Robot floor cleaners continue to evolve at a rapid pace. It seems like every time someone voices a complaint about a robot vacuum or mopping device, manufacturers are able to whip up a fax almost instantly. Case in point; the new Switchbot S10. This robot floor cleaner takes self filling and maintenance to a whole new level; by allowing you to connect it directly to plumbing so it can refill and empty itself without you ever pour a drop.
Switchbot S10 review: coming soon
First launched on Kickstarter October 16, this bot raised almost a million bucks of its modest 10-thousand dollar goal, so it seems it’s heading into production already. We’d like to thank Switchbot for being a sponsor of the blog, and being willing to provide a test unit to us as part of a sponsored post. While the company is paying for our time, they have not told us what we must say or what we can’t say about the robot so any opinions about the product will be our own. We will be getting hands on with this device once it’s ready so watch the space for a full in-home review.
In the meantime, here’s what we know about this radical new floor bot.
World first: Never needs filling or emptying
The Switchbot S10 bills itself the first cleaning bot capable of refilling and draining its water tanks without assistance. It does this through physical connections to your water and drainage systems; Similar to your dishwasher or washing machine, the S10’s Water Station stays connected all the time, meaning far less maintenance from you.
If you don’t have existing connections to tap into, Switchbot includes adapters you can use to connect everything. If you absolutely can’t plumb thigs in or use the adapters, Switchbot has a freestanding dock that can be filled with water, holding 2.5 litres of clean water and 2 litres of dirty water. This accessory will be included for all Kickstarter backers free of charge.
What’s in the box? Two docks
The Switchbot S10 will ship with essentially two different docks; the first, larger unit will be where it empties the dustbin and washes and dries its mopping pad with jets of warm air.
The second, smaller dock is where the mop will refill itself with clean water, and when it can empty dirty water from its tank too.
Depending on your home’s layout, figuring out where to place the Water Station might be a challenge. The Water Station is battery-powered, which means one less connection to worry about, and it can be re-charged by the S10 when it docks there.
You can connect the water station directly to kitchen or bathroom plumbing, or even your toilet connection, meaning you can hide the water refilling out of sight. The Water Station is only 100mm (3.93 inches) long and 400mm (15.75 inches) high—Photos from Switchbot show it tucking easily underneath a kitchen kickplate.
By the looks, it takes up a lot less space than most robot vacuum stations.
Vacuum Suction
The vacuum bot itself is capable of 6500Pa suction, which is on the higher side for robot vacuums these days. An onboard dustbin handles the initial collection, and then empties it into a larger sealed dust bag in the docking station as needed.
The larger dustbag on the docking station needs to be emptied about once every 70 days, depending on your vacuum frequency.
Mopping
The Switchbot S10 uses a “roller mop” which actually looks a lot like a paint roller but set underneath the robot. This roller does online allows it to sponge up water or spills, but it’s spinning action also delivers a certain amount of scrubbing. At the same time that rolling mechanism allows dirty water to be squeegeed from the roller mop and held in the onboard dirty water tank for disposal at the water station.
The Roller Mop.
The bottom of the unit contains an anti-tangle rubber vacuum brush to allow for easier cleanup from dog and human hair tangles.
The robot boosts carpet detection and will return retract the roller mop into the device slightly when moving over carpet, meaning your carpets will stay dry and clean when the unit goes across them.
Mapping and navigation
The unit makes use of LIDAR (LIght Detection And Ranging) technology to aid in its navigation, meaning you’ll have fewer issues with the unit bumping into your furniture. Additionally, AI Obstacle Avoidance is included to assist the S10 in navigating around found obstacles.
Humidifier option
Switchbot also makes a humidifier that can be filled and emptied by the S10. Since your S10 has access to clean water and can empty dirty water, it takes over the task of tending to your humidifier for you. The SwitchBot Evaporative Humidifier is part of the Kickstarter as an add-on at $129. Switchbot is also looking at adding a dehumidifier by the end of 2024.
Voice control
The SwitchBot S10 will support Matter (the system by which Google Home can communicate with devices) via OTA once Matter supports the robot vacuum category in the future.
The verdict so far
Overall this new floor cleaning robot seems to check all the boxes that other brands have left empty thus far. It promises powerful cleaning, and almost zero maintenance from you, all while seemingly keeping the overall package as streamlined as possible. We are super excited to get our hands on one of the first test models later this year, so watch this space as we put it through its paces.
Switchbot S10 is still available for backing on Kickstarter until December 15.
SwitchBot S10 launched on Kickstarter on October 16, for a super early bird price of $799 (it’ll cost $1199.99 at retail). Learn more about it or check pricing and Kickstarter backing availability here.
