Greetings to all readers of the Robotobzor! Finally, here we have the most budgetary Xiaomi robot vacuum cleaner in 2022. This is Xiaomi Mi Robot Vacuum-Mop Essential or as it is also called Xiaomi MiJia Sweeping Robot G1. The first name of the robot is for the European market, the second for China. And so these are identical models in terms of characteristics and functionality. But I still recommend buying the European version of Vacuum-Mop Essential, which has multiple voice packets. Speaking about the cost, it varies between $150-220. On average, a robot`s price is $200. We will review and test in detail this model, after that I will express my own opinion whether to buy this robot vacuum cleaner. Let’s go!
Equipment
The robot vacuum cleaner came in this box:
The manufacturer’s package includes:
- Charging base with cord storage.
- Wet cleaning nozzle with attached mopping pad.
- Power adapter.
- Tool for cleaning the dust collector and central brush.
- The instruction manual in several languages,
The delivery set is minimal, there are no spare consumables, a remote control and a motion controller. This is a minus.
Design
Now let`s review the robot vacuum cleaner itself. It is designed in traditional minimalism from Xiaomi. The shape is rounded, the color is white matte. The front side has a soft-touch mechanical bumper. There are 2 control buttons on top: start / pause and forced return to the base for charging.
The combined container for water and garbage is located on top under the lid. The water tank is detached from the dustbin.
Container capacity is 200 ml. The water supply level is regulated in the application. The dust collector has a good capacity, it holds up to 600 ml of dry debris. There is a triple filtration system based on a mesh, foam and HEPA filter.
Let’s have a look how the robot is arranged from the bottom. It has 2 side brushes. They are three-beam, pile, fastened with screws. The central brush is bristle-petal, not detachable.
A nozzle for wet cleaning is installed from below. Water enters the napkin through 3 holes. The mopping pad itself, there is no lint on the sides, so this robot will not clean the floor along the plinth.
Specifications
Key Features of Xiaomi Mi Robot Vacuum-Mop Essential:
- Li-Ion battery with a capacity of 2500 mAh.
- Suction power up to 2200 Pa.
- Operating time up to 90 min.
- Cleaning area up to 80 sq.m.
- The capacity of a dustbin is 600 ml.
- The capacity of the water tank is 200 ml.
- Obstacle passage 20 mm.
- Noise level up to 65 dB.
- Dimensions 350*82 mm.
- Weight 2.8 kg.
As for a budget robot vacuum cleaner, this model has good maneuverability and above average suction power. And the rest of the characteristics are quite standard. Further in the tests, we will check some of the declared characteristics.
Functionality
Now we will review the functionality of Xiaomi Mi Robot Vacuum-Mop Essential. It is controlled through the Mi Home application and connecting to a Wi-Fi network in my case did not cause any difficulties.
The built map is displayed on the main working panel. Thanks to the installed gyroscope, the robot builds a map of the room in real time, but does not store it in memory.
Under the map, the main functions are displayed. This is the return of the robot to the base for charging, starting and stopping the automatic mode of operation, adjusting the suction power and the degree of wetting of the mopping pad with the installed nozzle.
In the settings there is a scheduled cleaning. You can select the days of the week and time to run the robot cleaner. There is a point cleaning mode and manual control, as well as a cleaning log, where built maps are saved. You can enable do not disturb mode and adjust the volume of voice alerts, as well as select their language.
In addition, you can track the status of consumables, turn on the search for the device by sound signal and select the cleaning mode for the perimeter of the room. Additionally, you can change the name of the robot, select the location where it is located, share control with other family members and, if necessary, update the firmware to a more recent one.
This is all the main functionality of Xiaomi Mi Robot Vacuum-Mop Essential. It provides all the functions that a budget robot vacuum cleaner up to $200 should be equipped with. Just one remark – you can not limit the movement of the robot vacuum cleaner with a magnetic tape, even if you buy it separately. This is confirmed in many reviews on thematic forums.
It is also important to note that this robot vacuum cleaner automatically increases suction power when driving on carpets!
Testing
Navigation
Firstly, let’s check the navigation of this robot vacuum cleaner in the room with obstacles. First, it passes the entire available area with a snake moves. It didn’t get stuck on the dryer, swept around the legs of the chair, didn’t swept the box separately. After the snake moves, it switches to the mode of passing the perimeter of the entire available area, after which it returns to the base.
I noticed during the test that the robot makes a lot of unnecessary movements, returns to where it had already cleaned. In addition, during the test, it independently increased the suction power several times, as if recognizing the carpet. In general, strange actions were noticed, in my opinion. As a result, to clean 11 sq.m. it took him about 17 minutes, the cleaning speed is not very fast. And building a map in real time is glitching.
As for cleaning the entire area of the house, there are also comments. In my case, the useful area for the robot to pass is about 34 sq.m. and that’s 5 rooms. So, in the living room, bedroom and corridor, the robot correctly drew the map, but then went to the kids room and the map glitched, after which it combined the living room and the kids room into one room.
As a result, not only the map was built with an error, but there were also uncleaned areas, although not many. Most likely, failures happened because of the small slips on the carpet and dark laminate. So the multi-room navigation test failed. I think this robot vacuum cleaner is worth buying with a total area of 40-50 sq.m., no more, so that there are no problems with uncleaned areas.
Suction power
The suction power of Xiaomi Mi Robot Vacuum-Mop Essential is pretty good, it was able to suck out debris from a 2mm deep slot, like most robot vacuum cleaners on the market.
But I have to highlight that this model has a significant competitor in terms of suction power – this is the 360 C50, which showed a much better result at a cost of $150.
Dry cleaning on laminate
But there are no complaints about the quality of dry cleaning. The robot was able to pick up all the garbage from the floor, except for the corners, where round robots are not able to sweep the garbage. The main part of the debris is collected in the dust collector, and the hair and wool are wrapped around the central brush.
Carpet cleaning
On the carpet, Xiaomi Mi Robot Vacuum-Mop Essential also showed good cleaning performance, it was able to pick up wool and hair from the carpet.
Mopping
The quality of wet cleaning is good. The robot was able to wipe off all the dirt from the floor, leaving no marks or streaks. Only one strip remained along the plinth, but so far this is the weak point of all robot vacuum cleaners that I have tested. So, there are no complaints about this budget model.
For delicate wet cleaning, the Vacuum-Mop Essential is a good option in the budget segment. At the same time, it is worth noting that the robot vacuum cleaner can vacuum and mop the floor at the same time, this is important. The tank is enough for the entire cleaning cycle, the capacity is good.
Possibility of obstacles
The robot’s obstacle possibility is good, it easily moves over sills up to 2 cm high. This test was successfully passed.
Dark Surfaces
But the robot vacuum cleaner recognized the dark door mat as a height difference, this is a minus.
Noise level
And finally, let’s check the noise level of Xiaomi Mi Robot Vacuum-Mop Essential in different modes. At minimum suction power, the noise level is about 62 dB, but during acceleration the wheels are quite noisy, which is why the sound level reached 66 dB. In standard mode, the noise level is about 64 dB. And at maximum power does not exceed 67 dB. The noise level is standard, as for a robot vacuum cleaner.
Summing up
Xiaomi Mi Robot Vacuum-Mop Essential was reviewed and tested in detail. According to our rating system, it was able to score 49 out of 100 points, if we are talking about the European version. The result seems to be quite good, considering that the robot vacuum cleaner is budget version, but there are few complaints about it, one of which would personally push me away from the purchase. Will tell you about everything in order.
Algorithm of evaluating robots https://robotobzor.com/about-robots/system-for-evaluating-robot-vacuums.html and the overall rating of models that passed the Robotobzor test https://robotobzor.com/ratings/general-rating-of-robot-vacuum-cleaners.html.
If we talk about the positive aspects, then this is undeniable:
- Building a room map.
- Simultaneous dry and wet cleaning.
- The presence of a central brush that collects debris and hair well.
- Management via mobile application.
- Electronic adjustment of water supply and suction power.
- High quality dry and wet cleaning.
- Good passage of obstacles
As for the negative aspects:
- Navigation is weak, and even cartography is worse than many analogues with a gyroscope.
- The robot vacuum cleaner is afraid of dark coatings.
- Does not work with magnetic tape.
- Poor equipment.
For me personally, a big remark is the navigation itself and the fact that the robot can leave uncleaned areas and go through already cleaned several times. This fact slightly spoiled the impression of the Xiaomi robot, which for me is one of the best on the market. And the rest is a good option for the proposed price, at least it’s really a robot vacuum cleaner, not a toy. That`s why, if the area of housing is small, for example, a one-bedroom apartment, or you are going to run a robot vacuum cleaner in one or two rooms, then this option can be considered for purchase. Since analogues will either have a more primitive wet cleaning, or worse build quality.
Well, in general, I additionally recommend considering the Chinese version of a more advanced model in the line – Mijia 1C, which, at a cost of about $220-240, is already equipped with a camera for navigation, can zone a room into areas and supports restricted areas in the application. Or to consider the European version of Xiaomi Mi Robot Vacuum-Mop, but it will cost about $250, or even higher. This robot vacuum cleaner is one of the best in its segment and has received many positive customer reviews, and after our review left a more positive impression.
Here I would like to end the review. If you have any questions, ask in the comments. Happy tech shopping everyone!
