[nobodyandproud]

It’s not just mapping.

Also, I recall Neato was often purchased and cannibalized by researchers for its lidar.

This was all cutting edge 10+ years ago. Even today, the features it supported offline then is just matched at best today in 2025/2026.

Not exceeded; and often crippled when offline.

[sudosysgen]

There is not that much more to it than lidar and 2D slam as far as the core technology. There are a lot more features yes but they are not nearly as valuable. I agree they are better, but that's for reason of execution and non-enshitiffication, not core tech.

[nobodyandproud]

Unintentional I’m sure, but that’s a goalpost shift.

What made cloudless Neato amazing was how many real-life edge cases it handled well. That’s where the innovation was.

It’s the integration of the vacuum and sensors along with great software that allowed it to handle furniture shifts and creeping up to stairs without being confused.

I think of it this way: Tesla’s core tech were batteries and electric motors. Nothing groundbreaking. But integrating the core tech as a vehicle took real effort and trial-and-error; then more, in order to make a manufacturing pipeline.

Sorry if I sound bitter. I fell in love with the product on my first purchase and was mortified when the market utterly failed to reward them for the innovation.