The Deebot X2 Combo from Ecovacs takes all of the power and performance of the X2 Omni robot vacuum and adds a versatile stick vacuum with some of the same quality-of-life features we get with robots.
Build & Design
The X2 Combo is a new step for a robot vacuum manufacturer. We’ve seen other companies develop powerful stick vacuums alongside autonomous ones, but generally not in this form factor.
At a glance, the X2 Combo setup looks like a normal robot vacuum base station. The X2 Omni – which is the robot vacuum itself – sits inside the base station, complete with auto-emptying features for both water and dust.
However, the right of the base brings a little bit more value than previous models. Inside a docking slot, a handheld unit is secured. Underneath, attachments are stored away, and on the side sits an extender connected to a standard roller brush. In essence, the base station for the X2 Combo is a do-it-all docking unit with a full-stick vacuum attached next to the X2 Omni itself.
What’s unique about this setup is the functional ease it offers. Where the handheld unit sits is essentially a separate docking port that will automatically charge the unit and empty its dust bin when reconnected. The dust collection system feeds into the same bag that the X2 Omni does, which lessens the load when maintaining the station, though it does up the frequency depending on how much you manually vacuum.
The overall build quality is extremely similar to what the X2 Omni offered. We have a full review of that vacuum, which is worth reading to get more details on the majority of the Ecovacs X2 Combo. In essence, Ecovacs just attached a second dock to the X2 Omni’s base station and added auto-emptying features for a second vacuum, which I am not going to complain about.
Performance
The X2 Combo is a great concept, and it’s honestly been fleshed out pretty well. By its nature, the X2 Omni has some drawbacks in various circumstances. It’s autonomous, so it isn’t going to get every nook and cranny on the first or even second run. Anything that blocks its path on the outline run will definitely be missed on the second go, and so on.
Where the stick vacuum comes in is where the X2 Omni falls short. It’s so easy to pull the stick vacuum handheld unit out of the dock and attach whatever tool you need, whether that is the floor brush or upholstery brush.
With a tap of the trigger, the vacuum gets going – slow at first and then at a faster pace. There are two modes for different scenarios, though I’ve left the handheld vacuum on the more powerful setting while I’ve used it. There’s a lot to love about the handheld vacuum portion of the Ecovacs X2 Combo. It’s easy to use, it picks up dust and debris very easily, and it’s incredibly easy to empty.
My only complaint is that I wish the vacuum were more powerful. Other stick vacuums I own don’t necessarily destroy the market in power, but they’re certainly able to kick up dust from the floor more violently than the X2 Combo handheld vacuum. I think the X2 Combo shines on hard flooring, and there’s no doubt it’d leave nothing behind on a laminate or hardwood floor. But on carpet, I don’t think it offers the power necessary for an efficient cleaning.
That does help keep the battery lasting for a while, though. While testing, I didn’t once have to stop cleaning to charge the handheld unit. It just powers through until I’m ready to place it on the charger again. That process is absent of battery switching and any hardware manipulation, which I’m always grateful for.
Related: The Ecovacs X2 Omni is the new heavy-weight cleaning robot
Now, the X2 Omni is what’s pulling most of the load. We’ve detailed this vacuum before, and we’ll hit the highlights again. The X2 Omni vacuum has a really efficient and powerful AIVI 3D 2.0 scanning system and dual-LiDAR that detects boundaries and objects with surprising accuracy. With that, it navigates your home and furniture rather effortlessly and takes care of the majority of cleaning.
Internally, it’s capable of hitting an 8,700Pa suction rating, which is enough to keep even medium and high-pile carpet clean. If you have a combination of flooring in your home, the X2 Omni also carries auto-lifting mops that can traverse medium-pile carpeted areas. When it detects hard flooring, it’ll lower the pads and start scrubbing.
The app that controls the X2 Omni is phenomenal and has gotten better since we last reviewed it. The new presets allow you to set certain scenarios in your home and trigger them with a single tap. Those preset functions also allow you to have the X2 Omni vacuum first and then run back around and mop, which eliminates one of the major gripes I had in previous models where the only option for both mopping and vacuuming was to have the bot do both at once, which I never found to be useful.
As for mopping performance, I think Ecovacs implements the best method with two rotating pads and a small reservoir of water. It doesn’t often need to refill, and it does a fantastic job of covering an entire floor. It’s also worth noting that it doesn’t look traction like some other vacuums do when mopping. The X2 Omni is genuinely built like a tank.
The X2 Combo also integrates into Google Home the same way the X2 Omni does. You can control whether the vacuum is running or not and dock it from the Google Home app. The handheld vacuum does not offer any smart controls because it’s pretty manual in nature.
But as good as the X2 Omni is, it does tend to miss some spots here and there for various reasons. This is where the versatility of the Ecovacs X2 Combo comes into play because I was able to quickly pull the vacuum out of its station and quickly hit any spots it missed. Or, if I really felt like cleaning up, I let the X2 Omni do its thing while I easily hit spots it can’t reach, like the couch and chairs, or even the curtains.
The handheld vacuum comes with one of the nicest upholstery attachments I’ve used. It actually creates suction rather than relying solely on the brush to do the work. As another nice touch, the handheld vacuum uses filters that are held in place magnetically, which makes maintenance extremely easy. The other two nozzles work as expected, and one has a brush attachment that can be pulled back for extra flexibility.
Final thoughts
In essence, the X2 Combo is simply a modified X2 Omni with an added stick vacuum mounted to the side of the original base station. Honestly, that’s in no way a negative. Ecovacs is retailing the X2 Combo at $1,599 without the stick attachment, which might be the better play if you just need to reach the harder spots. The added functionality of a stick vacuum is great, but it still comes at a pretty penny at a total of $1,699.
In my opinion, the X2 Omni is still one of the top robot vacuums on the market. Adding a handheld vacuum to the unit and creating a combination addresses a lot of the issues I’ve had with robot vacuums, which I think are just a product of the limited capabilities they have. The handheld vacuum addresses those concerns and adds very little effort on the user’s part, which is a win in my book.
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