At a glance
Expert’s Rating
Pros
- 5,500 Pa suction power
- Effective obstacle avoidance
- Automatic emptying of dust
Cons
- So-so mopping
- Plasticky Construction
- Has difficulty cleaning inward-facing corners
Our Verdict
With improved suction power and better obstacle detection, the Roborock Q8 Max+ takes small steps up the evolutionary ladder.
Price When Reviewed
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Best Prices Today: Roborock Q8 Max+
Together with Dreame, Roborock has been dominant in the robot vacuum category for the past couple of years. No other manufacturer comes close to the number of models Roborock has on the market, and apart from possibly Ecovacs, few robovac brands keep the same pace of product development and new features.
The successor to the popular Roborock Q7 Max+, the Q8 Max+ model is not among Roborock’s most advanced vacuums. That said, this compact model offers laser navigation and an automatic self-emptying bin for a reasonable price.
Design and setup
Tallying up its new features, the Q8 Max+ doesn’t rank as a blockbuster revamp of the Q7 Max+. Instead, it’s a solid evolution of an already good product.
Arriving with the same basic design as its predecessor, the Roborock Q8 Max+ is available in both white and black (we tested the black version). The Q8 Max+ is surprisingly compact for a self-emptying vacuum, which helps in terms of placement.
The 2.5-liter dust bag in the base station is hidden under a lid on the top of the unit, and is easily replaced with a new bag when full. Each bag is rated to hold up to seven weeks’ worth of dust.
Andreas Bergsman
Mapping and navigation
Equipped with a LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) navigation system, the Q8 Max+’s installation process is simple using the Roborock app. Once setup is completed, the robot can set out on an initial mapping run.
The resulting map will display the rooms in your home, complete with color coding for the various rooms. The Roborock app lets you manage everything related to room division, including the placement of different cleaning zones and virtual walls.
Andreas Bergsman
With its improved suction power (5,500 Pa, versus 4,200 Pa for the Q7 Max+), the Roborock Q8 Max+ picked up almost everything we fed into in its path. It missed some dirt in inward-facing corners, a challenge for most robot vacuums on the market, but other than that, the Q8 Max+ did an excellent job.
In another improvement over its predecessor, the Roborock Q8 Max+ is equipped with a light-based obstacle avoidance system (a feature borrowed from the more advanced S series). Thanks to that new functionality, the Q8 Max+ dodged obstacles with aplomb.
Handles carpets with care
The robot doesn’t have a dedicated mode for carpets, as some more advanced models do. That said, the Q8 Max+ had little trouble with carpets, handling even really thin varieties (such as Christmas tree skirts, which are usually a real challenge for robotic vacuum cleaners) surprisingly gently, without getting them tangled in the rollers.
Andreas Bergsman
The Q8 Max+’s mop function is, as with the Q7 Max+, of the simpler kind. The robot has no rotating pulleys or vibrations to rub clean; instead, you attach the mopping unit (a water tank equipped with a cloth) and the robot drags it across the floor.
This simple solution won’t be able to clean dried-in stains, but should serve as a complementary way to pick up the finest dust.
Should you buy the Roborock Q8 Max+?
To summarize, the Roborock Q8 Max+ is an incrementally improved version of its predecessor. More powerful suction capacity results in a more efficient dust pick-up and longer runtime, despite the same battery capacity (up to 240 minutes, compared to 180 minutes for the Q7 Max+).
Specifications
Best Prices Today: Roborock Q8 Max+
Author: Andreas Bergsman, Contributor, Tech Advisor
Andreas is our Swedish sister site M3’s Test Editor, and he typically covers sound, smart home and automotive. He is passionate about new technology and is always testing new headphones, speakers, cleaning robots and air purifiers… except when he’s out on the roads testing a new electric car.
Recent stories by Andreas Bergsman:
- Dreame L10s Plus review
- Miele Triflex HX2 review
- Roborock Qrevo Curv robot vacuum review
