Ecovacs X2 Omni Review

Ecovacs X2 Omni Review: The current top of the range of Ecovacs, a well-established brand in the robot vacuum cleaner market, is called X2 Omni and compared to previous models it improves all the features, without however distorting the user experience.

Ecovacs is constantly updating its product line, with new models coming in after only a few months of life. This strategy is not a problem in the field of robot vacuum cleaners, since these are products that once purchased you want to keep for a long time, until they become obsolete, and technological improvements are not as fast as they happen in other industries.

As a result, the release of new models only allows you to buy older models at better prices for Ecovacs X2 Omni Review. This is the case, for example, with the previous Ecovacs T20 Omni, which was also launched at a price of around 1400 euros, and is now available at half the price.

In fact, if you have an “old” T10 or T20, there aren’t so many reasons to buy an X2. You should want the latest if you’re buying your first robot vacuum today, or even aim for an older model that’s significantly cheaper. But if you want the best, or almost, of the technology available on the market today, let’s see Ecovacs X2 Omni Review.

Ecovacs X2 Omni at a glance

The X2 Omni is a robot vacuum cleaner that can vacuum and mop the floor. It is equipped with a base that allows you to automatically empty the dirt tank and to wet and clean the brushes for washing the floor. Compared to other models, it uses heated water for washing the brushes.

It does not have a tank on board the robot, the brushes are wet to wash the floor and the robot will return to the base to clean and prepare the brushes to continue washing. Unlike other previous models, it is squared and not round, a solution chosen to reach corners more easily.

It is equipped with Lidar and a camera to map rooms and move efficiently and intelligently through the rooms. Through the application it is possible to manage fully automatic cleaning patterns. The floor mopping pads can be removed for washing, and maintenance only requires filling the clean water tank and emptying the dirty water tank.

How Ecovacs X2 Omni made

There are two main differences that affect the operation of this robot vacuum cleaner compared to previous Ecovacs models and, in general, compared to many other models on the market: the shape that goes from being round to square, with rounded corners, and the movement of the Lidar from the top to the side. But let’s go in order.

The top surface is flat, there’s a magnetic cover that removes and hides the dirt tank (which you’ll never have to take off except for maintenance), the power button and the Wi-Fi activation button.

Up front are the cameras and sensors that activate the three-dimensional recognition technology of the environment and allow the X2 to move more accurately in the environment, recognize obstacles and carpets and behave accordingly to optimize routes and operation. The Lidar, i.e. the sort of radar that allows you to map environments and move even in total darkness, has been moved to one side.

In previous models and in general in many models on the market it is positioned above, since it is the best position. It allows you to have a 360-degree view thanks to a rotation of the same, but Ecovacs has tried this new position which has the immediate beneficial effect of reducing the thickness of the robot so that it can slip under furniture. However, it is not very subtle, as I will explain later this change can only make a difference in some cases.

Turning X2 upside down you notice another difference, that is thecentral brush in plastic and not in bristles, as is usually the case. What is the advantage of this solution? Easier maintenance. If you already have a robot vacuum cleaner, you will know that the central brush tends to twist hair and animal hair in the house, the removal of which is never total precisely because the bristles tend to retain more dirt. I’ll go into more detail later in the chapter dedicated to maintenance.

A small rotating brush is inserted in the right corner, the one that the robot will hold to move along the walls and with which it will try to collect the dirt and bring it to the underside where it will be vacuumed.

At the back there are two round brushes for washing the floor. You can easily remove them because they are fixed with Velcro and unlike in the past you will not be able to completely remove the rotating modules. X2 will lift the brushes about an inch and a half off the ground when you just want to vacuum the floor.

First time installation

Ecovacs has improved the installation phase: it is now faster thanks to increasingly advanced software. Here’s what you’ll need to do to get the X2 Omni up and running. You will have to remove the robot, the side brush, the tank and the inclined ramp that allows the robot to slip autonomously into the charging area from the packaging.

Place the tank on the ground and connect the inclined ramp by simply matching the hooks and pushing until you hear a “tac”. Connect the tank to the power supply. In the meantime, you’ll need to remove some plastics and soft safety material supports, all marked with blue stickers, so that you forget them.

Next, you will need to install the Ecovacs app on your smartphone and proceed with the registration. Activating the robot consists of selecting the mode in the application to add a new robot, removing the top panel of the robot, turning on the switch, clicking on the Wi-Fi button and following the instructions that the application will give you. The steps will be very short: the robot will be detected, it will ask you to select the home wi-fi network, entering the password, and you can then choose the language of the robot / voice assistant. You will most likely be offered a software update, you will have to do so if you want everything to work properly.

In about 15 minutes you will be able to do all the operations I have described. The next step is to proceed to create the map of the house. There is a special button in the application, and once activated the robot will “take a tour” in the house creating the map. Before you start creating the map, I recommend that you remove everything you don’t need from the floor.

For example, in my experience, I had left an air purifier in the bedroom where it was an obstacle and this prevented the robot from efficiently understanding how the bedroom is made. In short, remove all the obstacles and only then start the creation of the map, then you can put the various objects back where you want, but it is important that the house is as clear as possible in the first phase.

Suction test of Ecovacs X2 Omni

The suction test went well, but it wasn’t perfect. Not because of the suction capacity that can be adjusted to four different levels, up to a maximum of 8000 Pa, which is not a small amount at all. But because of the way the robot moves in the environment. The square shape allows you to get into corners better, but it is also more prone to colliding with the edges of furniture and other objects. Ecovacs seems to be aware of these form limitations and, I infer from the way the X2 moves in the environment, takes wider and more cautious trajectories than previous models. For example, in the bathroom, in the area of the wall-hung sanitary ware, the robot collided with the corner of the shower tray and changed its trajectory by switching about 10 cm from the shower.

The front camera then spotted the suspended sanitary fixtures, and determined that they were too low to pass under them (properly). Where the T10 and T20 were closer to the sanitary ware, even colliding with the Lidar (without any kind of caution), the X2 avoided the area, giving up slipping into the tightest areas and changing rooms.

In short, if previous robots sacrificed caution by colliding more often with furniture, but obtaining a better suction of the room, X2 is more cautious, it will clash less protecting furniture and objects, but cleaning will be less extensive.

Which of the two behaviors is better? It depends on what’s important to you. Personally, I was still in a situation where it was necessary to wipe the house, once a week, with a classic electric broom to get where the robot could not reach, consequently I prefer the behavior of the X2 that avoids colliding for no reason against the furniture which, even if slightly, was slightly damaged by the impact.

The dirt bag, where the contents of the robot’s tank end up at the end of each vacuum, is enough for about two months of daily vacuuming. The emptying of the robot itself has been improved because now it does not take place in a single session, but the suction is activated a couple of times, so that there is a better chance of emptying in the case of a tangle of hair that is difficult to vacuum.

Washing test of Ecovacs X2 Omni

The X2’s washing system has improved compared to previous models, not in terms of effectiveness, but rather in terms of ergonomics of use. If on the previous T20 model the automatic lifting of the washing brushes had already been implemented, on the X2 the distance from the ground is higher and therefore better especially in the case of carpets with a slightly longer pile. In addition, the water is heated, which makes the cleaning force slightly higher, but does not change life.

In terms of effectiveness, the result is no different from what can be achieved with an older model. It works well on light floors, while on dark floors or e.g. parquet the result is mixed. On a dark walnut parquet, laid transversely, like the house where I tried it, the result is very bad, since it is a borderline situation where the brushing should be done following the direction of laying the slats.

This does not mean that rotating cloths are more effective on those surfaces where halos and brush passages are less noticeable. Even on a light stoneware floor, if you look against the light, you can see the marks left by the rotating brushes. Is this Ecovacs robot a problem? No, it is a common problem for all robots currently on the market and even for electric floor scrubbers.

When X2 finds a carpet in its path, it will automatically raise the brushes and continue vacuuming only, and then return to mop the floor after getting off the carpet. This solution, already seen on the T20 although with a lower lift, is very convenient because it avoids having to physically remove the brushes if you want to carry out the suction only.

The washing efficiency, apart from the type of floors, is good on soils that are even a few days old, unless stubborn stains are now dry. If you often find yourself in this situation, for example if you have children or pets who are not careful to clean their feet well before entering the house, you may be able to achieve better effectiveness by setting the robot to double wash or increasing the amount of water.

In short, the washing works well enough, and anyway I can’t think of any other robot that can do better.

The smartphone app

The smartphone app is very well made and constantly improving. It’s simple to use, there are a lot of features, and it’s very intuitive. You will be able to set the robot’s behavior in detail and also create a custom profile. Choose whether to vacuum only, vacuum and mop the floor, or even set a vacuum cycle first and only then the wash cycle. You will be able to adjust the suction power or the amount of water to be used for washing.

The most interesting part is the management of the house map, where you can set off-limits areas and barriers, or send the robot to wash a specific room with a simple click. However, you won’t interact much with the app: after setting a washing calendar and any limits on the map, you basically don’t need to interact with the robot anymore.

Maintenance

If you forget to turn on cleaning sessions after setting up your calendar, you shouldn’t forget to clean the robot, especially if you’re going to use it for washing. The vacuuming part will require you to remove any excess hair and dirt that may get tangled on the main brush, the side brush, or the wheels.

My advice is to spend a few minutes on it at least once a week. If you forget it for a month, then you will have to spend a lot of time to be able to remove all the debris and hair, and above all you will hardly be able to keep it clean and beautiful to look at. The procedures are simple and intuitive, you won’t have to disassemble any pieces, and at most you will have to clean the only filter on the robot.

Replacing the dirt bag in the main unit is no different from changing the bag in a vacuum cleaner. Remove the full one and install the new one.

If you are going to use the wash function, you will need to remove the pads and wash them from time to time, as well as clean the wash tank in the main unit. Unfortunately, the X2 also releases excess water that will not evaporate thanks to the hot air flow. Together with dust and dirt, a small puddle is created, and if you don’t intervene every now and then it will start to smell bad. This is perhaps the main flaw of the X2, the same as the previous models. Put your heart at rest, if you want to carry out a good maintenance, you will have to dry it every day. If not, be prepared to spend more time than necessary and find yourself with clothes that don’t smell like roses.

Verdict: Who Should Buy It

The Ecovacs X2 is a good robot vacuum cleaner, but you need to do some evaluations before you buy it. First of all, the square shape makes it less efficient, in some cases, than the previous round-shaped models. Effectiveness will likely improve with software updates. Nevertheless, I prefer this new version because it reaches better in the corners and edges, and is more attentive to furniture with less violent impacts. However, it will be necessary, at least once a week, to use a traditional electric broom to get to the places that are unreachable for the robot.

The suction is excellent, while the quality of the floor wash depends on your home. If you have light-colored floors made of stoneware or other hard material that is not wood, then you will be satisfied with the results. If you have dark floors or parquet, then you will notice a few too many halos. But this will happen with every robot vacuum cleaner with a mopping function, so I can’t consider it a real flaw.

Ecovacs X2 costs €1399 (without offers). It’s a hefty price tag, but it’s pretty much the best or almost the best the market offers. If you have a fairly recent older model there aren’t many reasons to replace it, and actually considering the much lower price of older models, you should perhaps consider whether it didn’t make sense to buy an older model.

If you don’t necessarily want the latest technology, then you could save up, or wait a few months, when this X2 will certainly drop in price. If, on the other hand, you want the most and spare no expense, then there’s no reason to advise against the Ecovacs X2 Omni Review.

 

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