Ecovacs DEEBOT T20 OMNI Review: Tried and tested
We put the new Ecovacs all in one robot vacuum to the test and the results were ‘horrifying’
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I’m someone who vacuums and mops their home daily. Why? While there’s no proof, I’m sure my dog wakes up in the middle of the night to shed pet hair across the house and all over my wardrobe.
I also have a dust mite allergy. So, having an all-in-one robot cleaner that can make my floor shine and get rid of the dander, dust and whatever else is lingering would be super handy.
Meet Optimus Grime, otherwise known as Ecovacs’ latest robot vacuum – the DEEBOT T20 Omni*. With many robot vacs from different price points now being loaded with an auto empty dustbin, brands like Ecovacs are levelling up their hands free gadgets with other self-cleaning features such as automatic water refill plus hot-water mop washing and drying functionalities.
The DEEBOT T20 Omni is also the brand’s most powerful robot vac andmop to date, and boasts a new mop riser that lifts the mop pads when rolling across carpets and rugs.
Having reviewed my fair share of robot vacs, I know that finding a robot cleaner with equally excellent vacuuming and mopping capabilities is surprisingly difficult.
The combo is typically a strong vacuum with a mop that simply wets the floor, or a good mop accompanied by a vacuum that’s too weak or constantly getting tangled in hair.
And considering this latest model retails for $700 cheaper than the previous Omni model, I wanted to see if its new TrueDetect 3D 3.0 technology and stronger 6000Pa suction power makes the newcomer a worthy alternative.
HOW WE TESTED THIS PRODUCT
At Best Of, it’s our mission to help you make informed shopping decisions. To ensure you buy the right product at the best price, we rigorously test products so you don’t have to. As well as sorting through mountains of consumer reviews, product manuals and conducting thorough product research, our team of expert writers puts each product we review through a series of hands-on tests to ensure we give you honest feedback about its performance and whether it’s worth your hard-earned money.
In this article
- Features of the Ecovacs DEEBOT T20 Omni features
- Design
- Set up and mapping
- Dual vacuum and mopping capabilities
- Self-cleaning and self emptying functions
- YIKO voice assistant
- How much does the Ecovacs DEEBOT T20 Omni cost?
- Is the Ecovacs DEEBOT T20 Omni worth buying?
- Budget friendly robot vacuum and mop alternatives
PROS:
+ Strong 6000Pa suction power.
+ Promises to last over four hours in a single session.
+ Automatically washes and dries mop pads.
+ Mop automatically lifts to avoid carpet.
+ Offers a wide variety of options for adjusting the power level, water level, task sequence and cleaning mode.
+ Can use the Ecovacs app to schedule tasks, create no-go zones and more.
+ Can start, pause and stop cleaning via app, voice command or by pressing the power button on the robot vacuum.
+ Can climb up to 20mm to cross obstacles and clean the edges of most carpets and doorsills.
+ Has a quiet mode.
+ Can ‘earn’ points through the app, which can be used to get discounts on purchases made via the Ecovacs store.
CONS:
– Doesn’t work on thick, high pile rugs and carpet.
– On the pricier side.
ECOVACS DEEBOT T20 OMNI FEATURES
After testing and loving the DEEBOT X1 Plus, nicknamed Yiko Ono, I was particularly excited to see whether the DEEBOT T20 Omni’s self-cleaning feature made a difference to the robot cleaner’s effectiveness and efficiency.
Surely I could save $500 by sacrificing a little convenience and wash the mop pad myself weekly and get the same results, right? (Spoiler: no, I cannot.)
Here’s a break down of several key specs and features:
- Dust bag capacity: 3L (which can hold up to 75 days’ worth of dirt)
- Runtime: 170-260 minutes runtime (approximately a little over four hours)
- Charging time: 6.5 hours charging time
- Noise level: 67dBA (similar to regular conversation)
- Size of robot vacuum: 362mm x 362mm x 103.5mm
- Size of Omni station: 448mm x 430mm x 578mm
- TrueDetect 3.0 Obstacle Avoidance Technology: uses real-time 3D scanning and detection to recognise and avoid potential hazards like wires, weighing scales, furniture, toys and more.
- TrueMapping 2.0: performs a 360-degree scan of the home to create 3D floor maps, and identifies small objects supposedly four times better than an LDS (Laser Distance Sensor).
- Deep Edge Cleaning: can rotate to reach dirty corners up to 3mm away, and climb along doorsills and other barriers up to 20mm.
- Smart charge continuous cleaning: if the battery runs low, the robot vacuum will return to the docking station to recharge and resume the task once it has enough power to finish the job.
- Housekeeper Mode: automatically adjusts cleaning parameters to match personal habits, environment and preferences.
Runtime
For anyone who is yet to transition to a robot vacuum, this model offers fantastic runtime that exceeds way past what many stick vacuums offer. This promises between 170 and 260 minutes of cleaning time, which likely means you can use the most powerful setting for over two hours straight before it needs to recharge. It’s also longer lasting than many robot vacs on the market, including Ecovacs’ original Omni unit, the DEEBOT X1 Omni, which offers up to 140 minutes.
Its runtime is pretty competitive compared to other brands, too. TheDreame L10s Ultra Robot Vacuum and Mop Cleaner comes close with a runtime range between 160 and 210 minutes, although retails for $800 more.
Optimus Grime took around three hours to vacuum and mop the entire house, making a couple of return trips to the Omni station to freshen up the mop pads. This isn’t too bad, especially considering the great finish.
Hot water mop washing and hot air drying
While the mop is typically the weaker of the two in many robot cleaners, the mopping function in the DEEBOT T20 Omni is what makes the gadget shine – literally. My floors have never been brighter and so noticeably clean. I would have to spend all day on my hands and knees scrubbing the floors to get a similar result. Plus, there’s no need to deal with wet streaks and super slippery floors anymore.
Tech wise, this is partly thanks to the same OZMO Turbo 2.0 Rotating System also contained in the X1 Omni and X1 Turbo. It rotates the mopping plates up to 180 times per minute and applies consistent pressure for a deep clean.
Another reason is Ecovacs’ newhot water mop washing and drying system. This was definitely my favourite addition because it got rid of the wet dog smell that manual mopping would sometimes leave, or even produce when stored away. Since this is generally a sign that the mop hasn’t been cleaned properly, it was useful to have the mop pads automatically (and most importantly, regularly) washed at 55 degrees Celsisus then hot air dried in order to get rid of any oil, dirt and other sticky residue – helping prevent moisture, bacteria and odour build-up. Having a cleaner mop also avoided cross contamination and allowed for a more effective clean.
It was also pretty satisfying to see the dirty tank fill up with a horrifyingly dark cocktail of ground-in dirt and debris I never knew existed. I couldn’t believe this was what I was essentially ‘cleaning’ my floors with. You’ll definitely need to make sure to clean the tank with soap after every empty, otherwise the grime will build up inside the tank and create some unpleasant smells.
Similar to the auto-empty capability, the auto wash function didn’t take too much out of the total runtime, despite returning to the Omni station two or three times when cleaning the whole house on vacuum and mop mode.
Auto-lift mopping
Until more recently, many robot vacuum and mop combos required you to attach a mop pad whenever it was time to freshen those tiles and hardwood or laminate floors. This meant that these hands-free gadgets weren’t really that autonomous or convenient – especially if you had different types of surfaces or even owned an area rug.
In fact, the DEEBOT T20 Omni is Ecovacs’ first product to feature an Auto-Mop Lifting function that automatically raises the mop pads whenever carpet is detected by the ultrasonic sensor located on the bottom of the robot. The same sensor will also increase the suction power once it recognises carpet and rugs, allowing it to get a deeper clean, much like other robot vacs.
Given the $1799 price tag, it’s great to see this added – especially when it’s lacking from its pricier siblings (e.g. the $2499 DEEBOT X1 Omni) which have similar auto washing and refilling features.
DESIGN
The DEEBOT T20 Omni boasts a pretty nice quality build, and dons a fresh and sleek white and silver outfit to match. Optimus Grime finishes it off with a TrueDetect 3D sensor, 300ml dustbin and hidden reset button on top, and anti-drop sensors, dual side brushes, two mop pads and a floating rubber brush below.
The build contains some plastics, but this doesn’t seem to be a problem for the robot vac or even the furniture it aggressively pushed around.
It offers similar measurements, capacities and features to other self-emptying and self-cleaning robot cleaners with separate clean and water dirty tanks. The unit is certainly bulky compared to standard auto emptying models that only have one small water reservoir.
Expect the Omni station to be larger than standard docking stations that don’t pack two hefty 3L water reservoirs.
You can press the button on the Omni station to start, pause or resume cleaning. Holding the button down for five seconds can also either add water or drain water out of the cleaning sink compartment.
SET UP
Setting up the Ecovacs robot vacuum was super easy. The side brushes are colour coded and there’s a QR code that directs you straight to the app, which provides simple step-by-instructions on how to connect the model to your Wi-Fi and customise your cleans.
I love how flexible the DEEBOT T20 Omni is. There are more customisation options compared to the previous Ecovacs DEEBOT X1 Plus, this time offering a couple more modes including Mop-Only and Mop After Vacuum in addition to Vacuum Only and Vacuum and Mop.
You can also choose a level of cleaning efficiency, either Standard, Deep or Fast. There are similarly three suction power settings including Quiet, Standard and Strong.
MAPPING AND NAVIGATION
If killer robots become a thing, the DEEBOT T20 Omni is the one to watch out for. While this vacuum did a good job at avoiding furniture most of the time, there were areas where the unit navigated quite aggressively and ended up pushing furniture in order to squeeze into tight spots or pick up stubborn or hard to reach debris. The robot vac even managed to knock over a plant on a metal stand during the initial mapping run, but thankfully never dented the furniture or itself.
The major downside was that it didn’t always go to rooms that weren’t detected in the initial mapping process, despite appearing on the map after being added later on. This wasn’t a problem for my DEEBOT X1 Plus, which honestly seemed to navigate better overall.
While this could easily be solved by sending it to the missed rooms for an area clean, it was annoying and meant waiting for the task to end and I was probably likely to have forgotten by then.
When it came to rugs, Optimus Grime seemed to have a magnetic connection towards the thick-pile area rug under the dining table and constantly ended up getting stuck in the same place. Fortunately, its object avoidance improved over time but still occasionally needed to be readjusted. Mats and low-pile rugs proved less stressful for the robot cleaner.
Funnily enough, the Ecovacs website shows an image where a DEEBOT T20 Omni uses obstacle avoidance to clean around a weighing scale. This wasn’t exactly my reality, with Optimus Grime repeatedly climbing onto the scale to give it a wipe down … or engorge it like some kind of appliance cannibalism.
The second trial run in the main part of the house went much more smoothly. It mapped and vacuumed the area in under an hour and didn’t have any malfunctions. (I assume this was because it was mostly tiles).
CUSTOMISATION
The DEEBOT T20 Omni allows for plenty of personalisation and includes new settings such as Mop After Vacuum and most importantly, Mop Only. It may sound surprising but a stand-alone mopping mode isn’t as common as you would think in robot vacuum and mop combos, even in more expensive units like the iRobot Combo j7+. Roborock offers it in a small number of products, including the similarly priced Roborock S7 Plus.
What I didn’t love was how the app couldn’t create small custom cleaning area like the iRobot Roomba Combo j7+. The app was also a little glitchy when showing where the robot cleaner was in the house in real-time.
There’s also Housekeeper Mode, which pays extra attention to rooms prone to extra dust and dirt, deep cleaning areas that haven’t been cleaned in a while, or changing the suction power and water flow to match certain habits. You can expect some version of this in most robot vacuums.
While the DEEBOT T20 Omni now offers Max suction mode for vacuuming, I found the classic Standard and Strong settings were enough to give a great clean for most messes on the rugs. But it seemed too powerful on the hardwood floors and tiles.
DUAL VACUUM AND MOPPING CAPABILITIES
The Vacuum then Mop setting gave next level results on kitchen tiles. During testing, I dropped a bunch of flour next to a day-old coffee puck on the floor, making sure to get as much of these ingredients deep into the cracks as possible. Optimus managed to pick up a fair bit of the debris on the standard setting, mainly the larger chunks, although it was the mopping that dived into the creases and scrubbed away the dried-in ingredients.
Since most robot cleaners need good lighting conditions to get the best clean, I tested whether Optimus Grime could still give satisfying clean in a low light conditions, and it did.
For hardwood floors, I wanted to see how well the vacuum worked on Max mode and on different sized debris. The juicy mix included crushed Weetbix, chia seeds, carrot peels, dog hair and damp onion skin. This powerful mode ran almost as loud as a Dyson stick vacuum (on its lowest setting) and did a decent job at picking up majority of the debris, although seemed to blow away smaller pieces of dirt, such as the chia seeds. Passing the same area on the less powerful standard setting helped finish the job.
Max mode worked much better on carpet and didn’t leave stripes vacuums sometimes create on carpet and rugs. Again, following up with a second clean on Deep Clean picked up any stragglers.
SELF-CLEANING AND SELF EMPTYING FUNCTIONS
Similar to Ecovacs’ other Omni model, the dust collection cabin conveniently pops out from the front. As someone with a dust mite allergy, I really appreciate having a sealed disposable dust bag and handle to minimise contact.
Like with most robot vacuums, you can expect the self-emptying function to be fairly loud and only take a few seconds. Channelling the water into the dirty reservoir is less noisy and takes a minute or so. Rather than a straight ‘vacuum’ sound, it sounds like someone sucking a straw trying to get every last morsel of their drink.
Unlike some Ecovacs’ two-in-one robot cleaners, the DEEBOT T20 Omni comes with separate clean and dirty water tanks. The clean water tank is easy to refill and large enough to hold enough water for a few cleans, depending on the size of your home. The handle makes it convenient to remove and carry, and there’s an easy to read fill line so you know how much water to add.
If the either of the tanks need to be refilled or emptied, the power button on the Omni station will turn red and you’ll get an alert on your phone (and from Yiko). Keep in mind the container can be a tad heavy once there’s water inside, but the lid is great at helping avoid any spillage.
Emptying the dirty water tank for the first time was deliciously horrifying. I didn’t know how it could collect enough dirt to make the water so dark, despite having vacuumed and mopped every day. At least my floors look much brighter now.
To help with maintenance, the box will include a cleaning brush and a small multi-function cleaning tool hidden with the instruction guide.
YIKO VOICE ASSISTANT
While most robot vacuums typically require Amazon Alexa or Google Home, Ecovacs previously introduced its own built-in voice assistant in the DEEBOT X1 Plus so you can use voice commands without having to fork out for another piece of tech. It’s also handy if you’re not keen on syncing your robot vac with your other smart home gadgets.
Having trialled a few smart home gadgets, I know that syncing my phone to another appliance isn’t always a quick and seamless process so I really liked having an integrated voice assistant. Setting up YIKO simply involved switching a toggle on in the app, with a list of commands also easily accessible.
YIKO was very responsive and can follow general commands, such as “start cleaning” and “increase water flow” as well as more specific ones like “mop the kitchen”, “clean bedroom two and living room” and “vacuum under sofa”.
HOW MUCH DOES THE ECOVACS DEEBOT T20 OMNI COST?
The Ecovacs DEEBOT T20 Omni retails for $1799, making it a higher-end option. Several popular two-in-one robot cleaners sit around this price point, such as the iRobot Roomba j7+ and Dreame L10 Prime.
It will be available in-store and online from retailers such as Amazon Australia, The Good Guys, Godfreys, Bing Lee and the official Ecovacs website (as well as via the Ecovacs app).
IS THE ECOVACS DEEBOT T20 OMNI WORTH BUYING?
If you’re wanting to invest in a robot vacuum and mop for a home with mostly tiles or hardwood or laminate flooring, the DEEBOT T20 Omni is worth the price tag.
Optimus Grime seemed to work much faster than my Ecovacs DEEBOT X1 Plus, and could probably vacuum and mop the house under three hours. It does a really good job with cleaning edges and surprisingly corners, and there are no wet streaks left after mopping.
If you’re worried about having a noisy vacuum, the quiet setting is perfect for when you want to do a light clean without any distractions.
But the best part? The DEEBOT T20 Omni can also mop well … like really well. Finally, there’s a robot cleaner that can vacuum and mop equally good. Optimus cleaned up dried-in dirt from the kitchen tiles and made my floors look cleaner than when I tackle them myself. It doesn’t feel like you’re trying to make do with a decent vacuum and a lacklustre mop for the sake of convenience. Honestly, this is probably one robot cleaner I could trust to handle the whole house without needing to go over everything again with a stick vac.
The fact I can specifically command Optimus Grime to avoid carpets and rugs is another bonus and saved me from having to stop what I’m doing to untuck a rug from its wheels.
During its initial training wheel phase, the robot vac got constantly got stuck on rugs (mainly high pile) and between chairs. And it moved aggressively to say the least, but Optimus progressively improved and I no longer need to step in. Don’t get me wrong, the robot drives like a bumper car running late to a meeting, but it’s super impressive to see it tilt to wipe edges and achieve a thorough clean overall. Can’t believe this robot vac cleans better than me.
BUDGET FRIENDLY ROBOT VACUUM AND MOP COMBOS
If you’re looking for more affordable options, here are a few similar robot cleaners to check out.
Ecovacs N10 Plus, $949 (down from $999) at The Good Guys
What You Need To Know
For a seriously long lasting robot vacuum, there’s the Ecovacs N10 Plus. It can clean for up to five hours, which gives it one of the best runtimes on the market. The model also comes with a good suction power of 4300Pa, plus many of the same features as pricier models, such as an Auto Empty Station, voice control, multi-level mapping, carpet detection, stair safety technology and app control.
Dreame D9 Max Robot Vacuum and Mop Cleaner, $399 (down from $699) at Dreame
What You Need To Know
Offering more features for less, the Dreame D9 Max provides decent suction power plus four adjustable levels of suction and three similarly customisable water flow option. It’s another ideal robot cleaner for hairy homes, thanks to the comb teeth that minimise the risk of hair tangling and clogging the main brush.
Roborock S7 Plus Robot Vacuum, $1199 (down from $1279) at Amazon Australia
What You Need To Know
There’s a reason this mid-range Roborock robot vacuum and mop is popular among shoppers. It’s packed with the highly coveted auto lift mop and a multi-directional floating brush that stays close to the ground for a deeper clean, including on uneven surfaces. The robot cleaner also uses a rubber brush for durability and to minimise hair tangling, making it ideal for homes with pets.
More Best Vacuum Coverage
Best robot vacuums to buy on Amazon
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*Product has been loaned to us by Ecovacs for a 100 per cent independent, honest review
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