Robotic Pool Skimmers matchup
Betta SE Plus vs Dolphin Skimmi
the skimmer the testers loved vs the one owners keep
Dolphin Skimmi
The judges have ruled
Betta SE Plus took this fight in our Pound-for-Pound division showdown.
Full fight coverage: The Best Robotic Pool Skimmers of 2026: Solar Surface Cleaners, Ranked →
Ringside notes
The classic tester-versus-owner fight, skimmer edition. The Dolphin Skimmi has the best raw pickup we've seen — 3-inch propellers, the strongest surface pull in our skimmer showdown — and owners rate it 3.2★ across 425, the kind of score that isn't about skimming at all (the complaints cluster on reliability and the app, not pickup). The Betta SE Plus skims with smaller 2.5-inch propellers and wins anyway: 4.5★ across 2,993 owners — the deepest clean base behind a pick with adapter backup (only the plain Betta SE has more owners) — solar power with an AC-adapter backup so cloudy weeks don't beach it, and a drip-free top-loading basket. Our showdown crowned the Betta best overall AND best value, and this pairing is why: a skimmer works unattended all day, every day, so the machine that keeps running beats the machine that pulls hardest on its best day. If you have brutal leaf-fall and a tolerance for tinkering, the Skimmi's pickup is genuinely the strongest. Everyone else: the crowd of 2,993 is telling you something.
Tale of the tape
| Model | Best for | Warranty | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Best value | 1 year | ~$389.9typical at AmazonCheck price → | |
| Strongest pickup — now discontinued | 1 year (Maytronics dealer channel; the model is discontinued and not sold online) | Check price → |
Prices move constantly — any Amazon price shown is as of the date noted and subject to change; tap through for today's number.
Prices move constantly — tap through for today's number.
What would decide it
- Owner proof: Betta SE Plus reads 4.5★ across 2,993 owners; Dolphin Skimmi reads 3.2★ across 425. Depth of sample matters as much as the star.
- Betta SE Plus — your pick if: you want a surface skimmer that never quits — solar with AC-adapter backup so a week of clouds doesn't sideline it, plus a shallow-water safeguard that keeps it off your pool stairs (4.5★ across 2,993).
- Dolphin Skimmi — your pick if: you had your eye on the strongest-pickup skimmer — but the original Dolphin Skimmi is discontinued and out of stock across every channel (Amazon, Maytronics-direct, and the dealers). Maytronics has moved to the Skimmi 300/200, which are dealer-only with no tracked buy path yet, so for a skimmer you can actually buy today, the Betta SE Plus is the pick.
The full cards
Betta SE Plus
Best value · Solar with AC-adapter backup, so a week of clouds doesn't sideline it
Your pick if you want a surface skimmer that never quits — solar with AC-adapter backup so a week of clouds doesn't sideline it, plus a shallow-water safeguard that keeps it off your pool stairs (4.5★ across 2,993).
“After hands-on testing, I found that the Betta SE Plus stood out as the top performer—it was incredibly easy to set up and removed more leaves and floating debris than any other model I tried.”
Best Overall of Bob Vila's 2026 robotic-skimmer test (published 2026-07-24). Methodology on the page: "For hands-on testing, I used each robotic skimmer in residential inground pools over multiple days, including both screened-in and open-air pool environments." The tester is Florida-based. Their Buy-at-Amazon link resolves to B0CVMQ3XBX, the listing we card. Supersedes The Pool Nerd's August 2025 review ("It's efficient, quiet, and low-maintenance."), which is now older than a year.
Betta SE Plus
Best valueYour pick if you want a surface skimmer that never quits — solar with AC-adapter backup so a week of clouds doesn't sideline it, plus a shallow-water safeguard that keeps it off your pool stairs (4.5★ across 2,993).
Pro review “After hands-on testing, I found that the Betta SE Plus stood out as the top performer—it was incredibly easy to set up and removed more leaves and floating debris than any other model I tried.”Best Overall of Bob Vila's 2026 robotic-skimmer test (published 2026-07-24). Methodology on the page: "For hands-on testing, I used each robotic skimmer in residential inground pools over multiple days, including both screened-in and open-air pool environments." The tester is Florida-based. Their Buy-at-Amazon link resolves to B0CVMQ3XBX, the listing we card. Supersedes The Pool Nerd's August 2025 review ("It's efficient, quiet, and low-maintenance."), which is now older than a year.— Paul Rankin, Bob Vila
- Solar plus USB-C/AC backup — keeps skimming through cloudy stretches
- Top-loading 200µm basket lifts out without dribbling debris back in
- Twin salt-chlorine-tolerant motors handle treated water
- Covers up to ~2,400 sq ft, in-ground or above-ground
- 2.5-in propellers — less grab than the Dolphin's 3-in in wind or heavy leaf fall
- 1-year warranty (Beatbot gives two)
- Wireless remote only — no phone app
It strands itself on a beach or zero entry and hangs up on pool-sweep hoses; separately, battery life and the status lights degrade inside the first year.
4 of the first 10 critical cards (of 299 critical) are stranding or snagging and 3 more are battery or indicator failure within a year - the same shallow-water weakness the Betta SE shows. Base 2,926 at the August pass, 2,993 on 2026-09-04 · critical reviews read August 2026
Dolphin Skimmi
Strongest pickup — now discontinuedYour pick if you had your eye on the strongest-pickup skimmer — but the original Dolphin Skimmi is discontinued and out of stock across every channel (Amazon, Maytronics-direct, and the dealers). Maytronics has moved to the Skimmi 300/200, which are dealer-only with no tracked buy path yet, so for a skimmer you can actually buy today, the Betta SE Plus is the pick.
“The Skimmi's larger propellers provide more consistent suction and better debris collection, particularly when dealing with larger leaves or when wind is pushing surface debris around.”— The Pool Nerd
Pro review “Two weeks in, I wondered how I would ever live without it.”Hands-on review on The Pool Nerd (sitemap lastmod 2025-08-10; the page prints no date). Kept past the 12-month window under the recency exception: no credentialed hands-on test of the Skimmi has been published since — Bob Vila's July 2026 skimmer test and The Hook Up's August 2026 test both omit it (the model is discontinued). The product is Currently unavailable on Amazon, so this card informs owners rather than buyers.— Justin D., The Pool Nerd
- Biggest propellers tested (3 in) — strongest, most consistent surface suction
- Best leaf pickup, especially when wind pushes debris around
- Maytronics build quality (the Dolphin floor-robot maker)
- Solar with backup battery + Bluetooth app
- Bottom-loading debris tray is messier to empty than a top-loader
- Costs more than the Betta SE Plus
- App is Bluetooth, not full WiFi
Almost every complaint has the same shape: it works well, and then it stops. Owners report quitting after three weeks, after seventeen days, a paddle wheel seizing inside nine months, ten good months then failure, and one that made it a year and was refused help because the warranty had just expired. Getting support to respond is the second half of nearly every card.
the critical tail was 146 of 419 at the August 2026 pass - a 35% critical share, the highest of anything we card - and the pattern is consistent across it rather than clustered; the base read 425 on 2026-09-04 · critical reviews read August 2026
FAQ
Which is better, the Betta SE Plus or the Dolphin Skimmi?
Our robotic skimmer showdown ruled for the Betta SE Plus — best overall and best value, on the deepest owner base behind any winner here (4.5★/2,993; only the plain Betta SE has more). The Skimmi has the strongest raw pickup (3-inch propellers) but owners rate it 3.2★/425, with complaints clustering on reliability and the app.
When is the Dolphin Skimmi the right pick?
Heavy leaf-fall, windy yards, debris that overwhelms lighter skimmers — its 3-inch propellers are the strongest pull we've tested in the class. Go in knowing the owner record: it's the performance pick with a reliability asterisk, not the set-and-forget one.
Does the Betta really run on solar alone?
Mostly, and that's the trick: solar primary with an AC-adapter backup, so a stretch of cloudy days doesn't strand it mid-pool. Combined with the drip-free top-loading basket, it's the skimmer built to be forgotten — which is what 2,993 owners at 4.5★ are describing.
Full fight coverage
Every number on this page derives from the same verified data that renders our showdowns — dated owner-rating reads, MSRP-based tiers, and rulings only where a real fight happened. Data last verified: September 2026. Methodology and monetization disclosure: how we test.