It's good to be round again
The last flagship robot I reviewed from Ecovacs was the Deebot X2 Omni, which was the first model they experimented with a square design. I am aware there was an update to the X2 with improved suction and battery called the X5 Pro, but that was more of a blip on the radar because we’re now at the X8 Pro Omni. Ecovacs seems to have ditched the square design as the X8 Pro has gone full circle again. What happened to the great benefits of a square design being able to navigate closer to walls and corners? Well, Ecovacs has a solution for that; it’s called the Ozmo Roller and it’s actually one of the most practical and useful improvements made to any robot vacuum I’ve seen to date.
X8 Pro has an extendable roller mop instead of circular mopping pads. Photo: HWZ
They see me rollin'
Say goodbye to circular mopping pads that act more like floor buffers, and hello to the roller mop, which is able to achieve similar cleaning performance to handheld stick floor washers like the Tineco S9 Artist. It is a self-cleaning roller with a dirt-removing scraper and nozzles to re-inject fresh water. Now, I’ve actually previewed this technology last September during IFA 2024 when Ecovacs first announced it, and you can check out the comparison in the embedded video below. Let’s say that seeing it work as intended in a production robot on my own floor is incredibly satisfying.
Not only that, the roller mop can extend out of the body to mop against corners and help the X8 Pro navigate around objects as close as possible. Combined with edge-detection sensors and AI object detection, this is the main reason the X8 does not need a square body anymore. In my time testing the X8 Pro, it has constantly shown to try its hardest to clean as close and as softly as it can around objects in its path such as furniture legs.
X8 Pro mope extends to clean edges. Photo: HWZ
I must admit a round shape does allow it to maneuver around furniture better. Photo: HWZ
Does the X8 Pro still occasionally bump into things? Yes, it does, and that’s why I will not condone leaving the robot–or any robot for that matter–to roam around on its own unless you’re so sure that everything in your home is bolted down. However, the X8 Pro’s sensors and navigation algorithms seem advanced enough to identify and approach obstacles more conservatively than most robots I’ve tested. Ecovacs calls this their AIVI 3D 3.0 Omni-Approach Technology which supposedly their proprietary VLM (Vision Learning Model).
Manually choose your preferred cleaning modes or use Intelligent Hosting. There are also experimental dirt detection options. Photo: HWZ
It actually does seem to slow down and “think” if it should approach with caution or just turn away. For the sake of testing, the X8 Pro has even successfully cleaned around a cup of water without knocking it over. When I reviewed the Samsung Jet Bot Combo for example, it banged its way through everything and didn’t even stop for large objects such as the base of my standing fan.
When I reviewed the X2, I made an observation that the AI navigation mode made the robot act like a “drunken baby crawling around the floor”. I’m pleased to report that the X8 Pro’s navigation is very much improved. When you select cleaning by room or area, it does so systematically and thoroughly, with AI coming into play only for the aforementioned object avoidance. This is the best way to use the X8 Pro.
However, there is a full AI mode called “Intelligent Hosting”. What I’ve noticed is that when using this mode, the X8 Pro seems to switch to a real-time navigation algorithm that ignores the existing boundaries of rooms and will venture into unmapped areas to clean as long as there is floor space it can travel to. You can turn off Intelligent Hosting completely from the options in the app if you don’t want this behaviour.
Not a very glam shot, but the X8 Pro has ended up in my toilet before when Intelligent Hosting Mode was used. Photo: HWZ
In terms of its sucking, I have no complaints. Robot vacuums have come a long way in the past two years, and at the flagship level, the X8 Pro stands roller to roller with the best handheld vacuums. The X8 Pro boasts 18,000 Pa of suction power (the X2 only had 8,000 Pa), a V-shaped roller that pulls hair into the middle where the anti-tangle hair cutters will deal with it, and specialised carpet care modes. It’s even smart enough to detect larger debris in its path and slow down the side sweeper brush to try and pull it into the vacuum’s suction path instead of pushing it away. Guess what, it actually works; not all the time, but it does seem to help and I’m actually impressed that attention has been given to this aspect of the robot vacuum.
More practical smarts
Another smart feature of the X8 Pro (which was also available in the X2), is the ability to operate as a home security robot. You can ask the X8 Pro to “patrol” your home, move to any particular location and access the onboard video camera in real-time, record events, and even engage in a two-way voice conversation. Speaking of homes, Ecovacs now supports the Matter ecosystem, which opens up compatibility to integrate with more smart home solutions if that’s something you’re considering.
You can use the X8 Pro as a home surveillance robot too. Photo: HWZ
The X8 Pro also includes Ecovac’s AI assistant YIKO. I won’t really go into this for the review as I don’t really see the need to give basic voice commands to my vacuum cleaner. It pretty much runs on its own unless it gets stuck somewhere and I have to go rescue it. I can’t talk it out of a tangle of cables. I’ll change my mind the day I can converse with it like Jarvis or Friday from the Iron Man movies.
The Omni part of the name refers to the Omni Station dock and there have been thoughtful improvements here too. It does the usual hot water cleaning and drying of the mop roller, emptying dust and dirty water from the robot, but the most practical addition over the X2 is a dedicated container for floor cleaning solution. The Omni Station will automatically mix the solution with clean water to maintain a 200:1 ratio. In the past, most robot vacuums have advocated only the use of a brand’s proprietary cleaning solution for fear that off-the-shelf floor cleaners may gunk up the internals when users manually add them into the water tank. I’ve been using my standard floor cleaner for about a month now with no issues.
The X8 Pro’s Omni Station is also slimmer (by 3mm) than the width of the robot itself, so I was able to fit it into a snug little corner of my kitchen next to the sink and the coffee table counter. In comparison, the Samsung Jet Bot Combo docking station was so huge, it was screaming for attention as a feature piece in my living room.
A dedicated cleaning solution tank that will auto dispense and mix with clean water at a fixed ratio. Photo: HWZ
Positively compact docking station. Photo: HWZ
All in all, I find the Ecovacs Deebot X8 Pro Omni to be a marked upgrade from the X2 Omni in all aspects, from suction power to mopping effectiveness, navigation behaviour to object detection, and even the docking station got some love. The robot vacuum space is getting very competitive with increasingly outlandish functionality such as high ledge climbing capabilities and even robot arms (unfortunately, we were not able to get our hands on the Roborock Saroz Z70 unit for review), but if you read between the lines, these features are still niche and useful only in a small or controlled situations. The X8 Pro Omni’s features are universally applicable; the Ozmo Roller is the star here, and that’s why it’s got my vote.
The pricing caveat
My biggest gripe with it has more to do with Ecovacs (and by extension most Chinese robot vacuum brands), and that's the price. The "suggested retail price" of the X8 Pro Omni is a staggering S$4,299. However, it is almost perpetually on sale for 50-70% off of the SRP. To make matters worse, every retailer, even the official Ecovacs stores seem to list it at various prices. At the time of writing, the cheapest you can get it is on Amazon.sg for S$1,581. If you can get it at this price, it is then worth it. I must stress that my scoring is based on the performance of the X8 Pro Omni and the average "sale" prices that I've seen under S$1,600. At no point do I recommend you buying a robot vacuum for S$4,000.
If you can find a sale under S$1,600, it's then worth it.
The Ecovacs Deebot X8 Pro Omni positively rolls away with my recommendation. Photo: HWZ
You can buy the Ecovacs Deebot X8 Pro Omni from Ecovacs' official web store, Lazada, Shopee, and Amazon.sg.
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