Maytronics Dolphin NIYA Sonar 50 - cordless !

[waterl0gged]

Hey all ,
Well my Maytronics Dolphin S300i is starting to show the early signs of its demise . Has been a workhorse for the last 7 years, so I guess I cant complain . Was a Maytronics factory refurb that was only about $700. , so $100. a year isnt too bad I guess . It works ......sometimes . Problem is , about 50% of the time, it just wont turn on . If it does turn on , its works for the duration . Eventually , its going to just be dead/dead . Dont want to be without a robot when that happens researching and waiting to get the new one delivered while the pool gets dirty . Not going to waste $$$ attempting a rebuild .
So ............
Ordered the brand new Maytronics Dolphin NIYA Sonar 50 - cordless .
Maytronics Dolphin NIYA Sonar 50
Going to be a guinea pig on this one I guess, since I dont see to many reviews , and since its a brand new offering from Maytronics . Looks to be a "budget" cordlesscleaner from Maytronics . Cordless, and does the floor/walls and waterline . Bluetooth capable , 2 year warranty . Its only $499 , and the few reviews I have seen are pretty good for a $500. "budget" cordless cleaner . The only downfall I can see is it the filter basket is not super fine .
Its not a "new" model . Maytronics Bought out Seauto , and rebranded . This model appears to be the SeAuto Seal , which has gotten very good reviews . Now that Maytronics rebranded it, the price did go up a bit , but also it now has a 2 year warranty with Maytronics , so that should help with customer confidence (maybe) .

Here is the only you tube review out right now ........ NIYA Sonar 50 Review

Anyway , going to give it a try and report back !

Oh yea .........also ordered the Betta SE Plus skimmer to go with it , since I will have no more pool cleaner cord to interfere !

 

[bcre3306]

So how did it go? I'm between this and the Scuba S1 since they're basically the same price. I want to lean towards the dolphin because of the brand and probably easier to get warranty work in 1.5 years compared to Aiper but thats strictly just a theory because we have no idea how long Aiper will be around.

 

[waterl0gged]

So how did it go? I'm between this and the Scuba S1 since they're basically the same price. I want to lean towards the dolphin because of the brand and probably easier to get warranty work in 1.5 years compared to Aiper but thats strictly just a theory because we have no idea how long Aiper will be around.

So far , So good ! Have had it going for about a week now and its doing great . Does it exactly what its supposed to do , with no problems so far . Charges up pretty quick , and gets about 3 hours of run time before it shuts down . Plenty for my 18 x 36 . It aggressively cleans the waterline , so much so that it seems like its going to jump over the coping and come out of the pool. Never gets stuck , but I dont have floor grates, only stairs and a ladder . Cleans my pool perfectly in the 3 hour run time . The only slight shortcomings I can find so far is that when its removed from the pool after the cleaning cycle is complete is #1. Its sometimes in the deep end , there is no return to home feature , and #2. when its removed , it does release some debris back in the pool . I am trying to figure out a technique so it wont happen . Cant really get it to run in "floor" mode to well , prob due to the design of my very standard hopper style pool . Seems to get itself stuck in the deep end, and wont crawl up the inclines, but I haven't ever really just let it go for the cycle and see if it can overcome that. Will prob try that this week . Other than that , it runs circles around my Old Dolphin 300 . The debris basket is working great , pretty much filters everything I need it too .
All in all , I think anyone would be hard pressed to find a better robotic pool cleaner at this price point of $499 . Now that Maytronics is backing it up , at least the warranty should be better than some unknown company .

Oh, the APP is pretty much useless . I cant get it to connect when the robot is underwater in the pool . Only out of the water , and it takes longer to change setting with the app vs just pushing the button on the robot .

Just an FYI , Maytronics is soon releasing the Sonar 70 model soon which is supposed to be a higher tier model (and will be more $$$) . Think its the Seauto Shark rebranded possibly . I didnt want to wait since my Dolphin 300 was on its last legs after going strong for 7 years .

Very happy with the Niya Sonar 50 . Having a cordless pool cleaning robot is a game changer . Love not dealing with that cord ! If it lasts 5 years I will be happy . The batteries are replaceable as well , so that should help with longevity (just cant find the battery for sale yet) . Its a perfect match to my Betta SE Plus water line skimmer . Between both of them , my pool stays pretty much spotless.

 

[Jimrahbe]

WL,

Thanks for the feedback on this product..

I was impressed by the review..

The key in my mind is "how long will it last".. At this point no way to know if it will be 20 weeks, or 20 years...

So, we'd really appreciate some progress reports as time moves on..

The only questions I have are about what happens when it is done cleaning? Does it just run for a set amount of time, or does it just run until the battery runs out? When it is done, does it just stop where it is, or what? How do you get it out of the deep end of your pool?

Thanks again for starting this thread..

Jim R.

 

[waterl0gged]

Well, I let the cleaner run its coarse a bit in "floor" mode , and it does work pretty good . It just takes a while to scan the pool with its Sonar sensor I guess. Does a bunch of turns and circles once in a while , but seems to do the floor just fine in floor mode .

Jim, it seems to still have power (not totally dead) when it finishes its cycle . I havent timed it yet , but its about 3 hours. WIll have to time it . It basically just stops where it is when its done. Seems like thats more times than not in the deep end ! lol . They give you a hook attatchment that hooks to a standard pool "pole" . Its pretty easy actually. Better than dragging the old cleaner up by the cord !

Will update on how its working out short and long term. Yes, longevity is my main concern . At least it has the Maytronics brand attached to it, and the warranty is 2 years . Time will tell .
The battery is user replaceable, so thats good .

 

[bcre3306]

Great review. I am in the same boat of concern on how long these things will last. I was leaning toward the Piper Scuba S1 but never pulled the trigger because I was concerned with the warranty and if they would be around for 2 years. I think I am going to go this route but will see if the 70 comes out soon. I emailed them asking but not sure if they will tell me, if they do I will post it here.

 

[PJinFrance]

Interesting review. I have a seauto crab and have been in conversation with seauto support (if you can call them that) over a firmware update that diminished the waterline scrubbing efficiency. They came back today ( not answering my questions) suggesting I could try their soon to be released Dolphin Sonar 70 ..... This suggests that Maytronis have not bought out seauto, just badge their products at the lower price point. It's the same for the smonet cr6 that is a copy of the seauto crab - the smonet app even has references to maytronics in it's t&c and privacy pages.
I know there are folk wary of Chinese product, difficult to avoid these days.