Roborock S8 MaxV Ultra

Over time, there is a fairly specific template for the modern robot vacuum cleaner. If it is placed at the expensive end of the price spectrum, there is usually a single rotating dust brush, which is otherwise removable. At the back, there are rotating mops made of a type of microfiber, which are wetted by a water tank. And both during and at the end of its task, the vacuum cleaner returns to a base and changes the water.

It's a pretty simple concept, or if nothing else it's an established standard, and while Roborock's brand new flagship, the S8 MaxV Ultra (yes, that's a ridiculous name), innovates in a number of areas, this is a robot vacuum cleaner.

But the basics are all here, and it's done masterfully. Thanks to the mechanical FlexiArm that can extend the brush head outwards, Roborock claims "edge-to-edge" cleaning, and it's broadly true. If nothing else, it's actually more efficient than many competing models, although it would make sense for all robot vacuums to be square. The app works well, and setting it up and letting it scan the surface it needs to clean is decidedly seamless.

And then there are those innovations, and it's actually quite transformative. Transformative? Hardly, but these are pretty wild upgrades within the framework of the aforementioned template. First of all, Roborock has mounted a small extra mop on one side, just so that floor cleaning also gets close to the moldings. This rotates at a lower RPM (185) but sits slightly outside the outer frame of the vacuum cleaner, and therefore, together with the brush, it can get deeper into sharper angles in the home. This is combined with the DuoRoller Riser Brush (yes, there are names here), which consists of two rotating rubber brushes that both suck and push dust and dirt up into the chamber inside the vacuum cleaner. It's more resistant to long hairs, for example, and just leaves far less dirt behind after a single run. And then there are the mops themselves. They usually rotate, but here there is one static cloth that vibrates instead. This vibration runs at 4000 "times/min", but gives a much more granular cleaning, and it can even be lifted up to 20 millimetres to avoid touching the floor if you want it to stay off a carpet.

All of this matters, all of this makes for more effective cleaning and also makes it easier to maintain. But perhaps more importantly, it means that while the aforementioned frame is the same, different and more effective solutions are being used.

Where Roborock doesn't really have anything new to offer is in software and radar. It's the same LiDAR system at the top that sticks up very far and prevents the vacuum cleaner from getting under rather narrow furniture, a problem Ecovacs has solved by integrating the module at the front. There's also a hugely annoying voice assistant built in, which starts conversations when you don't want it to and is generally distracting. It can be turned off, thankfully, and so can other AI-based features. Not all of them are useless, for example, there's a custom cleaning profile for your home that activates after a few drives and pays special attention to where there's usually dirt and grime. But beyond that, there's a lot of fluff here, unnecessary fat that only confuses.

This doesn't mean that the Roborock S8 MaxV Ultra is a bad robot vacuum cleaner. On the contrary, it's downright brilliant, but for around £1,400, it also exists at the top end of the price ladder. You can get an Ecovacs X2 Omni, or a Roomba Combo J9+ - the top dogs of the market - for similar or even much less. So, is this competitive in this segment? Yes, it is, and thanks to these innovations, we may well be looking at the S8 MaxV Ultra as a new benchmark that the others will soon copy. You'll just be paying handsomely for the privilege of being on the cutting edge.