Robotic Hoover's are becoming an increasing popular addition to the modern ‘smart’ home. With the ability to control your home from your phone, why not add a robotic hoover to this set up? So let’s take a look at our latest addition, the Roborock Xiaowa Lite and see if it’s any good compared to its big brother the Roborock 2 Mi (which we reviewed here) without that clever laser mapping system.
The Xiaowa Lite At A Glance
Powerful Motor giving it good suction
Great companion App
Worry-Free Technology that can clean your house whilst at work
Has a great design that is modern and sleek fitting into most homes
It is 30cm in diameter and 9cm Tall allowing it to get under objects
Unboxing
The vacuum comes in your standard, neat, recyclable brown cardboard box. Everything is included inside to get your hoover cleaning. RC Geeks also ship it with a UK plug too.
Inside the box
The Xiaowa Lite Vacuum
The charging base
The instruction manual
The UK Plug
Cleaning Brush
Setting Up The Xiaomi
Lite
The setup process of the vacuum is incredibly simple. Firstly, plug the charging base into your chosen location then place the hoover on top to start its first charge. Check that the blue wifi light is on and flashing (located under the bin flap as shown below.) Then download the Mi App (not essential but part of its novelty) and connect your phone to the Xiaowa’s WIFI. Then you are ready to go! Simple as that.
How it Works
The Vacuum works on a buffer system so that when the hoover hits an object it changes direction and continues to do so until its path is clear. This system coupled with a proximity sensor located on the front of the device means that it never hits an object violently as it slows down when it is close. This is how the hoover cleans your floor by itself. However, this system means that the cleaning is random, and you can ensure everywhere will be cleaned perhaps making it more of a daily maintenance tool rather than a replacement of your conventional vacuum.
You have control of the hoover via the ‘Mi Home’ App which is available on IOS, Android and Google. This app enables you to drive the hoover yourself, set the hoover off from its charging dock, view its battery level, its hoovering time, its suction strength and to go back and charge. This is just one part of the ‘Mi Home’ App which can control all of their smart home devices. It’s incredibly simple to use and very easy to set-up with the hoover as it only requires you to connect to the vacuums WIFI once and never again. From the application you can even set the hoover off to clean your house when you are at work or on holiday which is great.
The Xiaowa Lite has 4 different suction settings, Silent, standard , Strong and Max dependant on how dirty the surface is. When testing the hoover we left it on standard most of the time except from when it was on hard floor or wooden floor we had to increase the strength to pick everything up.
How to Maintain
the Vacuum
The maintenance of the hoover is very minimal and easy. It comes pre-installed with a filter, but it doesn’t come with any spare like its big brother the Mi 2. This will need replacing approximately every 3 months.
All of the other maintenance is clearly described in the instruction booklet with time frames of how often each one should be carried out. For example, the main cleaning brush should be taken out and cleaned once a week. Then obviously the bin will need emptying when it becomes full which can be quite quickly as it isn’t the largest capacity but its large enough.
Battery and Charging
The Vacuum comes with its very own charging dock which you place the hoover on top of via its two magnetic charging points. The hoover has a 2600mAh battery which will last for about 1 Hour of Hoovering on its normal suction setting.
The hoover will stop cleaning when it reaches 30% battery to give it enough to find its charging point as it takes a while for it to return. If it fails to find the charging dock, it will return to its start position and then you manually place it on the charging dock.
Vacuum
Performance
Wooden Floor – The Xiaowa Lite performed pretty well on wooden floor. If you put it on ‘Max’ mode it manages to pick up a large amount of dirt. If you leave it on standard it tends not to pick up all that much on wooden floor.
Hard Floor – We had mixed results on hard floors such as tiles. The vacuum picked up fur and light dirt, but we found that it didn’t pick up larger particles of dirt without being put on its stronger or max settings. Also the guiding brush that brings in bits to the hoover pushed it away more than brought it in.
Carpet – This vacuum performs its best on carpet. We tested it extensively on carpet, and living in a home with dogs there is plenty of bits for it to pick up. The Xiaowa Lite picked up so much fur from the carpet in its standard setting it was incredible keeping out living room clean and tidy without any need to worry.
Is the Lite worth it compared to the Mi 2?
The Xiaowa Lite is incredible for the price compared to its big brother which is double the price! But we found the buffer technology a little infuriating. It was constantly bumping into things to find its way. Whereas the Mi 2 doesn't do that and it can actually cover a specific area should you want it to. With that in mind, this would perhaps make the Mi 2 a better maintenance tool . But if you aren't worried about that and you just want something to keep your house a little bit tidier then I would recommend the Xiaowa Lite. This paired with your normal vacuum would be a match made in heaven.
Should you buy the Roborock Xiaowa Lite?
The Xiaowa Lite is a fantastic robotic hoover despite the lacking laser guided technology. The motor provides excellent suction on most of the settings and most floor types, the design is simplistic and sleek. However, it is not a replacement for your normal hoover due to its random cleaning nature, but it takes some of the chore out of cleaning and can maintain your home between weekly cleans with ease.
We Like
The design is very sleek and modern, fitting into any home
The effectiveness on carpet is amazing
The worry-free technology making a chore easier allowing it to be done whilst you are at work.
Great App alongside to control the vacuum with ease
We Don’t Like
The random cleaning means spots can be missed
Doesn't get into the corners like your typical hoover
The Bin isn’t the largest capacity
They still can’t cover stairs so you will need one per floor for the best coverage
Where can I buy
the Roborock Xiaomi Lite Vacuum cleaner?
