Xiaomi is gearing up for its upcoming 6.6 Sale extravaganza in Malaysia, offering massive discounts on a wide range of smart home products and wearables. This exciting campaign, happening exclusively on Shopee from June 6th, includes two brand new additions to Xiaomi’s lineup: the Xiaomi Curved Gaming Monitor G34WQi and the Xiaomi Robot Vacuum X20+. Shoppers can expect up to 50% off on their favourite smart home and AIoT devices, along with these exciting new products.
Immerse Yourself in the Game with the Xiaomi Curved Gaming Monitor G34WQi
Designed for passionate gamers seeking an unparalleled experience, the Xiaomi Curved Gaming Monitor G34WQi boasts a stunning curved screen with a blazing-fast refresh rate. The monitor’s 1500R curvature mirrors the natural curve of the human eye, minimizing strain and creating a more natural viewing experience. This immersive design ensures every part of the screen remains at a consistent distance from your eyes, for unparalleled visual fidelity.
Beyond its curved design, the Xiaomi Curved Gaming Monitor G34WQi packs a punch with its impressive features. The expansive 21:9 ultrawide 34-inch display delivers exceptional detail thanks to the WQHD resolution. Gamers can enjoy smooth, blur-free gameplay even in fast-paced action sequences with the 180Hz high refresh rate and 1ms response time. The monitor features a professional colour display with 350 nits brightness, ensuring vibrant and realistic colours with exceptional clarity. To protect your eyes from harmful blue light emissions during extended gaming sessions, the Xiaomi Curved Gaming Monitor G34WQi is TÜV Low Blue Light Certified. The monitor also boasts flexible positioning with adjustable height and tilt settings for comfortable viewing from any angle. For a clean and streamlined setup, the monitor is even wall-mountable. (Note: Wall mount bracket sold separately).
The Xiaomi Curved Gaming Monitor G34WQi is now available for purchase at RM1,499, with a special limited-time offer of RM1,249 during the 6.6 Sale.
Effortless Cleaning with the Xiaomi Robot Vacuum X20+
Cleaning just got smarter with the Xiaomi Robot Vacuum X20+. This innovative all-in-one robot vacuum offers exceptional performance and convenience, exceeding expectations and simplifying your life.
The Xiaomi Robot Vacuum X20+ boasts several key features. An all-in-one smart base station provides automated dust collection for effortless maintenance. Tackle dirt, dust, and debris with powerful suction and efficient mopping capabilities. The Xiaomi Robot Vacuum X20+ navigates your home with ease and avoids obstacles with intelligent sensors. Enjoy seamless control and monitor your cleaning regimen via your smartphone app for a truly smarter interactive experience.
The Xiaomi Robot Vacuum X20+ typically retails for RM 2,999. However, during the 6.6 Sale, you can secure this powerful cleaning companion for a limited-time price of only RM 1,699.
Pricing & Availability
The Xiaomi Curved Gaming Monitor G34WQi and Xiaomi Robot Vacuum X20+ will be available for purchase starting June 6th, exclusively on Shopee during Xiaomi’s 6.6 Sale. Both products come in a single variant and colour option.
From June 6, shoppers can purchase selected Xiaomi smart AIoT and wearables at a special price, exclusively on Shopee. Check out Xiaomi’s official store on Shopee for more products on sale.
Samsung has unveiled the BESPOKE Jet Bot Combo Steam for those seeking a more efficient cleaning routine. This robot vacuum cleaner goes beyond basic suction, offering a comprehensive cleaning solution for your floors.
The yet-to-be-announced Jet Bot Combo boasts powerful suction to tackle dust and debris. However, what truly sets it apart is its high-temperature self-cleaning system. After mopping your floors, the system utilizes a combination of steam and water (ranging from 50 to 60°C) to thoroughly remove dirt from the mops itself. Additionally, the steam sanitizes the mops at a temperature of 100°C, ensuring a more hygienic clean for your home.
Beyond its cleaning prowess, Samsung’s Jet Bot Combo Steam boasts a sleek and modern design that complements any décor. This robot vacuum seamlessly integrates into your existing furniture, ensuring a stylish addition to your home.
Ready to experience the future of clean floors? Register your interest online between May 28th and June 10th, 2024 to receive a voucher code for a discounted pre-order. Using your voucher code during the pre-order period between June 11th and June 24th, 2024, you’ll receive a discount of RM200 on the Jet Bot Combo Steam.
Roborock is no stranger to the Malaysian market when it comes to robot vacuums. The company has had its Shopee and Lazada storefronts for the longest time. Now, the company is adding even more to their online storefronts with the launch of a brand new lineup of robot vacuums looking to make everyday cleaning even more of a breeze.
Roborock’s S8 lineup of robot vacuums brings even more features and smarter AI features to the table. Coming in with three models at different prices, the S8 line has a robot vacuum that is perfect for anyone.
The Roborock S8 comes with improvements to the base vacuum with Roborock including dual rubber roller brushes which improve dust pickup. The new dual roller system is even able to pick up matted items like animal fur or hair which should be a welcomed upgrade for pet owners.
The new VibraRise 2.0 mopping system available on the S8+ and the S8 Pro Ultra helps get rid of stubborn stains. This is accomplished as the mopping utility of the vacuum vibrates at 3,000 times per minute. The intense vibration helps break down stains and remove them.
The top-of-the-line S8 Pro Ultra comes with additional features such as two different vibration modes for better cleaning. However, the mainstay of this vacuum is the RockDock Ultra system which comes in the box. This system allows users to have a worry-free experience when it comes to the robot vacuum. The RockDock Ultra allows users to automate and forget as it comes with automatic mop cleaning, dust emptying and water tank refilling. The dock also comes with warm air drying that helps ensure that the mopping pad doesn’t develop rank smells.
Together with the S8 series, Roborock also showed off their cordless wet and dry vacuum – the Dyad Pro. The Dyad comes with a dual roller system which allows users to mop and vacuum simultaneously. It comes with improved edge-to-edge cleaning and the new RevoBrush self-cleaning and drying system. It’s also smarter than other vacuums with its DirTect Smart sensor which allows it to adapt to different cleaning situations.
Pricing & Availability
The Roborock S8 series will be available in stores and on Shopee and Lazada. The S8 will be priced at MYR 2,699, the S8+ at MYR3,999 and the S8 Pro Ultra at MYR5,599.
Xiaomi recently announced their new smartphone flagship – the Xiaomi 13 series globally and in Malaysia. At their Malaysian launch, however, Xiaomi also unveiled a new array of AIoT offerings which include a new smartwatch, earbuds, a robot cooker and a fleet of robot vacuums.
Xiaomi Buds 4 Pro
Xiaomi isn’t a stranger when it comes to high-quality wireless audio offerings. The company has debuted more than 5 offerings across its Xiaomi and Redmi product lineups. The new Xiaomi Buds 4 Pro comes to their premium Xiaomi lineup with Sony’s LDAC technology in tow. Using this technology, the Buds 4 Pro is able to bring top-of-the-line Hi-Res Audio with data transfer rates of up to 990kbps at bit depths of up to 32-bit. In addition to this, the buds are also equipped with Ambient Noise Cancelling (ANC) technology to zone out and focus. Together with this, the Buds 4 Pro comes with Xiaomi’s take on 360 Audio – Dimensional audio – which gives you a fully immersive audio experience with object-based positional sound.
The Xiaomi Buds 4 Pro is touted to have up to 9 hours of uninterrupted listening and a total of 38 hours of battery life including the charging case. You don’t even need to plug in to top up the charge thanks to wireless charging support. It also comes with dual-device connectivity which allows you to simultaneously connect to two devices at one go.
The Buds 4 Pro comes with a more premium space capsule design that uses multiple magnets to keep the earbuds in place. You can also get the best fit with Xiaomi’s new “Intelligent Fit Monitoring” feature for maximum comfort. You even get more granular control with Xiaomi’s new Earbuds app which is available on the Google Play Store.
Xiaomi Watch S1 Pro
Together with the Xiaomi Buds 4 Pro, the company also announced the Watch S1 Pro. The new smartwatch is a union of the classic watch design and contemporary smartwatch technology. It comes with a 1.47-inch AMOLED display and a rotatable crown protected by scratch-resistant sapphire crystal glass. The design is punctuated by two colourways – a silver finish with brown leather and a carbon black case finish paired with a fluororubber strap. With Xiaomi’s smartwatch OS, you can further customise the watch to suit your style with over 100 watch faces.
Source: Xiaomi Malaysia
The Watch S1 Pro is not just about style, it comes with the ability to track over 100 sports activities. Runners have a special added value with 10 pre-built programs that allow you to build endurance, burn fat and more complete with interval training. Of course, the Xiaomi Watch S1 Pro comes with all the features we expect from a smartwatch nowadays including sleep tracking, SPO2 tracking, heart rate tracking and calorie tracking.
With up to 14 days of battery life, it’s also one of the longest-lasting smartwatches on the market. you can even get 2 more days of battery with just 10 minutes of charge.
Cleaning the Smart Way with Xiaomi Robot Vacuums
Xiaomi’s fleet of popular robot vacuums is also making its official Malaysian debut. The fleet consists of four models this round: the E10, S10, S10+, and X10. The robot vacuums come with a unique complement of features to cater to different price points and needs.
Source: Xiaomi Malaysia
All of them come with advanced LDS sensors that allow the vacuums to intelligently map your home and react to obstacles intelligently. Xiaomi Robot Vacuum X10 is can store up to 60 full cleans, features 4,000Pa powerful fan blower suction, and can clean up to 3 hours continuously with its 5,200mAh long-lasting battery. The S10+ features dual-pad pressure mopping for better stain removal, and up to 2 hours; The S10 features Zigzag and Y-shape cleaning routes for maximum cleaning efficiency and a smart water tank to protect floors from water damage; Lastly, the E10 is a versatile floor cleaning tool that cleans in one pass.
Xiaomi Smart Cooking Robot
Looking for a sous chef to help with cooking and meal prep? Well, Xiaomi’s smart cooking robot is here to help. It comes with eight specialized cooking features that allow you to cook a myriad of dishes with a single click of a button on the 8-inch display. Speaking of, it comes preloaded with over 200 chef’s recipes.
Source: Xiaomi Malaysia
It comes with a high-power switched reluctance motor, with a rotation speed that ranges from 40 rpm to 12,000 rpm and 3D induction heating. The combination of these features is complemented by Xiaomi’s CookingIoT algorithm to set and forget as the Robot takes care of everything from grinding to frying and more.
Pricing & Avaliability
The whole stable of AIoT devices is available at Xiaomi stores and even on Shopee and Lazada.
When they told us that robots are going to take the world on in the 21st century, we never really expected that robotics has just evolved to something like a robot vacuum. We were expecting robots that could stand on two feet, Androids to be our personal butlers and caretakers. While progress on robotics has not been what you want to call fast, it is still significant enough to garner some attention. In today’s world robotics has helped humanity progressed and in some ways become better couch potatoes. Take the Robot Vacuum for example.
Robot vacuums started out as an item of novelty. They did not work very well in the beginning, and they were rather expensive. It was new technology, after all. They were a precursor to something much better for the average consumer.
The demand for handheld vacuums and robot vacuums skyrocketed in the past few years because they are rather clever. You do not to waste your time plugging your device in every time you want to clean your house. You simply turn them on to get cleaning. In the case of the robot vacuum, you do not even need to follow it around.
Which brings us to this Roborock Q7 Max+. It will set you back MYR 2,899. At that price, you are getting the robot vacuum and a dock. It is not some dock that will also change your robot’s water, but at least it empties the robot’s trash compartment.
Thing is, you can get a robot vacuum at a much lower price point. You can also get one at a higher price range. Should you get this one? Is this even worth its asking price? We find out.
Design
It looks like any typical robot vacuum. It is circular in shape, which is rather normal for a robot vacuum. Why is it not more rectangular in shape? We do not know; we also think that the optimum shape for a robot vacuum is a circular form for optimum navigation.
Compared to some of the lower end robot vacuum as well, it is quite large too. Of course, the size allows for bigger, more powerful engine within the rather flat body. The real estate of the Roborock Q7 Max also allows it to have more sensors, to be cleverer in terms of knowing where it is in a house environment. There is also a sort of bump on top that also houses its sensors, including a LiDAR mapping hardware, to better understand the layout of the room it is in.
While it is on the large side, in terms of footprint, its flatted profile allows it to easily slip into tighter spaces, like under your beds. Then again, because it has such a large footprint, it may not go into tighter corners or narrow spots.
Features
Of course, a modern robot vacuum is not just a hunk of plastic with basic gears and a few sensors to make sure it does not fall down a flight of stairs. The Roborock Q7 Max packs more sensors now than before to understand where it is and what its surrounding environment looks like. It also packs WiFi and comes with an accompanying app that you can work with to see how the robot works and its charge state.
Starting Up in Minutes
The box that the Roborock Q7 Max is quite large. Then again, it does not just house the vacuum cleaner unit itself. It also packs its large docking tower. When we say large though, there are larger vacuum towers that contains a larger waste bin and water tank.
Still, if you open the box the right way up (which we totally did not), you will find an instructional sheet that gets you up and going with the Roborock Q7 Max+ quickly. You really just have to get everything assembled, fill the water tank of the Q7 Max, get it plugged in, and you are almost ready to go. You do want to have your app installed on your smartphone and get your Roborock Q7 Max connected to the internet to ensure you get the best out of your vacuum cleaner.
Setting everything up took us no more than 10 minutes and the vacuum is ready to go for its first clean, with mop function and everything. The tower came in two pieces, with removable cover to house the extra vacuum bag that is provided with the vacuum cleaner too. Assembly for it is tool-less too, so you do not need to bring your toolbox or call a handyman to get it assembled and working.
Vacuum Tower Dock
The tower dock is made up of mostly plastic. While it is made mostly of plastics, it does not look or feel cheap in any way. Then again, its main purpose is to house an extra larger dust bag so that the Roborock Q7 can empty its own dust container to make room for the next cleaning session.
The removable cover for the vacuum bag is also translucent. We assume that you can see through it to determine if the vacuum bag needs changing or not. Strangely we thought that it was a feature that should be part of the app.
Roborock App and WiFi
The Roborock App does not just cater for one product obviously. It caters for all of Roborock’s products that has WiFi function on it. We are advocates of electronics with apps to control them, so this is a bonus point for Roborock.
The layout of the app is rather simplistic and minimal, which we are fond of. To get the app connected to your Roborock vacuum is just as simple as well. You just need to scan a QR code that can be found on your vacuum. That, or you must make sure that your WiFi is on, and your smartphone will find the Roborock Q7 Max to connect to.
Once connected, you can use your app to control and monitor the vacuum cleaner’s progress as it goes around the house to start its cleaning session. The app even tells you how long it takes to clean one room, alongside its battery charge state. Of course, you can use the app to control the vacuum.
Clever 3D Mapping
Like many of the newer robot vacuums, the Roborock Q7 Max maps your entire house and determines the most efficient way to vacuum your space as effectively as possible. It might take the Roborock Q7 robot some time to map your space if there are a lot of objects lying around or if that space is oddly shaped. Obviously, the ideal space for a robot vacuum is a clear rectangular space with nothing else on the floor.
In our little office, with bean bags and various other furniture like our chairs, tables, and even a TV console. Of course, being an office that doubles as our studio, there are also various cables lying on the floor. We also have two studio lights always set up so that we can just start shooting at any time. Our office space is also covered in carpet, the ideal vacuum situation.
It took the little robot vacuum about 30 minutes to both accurately map (thanks to LiDAR) and fully clean the office in its first stint. Of course, because we did not want to wet our carpet, we turned off the mopping function, you can do that via the app too. The next few rounds of cleaning took just about 20 minutes since the Q7 is not necessarily doing any extra guess work and mapping. Of course, the Roborock Q7 continues to run its sensors while it is cleaning just in case there are any changes to the space.
Performance
Via the app, you can choose the Roborock Q7’s operation mode. You can either get it to mop and vacuum, or just vacuum. You even get to choose the intensity of its operations via the app. In the vacuum department, there are three levels of suction strength you can choose from. Even the mop has three levels of intensity for you to choose from.
While mopping may not be something you want to do with carpets, you can consider mopping your tiles or parquet flooring. We used it in our homes with mostly marble flooring, parquet, and tiles. The tower does not come with a water tank, so you must refill your water tank from time to time if you do want to work with the mop function.
In terms of suction, the Roborock Q7 Max does well enough even at minimum power. You only need all 4,200pa of suction when you are working with a lot of carpets. In regular flooring conditions, cranking your Roborock Q7 Max to its maximum power setting is never necessary. While you may want to adjust the amount of water that is being used to clean your floor, we do not think that you need anything more than the medium wetness setting to clean your floor. If you want to wet your carpets, the wettest setting might be necessary.
It is not the fastest robot vacuum you might find in the market. As mentioned, it took about 25 minutes or so for the Roborock Q7 Max to clean our entire office. But it does get the job done, very well at that. Thanks to the app, you can monitor the cleaning progress of the Q7 Max at any given time.
You do want to keep stray cloth off the floor. You also want to keep in mind that the robot does tend to climb up small ledges. Though, it is not very good at reversing out of said ledge. The app does a decent job at telling you that your Q7 Max has met with some issues, has stopped operating, and needs rescuing.
At the same time, the Roborock Q7 Max has a powerful enough drive motor to push small objects out of the way. Our lighting set up was completely toppled over by the robot vacuum in its pass through. Since we had it going remotely, we did not find out until we came back into the office to collect the unit.
Yes, it can operate without the dock in place too. That is rather useful when you have multiple floors of your home or office to work with. You can program it to different floors too and the vacuum quickly understands which layout its cleaning on its own. Without the dock, the robot vacuum will return to its original position where you set it down, so you simply pick it up where you left it once it is done cleaning, as told by the Roborock app.
In terms of noise, it does not make that much of it while it gets going. Yes, you hear it going, but it is not annoying or disruptive in anyway. When it docks and empties its bin though is when things get rather loud. The app will warn you, but nothing prepares you for that sound. It sounded like you have a jet going off in your house, rather unnerving.
Because the dock does not house a water tank too, you do have to clean the mop attachment and fill up the water tank on your own. We also think that the app should be able to at least keep track of how much water the vacuum still contains. It is an easy enough job filling the water tank though. You simply pop it out of the vacuum and fill with regular water. The water tank is combined to the dustbin though, so the Roborock Q7 Max will not work without the tank inside the vacuum.
Roborock Q7 Max – It Does the Job
The Roborock Q7 Max+ bundle includes the Roborock Q7 Max robot vacuum unit and a docking tower. That will set you back MYR 2,899 currently. In the world of robot vacuums, the Roborock is a little on the premium side. Compared to a similarly priced Roidmi robot vacuum though, the Roborock packs more suction power. Sure, you do not have a refill tank in the tower but refilling the water tank is not much of a hassle. It is a job that takes probably about 2 minutes. You do have to clean the mop module though, which can be annoying.
Still, the Roborock Q7 is one of the most powerful robot vacuums you can find in the market currently. The comprehensive app, while can also be likened to many of its competitors’ apps is very user friendly and easy to understand for most. There is a small learning curve if you are not used to it, but you only ever need to use one or two buttons on the app, especially if you live in a single-story building or a condominium, same goes to the office.
It is not the fastest cleaning robot out there, but because of how much power it has, it cleans your floor well. It works especially well with carpets since carpets tends to be dustier than regular tiling or marble flooring. The added mop function will not replace the old mop and floor cleaning solution combo. Still, it does its job well enough that you have a clean floor after every cleaning session.
Is it worth its asking price? If you want something that is powerful enough to clean your carpets, reliable, comes with a simple app to help you manage your vacuum, and a dock that also ensures that your robot vacuum is ready to go with an empty dustbin, this is the one for you. You can get ones that comes with a bigger tower dock that houses a water tank to clean your mop and replace the water supply in your robot vacuum too, but if you are mostly working with carpets, you may want to trade the water tank in with higher suction power anyway. In that case, MYR 2,899 is money well spent on this puppy.
Robot vacuum cleaners are the best thing that happened to humanity after the broom, mop, and regular vacuum cleaners. Why? While it is not 100%, robot vacuum cleaners save you a lot of cleaning time in your house. Sure, you might need to use a supplementary handheld vacuum cleaner to ensure that you can clean the nooks and crannies in your home. If you are not too particular, modern robot vacuum cleaners does at least 85% of the job well enough. They can even mop your floor at the same time, saving you even more time.
There is a small problem here though. The robot vacuums are rather tiny in most cases, which also limits its waste tank capacity. If you have a mop function, the water tank would have to be rather small, and it takes up even more tank capacity, making the waste tank even smaller. While it does save some cleaning time, you would have to empty and refill the tank rather regularly. There is also the problem of cleaning the vacuum cleaner itself. Not with Roborock’s latest creation though.
Source: Roborock
They call it the G10, and it will set you back MYR 3,999. It is also one of the most sophisticated, if not the most, in the vacuum cleaning market. Yes, it comes with a rather tall dock for not just emptying its waste tank, it also cleans the robot’s mop if you want it to.
We start with the robot unit first though. It is Roborock’s most powerful robot vacuum cleaner to date. It features 2,500 Pa of suction to ensure that all sorts of dirt and debris gets lifted, even in carpets. They have also upgraded the main brush to hug the floor better to ensure that whatever dirt that might get stuck on the floor gets unstuck too.
The mop function has been updated too. It is now what Roborock calls Sonic Moppping that vibrates the mop at up to 3,000 times a minute to ensure that even the most stubborn of dirt gets wiped cleanly off the floor. The Ultrasonic sensor on the unit ensures that the robot recognises carpets more accurately in mopping mode to avoid wetting the carpets. To prevent hair from tangling within the brushes, it is fitted with Roborock’s rubber brushes that is also more durable than regular brushes.
Source: Roborock
Source: Roborock
Source: Roborock
Source: Roborock
Of course, it is a smart little gadget you can control with your smartphone, as expected. It packs Roborock’s rather proven 3D mapping technology that recognises your room and maps it out. This allows rooms to be cleaned more efficiently and effectively. You can now also add furniture and floor material information to create a more accurate map of your house. That way also the robot can also cleverly determine its own cleaning functions according to floor types and furniture placements.
Then there is its dock that also cleans the Roborock G10. Roborock designed the dock ramp to automatically clean its brushes of course. The dock also houses a larger tank that allows the robot to ultimately empty its own tank and reduces the need for you to keep maintaining the robot vacuum cleaner itself. At the same time, the dock has a cleaning module made to specifically clean the mop module of the G10. There is a brush that rotates at 600 rpm to completely clean the mop off dirty water, keeping the mop clean and ready to go for its next round of cleaning session. There is also a large water tank in the dock to ensure that your robot G10 is filled with clean water for its next mop.
The Roborock G10 is now available for pre-order. It retails at MYR 3,999 and you can get it from its official store exclusively on Shopee. For more information on the Roborock G10, you can head over to their website.
Cleaning up at home is a tedious job. While you should allocate a single day for a major clean up operations at home, there are certain things that you should also consider doing consistently to ensure that your living space is livable until those major cleaning days. One of which is to keep your floor properly clean, very important in Asian homes where shoes are not allowed indoors. You want a smooth, clean floor for that.
The introduction of robot vacuum cleaners are a blessing and a little bit of a curse. They are mighty convenient to work with. At a touch of a button, or tick of a timer, the robot vacuums start its own cleaning routine without too much of a fuss, do a round around your space, and goes back to its own little corner. It is perfect for smaller spaces, thus making it the perfect home cleaning companion when you live alone in a single-storey apartment.
A lot of them were not very good though. Because they were not very big, you still want to ensure that they are not exposed to large chunks of debris. While they were advertised to be “smart cleaners”, they were not very clever sometimes. They tend to fall off ledges, trip over cables, gets themselves stuck transitioning from regular flooring to carpet, and sometimes they are not able to comprehend that there are a lot more floors than what they are cleaning. You still must do some regular maintenance cleaning on the robot vacuum itself, because it has a small stomach. If your robot has mopping functions, you must ensure you top the water up, or replace the murky water after every vacuum session. You also want to make sure your mopping attachment is clean all the time. In conclusion, having a robot vacuum cleaner can be more hassle than it is marketed to be.
Now though, ECOVACS is here to save the day with the DEEBOT X1 series of robot vacuum cleaners.
ECOVACS, if you have not heard yet, is one of the leading brands when it comes to home service robots, especially robot vacuum cleaners. They were one of the first in the industry to push an AI powered vacuum robot that uses various sensors to map out your entire floor plan it can access, understand the surfaces it is exposed to, and run more efficient cleaning programs for itself the next time it goes around.
There was still another problem to solve. The maintenance of the robot vacuums themselves. At least that was a problem until now.
The DEEBOT X1 family of products looks rather sophisticated. All it is, in essence anyway, is an ECOVACS DEEBOT robot vacuum with a large docking station that also acts as its bin, and refilling tank. The DEEBOT X1 robot vacuum itself also has mopping functions, which explains the refilling part.
The robot vacuum itself comes with ECOVACS’ state-of-the-art vacuum technologies. It is powered by a powerful 5000Pa suction mechanism. Of course, being a premium product, ECOVACS also ensured that it maps your floor plan as accurately as possible with their proven AIVI 3D and TrueMapping 2.0 technologies. There is even a clever AI voice assistant YIKO. You can interact with YIKO, which could be fun. At the same time, they have also fitted the OZMO Turbo 2.0 Rotary Pressure Mopping System for the most advanced robot mopping experience you can get in the current market.
The highlight of the DEEBOT X1 family though is their docking stations. There are two on offer: the OMNI, and the TURBO. The OMNI would be the flagship model with a 4L water tank for both clean and dirty water to ensure that the robot has fresh water supply for its own cleaning and the mopping programs. All the cleaning and refilling happens automatically. All you need to do to for maintenance is to ensure that dirty water is disposed, and fresh water is topped up periodically.
The docking station is also where the DEEBOT X1 dumps its vacuumed load to ensure that its bowels are empty again for its next vacuum station. Like the 4L water tank, all you need to do is to replace the vacuum bag within the housing periodically, or when it gets full.
For the TURBO model, the docking station acts only as a cleaning station for the DEEBOT X1 after every vacuum and mopping session. That means you need to still replace the filter bags and water supply of the robot vacuum itself. The cleaning station on the TURBO docking station, like the OMNI station too, ensures that the mopping pad is cleaned and dried removing any bad odours that might come from the pads.
Price and Availability
The DEEBOT X1 is now available on both Shopee and Lazada. The DEEBOT X1 OMNI will set you back MYR 7,999. The DEEBOT X1 TURBO will retail for MYR 6,999, a whole MYR 1,000 less than the OMNI. While both models do sound premium, it does cut out a lot of cleaning work for yourself. Just think about how much time you save on cleaning and the price will make a lot more sense.
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.
