LiDAR vs camera navigation: LiDAR wins for dark rooms and night vacuuming

Camera-based navigation needs light to see, while LiDAR uses invisible laser pulses that work in total darkness. LiDAR maps rooms equally well at 2 AM with the lights off, but camera vacs with LEDs still struggle in complex shadows. The tradeoff is that LiDAR units add a bump on top, making the vacuum taller, while camera-based ones are flatter and slide under low couches.