As happy as we are for robovacs to add floor mopping to their cleaning skillsets, we also know that a soggy mop head parked in a charging dock for hours on end is a recipe for bacteria, mould, and odours. To ensure the new Roborock S8 Pro Ultra isn’t just spreading dirty water across your floors, its charging dock not only cleans its mop head but dries it too.
Last year, at CES 2022, Roborock announced its S7 MaxV Ultra robovac which included one of the most elaborate charging docks we’d ever seen. Most robovacs come with a pad that the robot will autonomously return to for a charge when the battery gets low, but the S7 MaxV Ultra’s dock also emptied the robovac’s dirt bin, refilled its mopping reservoir, and then scrubbed the robot’s cleaning pad with an automated mechanism to ensure it wasn’t covered in dirt from the previous cleaning routine when heading back out into a home.
The dock for the new Roborock S8 Pro Ultra does all of that too, but once the mopping head has been cleaned, it’s also blasted with warm air during its drying mode to help minimise mould and bacteria growth while it’s docked. I consider myself a very clean person, but even I’m not that diligent about maintaining my floor mop. I guess this is what it feels like to be finally shamed by a robot.
The Robock S8 Pro Ultra also got some upgrades of its own with the most powerful suction the company has ever introduced on a robovac and a new “dual rubber roller brush” that’s claimed to be better at picking up dirt while avoiding getting tangled up with hair. The robovac’s brush head also retracts when it’s mopping to minimise cross-contamination and to protect the robot when dealing with spills, while the opposite happens when vacuuming as the mopping head lifts high enough to not get carpets wet.
Both the Robock S8 Pro Ultra and its fancy new charging dock will be available starting in April for $US750 ($1,041).