I tested a robot vacuum with an arm, and my dog may never forgive me

I suspect my dog does not like the Roborock Saros Z70. Unlike the dozens of other robot vacuums that Gus happily lets clean around him while he sleeps, the Z70 keeps stealing his treasures. Not his dog toys — although that could be a future feature — but my family's socks that he loves to collect and carry around the house with him.
Since the Z70 arrived, he's had competition. The first robot vacuum with a mechanical arm, the Z70 features a five-axis arm, branded the OmniGrip, that uses onboard sensors and a camera to see, pick up, and tidy away a small list of light items, including the aforementioned socks, footwear such as slippers and sandals, tissues, and paper. In theory, this means I should spend less time picking up after my kids or rummaging in Gus' bed to find the socks he's stolen.
In practice, it's nowhere near achieving this goal. Yes, the arm can pick up items and put them away, which is seriously impressive. It collected my son's discarded socks and a few balls of paper, putting them where I asked it to. But the Z70's limitations are deal-breakers at this point, and its lack of consistency also lets it down.
For example, while the bot would detect footwear, it nearly always opted not to pick up any shoes, only once retrieving a slipper or sandal of its own volition. It also consistently struggled to place more than one item in the correct spot each time it cleaned.
Still, this is the first consumer robot vacuum to venture into appendage territory, and even in this beta-like stage, it's remarkable. But for an eye-watering $2,599, the Saros Z70 needs to pick up more than a few socks.
The Saros Z70 is a flagship robot vacuum that's a big step up from my current top pick floor sweeper, the Roborock S8 MaxV Ultra. With over twice the suction power, a more advanced navigation and obstacle detection system, and dual spinning mops that it can automatically remove, it's an impressive cleaner.
However, aside from the arm, it's essentially the same vacuum as the $1,599.99 Saros 10R that launched with it earlier this year — with a few modifications made to accommodate the mechanism, including a different roller brush and a smaller onboard bin and water tank. For $1,000 less, the 10R is a better bet right now.
While cleaning my house, the Saros Z70 used an AI-powered camera on the front of the robot to identify potential pickable objects, then returned to 'sort' them. This process, which was very slow, involved scrutinizing the object for a few moments, then shuffling around, pausing to unfold the arm from the body of the robot, extending it, twisting it horizontally or vertically, and using its pincer grip to grab the item.
A camera in the 'hand' sees the item and determines how to pick it up, then a grip sensor measures the weight of the object — 300 grams (0.66 pounds) is the max. Sensors along the arm also detect if anything is in the way, to stop it pinching an object or banging into something. At one point, it tried to pick up a rug tassel, realized it was too heavy, and let it go.
When it did manage to pick something up, it'd hoist the object high into the air and triumphantly carry it toward the zone I'd designated in the app. Socks or paper went into a Roborock-provided bin, with about an 80 percent success rate. The robot always dropped stuff, just not always in the bin. Sometimes just alongside it, and once or twice, when it got confused, absolutely nowhere near it.
Footwear was supposed to go to the shoe storage area, but it only managed to pick up one sandal during my testing, studiously avoiding the slippers, flip-flops, and Crocs I left strewn around. Even then, it deposited the sandal just outside the shoe storage zone.
Roborock suggested trying the manual control option in the app, which gives a live view from the camera on the arm to see if the bot could accurately identify and pick up one of the shoes it had been ignoring. This worked on the flip-flop, with the arm picking it up when directed. It just wouldn't do it autonomously. (Sidenote: The camera in the arm can be used as a roaming home security camera, providing an additional vantage point to the forward-facing one.)
The Z70 did a good job with large socks, small fabric toys that looked like socks, and paper, but it didn't like small socks. However, in most cleaning runs, it only picked up one or two items, even if there were half a dozen shoes and socks scattered around.
It also can't pick up items on carpet, so those socks my husband slipped off and hid under the coffee table while watching telly will go untidied. Speaking of tables, the arm can't reach under low furniture; if it detects anything above it within 45cm (17.7 inches), it won't deploy its arm.
All of this illustrates the technology's promise versus its current reality. The robot uses AI to identify obstacles and determine whether to avoid them (like pet poop), clean around them (like cables), or pick them up. The logs in the app revealed that its success was comparable to that of a preschooler using flashcards. On one run, it identified the black flip-flop as a cable, a piece of paper as a plastic bag, and a brown slipper as pet poop. But on the next run, it picked up the same ball of paper with no issues.
The arm is an impressive novelty, but not functional enough to be worth your money
Today, the arm is an impressive novelty, but not functional enough to be worth your money. However, the hardware feels solid, and if the software can be improved, it could be very useful.
I'm constantly picking up and relocating footwear that my family discards, and having a robot do it reliably would make my life easier, not to mention help with the Monday morning panic when we can't find my daughter's Crocs. If it could pick up larger items like clothes, deal with phone charging cables, and other common household clutter, I'd love to set it loose on my teenage kids' rooms to tidy up before cleaning.
Roborock claims to have a slew of updates in the works for the bot, beginning next month, which it says should improve reliability and expand its object repertoire, crucially to heavier items like sneakers. The bot is currently limited to 300 grams (0.66 pounds) but is capable of handling up to 700 grams (1.5 pounds), according to Roborock.
Hopefully, this will make the arm more confident when picking up footwear. Currently, it's very specific about what it will collect, largely as a safety feature. It did pick up the occasional small cat toy and stuffed animal, but mostly opted against trying to grasp an item if there was any doubt.
Speaking of safety, both Gus and my cat, Boone, tried playing with the arm, and it immediately stopped moving, so I felt confident that they were safe. The arm is also surprisingly sturdy, although I'm not sure it would hold up to 70-pound Gus if he were determined to retrieve a sock. (There is an emergency stop button for the arm should something go wrong.)
Arm issues aside, the Saros Z70 excels as a robot vacuum. Its StarSight 2.0 navigation system (a combination of solid-state lidar, 3D sensors, and cameras) navigated smoothly, dodging obstacles and ably avoiding common robot traps thanks to its ability to lift itself up 10mm and cross thresholds of up to 4cm.
It's the first robot vacuum I've tested that never once got stuck on my rug, under my sofa, or between my lounge chair's spindly legs. Its 22,000Pa suction power demolished my oatmeal and Cheerio tests, and the dual spinning mop pads efficiently dispatched small spills of milk, juice, and dried ketchup.
If you love the latest tech and are willing to pay (a lot) for potential, the Saros Z70 is a fascinating peek into the future — not to mention a fun toy (yes, you can remote control the arm). But if you're happy to pick up your own socks, Roborock's Saros 10R ($1,599.99) offers all the same floor cleaning abilities, minus the arm, for $1,000 less. (The Z70 was initially priced at $1,899.99, but Roborock recently raised it to $2,599 due to tariffs.)
Are robotic arms the future of home cleaning? Probably. With the speed of innovation in home robotics, a Rosie the Robot-like autonomous cleaning machine in our homes is starting to feel less like science fiction. Roborock may have shipped the first robot with an autonomous arm, but it won't be the last. For now, the Z70 is an impressive, if flawed, glimpse of what's to come.
Data privacy: Saros Z70
Bringing connected devices into your home also brings with it concerns about how the data they collect is protected. The Verge asks each company whose smart home products we review about safeguards it has in place for your data.
The primary home data a robot vacuum like the Roborock manages are the maps it generates and video and image data from its onboard cameras. Roborock says that all map / cleaning data is encrypted before being sent to the cloud. Additionally, it says data only leaves the device if you view the map on its smartphone app. Otherwise, it stays locally on the device.
The company says a maximum of 20 cleaning maps are stored at any one time, and any maps stored in the cloud are deleted after one year. A factory reset of the robot will remove any locally stored map information.
The remote viewing and obstacle photo features are optional, not enabled by default, must be physically enabled on device, and can be turned off in the app. Remote viewing is live-streaming only (no video is recorded or stored).
When viewing is enabled, the device collects your 'user ID, network IP address, and video information captured via the camera,' according to Roborock's Privacy Policy for Remote Viewing. This is in addition to Roborock's standard Privacy Policy.
Photos of obstacles are governed by an Obstacle Photo Privacy Policy. Roborock says they are encrypted and stored on the robot vacuum and only sent to the cloud if you click on an icon on the map to view the image on your phone. Then it's secured with Transport Layer Security. It will be deleted from the server within three working days and from your phone when you exit the app.
The robotic arm requires a camera to function. It is disabled by default and must be manually activated by the user. Once activated, it can be deactivated in the app.

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Digital Trends

04-06-2025

• Digital Trends

Roborock Saros Z70 vs Roborock Saros 10R: which robot vacuum is best?

The Roborock Saros Z70 is the latest robot vacuum from the company, offering not just impressive vacuuming and mopping skills, but also a robotic arm. This can pick up items left on your floor, allowing it to provide you with a more comprehensive clean. However, our Roborock Saros Z70 review found it to be somewhat underwhelming. Meanwhile, the older Roborock Saros 10R offers many of the same features as the Z70 — minus the wild price tag and robotic arm. So, which one makes a better robot vacuum for your home? The Roborock Saros Z70 or Roborock Saros 10R? Is the robotic arm worth the extra money, or can you save several hundred bucks by opting for the Saros 10R? Here's a closer look at these two robot vacuums to help you decide which one to buy. Recommended Videos Pricing and design The Roborock Saros Z70 carries the eye-watering price of $2,600, though it can often be found on sale for much less. Its size is fairly standard for robot vacuums, with a rectangular base and circular robot. There are a few unique accents throughout the dock and the robot, giving it a more premium appearance than most competitors. Of course, there's also the robotic arm. This is typically stowed away in a small chamber on top of the robot. Only when an object is detected will it deploy. The Saros 10R looks very similar to the Z70, though it's missing some of the accents and fancy flourishes of the Z70. It still looks fantastic, however, and much of the designs are shared across the two products. The 10R is also much more affordable at $1,600, though it's still one of the most expensive robots on the market. Winner: Roborock Saros 10R Vacuuming Vacuuming performance is quite similar between these two devices. The Saros Z70 has the better suction numbers at 22,000 Pa, but the 10R is no slouch at 20,000 Pa. Both can also swing out their side brush to reach tight corners, can automatically detach their mopping pads to ensure your carpets stay dry, and use the same Starsight Autonomous System 2.0 for navigation. In testing, both were more than capable of dealing with daily messes, and they left behind nice tidy patterns that give your home a 'just cleaned' feeling. Obstacle avoidance was excellent for both robots, and the ability to lift their chassis to cross thresholds or deal with different types of environments made them versatile companions for all sorts of carpet. Both also feature an anti-tangle system that never once needed any manual intervention, as hair and long fibers were deftly removed and suctioned away into its dustbin. In short — both are excellent vacuums. The Saros Z70 might have the upper hand when it comes to total suction, but real-world testing revealed two robots that are just about evenly matched. Winner: Tie Mopping It's a similar story for mopping. Roborock has equipped these two devices with essentially the same mopping systems. They feature two spinning mopping pads, one of which can swing outward to clean near baseboards. Both robots will lift their mops when traveling on carpet and give themselves a self-cleaning when back at the docking station. This includes a hot water rinse followed by an air dry — which goes a long way towards eliminating the mold and mildew smell found on lesser robots. Testing once again found them to be perfectly matched for daily cleaning chores. Spills and stains were easily removed by the Z70 and 10R, and their ability to leave behind their mops when vacuuming is another huge win. Winner: Tie Additional features Most additional features are shared by the Saros Z70 and Saros 10R. This includes: Intelligent dirt detection Auto detergent dispensing Auto tank refilling Auto dust emptying Auto brush lifting Adaptive route algorithm App support Voice assistant The big difference, of course, is the robotic arm of the Saros Z70. But based on our testing, it's not quite ready for the spotlight. It will almost never detect objects it can pick up when they're placed on carpet, relegating it to only being useful on hard floors. Even then, the arm has a difficult time gripping certain objects, and it takes a very long time to operate. A weight restriction of 300 grams limits what it can handle, and it's not uncommon for it to take multiple attempts to pick up and properly move an object to the designated spot in your house. It's a great first step — but like any innovative new technology, it still needs some time in the oven. Winner: Tie Verdict Despite lending a robotic arm to your home, the Roborock Saros Z70 isn't the best fit for most shoppers. Instead, consider picking up the Roborock Saros 10R. It packs in nearly all the same features — minus the arm — and it's much more affordable. Capable of providing you with a superior floor cleaning experience, it's one of the best robot vacuums on the market. Be sure to also compare the Saros 10R and Saros 10, and they're both great products but they go about mopping in entirely different ways.

Android Authority

04-06-2025

• Android Authority

Roborock's $2,600 robot vacuum with a mechanical arm is an incredible flex with a weird price tag

Roborock Saros Z70 The Roborock Saros Z70 is the company's best robot vacuum to date, but only in a vacuum (pun intended). It cleans as well as anything we've seen, navigates very well, and its object detection is second to none. But it also costs $1,000 more than the Saros 10R, which already does all of that to the same standard, and the innovative-yet-deeply-flawed OmniGrip robot arm doesn't offer anywhere near enough value to cover the huge price hike. Now that I finally have the Roborock Saros Z70 in-house for testing, I can finally say, with authority, that the first commercially available robot vacuum cleaner with a robot arm is super cool… but I don't think cool is enough. It's been several months since I first got to see the Saros Z70 on display as one of the obvious highlights of CES 2025, and it's lost none of that initial wow factor. At first, it looks like any other high-end Roborock robot vacuum, but then the top panel retracts, the robotic arm pops out, and it gets to work picking up your mess. But is that the only trick up its sleeve, and is it really worth the eye-melting $2,600 asking price? Editor's note: Roborock kindly sent over two test units, one to me, and one to my colleague Oliver Cragg. We've both been using the units in our respective homes over the past few weeks to really give this expensive bot the gruelling testing it deserves. This review contains our combined thoughts on the Saros Z70 and its innovative new tech. It's a robot vacuum… Jonathan Feist / Android Authority As much as I want to talk about it, let's get the regular functionality out of the way first. Here's the bottom line: the Roborock Saros Z70 is the best robot vacuum that Roborock has released to date* (I'll get back to that asterisk, Thunderbolts* style). As a robot vacuum and mop machine, the Saros Z70 is reliable, efficient, and does a great job cleaning hard floors, carpets, and rugs. At just 3.14-inches tall, the Saros Z70 is one of the slimmer bots around, making it ideal for cleaning under low furniture. Jonathan Feist / Android Authority That flexibility is improved by the lack of a LiDAR navigation turret that typically sticks out the top of robot vacs, as instead the Saros Z70 relies on its front and rear StarSight Autonomous System 2.0 navigation cameras for mapping, navigation, and obstacle avoidance. This system is built from RGB, 3D ToF, and infrared sensors and is backed by AI-driven object detection. This, combined with the side-mounted VertiBeam Lateral Obstacle Avoidance detection (translation: it looks up and down to avoid impacts under furniture), makes for extremely safe and reliable navigation, whether it's a rogue child's toy, a stray charging cable, or something much larger. Speaking of height, not only can the Saros Z70 lift and lower its brushes, mops, and rollers, but it can lift the entire chassis as well, allowing it to mount high thresholds easily (up to 1.57-inch), and more effectively clean specific surfaces such as thick carpets or rugs. Jonathan Feist / Android Authority For mopping, the Z70 is also equipped with dual circular mop pads, as opposed to the VibraRise single mop of the Saros 10. I prefer the dual pad models from Roborock, as they get fewer tangles and leave a nicer sheen. The FlexiArm system also means the right mop pad will kick out to the side when skirting the edges of a room, so you get a nice clean right up to the edge. This same tech powers the front brush, which flicks dirt into the path of the main vacuum rollers. The bot can also detach the mop heads and leave them in the base station when it knows it's going on a vacuum-only mission. During those excursions, it benefits from up to 22,000Pa of suction pressure; more than enough to collect nearly any dry debris from your deepest carpets. Jonathan Feist / Android Authority And before we get to the main event, a shoutout to the Multifunctional Dock 4.0. You know, the base station. Equipped with large water canisters, an automatically dispensing detergent canister (cleaning solution not supplied, but I recommend getting it as it eliminates streaky floors), and a large vacuum bag, the base station houses, cleans, and charges the Saros Z70. It includes heated mop washing up to an impressive 80 degrees Celsius, heated air drying, and it holds the mop heads when they have been removed for vacuum-only runs. As I said, this is the best robot vacuum cleaner Roborock has ever made, which means it's already a strong contender for the best robot vacuum cleaner you can buy. But here's the catch: it's identical to the Roborock Saros 10R. This is the best robot vacuum cleaner Roborock has ever made, but that claim comes with a huge caveat. Everything I've said and praised about this bot, and everything I said in my top marks Saros 10R review, applies here (the Z70 reportedly has slightly smaller onboard dirt and water storage, but I didn't notice much difference). But that robot vac is $1,599.99, at the time of writing, subject to tariff issues. Meanwhile, the Saros Z70 is a whole $1,000 more expensive, and for that spare change, you could buy a very good second robot vacuum cleaner, a new flagship phone, or a base model MacBook Air M4. So, let's talk about the one thing that is different… …with a robotic arm! Jonathan Feist / Android Authority While we've started to see concept bots with mechanical appendages appear in its wake, Roborock's Saros Z70 is the first robot vacuum to hit the US market that packs a robotic arm. Let's go over how it works first. For the unfamiliar, the fancily named OmniGrip is a 5-axis mechanical arm that can grasp a selected number of small items. There are two tilting joints on the arm, similar to a tractor arm. This allows the arm to extend and bend to nearly any angle and position. The entire arm can spin, but generally operates facing straight ahead. Next, the head of the arm has two symmetrical pincers, this is the clamp for items. Finally, the head can rotate, allowing you to clamp things from multiple angles to get the best grasp. Roborock's Saros Z70 is the first robot vacuum to hit the US market that packs a robotic arm. Object recognition and pickup can be handled autonomously by the bot itself via its front-facing camera and a small camera underneath the arm's pincers, but you can also manually drive the bot and control the arm with touchscreen controls in the Roborock app. You can even view the robot's surroundings remotely through these cameras as a kind of roaming, articulating smart home security camera, if you so desire. Regardless of how you use it, the arm rests inside the Saros Z70's main body when not in use and is covered by a retracting flap. Roborock has also thought through safety measures, as there's an emergency stop button on the top of the robot, a child lock function, and you can fully disable the entire arm in the app. Jonathan Feist / Android Authority Picking up items would be useless on its own; where they are placed back down is what matters. As part of the robot arm strategy, the app now reports detected objects in your space and will highlight them on the in-app map. The app also lets you specify two zones: one for footwear storage and a container for other loose objects. Using AI and its cameras, the bot can detect items such as socks, cloths, paper balls, and some footwear, and categorize them as either clothing or trash. Roborock includes a trash bin accessory that uses a QR code identification, and can be the drop spot for discarded items, or you can set your own. So in theory, with this setup all arranged, the robot can perform a number of functions in combination with the arm: Follow-up cleaning — The robot will move items it recognizes autonomously and lift them to clean underneath. Automatic sorting — The robot will autonomously move footwear to the storage zone and deposit trash/other lighter items into the container. Manual sorting — The Roborock app will show the location of recognized objects, at which point you can manually tell the robot to go pick them up as above. Remote control — You can manually control the arm to pick up items. The inclusion of the robotic arm is undeniably cool, and it'll absolutely wow anyone you show it to. As the robot vacuum industry produced better and better obstacle avoidance, less and less of our floors were being cleaned, so a method of moving those objects was the next logical step. But that's the real question: does the OmniGrip arm help the Saros Z70 actually do what it's supposed to do — clean your floors — to the tune of a $1,000 price hike? The short answer is no, and there are a few big reasons why, some of which are fundamental, likely unsolvable issues, and others that are entirely the fault of this being a first-generation product. Jonathan Feist / Android Authority One big limitation is the weight of objects that the Saros Z70 can lift, as it caps at a maximum of 300g. This is absolutely fine for light items like socks and paper, but shoes — one of the main obstacles of any household — are extremely hit-and-miss. In fairness to Roborock, it only emphasizes sandals, which typically do weigh under the limit, but that puts a low bar on what the bot can pick up. In my testing, the robot arm was actually able to lift a shoe that weighed more than 300g. Because of the weight, however, the bot chose to drive very slowly, would not navigate a threshold, and eventually put the shoe back on the floor, unable to do much else with it. However, despite being officially supported, sandals are the same story, so this isn't a weight issue. I've only ever seen the bot pick up the same sandal, do a circle, and put it back down — not once has it taken a sandal or any other footwear to the designated drop-off location. It's the same story for non-footwear. I've seen the arm move objects temporarily to clean the floor, but I've never actually seen the bot move a piece of crumpled paper or a sock into the companion container on its own. I've seen it get very close a few times, but it'll always end up putting the item beside the box, not in it. Cleaning the floor is my top priority, so at least I'm getting a better clean, but tidying is a complete non-starter. Jonathan Feist / Android Authority Another minor issue is that the bot stores objects' location for future cleaning, rather than doing it on its usual cleaning run. I want the bot to immediately identify objects and move them out of the way immediately, not on a future run. I've successfully forced the Saros Z70 to clear a number of objects, but a lot of these instances were because I put obstacles in the way for testing purposes, rather than it genuinely helping to tidy my space on its own. I have limited space; I can't afford to leave junk on the floor while I wait for it to do its job properly. Roborock has promised that further updates are due to improve performance for the OminGrip, and that further objects will be added to the recognition system. Hopefully, the lack of polish that inevitably comes with any first-gen tech will be resolved in time, but that's nowhere near guaranteed, and you shouldn't buy a product now based on a promise that it'll be better in the future, especially not at this price. Roborock Saros Z70 review verdict: Is it worth $2,700? Jonathan Feist / Android Authority So about that asterisk. The Saros Z70 is a fantastic robot vacuum and Roborock's best to date *however, the only difference between it and the $1,000 cheaper Saros 10R is the robotic arm that, well… doesn't really work right now. Since I first set the Saros Z70 loose in my home, it has undergone many firmware updates, and has already vastly improved its capabilities, but it still can't do most of the tasks Roborock says it can do. I know it can do a lot more, and I'm hopeful it will with future software updates, but as it operates today, it is too rich for my wallet, and I imagine that'll be the case for the vast majority of buyers. The Roborock Saros Z70 has the best party trick of any robot vacuum, but its innovative robot arm isn't worth the price of admission until it improves. The Roborock Saros Z70 is fun, has been a literal party trick I've enjoyed showing guests, and I'll give praise to Roborock for both being first and attempting something innovative in public rather than behind closed R&D doors. But that doesn't mean you should buy it unless you've got money to burn and don't mind being a guinea pig for early adopter tech. Roborock Saros Z70 Robotic arm! • Next-gen navigation • AI-powered object detection • Big battery MSRP: $2,599.00 It'll tidy your space before cleaning it Equipped with a robotic arm, the Roborock Saros Z70 is a next-gen robot vacuum with AI-powered navigation and obstacle avoidance, much larger battery, and the ability to put toys in the toy box, socks in the hamper, and trash in the bin. See price at Amazon Positives Impressive navigation Impressive navigation Robust object detection Robust object detection Cleans really well Cleans really well Innovative robotic arm Cons Huge limitations on robot arm functionality Huge limitations on robot arm functionality Massive price tag

Business Insider

28-05-2025

• Business Insider

The Roborock vacuum robot with a mechanical arm is super cool. I'm certain it's the future, just not yet

The Roborock Saros Z70 robot vacuum and mop expands the cleaning prowess of the best robot vacuums with the addition of a robotic arm alongside its arsenal of sensors and brushes. The idea is that it'll pick up objects in its way and go the extra mile to fully tidy up by actually moving items around. Once you see it in action, the articulating arm is instantly intriguing. It's a potential huge leap forward for robot assistants. After an editor got an early press preview of the Roborock Z70, I spent several weeks with the Z70, putting it through dedicated tests, as well as just letting it perform daily scheduled cleanings. I'm hopeful that its functionality will increase over time, but at the moment, it's strictly a novelty. The exciting potential remains, but the reality is much duller. The robot has a very limited list of items it's allowed to lift and move, including pieces of paper and light slippers. Even within that scope, it didn't always accomplish its tasks. The Z70 is a top-notch vacuum and mop, but its arm is just an added expense that probably won't be helpful to many people just yet. A machine loaded with features and specs The Saros Z70 is wholly feature-complete. Between the adaptive AI cleaning schedules and the video calls you can use the robot for as it does a patrol of the house, it's hard not to be overwhelmed by it. Of course, the elephant in the room is its OmniGrip mechanical arm, which even has an embedded camera and is capable of lifting up to 300 grams. That's 0.66 pounds, or the equivalent of an iPad mini (with cellular). The arm will emerge on its own while vacuuming or mopping, but it can also be activated manually while in its remote control mode if you want to play around with it. The Roborock Z70 retails for $2,599 and is at the tip top of the price spectrum for this category of products. Even without the OmniGrip arm, however, it would still be a high-end product because of all the other tech loaded up inside. It features up to a tremendous 22,000 Pa of suction, a multi-function dock with hot water mop cleaning, an extending brush and pad, and class-leading mapping and navigation sensors. It packs a lot into its compact, 3.14-inch tall frame. So, in addition to knowing where it should and shouldn't go, it can actually fit under more couches and between more chair legs. The unit has a rated 180-minute run time on its quiet mode. In my testing, I got more than 115 minutes with the higher power balanced mode. Observing the battery in real-world use, the battery estimate seems highly accurate. Extrapolating my usage out, the Z70 was averaging about 170 minutes in the higher setting. For times of extended demand, the dock will fast-charge the robot in an advertised 2.5 hours. Mapping and navigation are stellar, helping it avoid bumping into most household items Despite a functional robot arm tucked away into its top, the unit remains compact and nimble. Part of the Z70's ability to scoot through tight spaces like between furniture is its StarSight Autonomous System 2.0. It has forward-facing detection, along with VertiBeam for lateral object avoidance to the side and above. These sensors and cameras help it see 3D depth information and identify more objects, so it knows how to move around household items delicately. On its first mapping, the Z70 instantly created an accurate map of my downstairs rooms. Like other Roborock models, it correctly identified room dividers and even noted things like a table and living room seating. Over the last several years, I've been highly impressed with the cleaning paths Roborock robots take and their general ground coverage. The Z70 is no different in this regard. But from my constant oversight, this year's tech does seem to be at the top of its game. It's highly thorough while remaining efficient. The Roborock app has even added Routines to try to allow you more flexibility in how you clean. One of the recommended options is to clean after a meal. This Routine cleans the kitchen and dining room after the time you set for dinner. Here's what you want to know about a vacuum that has an arm Far and away, the most interesting thing about the Roborock Saros Z70 is its OmniGrip mechanical arm. It can move certain objects out of the way or move them to designated areas. That's the promise, but the reality is much more limited than it initially appears. First, you have to explicitly activate the OmniGrip in the app to turn it on. It won't work by default until you take the step to acknowledge its presence. Secondly, at launch, it's only authorized to pick up tissues, sandals/slippers, and socks — but only certain types of each. So what's the point? Roborock is optimistic that this will help tidy up socks that get left close to closets or tissues that don't quite make it to a trash can. I'm more skeptical. Even if the mechanical arm does gain the ability to pick up new objects in the future via a software up, it ultimately has a physical weight capacity that it can't exceed. It can't go around lifting anything it wants to, including heavy footwear like boots. Plus, there will likely always be some objects like scissors that remain off-limits for safety reasons. Additionally, in regards to safety, there is an emergency shutoff button on the vacuum to stop the arm, and the grip does have a pinch sensor. In terms of the OmniGrip's actual performance, it hasn't been great in my testing. Maybe unsurprisingly, I've needed to manufacture a lot of the testing scenarios because the items it will handle are so limited. I wouldn't have seen it work much, if at all, if I didn't artificially start dropping balls of tissues on the floor. Even when ideal-sized and shaped balls of paper towels were left on the floor in central locations, the results were mixed. Sometimes the robot would pick up one of the tissues and put it in its designated bin, while ignoring the others. I used paper towels, brown packing paper, and bathroom tissue to see if it would identify each of them. Usually, it would take care of one but not the others, with seemingly no logic to which one it handled. The paper towels I left lying flat didn't get any acknowledgment. I also resorted to placing Crocs in the middle of the room, while the Z70 ran its nightly schedule. Doing that usually resulted in one of the clogs being moved to the designated shoe spot while the other one remained untouched. Sometimes the robot would move the sandals out of its way to finish cleaning the area it was assigned to, but then just leave them in a different, inconvenient spot. It's hard not to be disappointed by the results of the OmniGrip mechanical arm. When it works like you assume it will, it's magical. It's easy to see how this functionality will be improved and could spread to be prominent in two to three years. But it's not there yet. It's too limited in nearly every way to be anything but a fun distraction. The Saros Z70 cleaning performance didn't disappoint If you're willing to pay the OmniGrip arm tax, you'll still get a good vacuum and mop. Its side brush and extending mop pad help it pick up crumbs and dirt around chair legs and scrub right up against baseboards. I tested the Z70 on hardwood floors using coffee grounds, flour, and crushed up cereal to see how it vacuumed and mopped up the messes. Using the vacuum and mop on its highest suction level with two passes, it got around 90% of the flour, 90% of the coffee grounds, and 98% of the cereal in a spot, zone cleaning. These results are in line with other high-end robot cleaners. Using the vacuum on carpet with the same simulated spilled food items, the Z70 got an estimated 87% of the flour, 89% of the coffee grounds, and 100% of the crushed up cereal. Again, its results in this area are in line with other premium robots. To see how well the Z70 could get into tough-to-reach areas, I taped off a corner of my room with hardwood floors and sprinkled some flour in the square. The vacuum picked up nearly all of the visible mess. Its corner results were quite remarkable, especially compared to other robots. All of these tests confirmed my general observations of the daily scheduled cleanings I had it doing. It's really good, though not perfect. There were still the occasional crumbs left under the cabinet toe-kicks in the kitchen, but all around the kitchen table, around chair legs, and up against baseboards were free from debris after it finished. The anti-tangle system, a combination of the side and roller brushes, worked well enough that I only saw a few strands of hair from time to time. There was never a collection of hair wrapped up that needed to be cut off. Nearly all of the hair found its way into the dustbin. I don't have a high threshold in my home that I need robot vacuums to cross. However, I do have a mid-to-high pile rug that a lot of vacuums have had a hard time traversing. Thanks to the AdaptiveLift chassis, the Z70 can roll over a threshold as tall as 1.57 inches, which, in my case, made it much easier for the bot to climb onto the carpeted rug and vacuum it without getting stuck. Although the unit can raise itself high off the ground, the Z70 can also detach its mopping pads and leave them behind in the charging dock when doing vacuum-only jobs. This means it won't drag wet pads across the carpet. This isn't a unique feature to Roborock, but one of my favorites that I've come to look for from any premium cleaner. The Z70 isn't the only new vacuum and mop that Roborock released in 2025. It also released the Saros 10R and 10. Putting the 10R through its paces revealed it has a similar performance. It also employs a sleek exterior with a low profile for nimble navigation, along with a FlexiArm side brush and an extending mop pad. Its suction is powerful, and its scrubbing is thorough. The 10 and 10R, varying in minor ways, aren't as flashy as the Z70, but nearly as capable. The bottom line The Roborock Saros Z70 is a great vacuum and mop but not because it has a robotic arm. It performs well at cleaning floors despite its headline feature. The functionality of its arm is just too limited to make it a useful part of the cleaning experience. If the cost doesn't deter you, it's a fine choice with a wow factor that will intrigue anyone who comes across it. But most people in search of a high-powered, premium robot vacuum and mop will find a better value with the Saros 10R.