New Ecovacs Robot Vac Lifts Mop Higher Than Roborock, Lower Than iRobot

pcmag.com:

Watch out, Roborock and iRobot. Ecovacs just introduced a new 2-in-1 floor-cleaning robot capable of lifting its mop when it detects carpet. 

The $1,099 Deebot T20 Omni, slated to go on sale June 13, is Ecovacs' first robotic floor cleaner with mop-lifting technology, meant to enable more efficient cleaning runs and prevent carpet-wetting. When the T20 Omni detects carpet, the robot will automatically lift its mop 9mm off the floor and continue vacuuming.

Many high-end robot vacuum and mop hybrids, including the PCMag Editors' Choice-winning Ecovacs Deebot X1 Omni, automatically avoid carpet when mopping, so you must vacuum your carpets in a separate cleaning run. The T20 Omni's new mop-lifting feature is designed to allow the robot to simultaneously vacuum everywhere and mop your hard flooring in a single run, without dragging wet, dirty cloth all over your carpeting. 

Competitors Roborock and iRobot already offer similar mop-lifting technology. Roborock first brought this innovation to market in 2021 with the VibraRise mopping system on its S7 series hybrid, which automatically lifts its mopping plate 5mm when it detects carpeting. Check out Roborock's mop-lifting feature on the newer S8 Pro Ultra in the video below.

A common critique about Roborock's VibraRise system is that it only really works on low-pile carpet and may still wet your medium- and high-pile rugs. iRobot's Roomba Combo j7+, introduced in the fall of 2022, solves this problem with a fully retractable mop. When the Combo j7+ detects carpet during double-duty cleaning runs, it automatically lifts the mopping plate to the top of the robot, where it has no risk of coming into contact with your carpets. Check out iRobot's retractable mop on the Roomba