There are a couple of companies vying for the top spot in the robot/vacuum market, and Ecovacs’ is one of them. Its Deebot T20 Omni is the newest smart cleaning robot that makes use of an auto-lifting mop system and new hardware for one of the best cleans around.
Build
The T20 Omni from Ecovacs bears a striking resemblance to the X1 Omni we reviewed some time ago. There are a few good similarities between the two designs, both in the docking station and the vacuum itself. With how much we enjoyed the X1, that’s not a bad thing.
In the box, the Deebot T20 Omni comes paired with a docking station and a few accessories. Most accessories are required for operation. The dock itself is large, coming in at around 23 inches tall. It fits the same bill as being passable for a waste bin if you look quickly enough.
The T20 is responsible for both mopping and vacuuming and has become the first robotic cleaning aid from Ecovacs to be equipped with automatically lifting mop pads. Those pads are similar to what previous generations of the company’s vacuums have, though these snap into place rather than holding on with magnets.
With that, the base needs to be that big for a couple of reasons. The T20’s base holds two 2-liter liquid containers for both clean and dirty water. Underneath those containers lies a hidden dust bag to store anything the Deebot T20 finds along its journeys. After mopping and vacuuming, the T20 heads back to the station, empties the dust container with a quick 10-second emptying session, and washes the pads.
Where the T20 docks is a small basin that allows the pads to submerge in water. The water is heated to a nice 131-degrees Fahrenheit to dissuade bacteria growth and the mop pads are dunked and scrubbed on the semi-abrasive rails in the basin. Dirty water used to clean the pads is then sucked out and emptied into the dirty water container. Post-cleaning, the T20 will get dried off with hot air to keep the pads staying bacteria-free.
The T20 is the first device from Ecovacs to incorporate hot water to clean the pads and get them ready for mopping. The new process is a nice touch.
The body of the T20 vacuum/mop is well-built. As mentioned, it’s very similar in style and quality to the X1 Omni. That being said, the build is really well-done.
Setup & navigation
Any good robot vacuum is built on the basis of a good app. Ecovac’s app is comprehensive and easy to use, and it offers a slew of features that help fine-tune the cleaning experience. First off, setting up the T20 Omni was a breeze. It takes a simple QR code scan and a solid internet connection to get the vacuum running.
Before setting schedules or customizing cleaning options, your space needs to be mapped out. The T20 has a “quick mapping” feature that allows it to find rooms and explore your space. It takes a bit of time to do this, but once it’s complete, you’ll have a map – both 2D and 3D – of your home. As the T20 does routine cleans, it’ll constantly update that map.
This is all done via a combination of sensors on the Deebot T20 Omni that let it detect not only rooms but objects in front of it. For mapping and navigation, it utilizes what Ecovacs refers to as TrueMapping 2.0. That encompasses LiDAR and dToF sensors to generate cleaning paths. In comparison to other vacuums on the market, the T20 has a high sensing range.
Once the home is mapped, the app allows you to split rooms, name them, and manage cleaning preferences for each one. This comes in handy when you know one room is much more liable to get dirty faster.
One advantage to managing the home app in-app is when connecting the T20 Omni to Google Home. Asking Google Assistant to have the vacuum clean a certain room is easy to do and the home control is convenient when needed. There’s only so much that can be done through Google Home, but it’s reliable in a pinch.
Cleaning performance
One of the biggest differences that the T20 Omni has to offer is the hardware used for cleaning. First off, the roller brush is completely changed from other variants with the Deebot name. Instead of bristles, Ecovacs has gone with a rubber roller brush, which means hair tangles less and carpets get a deeper clean. On top of that, the T20 features a lifting mop array, which means traversing the carpet is possible without removing the pads.
Utilizing a carpet sensor, the vacuum is able to differentiate between hard flooring and carpet of any kind. When it senses hard flooring, the mop pads drop to the floor and apply a bit of pressure. Both pads rotate in opposite directions for a deeper clean. In our testing, we’ve been pretty happy with the T20 Omni when it comes to mopping. Even when cleaning carpet, the Deebot T20 does a phenomenal job.
One slight downfall is that while traversing carpet is possible, the T20 struggles to reverse on high-pile caret with wet pads. This is only ever the case when the vacuum gets stuck and needs to backtrack, though it can happen. Otherwise, I’ve been able to use the T20 Omni on normal carpets with little issue, though Ecovacs recommends using the vacuum on medium to lower carpets. If it were able to do everything well on carpet, the T20 would without a doubt be deserving of the title “all-terrain.” Because it struggles in certain conditions, it’s almost there, but not quite.
An added feature that really becomes the icing on the cake is the cleaning customization. If needed, you can set the T20 Omni to just vacuum or just mop. That’s normal and welcome. What makes me exceedingly happy is the new differentiation between having the T20 mop and vacuum at the same time, or vacuuming and then coming back around to mop. This added function is so nice to see, as it lets the T20 do a dry run and then mop up after it’s picked up all debris.
One instance of this is having the T20 Omni traverse my carpet to the bathrooms, vacuum once, and then go again with the pads. That utilizes the lifting mop pads in a much better way and is one of my favorite modes.
Ecovacs also does a fine job of making maintenance pretty hassle-free. The mop pads are held onto each plate with velcro. When they’re due for cleaning, tear them off and chuck them into the washing machine. The dustbin comes out very easily as well and can be cleaned with no issues, either.
Battery life is a big plus, as well. I can get about 1,000 square feet done and still have around 30% battery left. That entails running a couple of rooms twice over and mopping others. I’ve never once needed to sit the T20 Omni down for a recharge before the house was sufficiently clean.
Final thoughts
All in all, the Deebot T20 Omni has become another one of my favorite robot vacuum/mop offerings. The addition of automatic lifting mop pads and rubber roller brush adds a lot to an already excellent formula from Ecovacs. When topped off with the company’s sensor tech and docking station that really makes it all a hands-off experience, the T20 Omni has to take a spot as one of our favorites.
Currently, the T20 Omni sits at $999 – $100 off of its normal price of $1,099, set to resume after June 30. At just under $100 and even a little above it, the T20 Omni is a good buy backed by a simple app and good hardware.
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