Top vacuum cleaner at a good price - Roborock Q8 Max+
When I tried the roborock S7 Max Ultra in my last robot vacuum cleaner test, I thought it couldn't get any better. Well, I'll kill the joke, I was right, because the Q8 Max only represents the middle category in the new series, with a true self-draining dock.
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To be honest, the S7 Max Ultra is not the best either, as the S8 Pro Ultra is also available, but the difference between the two machines is smaller than an ant's genitalia. So it wasn't a question that the S7 Max Ultra is the top, it's more about what capabilities are cut from the Q series appearing in the eight series, i.e. the middle category.
Well, as it turns out, quite a lot of things have been tweaked, but there is still plenty of goodness left in the new machine. Let's start with the fact that there are several versions of the Q8, the cheaper one does not have a self-draining dock, while the Q8 Max+, which is my guest, also has this. The excellent mapping and map management, as well as object recognition, remained, but the more advanced mopping functions no longer fit within the framework of the category.
Well, let's see the remaining abilities in detail!
The navigation is of course laser based, that is, precisely based on the LDS system. Roborock coined the name PreciSense for this, which is mostly good for the appearance of marketing materials, and it's just a laser unit like the others anyway. This is complemented by the ReactiveTech sensor(s) on the front, which is actually an obstacle avoidance system. This is also found in the S7 Max Ultra, which is quite good news, since it worked well in it.
In the S7 Max Ultra, the name HyperForce was coined for the suction system, which sounds great. The Q8 Max no longer got this HyperForce, despite the fact that the suction power is the same, 5500 Pa. This also shows that the top vacuum cleaner gets more even from good-sounding names.
The dust tank and water tank are of average size, the former 470 and the latter 350 milliliters. What is more interesting here is that these two containers are built into one unit, yet they fit perfectly in the vacuum cleaner's bottom. The battery has a capacity of 5200 mAh, which gives you 240 minutes of cleaning time in quiet mode.
I mentioned that the advanced wiper system did not fit into the price, which is sad, and what is even sadder is that not only the system, but also some of its elements did not fit. In other words, there is no vibrating MOP, no liftable MOP, no MOP pressing down on the floor with great force, not to mention the dock's water tanks, I didn't even expect it to be there.
So we get a traditional MOP, which does not wash, but only removes the thin layer of dust remaining on the floor.
However, there is carpet detection, there is 5 levels of adjustable water supply, automatically increasing suction in case of carpet detection, a side brush with dynamic speed, a memory capable of recording 4 maps, and the usual things such as zone cleaning, no-go zones, the virtual wall and the rest basic technology.
So, basically, a machine must appear in our mind's eye that brings the knowledge of last year's (before) top vacuum cleaners, supplemented with some extras, such as the double cylinder brush, adjustable suction strength in the docking station, and such "green" extras as we can set , which time of day the vacuum cleaner should charge its battery.
The latter is not stupid anyway, if all our machines knew this, solar panels could save a lot of money even if they didn't fit into the balance. After all, if our household appliances are charged during the day, when the sun is shining, then we don't have to sell the generated electricity for HUF 5, we can use it ourselves.
Basically, based on the specification, it can be said that the development is visible, although the machine has not improved so much compared to its predecessor that you would have to replace a Q7 Max just because of the innovations.
Of course, if it was already sent, I tried it.
The assembly is not complicated, maybe there are just so many oddities that we have to screw. Usually, it is enough to snap on the docking tray, but with this vacuum cleaner, you have to fix it with six screws. Don't ask why. Let's say it doesn't require a lot of energy, and you only have to do it once anyway.
There is nothing else to install. We find a dust bag in the dock, so it quickly turns out that the piece found in the package is the spare. In other words, the machine comes with two as a standard, which will be more than enough, especially since in the introductory sale we will also get a good 30 HUF worth of consumables and dust bags. So we will also be supplied with the starter package for a few months.
Anyway, the docking station is a nice piece, as is of course the vacuum cleaner. The black color is elegant, but unfortunately even the smallest speck of dust can be seen on it. It is worth cleaning with an antistatic cloth, because during the test the top of the vacuum cleaner was so full from the continuous wiping (I had to take a picture, it was dusty and ugly) that there were constantly dust spots on it.
Unfortunately, this is also true for the dock, especially for the brighter parts. The docking station sits confidently on the screwed-on tray, it is a safe piece to tip over. The tray protrudes quite neatly from under it, so be aware of this when you are looking for its place in the apartment.
Installation is not complicated either. Exceptionally, I didn't use the Mi Home app, the reason being that I use the Russian version, which has no regional restrictions (I have a lot of Xiaomi stuff from the Chinese domestic market), but it updates more slowly than the original app, and it didn't include the Q8 Max+. .
To download the app, there is a QR code on the top of the vacuum cleaner, it works, so downloading is not complicated. The installation is only to the extent that it also requires registration, so you need email confirmation, and what is usually needed in this case.
Anyway, I like the app, basically we get the same as under Mi Home. In the usual way, we can choose between the fast scan and cleaning and first scan modes. Both are good, and I tend to clean one right away, I combine the pleasant with the useful.
The roborock app is really demanding, things that have already been praised in the case of the S7 Max Ultra are also here, the management of accessories, the timing, all the software magic, but of course it is still the management and editing of the maps that takes the prize for me.
I mentioned above that the machine can handle four maps, which in practice means that it can remember the maps of 4 floors, so you don't need a dock for each floor to clean, you can put it down anywhere and it will clean the level.
This includes mapping, as I saw in the promo photos that there are three map modes, in addition to traditional 2D, 3D and Matrix modes are available. The Matrix looked interesting based on the image, but for some reason this is not yet available in the software, and the 3D view seems a bit unnecessary to me.
Well, what is interesting and useful is that we can create cleaning profiles. For example, by default there is one called After meals. A certain part of the apartment can be set here for cleaning, for practical reasons this should probably be the kitchen-dining area. After that, you don't have to constantly mess with cleaning the zone, you simply push on the profile and the machine does the job.
Oops, I almost forgot, I found one of the interesting functions of the S7 Max Ultra, which is the marking of the floor covering, I suspect it is also the case here that depending on the floor covering, the route is different so that it can clean the joints and joints more intensively.
How was the cleaning?
Well, I'm quite undemanding, I don't expect too much from a robot vacuum cleaner, just that it be a decent robot and that you don't have to sit next to it while it cleans. How is this not such a small thing?
No, this is really not a small expectation, but luckily more and more machines are passing the test. Actually, I don't use virtual walls as clowns, I've never designated a no-go zone. It happens that I leave a room out of cleaning for some reason, for example, the door is closed because the child is sleeping inside. That's why it happens.
And what often happens is that various objects are left on the floor. Of these, cables and e.g. the LE
GO cubes that cause problems. The cable is because the machine winds it up, the LEGO is because I don't notice it, it absorbs it, then the knight's sword or the flag won't be on the top of the castle, and then all hell breaks loose.
Well, no matter how good roborock is, it failed both tests.
Next to LEGO, I also placed DUPLO on the floor. He got the tall DUPLO cube, and interestingly, he also found the darker colored but normal height DUPLO cubes. LEGO, on the other hand, left him absolutely cold, even the bigger, eight-figure LEGO cube did not arouse his interest.
That's okay, but the cables pretty much left it absolutely cold. He caught one of the cables once and marked it as an unknown obstacle, but then in the next turn he galloped through it as well. And the smaller, thinner cable fell victim to the roller brushes.
It hurts me, because the cable test was already passed by the Dreame BOT Z10 Pro, even though I tested it in August 2021, that is, two years ago.
What positives did I find in the operation?
Fortunately, there is also plenty of good. For example, the sound of the machine is very cultured. I won't say that it has become much quieter, but somehow the hum hurts my ears less. Of course, it's also possible that I'm going deaf as I get older.
The double, counter-rotating roller brushes pick up dirt amazingly efficiently. As you can see in the pictures, these are not the hairy brushes of the old days, but that's okay. they work well and are easier to clean. Location detection worked very well. This means that if you pick up the machine and put it down in another part of the apartment, it will recognize where it is, in which room, and find it back on the dock from there, or continue cleaning.
It is perhaps unnecessary to say that the software "extras" such as zones and others are flawless, roborock has already polished these capabilities to perfection.
What should be the conclusion?
It may come as no surprise to anyone that the roborock Q8 Max+ is a good machine. roborock carries the torch in front of the Chinese robot vacuum cleaner manufacturers, they can only overtake them sometimes, and even then it is usually some other Xiaomi-related company, such as Dreame with its machines from 2 years ago.
The cleaning skills are absolutely flawless, the threshold climbing and the mapping and avoidance of larger obstacles are also perfect. The name ReactiveTech was not given to it by chance, as it can react reactively, in real time, even to falling objects in front of it, and prepares a new road plan and cleaning route in real time, which is required by the sudden obstacle in front of it.
The cable and LEGO test did not work, which is not good, because it means that, even when using the Q8 Max+, we cannot avoid looking around for the cables in the apartment before starting the vacuum cleaner, and do not peek into the children's room in search of forgotten toys on the floor. I thought we were over this problem, I note that the S7 Max Ultra and the Dreame are also better at this topic.
Regardless, the roborock Q8 Max+ is of course a good buy, although the fact is that roborock machines have always been a bit of a pain for the Hungarian wallet. But let's make it clear quickly, this is not roborock's fault, to the west of us, but increasingly to the east, roborock is a mid-priced Chinese brand with an excellent price/performance ratio.
What I can add as good news is that in the current Geekbuying introductory sale, the Q8 Max+ can be bought for the same price as the plain Q8, i.e. the version without a dock, that is, considering domestic prices, the dock is now free. Another piece of good news, which I already mentioned above, is that ~30 forints worth of consumables will be sold to us in the introductory promotion.
If you like the vacuum cleaner, you can order it from an EU warehouse for HUF 190 at the time of writing this article.
