Review: ECOVACS’ new X2 Omni robo vacuum justifies its price with incredibly reliable cleaning

It’s been a while since I’ve had a robotic companion roaming the halls of my abode. But when I saw the new ECOVACS X2 Omni, I knew I had to try it out. After all, there are a lot of bells and whistles to catch your eye – specs like the an included auto-empty dock, 8000Pa suction, and one of the most advanced navigation systems around are hard to ignore.

The new ECOVACS X2 Omni just hit the scene last month at the end of September. I had a chance to go check out the new release in person, watching all of the merriment of demo units navigate their way around a pop-up event in downtown New York. As always with first impressions, I was excited to get my hands on one of the new robotic vacuums after my initial time with it, and week or so late saw one land on my door step.

I was incredibly eager to bust my new robotic cleaning companion out of the box. And after a smooth setup process, the new addition to my smart home was ready to go. Past robotic vacuums I have reviewed had hardly been as easy to configure, and so ECOVACS was already setting quite the solid second impression. It really was as easy as downloading the companion app, switching on the vacuum, and then letting the auto-setup process do its thing.

As far as its actual cleaning capacities, everything with the new X2 Omni starts with an updated form-factor. Instead of your typical circular build, ECOVACS is going all in on a squared build. There’s certainly nothing lame about it either, citing that the more angular design means that it can actually do a better job at cleaning up the corners, nooks, and crannies around your home.

This is all very reminiscent of the robotic vacuum company Neato, which had the claim to fame of delivering D-shaped robotic vacuums, except, ECOVACS is going even further with a rounded square build instead of just having half of the model leaning into that more aggressive cleaning capability.

The adjustment brings with it the same thorough approach to mopping as with just vacuuming. It lets the front and the back of the device handle their respective cleaning tasks with the same perks, instead of meaning that the sweeping brush can reach further than the wash pads on the back. ECOVACS has managed to back both of those with 8000Pa of suction power, as well as retractable mop pads that can rise higher than most other models out there.

Another thing about the X2 Omni and its design is that usual sensor array on the top of the robotic vacuum is gone. Normally, there’s a spinning LiDAR disc resting on the top of these autonomous cleaning bots. ECOVACS on the other hand is keeping the ball rolling by ditching yet another typical feature found on other models out there in favor of doing its own thing – something that does pay off incredibly well.

There are two key selling points of the new robotic vacuum’s navigation tech. First, there’s a dual-laser LiDAR system that then comes backed by a secondary AI-controlled AIVI 3D avoidance software. The combo helps your trusty little bot to navigate around your home, while making sure to stay clear of anything that would inhibit its journey. All in all, the tech does work well – but there are some hiccups.

Cords are still the X2 Omni’s worst enemy, but things like socks, shoes, and stray packages are all cannon fodder for the new vacuum. It impressively manages to handle all of this without doing the usual act of bumping into walls or obstacles in order to make its way around in the world. The tech is so reliable in fact that the vacuum was even able to stay away from the LEGO AT-AT I have set up in my family room – avoiding a potentially devastating outcome. As much as I’d laugh at ECOVACS programming its latest to be able to take down Imperial Walkers, I am not trying to have my vacuum cleaner recreate the battle of Hoth every time it goes out to sweep.

One final piece of the puzzle complete the package with the ECOVACS X2 Omni. Included alongside the robotic vacuum is an elevated docking station that helps make sure you’re spending less time tending to the robot. The docking station may take up quite a bit of space, but the features it hides within are well worth having a black plastic obelisk in your living room. It’s all about ensuring you don’t have to constantly be emptying any debris or refilling any water tanks, and ECOVACS does that incredibly well.

The first half of the equation is the auto-emptying dustbin. It sweeps all of the dirt and crumbs from your robotic vacuum into a larger storage bag that you can replace after around 30 days. That’s a hell of a lot better than having to dump out your robotic vacuum every few days, especially if you’re looking for a cleaning companion that’ll handle routine vacuuming. Then there’s a dual water tank system that can seamlessly fill up the X2 Omni with fresh water, while draining the used mopping water.

All of that combines into a $1,500 MSRP. While I’ll get to just how I feel about the overall performance, the long and short of it is that ECOVACS is backing its new X2 Omni with all of the tech on paper you’d want from the MSRP – especially when you consider that there’s a discount attached right now courtesy of the company’s own storefront.

9to5Toys’ Take

Robotic vacuums, even ones as capable as the new ECOVACS X2 Omni, are still a commitment. It doesn’t matter how much tech a company packs in these days, we’re just still not at the point where a product that’s actually shipping can match the science fiction that smart home owners dream of. For years, we’ve had companies rolling out robotic cleaners with auto-empty units in the hope to completely alleviate having to vacuum from your choose list – all with varying degrees of success.

But if there is a single unit on the market right now that’s closest to such a vision, it has to be the X2 Omni.

I’m not here to sell you on ECOVACS’ latest release being a revelation in the world of cleaning or anything of the sort, but what I will say from my time with the X2 Omni is that all of the adjustments and upgrades have combined to offer something worthwhile in a whole new way. It’s as close to a truly autonomous cleaning solution as we’ve ever seen, and one that is trustworthy enough to be left alone.

It may not be perfect with cables and the like, but holding the lil bot to those standards would be a bit too high – especially when it can do such a phenomenal job with navigating the rest of your space. And I get that there is a $1,500 price tag to defend, but it doesn’t have to be flawless with that to earn the price tag. I am quite happy with the performance and can easily recommend the X2 Omni to anyone who wants to step up to the best that money has to offer.

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