"Are you satisfied with your robot vacuum and mop?" I asked my sister, who recently purchased a pricey one from a reputable brand. "It's a great vacuum," she replied, "but when it comes to mopping, it's not quite there. I'd call it more of a light scrub than mopping. You need to follow it with a mop and bucket." And just like that, my option to buy one for myself dwindled. After all, I already have a vacuum, albeit not robotic, but it works just fine.
Then came the opportunity to review Dreame's latest model for a feature. I couldn't refuse.
Full disclosure: I approached testing Dreame's flagship model, the DreameBot L20, with skepticism. My sister's comments about her "barely mopping" vacuum echoed in my mind, and I approached without high expectations.
And then it arrived.
As the courier handed me the giant box, I was sure they sent the wrong product. A robotic vacuum and mop isn't supposed to be small, is it? Yet, the robot itself didn't look different or bigger than others in the market. Its docking station (which we'll discuss shortly) was slightly different.
The DreameBot L20 Ultra vacuums and mops the house almost autonomously. After each task, it returns, empties its built-in dustbin into the docking station's dust bag, refills its water tank, and disposes of dirty water into a special container. Additionally, it cleans its round mop pads and dries them using hot air.
Now, about the docking station. The downside? It's large. But once you get used to the size, or rather the height (60 cm, similar width to standard docking stations - 42.5 cm), you'll realize it works to your advantage. The tall box holds a 3.2-liter dust bag, a 4.5-liter clean water tank, and a 4-liter dirty water tank. With these capacities, you'll only need to empty dust and dirty water and refill clean water every 3-4 runs for cleaning an entire standard-sized apartment. Meaning, not only does the robot take care of cleaning without any assistance, but also with the docking station, you won't have to fuss much, just about once a month.
Let's get to testing. To operate the robot, you need to first download the app (which we'll detail later), easily connect the device to your home's Wi-Fi, and press start.
The robot announces "I'm preparing for a mission," turns on its front lights, and leaves the docking station. But then, for minutes, it moves back and forth, corner to corner, then returns to base. I suspected something wasn't right. However, as the robot explored the apartment, I consulted the manual and realized it navigates using AI technology, and the continuous travels are for learning the home's layout.
When the robot sent a prompt to my phone
Indeed, after the exploration session, the app presented my apartment map, including furniture and carpets' locations. Next time, when the robot goes for cleaning missions, it navigates each room swiftly and efficiently. As I continued using it, the robot quickly learned the apartment's areas, adjusted its cleaning patterns, and significantly reduced the number of times it needed to return to base.
Now, how does it clean? Firstly, suction power: with a 7,000Pa suction (1,000 more than its "Roborock" counterpart), the Dreame L20 Ultra demonstrates remarkable dust elimination abilities. Moreover, due to its AI capabilities, even if you accidentally leave socks on the floor, the robot avoids them and continues its path.
But when it encountered the standing lamp cord in the living room, hindering its progress to clean the adjacent area, the robot photographed the obstacle, marked it with a red square, and sent me a polite yet firm notification to my mobile, requesting its removal. I promptly obliged, and shortly after, it cleared the area that was blocked for a few minutes earlier.
Now, onto mopping. While my sister's disappointment still lingered, I examined the feature that intrigued me the most. But before that, some surface facts: most mopping robots use minimal water without soap, leaving the floor clean but lacking the shine we get after manual mopping. However, here's where it's different. The Ultra uses a pair of mop pads kept moist throughout the cleaning session. In fact, you can preset the desired level of wetness in the app during mopping.
The Ultra also uses liquid soap, which comes with the product and is also placed in the docking station. Additionally, with the MopExtend technology, the robot reaches every corner effortlessly. When it reaches a tricky spot, usually problematic for round robots, it elegantly extends one of its mop pads outward, completing the task impressively.
Runs finger along surfaces like a sergeant major
When the cleaning session ends, I inspect every nook, run my finger like a sergeant major - and nothing. The apartment is spotless, no less. Of course, the next thing I do is call my sister to tell her not all mopping robots are alike.
The Dreame app includes excellent settings options. In fact, you operate the vacuum from the app, so you can do it even when you're not home. The apartment map drawn meticulously by the robot is displayed on the main page, and you can divide the house into different cleaning zones, according to each room's needs. In the kitchen, for instance, which requires a more thorough cleaning, I instructed the robot to run at its highest setting and likewise for mopping. In the bedrooms, I opted for regular vacuuming and mopping. You can also schedule automatic cleaning at specific times, for instance - vacuuming after finishing meals in the dining area.
One minor (yet annoying) downside of the app - it seems to have been translated to Hebrew without human touch, presumably using Google Translate or other automatic tools. For example, a mop effect instruction appears in the app as "deep preference," or the translation of the word "set" appears as "ignite." Not critical, but a company aspiring to lead in the robotic cleaning market should do a perfect job even in its app.
And if we're discussing product drawbacks, let's talk about the price. To own Dreame's flagship model and bid farewell to the mop and floor cleaner (and also to get rid of all your old vacuums accumulated so far), you'll have to part with ₪5,475. Yes, it's very expensive, but consider how many hours (or helper hours) you'll save in exchange for this one-time investment because you'll get a spotless home in return.