It’s known the first-gen Xiaomi Mi Robot Vacuum cleaner was made by Beijing Stone Century Science Technology (Xiaomi Ecological Chain Xiaomi Communication Technology). Last year, it introduced its first independent brand and the first product in face of the Roborock Sweep One. Today, the company announced its second independent brand and launched the Xiaowa Smart Cleaner Youth Edition.
The Xiaowa Smart Cleaner Youth Edition can be considered as the third robotic vacuum cleaner launched by Xiaomi as the aforementioned brand is Xiaomi’s sub-brand. But today we are not going to talk about Xiaomi and its multiple sub-brands. There is a more interesting topic for conversation. The Xiaowa Smart Cleaner Youth Edition comes with all the features found on the high-end smart cleaners. But as the name suggests, it is priced way lower at 999 yuan ($158).
Externally, it looks like the rest of Xiaomi robotic vacuum cleaners. There are no excessive modifications. As usual, it comes with a round-shaped body that carries all the necessary sensors and cleaning brushes. On top, there are three buttons for recharging, turning on/off the power, and switching between cleaning modes.
On the front, it carries a charging sensor that automatically leads the cleaner to the charger when the remaining power is below 30%. There is also the obstacle avoidance sensing system. This sensor allows the cleaner to determine the obstacles and slow down the speed to protect itself and ‘the victim’ in time
Under the cover, there is a dust box. It is transparent. So you can understand what part of it is filled at a glance. However, it has a capacity of 640ml.
On the back, it has two grid holes, while the speaker is placed on the left. The exhaust port is on the right to ensure the symmetrical design of the Xiaowa Smart Cleaner Youth Edition.
When looking at the bottom of the cleaner we can see familiar four cliff sensors, one-sided brush, caster, the main wheel, and the main brush. The latter uses a very common V-shaped design that reduces the hair wound and burden of post-cleaning and maintenance. Plus, the bristles and rubber film are very soft and won’t damage the floor.
As we said, there are three buttons on the top of the cleaner. They are used to interact with the Xiaowa Smart Cleaner Youth Edition. But this is a Xiaomi product, which simply means it is the part of Xiaomi’s smart home system. Therefore, it can be controlled by the APP.
Once you download and install the APP, you can connect to the cleaner. After, you can see not only the main operations that can be implemented on it but also the cleaning time and power consumption. Plus, the cleaning power can be adjusted. Choose any from quiet, standard, powerful, and MAX for various cases. You just have to know when it works in the MAX mode (1600Pa), the noise is noticeable and can prevent baby’s sleeping.
The APP also allows users to view cleaning records, the cleaner’s positioning, and other useful data. Actually, there are 9 types of cleaning modes including local cleaning, deceleration collision, through the curtains, along with the wall, anti-winding, detours, carpet pressurization, anti-drop, virtual wall, etc. We are more interested in the first mode. When it’s turned on, it will automatically delineate a circular sweeping area of 1.2m to the center of the sweeping robot, which is suitable for lifting the sweeping machine at any time for cleaning in a specific area.
As for the actual test, a baby-room with an area of 20 square meters was cleaned in 27 minutes. Actually, there are some drawbacks in its cleaning path, as some areas were cleaned for a few times. However, the overall cleaning coverage is too high.
In terms of sensors’ working, the Xiaowa Smart Cleaner Youth Edition could identify obstacles for the most of time. The only thing it can’t identify is glass because the infrared light emitted by the infrared LED directly through the transparency itself without any reflection. So the cleaner couldn’t understand whether there are vases or glass scales.
There is a built-in 2600mAh battery inside the cleaner. In comparison to other models offered on the market, this is a quite sufficient capacity. When we started the test, the remaining power was 84%. After 20 minutes of continuous operation, the checked power was 68%. Thus it consumes 16% in 20 minutes. A quick calculation shows, it can last for 2 hours on a single charge.
As for charging, when we started the test, the remaining power was 26%. It fully charged in 120 minutes.
Nowadays, people can remotely control everything in the smart home system. This is true for cleaners as well. According to China Smart Home Index Report published in April 2017, this market increased by 884% in comparison to 2015. Thus the annual growth rate of this market will reach 25% by 2020. The estimated market value is 357.6 billion yuan ($57 billion).
When the Xiaomi Mi Robotic Vacuum was launched at 1699 yuan ($252), many were reprised of its price and capabilities. That’s why this product was among the best-selling models. The second-gen Roborock Sweep One came with better features and continues the success of its predecessor. According to the official data, from the very start when the first smart cleaner was launched and until January 2018 there were sold over 1 million units. The satisfactory rate was 98.6%. But the team didn’t stop here and launched a new and cheaper smart cleaner on March 6. In this sense, the Xiaowa Smart Cleaner Youth Edition is the most cost-effective smart cleaner.
As for performance, it comes with a 1600Pa suction, which is quite enough to clean a very dusty room. Plus, thanks to its relatively small size, it is capable of reaching all the corner. However, the selling point of this cleaner is the special adaptive algorithm that can flexibly respond to a variety of home environment. It works quite good based on data provided by 10 sensors.
