I tested the Xiaomi Robot Vacuum X20 Max and it’s a great all-round performer — when it actually works | Tech Radar

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I tested the Xiaomi Robot Vacuum X20 Max and it’s a great all-round performer — when it actually works

After almost a year of testing, my X20 Max isn't looking too good

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The Xiaomi Robot Vacuum X20 Max is a capable robot vacuum that delivers strong hoovering and mopping performance... when it actually works. With my unit developing issues after a year of testing, it's hard to wholeheartedly recommend.

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Xiaomi Robot Vacuum X20 Max review: one-minute review

The Xiaomi Robot Vacuum X20 Max seems like a slam dunk in the robot vacuum space. Positioned right in between the budget and upper mid range sections of the market, it delivers strong vacuum and mopping performance that make it capable of tackling a wide variety of messes in your home.

With Li DAR technology, its mapping is excellent and the robot vacuum does a great job of navigating unexpected obstacles that it might encounter during a clean. The design isn't the most exciting, though it still has a good range of features like an extendable mop arm and automatic carpet detection.

The dock is large, which might make it tricky to fit into smaller homes, but it's pretty capable as well, with hot water washing and air drying capabilities to keep the mop pads clean between uses.

It's all underpinned by a competent app that's easy to use and offers key functions such as being able to schedule cleans, restricting the robot vacuum to certain rooms, and allowing you to customize the vacuuming power and amount of water used by the mop.

The elephant in the room is that my unit developed a fault after a year of testing, occasionally spilling water during a mop pad clean. It's unfortunate and, even though it doesn't seem widespread, makes this model difficult to recommend unreservedly.

Xiaomi Robot Vacuum X20 Max review: price, range & availability

The Xiaomi Robot Vacuum X20 Max has a list price of

That latter model is a good point of comparison here, as it also features mop and similar Li DAR sensor setup. With this in mind, the Xiaomi Robot Vacuum X20 Max is very solid value - especially if you get it at that reduced price point. Accessories like replacement brushes, dust bags, and mop pads are all available via the Xiaomi website at pretty reasonable prices too.

Unfortunately, this model seems a lot harder to come by in the US. You can find it on Amazon, but it goes for an eye-watering

The Xiaomi Robot Vacuum X20 Max isn’t pushing any boundaries when it comes to its overall design, but honestly that’s not such a bad thing.

It looks like your average robot vacuum, which is to say a big plastic disc with a chunky bumper at the front and a whole host of sensors. The most prominent of these is a big Li DAR sensor that sits in a little raised puck on the top, though there are others designed to spot obstacles or prevent the vacuum from falling off ledges.

Despite the basic look, the Xiaomi Robot Vacuum X20 Max has a bunch of useful features including two mop pads, one of which can be extended on a little arm for edge cleaning. The Xiaomi Robot Vacuum X20 Max is also capable of detecting which kind of surface it’s on, raising the mop pads when it goes over carpet to prevent any accidental stains.

Coming in at 13.39 x 16.54 x 22.17 inches / 340 x 420 x 563mm, the docking station that it comes with is absolutely ginormous which could make it awkward to fit in smaller homes, but there are some good reasons for this size. Firstly, you’re getting a large 135.3oz / 4l clean water tank (removed for filling by simply popping up the lid on top of the dock) and a slightly smaller but still sizable 128.5oz / 3.8l tank for dirty water storage.

Xiaomi says that this is more than enough water to clean 2,152.8 square feet / 200 square meters on a single fill, and while my testing area was considerably smaller, I can say that it didn’t need refilling across multiple cleans.

The dock also has a hot water system to help wash both mop pads at 131F / 55C - a temperature that Xiaomi claims reduces odours more effectively. It dries the mop pads using hot air, a process that takes a few hours and produces a small level of sound akin to a desk fan.

There’s also a generous 84.5oz / 2.5l dust bag, which Xiaomi says only needs emptying once every 75 days in a three-person household with one pet. This seems like a very generous estimate to me, and your mileage will vary depending on your specific level of household mess. This bag size is on par with much of the competition, such as the aforementioned Eufy X10 Pro Omni, so you can expect similar performance to those models.

One feature that I particularly appreciate is the ability to remove parts of the dock for cleaning, including the little tray where the vacuum sits while charging. This isn't something that you will need to do regularly, but my previous robot vacuum tracked a decent layer of grime in its dock over the years and was comparatively pretty tricky to clean.

My only real complaint from a design standpoint is the vacuum’s incessant need to narrate what it's doing. By default it frequently declares 'start to dry the mop pad' and similar phrases in a loud, annoying voice. It's disruptive, though mercifully can be turned off in the app.

Xiaomi Robot Vacuum X20 Max review: performance

I've been using the Xiaomi Robot Vacuum X20 Max for a year now, and can say that it handles most daily cleaning tasks well. Its navigation capabilities are excellent and map that it generated of my cleaning area was spot on. I have the base station in the corner of an L-shape hallway and the robot never struggles to find it, even when it's been cleaning the handful of adjoining rooms.

Setting room boundaries works excellently too — if you want to restrict cleaning to a specific defined area, the vacuum won't stray beyond it. It also deals with unexpected obstacles like closed doors or moved furniture well, bumping into them once or twice and then adapting its path smartly. You don't need to worry about multiple surfaces, either. Every time I spot the vacuum going over the rug in the middle of a mop cycle, the pads are automatically raised as it detects the soft surface to prevent damage.

The vacuum picks up small debris and cleans up small spills with no sweat, and for a more intensive task I doused my kitchen floor with oats, cereal crumbs, flour, ketchup, and pretty much anything else that I could find in the cupboard.

How did the Xiaomi Robot Vacuum X20 Max fare? I sent it out on the most intensive possible cleaning mode and it made a commendable dent in the mess. The oats, crumbs, and flour were masterfully hoovered up with the exception of a few survivors in the hardest to reach corners of the room.

The ketchup was more of a challenge, and at first I was pretty worried that it wouldn't be able to overcome it: the mop pads smeared it in a thin layer over the middle of the floor at first but, sure enough, after multiple visits to the base station in order to clean itself and to refill its water tanks, it was all gone after a few runs. I did spot some red residue in the grouting between tiles, but this took just a few seconds for me to wipe up.

It's the kind of performance you would want from a mid-range robot vacuum. It's not a total replacement for doing the cleaning, but it does decrease the need for big cleans.

That said, my unit has developed a major issue over long-term testing. Sometimes when the vacuum cleans its own mop pads (either at the start or during a cleaning task) the motor that's meant to suck away all the dirty water doesn't kick in. This means that dirty water starts to accumulate in the base station, eventually overflowing and spilling out onto the floor.

It's frustrating (and pretty gross), and I'm struggling to resolve the issue by cleaning the water sensors, fiddling with the base station, and so on. Anecdotally, a family member bought Xiaomi Robot Vacuum X20 Max a few weeks after seeing my one, and it developed a similar fault within just a couple of months. It was, after some back and forth, repaired by Xiaomi.

Looking online, it doesn't seem to be a widespread problem, though I've still been able to find at least a few others who report the same thing. Users on Facebook and Reddit also seem to have had luck getting their vacuums replaced via Xiaomi's support service, though I suspect I can't go through this route with a review sample.

For this reason, I would recommend buying from Xiaomi directly rather than through reseller if you do chose to pick one up, as you otherwise will likely have more trouble getting support if issues do arise.

The Xiaomi Robot Vacuum X20 is compatible with the Xiaomi Home app. It's easy to use and has plenty of features, including the ability to view the map generated by the robot, and its location real time. This is on top of the option to start cleans in specific rooms, schedule cleans, or clean the mop pads.

You can view the battery level, and change cleaning modes. These include basic vacuuming, mopping, vacuuming and mopping, or vacuuming before mopping. You can increase the water output too, with three levels to choose between, but bear in mind that this will increase how quickly you will need to refill everything.

I didn't encounter any bugs within the app, and it remained quick and responsive during my year of testing. The fact that you have to set up a Mi account is a bit annoying, but otherwise it offers everything you could from robot vacuum companion software.

Should you buy the Xiaomi Robot Vacuum X20 Max?

Good at vacuuming up debris and cleaning up small spills... when it works as intended.

Good at vacuuming up debris and cleaning up small spills... when it works as intended.

The Xiaomi Robot Vacuum X20 Max doesn't defy any design conventions, but it's perfectly functional and packed with features.

The Xiaomi Robot Vacuum X20 Max doesn't defy any design conventions, but it's perfectly functional and packed with features.

An easy to use app that offers every feature you could reasonably expect.

An easy to use app that offers every feature you could reasonably expect.

Decently positioned in the UK and regularly on sale, but far too expensive if you're in the US and no longer sold in Australia..

Decently positioned in the UK and regularly on sale, but far too expensive if you're in the US and no longer sold in Australia..

You want a robot vacuum capable of cleaning serious mess The Xiaomi Robot Vacuum X20 Max did a good job dealing with some serious kitchen debris and spills. It requires multiple passes for some wet stains, but it is able to get through large amounts of grime.

You have a mix of hard flooring and carpet The Xiaomi Robot Vacuum X20 Max does a great job differentiating between different flooring types.

You need a good app The Xiaomi Robot Vacuum X20 Max's companion app has all the features you could reasonably expect. It's a great bit of software.

You need long term reliability Although likely not widespread, it's hard to ignore the fact that my unit developed a fault after a year of use.

You can't fit a large base station The base station here is pretty large, is an includes two water tanks in addition to the standard waste bag. Only pick this model if you know you have the space for it.

Xiaomi Robot Vacuum X20 Max review: alternatives to consider

Eufy X10 Pro Omni This powerful alternative from Eufy costs about the same as the Xiaomi Robot Vacuum X20 Max and offers excellent cleaning performance and a good app.

Eufy Omni S1 Pro The Omni S1 Pro, also from Eufy, is a good higher-end alternative. It's much more expensive, but comes with a raft of extra features to justify the higher price tag.

I tested the Xiaomi Robot Vacuum X20 Max in my home for over a year, using it to clean a hallway and two large rooms on a weekly basis. It cleaned a wide variety of messes in that time on a number of different surfaces, namely carpet and tiled flooring. I fully utilized the companion app in order to evaluate its performance and compared the overall experience to other robot vacuums that I own.

Dash is an experienced tech journalist who specializes in video games, electronic entertainment products, and the wider industry that surrounds them. He currently serves as the Gaming Editor at Tech Radar, leading our review, preview, feature, and news coverage of the latest and greatest releases.

Before joining the team, he was Contributing Writer at PLAY (formerly Official Play Station Magazine UK) and has written articles for many of the UK's other biggest gaming magazines including the likes of Edge, PC Gamer, and SFX.

Now, when he's not getting his greasy little mitts on the newest hardware or gaming gadget, he can be found listening to J-pop or feverishly devouring the latest Nintendo Switch otome.

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• I tested the Xiaomi Robot Vacuum X20 Max and it’s a great all-round performer — when it actually works

• After almost a year of testing, my X20 Max isn't looking too good