I use the premium Dreame Aqua 10 Ultra robovac in my own home, but this alternative at 44% off is a smarter buy | Tech Radar

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I use the premium Dreame Aqua 10 Ultra robovac in my own home, but this alternative at 44% off is a smarter buy

With relatively minor differences, the Dreame Aqua 10 Roller for AU$1,387 is excellent value

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I've been testing and writing about robot vacuums for nearly a decade here on Tech Radar Australia and one of the standouts for me in the past 12 months was (if you'll excuse the pun) an absolute dream machine.

If you read my in-depth Dreame Aqua 10 Ultra review, you'll know just how impressed I was with its overall performance, and my nitpicking complaints were mostly to do with how its battery gets used, which honestly isn't even a complaint — perhaps more of an observation.

It is, however, a premium model that I've only very rarely seen discounted. Its slightly cheaper sibling, the standard Dreame Aqua 10 Roller, though, is almost as good and also currently 44% off on Amazon, and just AU$69.35 more than its Prime Day price.

That's still a sight better than having to pay nearly three grand for the Ultra version.

With 30,000 Pa of suction and a roller mop that promises streak-free mopping, this is a full-featured robovac that offers very few compromises. It's even able to clear relatively high thresholds of up to 6cm, so it can get to places lesser models can't. Note that this offer is not Prime eligible, although delivery is free if you are subscriber — it'll just take a little longer to reach your door.

The differences between Aqua 10 Roller and its Ultra sibling may seem like a long list, but trust someone who's still using the latter in her own home — it's overkill and not worth the extra cash.

So what are those differences? Well, for starters, the Li DAR turret doesn't lower itself automatically on the standard Roller version, but that's not unique to it, especially at this price. It also misses out on the 3D mapping that the Ultra version does but, again, a 2D map is pretty much all most people will need (floors, after all, tend to be pretty flat). And it gets a single-compartment soap dispenser instead of the dual-slot one in the Ultra which, again, isn't necessary unless you want to use an odour-neutralising solution as well.

For your money, you're still getting a whopping 30,000 Pa of suction which, going by how well my Ultra version utilises it, will do very well on carpets and I am in awe at how well the roller mop works on the Dreame. There are plenty of intelligent features available on the Aqua 10, including intelligent stain removal, so if you think your robovac has forgotten its navigation path and is circling, that's likely just its sensors picking up extra dirt in a small area and getting the bot to clean repeatedly for a thorough job.

It's also a machine that promises excellent edge cleaning, since it uses the exact same side brush and extending roller mop as the Ultra model. And the Roller even has the same automatic mop cover, which comes on as soon as it detects carpet to keep the mop head clean and your carpet dry.

While the Roller doesn't quite match the Ultra's ability to move over thresholds and steps up to 8cm tall, it's capacity to tackle heights up to 6cm is still above average, and means it can potentially head into patio areas if your sliding door frames aren't very high.

If it performs anywhere as well as my Ultra model, I think the Dreame Aqua 10 Roller will be hard to beat at its current discounted price.

➡️ Read our full guide to the best robot vacuums in Australia

1. Best overall: Ecovacs Deebot X8 Pro Omni
2. Runner up: Dreame Aqua 10 Ultra Roller
3. Best for carpets: Roborock Saros 20
4. Best for pets: Dreame X50 Ultra

While she's happiest with a camera in her hand, Sharmishta's main priority is being Tech Radar's APAC Managing Editor, looking after the day-to-day functioning of the Australian, New Zealand and Singapore editions of the site, steering everything from news and reviews to ecommerce content like deals and coupon codes. While she loves reviewing cameras and lenses when she can, she's also an avid reader and has become quite the expert on ereaders and E Ink writing tablets, having appeared on Singaporean radio to talk about these underrated devices. Other than her duties at Tech Radar, she's also the Managing Editor of the Australian edition of Digital Camera World, and writes for Tom's Guide and T3.

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