3x Multi-floor maps can be saved and used 2x 4L Water tanks - 1 for clean water and 1 for dirty Dustbin - 450ml Dual Rotary Mopping D-shaped design makes it easier to clean edges and corners Smart App features for scheduling & advanced cleaning features 4000pA suction power
Brand: Dreamebot Surface Recommendation: Wood, Tile, Carpet Battery Type: 6400 mAh Runtime: 210 min Mop Pads: 2x Rotary Pads
A nearly completely autonomous all-in-one system for mopping and sweeping If you have mostly hard floors, this is easily the best robot system to keep them cleaned
Not ideal for floors with lots of carpets as you’ll have to manually remove the mop pads in order to vacuum Still has many of the usual Robovac limitations including getting tangled in deeper carpets as well as not fitting in tighter spots
The Future of Automated Cleaning
The market for smart robot vacuums has become so oversaturated with similar-looking options with comparable features that it can be hard to decide which is right for your home. While this has helped drive the prices of robot vacuums down, there hasn’t been very much innovation in the sense of providing a dramatically better or easier cleaning experience. Automatically cleaning on a user-defined schedule is now the standard, but what’s next?
It’s not cheap, but with the W10’s new advanced self-cleaning dock and impressive mopping features, Dreamebot is helping re-shape the future of robot vacuum cleaning. If your hard floors are constantly getting dirty, the W10 could completely eliminate the need for most mopping. We are one step closer to a fully autonomous home cleaning future.
Key Features
Vacuum and Mop 2-In-1
Thanks to the flatter front face that departs from a typically circular design, the W10 has a 19.2cm (7.56in) ultra-wide roller brush that covers a wider area compared to the usual (17cm/7in) brushes of other models.
Cleaning Modes
You can choose between Vacuuming and Mopping, Vacuuming, or Mopping.
It’s important to note that when in Vacuuming + Mopping or Mopping modes, the vacuum will be limited to hard surfaces only. If you’re like me and don’t want to remove the mop pads each time you want your carpets vacuumed, I would actually suggest getting this system for floors that are mostly hard surfaces.
4,000Pa suction power.
There are 4 levels of suction strength to help with deeper cleans and bigger debris. You can also choose less suction if you either want the battery to last longer or for quieter operation.
450ml (0.12gal) Dust Bin
This is an averaged sized bin that can go a few weeks before needing to be emptied.
Dual Rotary Mops & Modes
The mops are made of multi-layer composite material and resemble more of a standard mop rather than a mop pad. They can rotate at 180RPM with 10N of continuous downward pressure. They are effective at cleaning lighter messes on hard floors including dust, dirt, and liquids.
You can select between three different water volume options in the app depending on the level of clean needed.
2x 4L Water Tanks
In the tower base you’ll find separate 4L (1.06gal) water tanks for clean and dirty water. The mop is cleaned and soaked from the first tank, while the dirty water is collected in the second.
Smart Resume Cleaning
The vacuum will pause and auto-resume its cleaning cycle if it runs low on battery.
Automatic Mop Cleaning & Drying
After every cleaning cycle, and optionally after set square footage is cleaned, the mop pads are automatically cleaned and dried with 104°F air. The process isn’t too loud or obnoxious, but when you’re close, it sounds like a little jet is taking off when the dryer is on and a Keurig is brewing coffee during the water cycle.
Smart Navigation
A LiDAR sensor on top of the device maps floors, determines the most efficient cleaning paths, and detects obstacles; while the ultrasonic sensor underneath recognizes carpet and keeps the vacuum from falling off edges. Up to three different floor maps can be saved, though you need to manually choose between them when you move the robot elsewhere.
Large Wheels
The vacuum easily crosses over obstacles up to 18mm (0.71in) tall. This is especially useful when crossing thresholds, different surfaces, and in my case light stand feet.
6400mAh Battery & Fast Charging
The vacuum can run for up to 210min on a single charge when in eco mode. The vacuum charges quickly and can resume its cleaning cycles without much time needed on the dock.
What’s Included
Because of the Dreamebot W10’s large self-cleaning water tank base, the system comes in a massive and pretty heavy box.
You’ll find the following:
Vacuum Base/Dock Side Brush 2x Mop Pads Cleaning tool/detangler Manual/Instructions
Despite the extremely large package, the unboxing experience still felt premium and very simple. Even if this is your first robot vacuum, the setup process will only take a few minutes thanks to its included easy-to-understand illustrated instructions.
Why it Stands Out
The all-white plastic finish of the vacuum and dock give it a very sleek and modern look that helps it blend in with your walls and room. Overall build quality feels very solid. I accidentally dropped the vacuum once from chest height on a carpeted floor and it survived unscathed. The base is about half the size of a standard kitchen waste bin. It can fit under most tables and counters if that is your preference. Even if it can’t be tucked away, isn’t much of an eye-sore because of its futuristic vibes.
Base
In addition to the automatic mop cleaning & drying features discussed, the base also has two buttons on the top, one to start or pause the cleaning cycle and the other to send the vacuum back to the base. This is useful because you don’t have to bend over to select these options on the vacuum itself, and, if for instance you wanted to end a cleaning cycle early but didn’t want to find or go up to the vacuum, you could do this from the base.
D-Shaped Vacuum
The base isn’t the only new thing with this system. Compared to the usual circle robot vacuums, the Dreamebot W10 introduces a unique D-shape that helps the vacuum make closer contact with edges and corners for a better clean.
Rotary Mop-Cleaning
The new mop design gives you a more thorough and stronger clean. They attach magnetically at the bottom of the vacuum and are positioned towards the back. Within the app, you have far more mop-specific cleaning settings including the option to mop an area twice if it requires additional attention. The mopping modes work well for lighter spills and messes but still don’t offer enough strength to handle stickier or solidified areas. There were certain areas on my floors that this vacuum could not clean up and so I had to get a damp rag and use a bit of elbow grease to get it out. This shouldn’t be too surprising. Running this vacuum directly after the initial spill/accident or on a regular schedule should help prevent these messes from ever getting out of hand.
New Standards for Automated Mop Cleaning
The Old Way
We’ve recently seen the introduction of robot vacuums with self-emptying waste bins as well as ones that can also mop. Some can actually do both, but in my experience, the mopping function of every vacuum I’ve tested has always felt like an afterthought. Usually, it’s a case of “let’s throw on a small water tank and a simple mop pad and call it a day”.
Because of their rather simple design, these vacuum mops are best for lighter spills and messes or just to give your floor a little extra shine and cleanliness after a regular vacuum cycle. This might not be a deal-breaker, but to me, the bigger issue always has to do with the amount of setup required before the mop function is ready to use. If you’ve ever used these mop functions, you’ll know that they can’t as easily be set to run on automated schedules compared to their vacuum-only modes because. This is because of their small-sized water tanks which typically limit them to one cleaning cycle before needing to be manually re-filled by you… that is, assuming you remember or can be even bothered to like me, which in most cases was very rare.
Moreover, after it’s done with its cleaning cycling, you now have a dirty mop pad sitting at the bottom of your vacuum. Again, if you’re just using the mopping function in conjunction with sweeping, rather than actually tackling spills and other grime, this isn’t much of an issue. On the other hand, let’s say you have a nasty spill, like tomato sauce, that you didn’t notice and now you’ve tracked it all over your floors.
Especially if it’s in higher concentration, typical mop vacuums would struggle with this and could potentially create a bigger mess. Firstly because they aren’t smart enough to clean and damp their mop pads again during a cleaning cycle, but also because just dragging a damp cloth behind the vacuum isn’t all that effective. The W10 spins both mopping pads, ensuring they actually clean up a mess.
On top of all that, once the cleaning cycle is complete, you’re left with a dirty mop pad drenched in sauce that is still touching your floors. I like the idea of having a robot vacuum that could also replace my mopping chores too, but the lack of effective cleaning performance and the required setup time and cleaning afterward frequently made it more inconvenient than just grabbing my handheld mop or Swiffer and just getting it done myself. The Dreamebot W10 addresses all of these issues and makes robot mopping a practical and easy solution.
The Dreamebot W10 Approach
In order for a robot vacuum mop to be an effective tool and eliminate the need for any human input, the mopping process, the refilling of the water tank, as well as cleaning of the actual mop pads should be fully automated. The Dreamebot W10 is the first robot vacuum of its kind to do all three of those.
The Dreamebot W10 forgoes the self-emptying waste bin in place for a more sophisticated mopping system that not only cleans your hard floors better but also takes most of the usual required setup and maintenance of the mop pads off your hands completely. From my weeks of testing the W10, I was extremely impressed with the number of new features they packed into this system. After its initial setup, the vacuum basically handled the rest.
This premium vacuum system is nearly perfect and for many users is one of the best sweeping/mopping options currently available. It does a great job at navigating around and cleaning my entire floor but falls short in a few categories that would truly make this a completely automated solution.
Setup
I had the vacuum up and running doing its initial scan of my floor layout within 5 minutes of its unboxing. Remove all the plastic from the base and vacuum as well as the two foam side protectors from the front bumpers. Next, attach the side brush to the bottom of the vacuum. Don’t attach the mop pads yet as the initial run of the vacuum is just a quick scan to map the room layout, and not an actual cleaning cycle. Before turning everything on, you’ll need to decide where to place the base.
Choosing the Location for the Base
This is where things get a little interesting and can require some additional thought. The initial floor I started my tests on has a mix of tile and hardwood floors, separated by a large carpeted room. Without too much thought, I assumed I could hide the base under the desk in my office. This was fine for the vacuum-only mode, but as I learned later, the base needs to be located on a hard surface (non-carpeted), if you want it to run in one of the mopping modes. This is part of a larger limitation which I’ll discuss in just a bit.
App & Wifi Setup
After downloading the Mi Home app, you can quickly get the vacuum connected to your account and Wi-Fi using either the QR code in your quick start-up guide or on the waste bin of the vacuum.
The app is simple and intuitive. You can customize your cleaning schedule, cleaning mode and create special mapping rules.
Limitations & Room for Improvement
For the most part, the cleaning performance and features have been top-notch. As I’ve shared, this is a very innovative vacuum that has almost completely automated the regular mopping process. It does however fall short in a few areas from achieving that level of autonomy that I desire.
Mop Pads Need to be Removed to Vacuum Carpets
It makes sense that you wouldn’t want the mop pads to go over your carpets and rugs, getting them wet and possibly damaging them too. This is why the vacuum needs to start on a hard surface before it can begin the cleaning process while the mop pads are installed. Although you have the option to manually override this safety measure, I wouldn’t recommend it.
Unfortunately, this means you have to manually remove the mop pads every time you want to vacuum your carpeted floors. This might not be as big a deal for floors that are mostly hard surfaces, but for one of my levels, which is tile to carpet to hardwood, it is. Yes, you could remove the mop pads each time you want to switch between surfaces, but I feel that defeats the purpose of buying this. Being that one of the main selling features of this system is being able to automatically handle the entire cleaning process, I would strongly recommend buying this only for floors with limited or no carpet at all.
I’m not disappointed, but it definitely has me craving a future model which can intelligently retract or cover the mop pads when it switches to carpet. I wouldn’t be surprised if we saw something like that in a few years.
Other Areas of Improvement
While this is a very advanced robot vacuum system, it at times struggles with many of the same issues that other Robovacs have.
The side brush can get tangled in deeper shag rug carpets rather easily Surfaces that are in corners or gaps of carpets don’t get cleaned as the vacuum can’t suck up things when it doesn’t make direct contact with the floor Sometimes the vacuum is just a bit too wide or tall to get into a corner. A good example is the sides or behind a toilet in a smaller bathroom. Because of its LiDar sensor sticking up, it can sometimes be a bit too tall to get under certain surfaces.
Who is this For?
The main takeaway from my time reviewing this vacuum is that it is best for hard surfaces and that if your floors have a lot of carpets, you might be best getting one of their standard models instead, as you lose out on much of the convenience that this system can provide.
If however, your floors are mostly or entirely non-carpeted, the Dreamebot W10 is the best all-in-one vacuum and mop combo. I’m excited to see the future innovations this brings.
