I took a look at the Dolphin Cayman last week, a rebrand of the Active 20, and this week I will be taking a trip down memory lane again, this time with Dolphin’s rebranded Active 30, the Dolphin Quantum. The only problem with the Active series, with the exception of the 10, was the price. I understood why they were priced so high, but still, it was enough to make it difficult to recommend. The Quantum, and by extension all of these Active rebrands, fix that issue, and whjat we are left with is probably the best robotic pool cleaner in the world.
The first thing that struck me about this one was how different it is from the other rebrands you see. The vast majority of Dolphins derivatives use bland color schemes, but here the Quantum looks damn cool, the feature set is expansive, and the core design of the bot is unsurpassed on the market right now.
So let’s take a closer look at why I think the Quantum is so great.
Maytronics Dolphin Quantum Design and Build Quality
Dolphin bots are some of the most impressive on the market today. A combination of high build quality and attention to detail in design combines to give us everything we could want out of our cleaners. The Quantum is no different. A solid, and aesthetically pleasing design, with parts that fit flush. I always recommend doing the rattle test when you get a new cleaner, any rattle coming from a bot that is given a light shake is indicative of a manufacturer’s fault, and you should know as soon as possible if you need to make use of the warranty.
Thankfully Dolphin builds tend to come with a good warranty, coverage does vary between models and retailers though, so be sure to verify yourself at point of sale. The color scheme here is probably my favorite of the Active 30 clones, of which there are four. The deep grey and off white finish really reflects the name, to the point of not being sure which cam first to be honest.
I’ll be the first to admit that the looks of a robotic pool cleaner are not all that important, but I maintain that it can still be helpful when tie breaking. There are so many bots on the market with the same, or similar, features sets, very close together in price as well. So picking a bot you like to look at can be helpful.
Maytronics Dolphin Quantum Features and Specs
I have reviewed an awful lot of robotic pool cleaners in the last year or so. I have learned a lot, but believe that there is always more to learn. In saying that, I have come up with a a short list of features that I consider must haves, prerequisite features that, if they are missing I cannot recommend the cleaner. They are; the ability to clean a pool wall, a powerful filter, and scrubbing brushes that I have observed breaking up clumped debris. The Dolphin Quantum is able to do all three, I am happy to say.
The Dolphin Quantum is an in ground pool cleaner with a 60 foot swivel cable. I mention swivel cables specifically here, as i think all cleaners should have one. They are not a deal breaker, as i have a few tricks involving the use of pool noodles that can alleviate the issues inherent to non swivel cables, but still. They make it much harder for a bot to tangle its cable, and thus prevents cycle stoppages. There are few things more irritating than having to pull the bot out of the water and reset the cycle. So it is nice to see the tech used here, shows the company has thought about the end user a lot.
The scrubbing brushes on this bot are some of the most powerful on the market. I used to use the Dolphin Nautilus as a yard stick to judge other robotic pool cleaners, and while it is still an amazing bot, it pales in comparison to the Quantum. The Brushes here are twice as fast, and softer, than the Nautilus. This means we have a bot that can break up the clumpiest of debris, and clean the grout from the tile line, which being soft enough to not cause scouring in the long term.
Out average cycle time is 2 hours, which is the standard from my perspective. There is a short option, a simple 30 minute cycle to be used in emergency, thought I cannot imagine what a pool emergency is. You can also go for a longer 4 hour deep clean, which is my preferred setting. The on board filter is a big 3,735 gallon per hour filter, so giving it four hours is preferable when looking for crystal clear waters.
The ability to make that 90 degree pool wall transition is here, with ease as well, climbing top to bottom cleaning like a champion cleaner. Those are the features that is shares with he likes of the Active 20 and the Cayman. But we have a few more choice features to talk about with the Quantum. A caddy comes as standard, making transport simple, and we have some remote control options to play with. You can enable them with your phone, about time if you ask me. There is now dual drive motor here, so do not expect true 1:1 control, but you can guide the bot to where it needs to be if you so choose.
Overall we have the features I need, and a few others besides. If remote control options are a must for you you cannot do better than the Quantum, though remote control options do make the bot a little more difficult to use.
Maytronics Dolphin Quantum Ease of Use
I have, over the last year or so, sorted robotic pool cleaners into a number of camps. There are the all in one models, my preferred set and the one with which I review most often, and the external pump systems, harder to set up but cheaper to run. The Old School models are interesting, and there are a number of them on the market that I think are fantastic, but the Quantum falls into the All in One category.
The all in one bots can be split again, into Ultra Moderns, with their top mounted filter meshes and streamlined access, and the legacy design models, with their cumbersome filter bags and mounted at the bottom. The issues are plain to see here, and it made it easy to talk about day to day use. The Quantum is neither, the Active series of bots, and their clones, I have come to refer to as the Post Moderns. They have removed the few issues that I had with the filter mesh system, namely the need to clean out the bot itself, by using a filter canister system.
The Filter canister is one of the most important design innovations in robotic pool cleaner tech today. Take the filter chamber out of the machine to clean it, but instead of it being a bag, which are nearly impossible to clean by the way, we have a box that can simply be hosed down. There is no chance of the debris falling out of it either, so at its core the day to day use of the Quantum cause few, if any headaches for the user.
The only downside is a relative one. The more features you add to a bot the more difficult it becomes to use. It is unavoidable. But for those out there who really want the manual control, then the extra hour or so it will take you to get to grips with the Quantum are well worth it.
Maytronics Dolphin Quantum Pricing, Value, & Discounts
The only issue with the Active 30 for me was the price. And in the time since I reviewed it and how it seems as though Dolphin has learned its lesson. The Dolphin Quantum is usually right around that $1000 price range (however you can sometimes find some pretty good deals at Amazon.com by clicking here.) A little outside my range, but if you want the best you have to pay for it after all. Best to remember that a robotic pool cleaner is a sound investment. How long does it take to clean and filter a pool by hand? Couple of hours with the right tools? Depending on how you value those two hours any robotic pool cleaner will be able to pay you back within a year, and the Quantum is no exception.
There is one other cost you have to worry about though. The cost per cycle. This will change depending on the price per kilowatt hour in your area, how much you are paying for your electricity, but on average it is still low per cycle. Around $0.12 to $10.19 per run. That is the 2 hour cycle, so bear in mind the longer you are running the bot per use the more you are going to cost yourself in the long run. I feel it is important to know how much you are spending on power, seen as how we are all adding more and omre electronics to our homes these days.
And now the warranty. I am a fan of good warranties, I think it is safe to say we all are. But I have to slog through all kinds of warranties, from razor blades to breathalyzers, and I have found that few firms offer anything close to a fair deal. the stipulations on most manufacturer’s warranties is astounding. Dolphin have been a little up and down for me. Sometimes I find their bots coming with amazing bumper to bumper warranties, covering repair, parts and labor, and sometimes I find bots coming with a year long limited warranty. the Quantum is one of the latter I’m afraid. Listed as 1 year of coverage, and the coverage seems limited. It is a good idea to make damn sure that your Quantum is perfect out of the box. I have contacted them, hoping to get more information on why they do not extend their best warranties to their best products, but have yet to hear word back. Overall this could be better, but I have seen much worse from other firms, onus is on you I’m afraid.
Maytronics Dolphin Quantum Conclusion
Dolphin Quantum from Maytronics. It seems like it succeeds in so many areas, only to be hamstrung by a fairly expensive price and an ambiguous warranty. Such a shame. Let’s look at the positives first. The feature set is amazing, it can do what i want it to do better than the vast majority of bots on the market. We have a couple of choice bonus features, namely the caddy and the remote control options, and the core design of the bot is not only very pretty, but one of the easiest to use builds on the market. I am in love with the bot, but the external factors make me shy away from it a little. I would have liked it to be a little cheaper, and I would have liked to see a more expansive warranty. If you don’t mind the lack of remote control options the Active 20, and the Dolphin Cayman are better option right now. If you must have remote control, then you have to get a Quantum. It’s that simple.
Pros:
- An all in one device, I prefer these, cost a bit of cash to run, but the internal pump makes set up and tear down a breeze.
- Has my holy triad of features, climbs wall, cleans clumped debris and filters water quickly and cleanly.
- Remote control options, which are always nice to see.
- Filter Canister, Cannot overstate how revolutionary this tech is. The old filter mesh system had few problems, all of which are addressed with the canister system. Throw in the fact that it is top loaded and we have a winner.
- Well priced, cheaper even than the Active 20, making it literally the best bot on the market.
Cons:
- Warranty info is light on the ground
- Warranty is limited, even without specifics on it I feel i am safe assuming the worst.
To check out all the current discounts on the Dolphin Quantum at Amazon.com you can click here.