Xiaomi X20 Pro review

Xiaomi X20 Pro: Introduction

It doesn’t seem that long ago that budget vacuum cleaners were dumb devices that would bounce around, randomly cleaning as they went.

Today, the Xiaomi X20 Pro may have a low-end price, but it’s a fully featured robot vacuum cleaner, equipped with proper navigation, a self-emptying and self-cleaning station, and deep mopping capabilities.

Sure, it misses out on the high-power suction and obstacle avoidance features that the flagship cleaners have, such as the Roborock Saros 10, but at this price, it’s a bargain.

Design and components

It’s hard to state just what a bargain the Xiaomi X20 Pro is.

The Roborock Q5 Pro is a quality vacuum cleaner, but for just a little more cash, you can get the X20 Pro, which immediately shows how different it is by shipping with a self-empty, self-clean docking station.

This is the kind of station that I’d typically expect to see on much more expensive models, so it’s a revalation at this price.

This docking station has a 4-litre clean water tank and a 3.8-litre dirty water tank, which roughly means that for each clean tank refill I had to empty the dirty tank.

This docking station doesn’t take detergent, and only more expensive models, such as the Dreame X50 Ultra Complete have this.

Dirt is sucked out of the robot and into the 2-litre self-sealing dust bag. Xiaomi says that this can hold up to 75 days’ worth of dirt.

While the docking station is impressive, the main robot doesn’t hold back either, with proper LiDAR navigation via the dome on the front. This helps the Xiaomi X20 Pro navigate and map fast.

This robot lacks a camera, so it can’t spot and avoid common obstacles, such as shoes or cables. You’ll need to do a bit of tidying up before setting this robot out about its business, but that’s not too much of a hardship.

Inside the robot is a standard bin, which takes the washable filter. That’s worth washing out once a month to maintain the highest levels of suction power.

Underneath, there’s a standard layout, with a single brush roll, a non-moving side brush.

Neither are anti-tangle models, and they did get hair wrapped around them when I used them, so you’ll need to keep an eye on the situation and use the provided tool to cut away tangled hair.

Dual microfibre mopping pads are present, and these can lift up to 10mm off the ground, allowing the robot to navigate over most short-pile carpet.

If you have deep-pile carpet, you’ll want a robot that can drop its mopping cloths off, such as the Dreame X50 Ultra Complete or the Robrock Saros 10R and Saros 10.

The app

You control the Xiaomi X20 Pro through Xiaomi Mi home, which is home to all of the company’s smart products.

It’s also the app that was used for the initial Roborock products, so it’s been home to robot cleaners for a long time.

As with other cleaners, once the Xiaomi X20 Pro is connected to Wi-Fi, the app gets you to perform a quick mapping run.

Thanks to LiDAR, this job is fast, and the app suggests room layouts. It was a touch wrong for my map, but the controls made it easy to split and merge rooms to match the layout of my home.

Unusually at this price, I could also add furniture to the layout. It’s worth doing, particularly for things like dining tables, as furniture can be selected as a quick zone, say for cleaning up after eating.

No-go and no-mop zones are available to stop the Xiaomi X20 Pro from going to areas you don’t want it to, or to block of an area that might cause it trouble.

Cleaning options include selecting the entire home, a room (or rooms), or zones that you either draw or create by tapping furniture.

There’s then a choice to vacuum only, vacuum and mop, vacuum before mopping or mop only.

There aren’t any automatic cleaning modes, and the Xiaomi X20 Pro offers four manual vacuum power modes (silent, standard, strong and turbo), three water levels for mopping and three routing paths (quick, standard and deep).

There’s not much in the way of advanced settings, with the main option automatic carpet recognition, with an automatic power boost for soft flooring.

Performance

The Xiaomi X20 Pro’s vacuum is rated at 5000Pa, which is about half that of more expensive mid-range cleaners, such as the Roborock Qrevo Slim.

Performance, as you’d expect, is a little mixed.

On carpet, the general mess is fine, but the Xiaomi X20 Pro does struggle with deeper spills and can’t clean right into the fibres. Performance on hard floors is significantly better, as it’s a more manageable task, and even edge cleaning is effective.

Mopping performance is excellent for the price: standard floor stains are wiped out, but the mopping system does struggle with sticky messes, such as ketchup.

To remove these kinds of stains, you need a robot that uses hot water and detergent.

Battery life is quoted at 180 minutes on the lowest setting. This translates into not having to worry about battery life. I easily cleaned my entire floor with two passes, and there was power left for spot jobs.

Final thoughts

A summary of all the above, combined with the verdict but more succinct. Also reiterate why it is better or worse than alternatives.

How we test

When we publish our reviews, you can rest assured that they are the result of “living with” long term tests.

Robot cleaners usually live within an ecosystem, or a range of products that – supposedly – all work in harmony. And they are designed to offer a range of different cleaning options. Therefore, it’s impossible to use a robo cleaner for a week and deliver a verdict.

Because we’re testing smart home kit all day, everyday, we know what matters and how a particular smart cleaning machine compares to alternatives that you might also be considering.

Our reviews are comprehensive, objective and fair and, of course, we are never paid directly to review a device.

Read our guide on how we test robot vacuum cleaners to learn more.