A detailed review of Roborock E4 robot vacuum cleaner 2022.
Review Roborock E4 is an upgraded budget cheap version of the robot vacuum cleaner, which is able to perform dry and wet cleaning of premises faster than its predecessors from the Xiaowa E2 and E3 series by 10% according to the manufacturer.
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In the review, we will figure out in detail whether the device is worth the money spent, and most importantly, in which apartment the robot can be as useful as possible.
There is no lidar in this model, which allowed for a lower cost compared to the S-series. The average cost of a robotic vacuum cleaner at the end of summer 2020 is 350$. I want to note right away that a fully English version is already being sold in US, with a English voice package and accompanying documentation.
For navigation, the robot is equipped with a dual gyroscope and an OpticEye movement tracking system. For high-quality and long-term cleaning, it is equipped with a powerful motor, a capacious lithium-ion battery and a turbo brush. The device is controlled by remote control via the application via a wi-fi network.
I’ll start by unpacking and reviewing the package contents
The kit includes:
- Robot vacuum cleaner.
- Silicone backing (to protect the floor from moisture).
- Dock station.
- Power cable (with Euro plug).
- Spare injectors.
- Water tank with fiber cloth.
- Instruction (in several languages, there is English in the global version)
The package bundle is not rich. And as you may have noticed, the remote control does not come with the kit, instead it is controlled from the app or buttons on the top of the case.
A little about the appearance of the robot
The design is made in a simple minimalistic style. The round case is made of matte black plastic; fingerprints practically do not remain on the case. One of the best build quality robots in the budget segment that I have tested.
Case dimensions: diameter 350 mm and height 90.5 mm. An IR sensor has been added to the already not small stature, which makes the robot taller and complicates the passage under low furniture.
There are two control buttons on the front panel: play (on / off or start / pause), home (return to the docking station). Above the control panel is the sensor for detecting the charging base.
In the middle there is a glossy black strip with the Roborock logo separating the control panel and the flip cover below.
Under the cover there is a dust collector and a network connection indicator (when the indicator is blue, the robot is connected to the network, if the connection is lost, or the network is searched for).
The volume of the trash can is 640 ml, it is enough for 2–3 cleaning (of course, it all depends on how dirty the apartment is). There are special holes for the fingers to remove, by pressing the button, it is easy to get out.
The container is one-piece, there is no lid in it, as in the xiaowa C10, E20 and E35 models. To empty out the garbage, you need to get the hepa filter and shake out the contents. The Hepa filter can be washed, which increases the period of its operation.
A mechanical bumper is installed at the front for protection and shock absorption in a collision. Here, behind the tinted glass, an obstacle distance sensor is hidden.
The rear has perforated airflow vents and speakers, the sound is loud and adjustable in the app.
We turn the robot vacuum cleaner over to see what is located below:
- 5-ray side brush made of silicone, more wear-resistant and better picks up debris along walls and corners, the same side brush is found on the most expensive model in the Roborock S6 MaxV range;
- 4 height difference sensors;
- optical sensor OpticEye, which I will talk about later;
- two drive wheels with independent suspension and a ground clearance of 2 cm;
- swivel roller;
- contacts for charging;
- bristly-petal turbo brush. It cannot be disassembled, but it is equipped with a protection against hair wrap. The brush is covered with a bounding frame, which can be easily removed if necessary.
And also a reservoir for liquid with a fixed microfiber cloth is attached from below. The reservoir is designed for 180 ml, water is poured through an opening with a sealed valve. Water enters the napkin through nozzles, for wetting there are two modes that are switched mechanically on the tank itself, as in the S6 and S6 Pure models.
Navigation
In addition to obstacle and altitude sensors, the Roborock E4 integrates the new OpticEye navigation system technology, which has not previously been seen in Roborock robots. It is a budget alternative to lidar. The system consists of laser and LED beams that track the movement of the robot and provide an analysis of the distance traveled. OpticEye, working in conjunction with a double gyroscope, helps the robot think over the route of movement, remember where it was cleaned, and where it still has to be cleaned.
Let’s move on to the technical specifications
I have highlighted the main ones for studying, pause.
Name — -Roborock e4
Battery capacity — 5200 (mAh)
Working hours- 150–200 (min)
Charging time – 240 (min)
Rated power- 58 (W)
Suction power- 2000 (Pa)
Cleaning area – 200 (sq. M)
Noise level- 45–60 (dB)
Trash can — 640 (ml)
Water tank capacity — 180 (ml)
Overcomes thresholds high — 20 (mm)
Recharge and resume cleaning — there is
Telephone control — Yes, Mi Home app
Dimensions — 350x350x9.05 (mm)
Weight- 2.96 (kg)
The design and dimensions of the docking station have not changed, everything is the same as in the xiaowa series models. Base dimensions: width 130 mm, height 98 mm. Due to its small size, the robot can move it when parking, even the rubberized pads on the bottom do not save. Therefore, I advise you to install it against the wall, or even better, add a couple of strips of double-sided tape so that it sits dead.
After installing the docking station, we put the robot on charge and connect it to the network.
Install the Mi Home application after downloading it from the App Store or Google Play.
Select “My device” in the Mi Home app and click “+” in the upper right corner to add a device.
Open the top cover to check the status of the WIFI indicator, next to the reset button. Press and hold the local cleaning and return to base buttons until you hear the voice prompt (Restart WIFI). The reset is complete, when the WIFI indicator starts flashing slowly, the vacuum cleaner enters the connection standby state.
Opening the application on a smartphone, at the top of the display is displayed: the cleaning area, battery charge and the time spent on cleaning.
The application duplicates buttons on the control panel and provides access to additional functions:
- Forcing the robot to the charging base.
- Start cleaning in automatic mode.
- Suction power adjustment (4 levels are available in total, the maximum indicator is 2000 Pa).
- In the settings you can enable: carpet mode — automatic power increase on carpets; gentle mode — in which the robot does not vacuum, but performs only wet cleaning; do not disturb mode — in this mode, the robot does not perform the scheduled cleaning and does not speak voice notifications.
- Set the Timer (with programming of time, day of the week and a certain power).
- Additional settings allow you to select: the language of the voice notification and adjust the volume; control the robot with buttons manually, set local cleaning, view the cleaning history and the status of consumables.
The robot does not display a map of the room in real time, which I personally really miss, it can be viewed in the “cleaning history” only when the vacuum cleaner is finished.
It seems that the robot has navigation, it is able to plan and track the route, but so far the map remains inaccessible for viewing. I hope the developers will correct this nuance, and soon it will be possible to track the robot’s actions via a smartphone. In addition, on the official website, the company declares that the functions are available to the user.
Moving on to the tests
I made 4 tests in the pen and 3 doughs in a 19 sq. m with a hard surface (laminate). I will describe only two tests for the rest, see the video posted at the end of the article.
First test, dry cleaning. Before launching, I scattered sand, rice, buckwheat and oatmeal. I did not measure the quantity. It took E4 about 32 minutes to clean the entire room. The robot began to vacuum by moving around the room with a snake and completed with passages along the perimeter. At the same time, he carefully tried to clean the carpet, automatically increasing the power when driving on it. The downside is that no robot goes around the carpets around the perimeter. Therefore, there is some debris along the carpet. But there was no rubbish left around the coffee table and desk.
I am satisfied with the quality of cleaning. Of course, he could not collect all the rubbish I scattered, but very little remained. A couple of grains on the carpet, along the carpet and a little in the corners of the room, where the robot cannot enter due to its round structure.
I’ll show you what he collected. It can be seen how much dust he found, although I recently cleaned up. And also notice how clogged the hepa filter is, this is what I was talking about at the beginning, a mesh filter is needed to trap small particles. Without it, the hepa becomes heavily clogged.
The second test was performed in the same room with wet and dry cleaning together.
This time, I installed a tank with a microfiber cloth, filled up 180 ml of water and started the assistant. Before fixing the napkin, I wet it so that the water passes through the nozzles better. Despite the fact that there are two modes to regulate the wetting, which are switched mechanically, the humidification is still slow, as there is no electric pump, as, for example, in Viomi robots.
Considering that there was much less garbage than in the first test, and I removed the carpet, the robot coped with cleaning in 20 minutes. E4 moves around the room in the same way, first with a snake and completes the work around the perimeter. After washing the floors, I finally got a feeling of cleanliness and freshness.
Concluding the review , I want to highlight several advantages and disadvantages.
I attributed to the advantages:
- Good cleaning performance, both dry and wet.
- Redesigned silicone side brush.
- Able to deep clean low to medium pile carpets.
- Remote control from the phone.
- Automatic power increase on carpets.
- High suction power 2000 Pa.
- Volumetric dust collector 640 ml.
- Capacious 5200 mAh Li-Ion battery.
I attributed to the disadvantages:
- Lack of strainer.
- Modest equipment.
- No advanced lidar based navigation.
- Does not build a real-time room map.
- The functionality of the application does not allow the setting of restricted areas.
- Mechanical adjustment of the level of water supply to the napkin.
Summarize
Roborock E4, worth 350$, showed a good cleaning result both in a one-room apartment and in a three-room apartment. I believe that a robot vacuum cleaner is not entirely suitable for a large apartment, since navigation is weak, there is no lidar. For a large area, it is worth considering more expensive models (S series), but if the apartment is not crammed with furniture, he will be able to perform the tasks assigned to him, besides, the battery charge is enough for 200 square meters. m.
Ideal conditions for a robot are medium-sized apartments with a minimum amount of furniture, with adjacent surfaces: linoleum, tiles, tiles or medium-pile carpets. In such an environment, the assistant will be able to express himself to the maximum.
