squared-off design and telescoping arm hovering above. The AquaSense robot in turn sits on top of the AstroRinse, which handles both cleanout of the debris filter and charging duties for its upstairs neighbor. AquaSense X 本身并不能自动清洁。这项工作由第二台设备完成——它的包装盒比机器人本身还要大、还要重。AstroRinse 基站是一个庞然大物，仅重量就达 42 磅（约 19 公斤），其方形设计和上方悬浮的伸缩臂让人联想到工业打印机。AquaSense 机器人放置在 AstroRinse 上方，基站负责清理碎屑过滤器并为这位“楼上邻居”充电。

It’s up to you to put all this together, and users who don’t want to wrestle with screwdrivers, wrenches, and hoses may find the process a little daunting. The “quick start” guide contains a full 16 steps to get everything up and running, and I spent about half an hour getting things positioned. 你需要自己动手组装这一切，对于那些不想摆弄螺丝刀、扳手和软管的用户来说，这个过程可能会让人望而生畏。“快速入门”指南包含了整整 16 个步骤才能让一切正常运行，我花了大约半小时才把所有东西安装到位。

Most of that time involves getting the AstroRinse station connected and configured. Stepping through the entire process would take all day, but the highlights of setup include attaching the cleaning arm to the chassis with four included hex nuts (a screwdriver is also included), then connecting two hoses, one for water input and one for drainage. The input hose has to connect to a standard hose spigot (a splitter is included in the box if you need one), while the short drain line just needs a place to empty out the used water. The included input hose is only 12 feet long, so you’ll need to locate it near a water source or add your own extension hose to the mix. 大部分时间都花在连接和配置 AstroRinse 基站上。走完整个流程可能需要一整天，但设置的重点包括用四个随附的六角螺母将清洁臂安装到机箱上（包装内也附带了螺丝刀），然后连接两根软管，一根用于进水，一根用于排水。进水软管必须连接到标准水龙头（如果需要，包装盒内附带了一个分流器），而短排水管只需要一个排放废水的地方。随附的进水软管只有 12 英尺（约 3.6 米）长，因此你需要将其放置在靠近水源的地方，或者自行添加延长软管。

A Familiar Friend in the Water

水中的老朋友

The Beatbot AquaSense X robot is nearly identical in appearance to the Beatbot AquaSense 2 Ultra except for some changes to the basket design (which is a single piece here instead of two). Setting it up is far simpler than the AstroRinse. Beatbot AquaSense X 机器人的外观与 Beatbot AquaSense 2 Ultra 几乎完全相同，只是篮子设计有所改变（这里是一个整体，而不是两个部分）。它的设置比 AstroRinse 简单得多。

Physical configuration involves installing two side brushes—these are used only by the skimmer function—but this is a fairly quick affair. Once the brushes are attached, the robot must be set on top of the AstroRinse cleaner so the two devices can be wirelessly paired together. (The quick start guide lays out the particular button presses you must do to complete this process; don’t lose it.) Lastly, the system must then be paired to the Beatbot mobile app; you’ll need Bluetooth and a 2.4 GHz or 5 GHz Wi-Fi connection to complete this task. One tiny hiccup I encountered: After completing all this work, both devices downloaded firmware updates, which promptly broke their pairing connection. It was easy to reestablish, however, by simply repeating the pairing process. 物理配置包括安装两个侧刷——它们仅用于撇渣功能——但这相当快。安装好刷子后，必须将机器人放在 AstroRinse 清洁器上方，以便两台设备进行无线配对。（快速入门指南列出了完成此过程所需的特定按键操作；千万别弄丢了。）最后，系统必须与 Beatbot 移动应用程序配对；你需要蓝牙和 2.4 GHz 或 5 GHz Wi-Fi 连接来完成此任务。我遇到的一个小插曲是：完成所有这些工作后，两台设备都下载了固件更新，这导致它们的配对连接中断。不过，只需重复配对过程即可轻松恢复。