Xiaomi’s quest to be the king of the Internet of Things (IoT) is no secret. The company has more than one subsidiary working on its IoT products. To date, we’ve seen IoT products branded as Mi, Soocas and even Dreame. ROIDMI is yet another brand that works on IoT particularly cordless vacuums. Its laser focus on the niche seems to have worked in its favour as their line-up of cordless vacuums seems to be one of the more popular options on platforms like Shopee and Lazada.

That said, Robot Vacuums are no revolution when it comes to cleaning. They’ve been available on the market for quite a while now, but they’ve always had their quirks when it comes to cleaning. ROIDMI’s EVE Plus is looking to address many of these quirks with some interesting approaches and smart implementation of AI technology. These small innovations have made for one of the easier, hands-off cleaning experiences for robot vacuums we’ve experienced.

The ROIDMI Experience

The ROIDMI experience isn’t just a manual plug-and-forget experience; it comes with a host of “prep work” and setup that you’ll have to undertake at the beginning which lends to a more automated experience later on. Of course, it is in no way a deal-breaker when it comes to the overall experience.

Being an IoT device, the robot vacuum requires some setup. However, the process is pretty straightforward, simple and very app-centric. The EVE Plus Robot Vacuum itself doesn’t come with many interactive components. Most of the interactions and settings are done through the app. This actually makes setup a breeze. However, the ecosystem itself can be a little quirky as it isn’t as integrated as you would think.

When you initially unbox and set up your EVE Plus Robot Vacuum, you’ll need to make sure that you remove the plastic and Styrofoam pieces that have been placed to prevent damage to moving parts during shipping. If you look at the manual, it says that the vacuum can be integrated into the Mi Home app or the ROIDMI app.  However, this particular model of the robot vacuum isn’t listed in the Mi Home app, instead, you will need to use the ROIDMI app to set it up.

Set up was very simple and quick. All you had to do is plug in the base, place the EVE Plus in the cradle and power on. Once you do, you just have to tap the add product option in the app which is denoted by a “+” on the top right. When you do this, it will automatically look for the local WiFi being broadcast by the vacuum and proceed to program the Wi-Fi settings for the vacuum. To be frank, that’s all the setup that is required. After this, everything else is automated and done by the vacuum itself during its first cleaning.

App Design & Usability

The ROIDMI app is a simple, well-designed app. Unlike a lot of other IoT apps, it cuts to the chase and immediately allows you to set up and manage your products after you sign in. The simplicity and straightforward design are some of the best features of the app. The no-frills in your face design lets you get things done without fumbling and digging for functions.

After your initial set-up of registering and logging in, you’ll be greeted by a screen with a list of your appliances. Each appliance can be set up and monitored through the app. The main screen shows you pertinent information such as the battery level, active time, and area that the vacuum has cleaned previously.

Clicking further into the app brings up more detailed information.  In the case of the EVE Plus Robot Vacuum, you’ll be able to see a map of the space it’s in and the cleaning path it took on the previous cleaning session. It also gives you quick access to its cleaning modes and map customisations. It also gives you quick access to the recharge and clean options. You can also customise how much water it will dispense when mopping and even the suction power of the vacuum.

Designed for Real Living Spaces

While the app is the core of their user experience, the ROIDMI EVE Plus Robot Vacuum itself comes packed with hardware and design that makes using it a more seamless experience.

Let’s start off with the overall design of the vacuum. The ROIDMI EVE Plus Robot Vacuum is designed to be able to manoeuvre through real living spaces. While it shares a similar design to many of the robot vacuums available, it is short enough to fit under most spaces in a room. The circle design of it gives it more manoeuvrability that allows the vacuum to get out of tight situations with minimal intervention.

ROIDMI has also struck a balance in the size of the vacuum and the size of the internal tank. It is large enough that the vacuum doesn’t need to make multiple trips back to the docking station to be emptied even in larger rooms but small enough that the robot vacuum is still able to fit in most nooks and crannies of a space. It also doesn’t come with many parts which click into space. All the components of the robot vacuum are securely in place either with screws or by a secure locking mechanism.

The vacuums movement is dependent on two rather large plastic wheels. They function similar to the hoverboards we’ve seen in the market. This decision actually allows the robot vacuum to find its way through tough spaces. It also allows it to move over ledges objects about 2cm in height. So, if you have a table with a stand design that runs on the ground or running cables across a room, it’ll be able to move over them. However, for cables, if they aren’t fastened to the ground securely, you might have electrical items connected to these cables falling over.

The ROIDMI EVE Plus has a small, elevated component on the top where the LIDAR sensor is. This allows it a 360° field of view allowing it to map and detect quicker and more accurately. In fact, it managed to map the room it was in even during setup. The sensor also allows the robot vacuum to gauge the height of furniture, so it doesn’t get stuck under them. This is complemented by sensors on the side and bumpers on the front to help with movement and manoeuvring. There are only 3 physical buttons on the EVE PLUS – the power button, the home button and a button that acts as a quick clean command.

The base station or dock is also designed minimally. It’s a relatively small unit with a single touch screen for status monitoring and a space for the EVE Plus to come home to. The main, 3-litre dust bag is accessible through the top. It also has a HEPA filter to prevent odours from escaping. This also means that you won’t be emptying the bag too often. ROIDMI does highlight that they’ve designed the base in a more compact fashion. This apparently allows them to minimise noise while dust is being emptied.

Dealing with the Dust in a Smart Way with Some Quirks

To be really frank, I’ve never really understood the allure of robot vacuums even after reviewing earlier models ages ago. In fact, they always seemed like more hassle than they are worth. However, the Xiaomi ROIDMI EVE Plus robot vacuum did a good job of convincing me otherwise.

The AI that comes programmed into the EVE Plus makes it one of the simplest, most seamless robot vacuum experiences I’ve had to date. It can intelligently detect the height of furniture and even detect slopes or ledges. It was able to avoid getting stuck most of the time thanks to this. However, even if it got stuck you simply had to put it immediately beside the area it got stuck in and it would avoid it.

The way the EVE Plus cleans is also different from other robot vacuums. It intelligently partitions large areas into smaller rooms. It wasn’t immediately apparent when I was observing the vacuum itself but when I glanced at the app, the map was sectioned into multiple smaller areas. Using this mapping and guidance, it would optimise its route to efficiently clean the area. It’s also the only robot vacuum I’ve seen that has a unique Y cleaning pattern that allows it to clean more effectively. If you’re like me, you’ll also turn on the 2X clean feature which makes the EVE Plus do a second run when cleaning. Its ability to mop with spaces with water is also a welcomed feature. However, this feature is limited to 250m² space as the water tank on the robot vacuum is limited.

However, the ROIDMI EVE Plus is not without its quirks. During our review period, the vacuum actually lost mapping data spontaneously. This isn’t a major issue as it is able to rebuild the data pretty quickly. The robot vacuum is also a little quirky when it comes to dealing with carpets and rugs. It’s able to handle thicker carpets but tends to wrestle with rags.

It also communicates through the app which is an added advantage – if your phone doesn’t put the app to sleep. The app never requests to allow it to run in the background either so when you launch your ROIDMI app, it tends to spam you with notifications. It also does cry for help with a voice when it’s stuck.

Of Raised Slopes & Tassels – ROIDMI Eve Plus Kryptonite

If the ROIDMI EVE Plus was Supergirl, tassels and slopes are its kryptonite. The robot vacuum seems to enjoy wrestling (and losing) with tassels. Rugs or carpets with tassels are things you may want to remove when using the EVEL Plus. In fact, I had to cut tassels off a floor mat cause the EVE Plus had a bout with them and couldn’t break free. The other thing that the EVE Plus seems to have trouble with is raised slopes and platforms. This is particularly apparent if you use a stand fan in your room. If the stand fan is designed with a base that is slightly sloped, the EVE Plus will try to run over the slope and eventually get stuck.

This was irritating at first. However, you can easily prevent this by creating no-fly zones on the map through the ROIDMI app.

Not Just About Removing Dust – It Zaps Bacteria with Activated Oxygen   

Earlier we mentioned the HEPA filter that helps prevent odours from escaping. This is actually part of a larger disinfection system that is integrated into the base station of the EVE Plus. When the dust is emptied from the robot vacuum to the main 3-litre bag, it is bombarded by activated or ionised oxygen. A little bit of a science refresher here – activate or ionised oxygen is a charged molecule that readily destabilizes cellular structures and intracellular structures. Using this understanding, ROIDMI has created a solution that is able to kill 99.99% of bacteria or so they claim.

This technology is also responsible for the odourless storage of dust in the base station. The ionised oxygen can also help neutralise bad odours. This working together with the HEPA filter that is integrated into the docking station minimises harmful particles and allergens from escaping.

A Simplified, Smart Robot Vacuum that is able to handle small to medium spaces with a user experience that changed the mind of a non-believer

It’s very rare for a piece of technology to make me reconsider my initial experiences and change my mind. However, the ROIDMI EVE Plus robot vacuum did just that. It provided a seamless, simplified experience which convinced me that there is a time and space for smart cleaning devices. In my case, with a busy day to day life and older parents at home, the robot vacuum provided us with a means to maintain our most used spaces keeping them clean and dust-free without sacrificing time and conserving time.

The features of the EVE Plus are what made the difference. Its simple app and set-it-and-forget-it experience allowed me to get things done without the need to worry about the robot vacuum when it’s running a cleaning cycle. If the vacuum had poorer manoeuvrability or got stuck in spaces regularly, this review would have been very different. However, the fact that it was able to handle a busy space without much hassle, was a welcomed surprise.