I’ve bought the Ecovacs Winbot X a wireless window cleaning robot, put it through many real cleaning tasks and here are my thoughts.
First, I wouldn’t even call this a window cleaning robot as it is more of a window polishing robot.
To date, none of the units I’ve tested did an amazing job, including the Ecovacs Winbot X.
Before we jump into specifics, be aware, that what is written officially on their site and what you get might slightly differ. They even have a disclaimer on their site stating:
“Features and specifications are subject to change without prior notification. Product testing is performed under standard lab conditions. Actual performance may vary.”
I am saying this because, the robot I got is slightly different than the one they have on the website. I’ve got WA50 model, not sure which model is on their site as I was unable to find that info.
The Review
Winbot X is a cordless window cleaning robot that runs on an onboard battery. It can work for up to 50 minutes and then you will need approximately 2.5 hours to fully recharge it.
In my own tests, with a full battery, I was able to cover around 176 ft2 (16.35 m2). Which translates to 10.8 ft2 (1 m2) in about 3 minutes. That coverage may vary a bit depending on your individual windows’ sizes and shapes.
This robot is a basic square shape. Its dimensions are 9.7 in. x 9.7 in. x 4.3 in. (24.5 cm x 24.5 cm x 10.9 cm) and the design works best to clean rectangular windows, mirrors or similar surfaces.
Note, cleaning surface cannot be smaller than 17.7 in. x 17.7 in. (45 cm x 45 cm) to be able to use this robot.
Safety Features
Ecovacs Winbot X comes with a nice battery-operated suction cup, called a safety pod, to provide a separate attachment point and safety tether.
The pod is attached to the surface and is tethered to the robot. The safety pod can then prevent accidental falls to the ground if the robot loses its suction.
The length of the tether is 8.53 ft. (260cm).
I did a test, making sure the robot lost suction, and the safety pod kept it securely attached.
So, it definitely works.
I like this safety design. You can always attach it to the same surface you’re trying to clean or a surface near it, so you will always have a place to attach it to.
Robot suction proved to be pretty good in my trials.
But be aware if you’re trying to clean glass walls or something similar that has cracks. The robot doesn’t get enough suction once over the crack and it will fall of the wall (suction cup will stop your robot from falling).
Cleaning Modes
Winbot X (WA50 model) has 3 different cleaning modes:
- Auto,
- Deep, and
- Spot Cleaning.
The simplest option is the auto choice. You push a button on the robot, or the remote control, and the robot will clean the window by doing a single pass.
Then there is the deep cleaning mode, which means the robot does two passes. This mode can be turned on only via the remote control.
The last option you have is spot cleaning. You must operate the robot with the remote control to use this feature. When you want the robot to go over a spot multiple times, you press the appropriate navigation buttons to manually make the Winbot X do this.
The Performance
I used this robot in my own house, to clean real windows. Based on those experiences, here are my thoughts.
The robot always takes the same cleaning path, which is horizontally. Not sure why it is like that, because on their site they claim it automatically chooses the smartest path
Even if you use the deep cleaning mode, the 2nd pass still runs horizontally. Even though they claim that it does double pass with both cleaning patterns (horizontal and vertical).
This means it doesn’t clean vertical edges well. I would prefer it go horizontally initially, and the 2nd time vertically. The perpendicular passes would help improve the cleaning results.
It can only clean light stains like fingerprints, dust, wet spots, etc. If there are tougher stains, like dry rain spots, then it will most likely leave them. At least it did for me.
The robot fails to reach the very end of each corner. But the missed spot is pretty small, so I wouldn’t stress over it.
Depending on what you are trying to clean and how dirty the glass is, the Winbot X will likely struggle to clean the window crystal clear. It almost never resulted in spotless glass for me.
The Problems I Ran Into
- When you apply too much cleaning solution to the cleaning pad, the robot will notify you that it is slipping. So, you must remove it and stick it onto the window again.
- Very rarely the robot stops mid cleaning and does not provide any kind of warning or notification. I have no idea why that happens, but it is rare. In this case I just restarted the robot.
- Voice alerts are very hard to hear.
Final Thoughts
For one, this robot is not good for me due to a short battery life and many windows at my home.
But at the same time, I wouldn’t buy it, because it is not a window cleaner, it can barely clean. Robot could take care of fresh dust or some light touch stains from my windows, but that is mostly all.
Definitely not worth the price for the job it does.
In addition, there are plenty of bad reviews online and I mostly agree to them based on my own experience.
It could be a nice robot if only it worked for a longer period of time and did a better job at cleaning.
If you have any question or want to comment about your experience with this robot, please leave a comment!