Ecovacs Winbot W1 Pro – clever little robot window cleaner (cleaning review)
The Ecovacs Winbot W1 Pro cleans windows efficiently with no mess or need to squeegee and towel dry windows afterwards. It can leave sparkling streak-free windows.
As good as it is, let’s start with a caveat. I started at 11 AM, and it is now 3 PM. That is four hours of constant attention because while the Ecovacs Winbot W1 Pro does the hard work, you must be there to move it to the next glass pane, clean the edges of the window (no windows robot does this well), remove the spots it cannot, clean the edges of frameless panes, frequently clean the microfibre pad, and refill the cleaning solution. While you are there, however, you can generally occupy your time with window maintenance.
We recommend you read our guide first Window cleaning robots – sparking windows can be easy (guide).
Australian Review – Ecovacs Winbot W1 Pro
| Website | Website, Product Page and Manual (pdf) |
| Price | $799 |
| From | Ecovacs Online, JB Hi-Fi, Bing Lee, Good Guys, eBay Ecovacs store Avoid online and international stores as they don’t have an AU warranty. |
| Colours | White |
| Warranty | 2-year ACL |
| Country of Origin | China |
| Company | Ecovacs Robotics is a Chinese technology company best known for leading the development of in-home robotic appliances. Est 1998 by Qian Dongqi. According to Statistica, Ecovacs Robotics had 41% of the Chinese market for robovacs/mops by 2018. Globally in 2020, it was #2 at 17% market share. |
| About | CyberShack news and reviews Robovacs and Robomops |
We use Fail (below expectations), Passable (meets low expectations), Pass (meets expectations), Pass+ (near Exceed but not class-leading) and Exceed (surpasses expectations or is the class leader) against many of the items below. You can click on most images for an enlargement.
Setup – Easy – Pass+
You can use it straight out of the box. Just fill the 60ml reservoir with cleaning fluid (a 230ml bottle inbox), attach a wetted microfibre pad (2 inbox), switch on, and then plug it into the 240V power point. The unit needs 240V power to achieve the suction needed to say on the glass. It has a 650mAh inbuilt battery as a fail-safe to provide about 30 minutes of suction (not cleaning) should the power fail.
You can install the Ecovacs Home App for Android or iOS. It uses Bluetooth (range to 30m but practically about 10m), not Wi-Fi, to connect. You must set up an Ecovacs account (email and password), give the App location and find nearby devices permission. The Terms of Use and Privacy provisions are benign; you only need the App for firmware updates and selecting deep or spot clean.
Intelligence – Pass+
Ecovacs claims it has Intelligent route planning, auto back to start point, and cleaning path memory. We saw that you can place it anywhere on the glass, and it will climb to the top and start cleaning in an overlapping U-shape down the glass before climbing back to the top and then to wherever it started. It uses bumper corners and rollers to change direction. It did not miss any areas of glass.
The cross spray comes from two nozzles on the top and bottom sides. It detects how much is needed.
Glass types – Pass+
The glass must be >3mm and flat, transparent, coloured, or opaque. It can have a slight tilt – we tested it to about +/-30°. To start, hold it against the glass (it should autos start) or press the power button. The release, press the power button for a few seconds.
You should be able to use it on mirrors and shower screens, but these may not have definite edges.
Power – Pass+
It uses a 240V to 24V/4A/96W power brick that connects to a second cylinder-shaped device (we suspect the backup battery), which then connects (fixed connection) to the Ecovacs Winbot W1 Pro. You have about 4.7 metres of reach from a power point.
The device has sufficient vacuum strength (2800Pa) to lift the cable and the ‘cylinder’ but not enough to lift/drag the transformer and a 240V extension cable. The cable and brick are not IP rated, so keep them dry. We recommend you use an RCBO like the HPM Electresafe Power Centre with two USB outlets REPC410USB (review).
Safety tether
It has a 3.3m safety tether to stop death dives if it loses suction. Should you use it? On internal windows, the chances of finding a tether point are negligible. I prefer to place an old pillow under the window for a soft landing. We had no issues.
On external windows – yes, the challenge is finding a point to hook the carabiner onto. For the most part, I held the rope instead.
Washing speed – Pass
It is about three minutes per m2 in fast mode and just over six minutes in 2x pass mode. That means you need to be there to move it to the next pane. That may also involve reattaching the safety tether to another point. It uses a ribbed rubber caterpillar track on each side. If these get too wet, there will be slippage. It is a good idea to clean/dry these when you clean the microfibre pad.
Edge Clean – Fail
It gets to within 10mm of the edge of a framed window. You must clean (wipe and dry) all four edges (inside and out). No windows robot does a perfect edge clean.
Frameless glass, skylights, curved, and or irregularly shaped glass
Unfortunately, it would not clean the bottom of a frameless glass pool safety fence (image above). Its edge/cliff protection stopped it and left about 35-50mm not cleaned. It needs an edge frame for reference to clean up to.
It cannot clean irregularly shaped glass (triangle, round, etc.) as once it bumps off the frame; it heads off in a different vector direction.
It can clean the outside of a skylight but not the inside. It will handle +/-20° inclines.
Cleaning – Pass+
Disclaimer: We have been renovating, and the windows were extra dirty and dusty. We also live in a marine environment, and windows quickly accumulate a salt spray buildup. If ever there was a good test, this was it.
Overall it does a terrific job on well-maintained windows. It cuts through window grime with ease, leaving a streak-free finish. We suspect that is due to the Winbot Cleaning solution – more later.
Like most windows robots, it cannot remove bird poop, insect impacts, paint splatter and gunk. You should remove these first.
If the windows are not well maintained, then the 2x mode helps. It doubles the cleaning, amount of cleaning fluid and time. The caveat – don’t expect great results on really dirty or salt spray windows unless you manually clean them first and use this for a regular maintenance clean.
Cleaning pad – Clean it frequently – Pass
It comes with two microfibre ‘H’ shaped cleaning pads that attach via Velcro to the underside. First, wet, then hand ring dry the pad (not too damp as a wet pad will leave streaks) and attach. You can use both sides but ensure it is not too wet before use.
The pads need regular changing and cleaning. A tell-tale sign is that it starts leaving snail track streaks. This can be due to a dirty pad or getting too wet from the micro-spray.
Cleaning is a matter of rinsing under running water and removing the grime. We used a Dishmatic Dish brush with a general-purpose pad and some dishwashing detergent to clean the pads. This is faster and more effective. The caveat is that you must rinse the pad thoroughly to remove any trace of detergent and tightly hand wring water out.
Our rough guide was to clean the pad about every 6-10m2 for inside and 3-6m2 for external use. Remember, our windows were dirty, so a visual pad inspection is best.
Replacement pads (2) cost $29.90 plus freight (free freight if ordering $49.99 or more).
Cleaning solution – Pass
We used a 230ml bottle (4x60ml tank refills) of Ecovacs Winbot W1 Pro cleaning solution. Ingredients include deionised water, alcohol, Nonionic surfactant, Pigment, Essence, and a preservative CMIT/MIT (.01-0.2ww%). It costs $14.90 plus freight. You don’t dilute it!
It covered about 60m2 of glass.
Do you have to use it? It provides superior cutting and drying power compared to tap water. We tested tap water on a well-maintained window; it left streaks and did not dry quickly. But if your tap water contains too much calcium or salts (soft), it can create scale (just like a coffee maker) and block the nozzles.
You cannot use filtered/purified or distilled water as the tank level uses capacitance detection.
Additionally, the micro-spray nozzles could be blocked if using other liquids, voiding the warranty.
Size – Pass
270mm square x 77.5mm x 1.5kg – fairly typical. It comes in an attractive carry case that fits all the bits. Be careful when using this for storage that damp pads are placed in plastic bags, and the device is stored upright (top-side up) to eliminate the possibility of tank leaks.
Noise – Pass
It varied between 65-70dB at 1 metre – not overly noisy.
Maintenance – Pass+
The only consumables are the cleaning solution and cleaning pads. Wipe over the Winbot, clean the tyre tracks and roller sensors after use.
We are concerned that the micro-spray nozzles are not user replaceable (they are on several other brands), and it is vital only to use the approved cleaning solution.
There is no reason that it will not last many years.
CyberShack’s view – Ecovacs Winbot W1 Pro is excellent with a few caveats
If your windows are well maintained, this will give terrific, clean, streak-free results. If they are very dirty, you should pre-clean them first.
We found the key issues were constant supervision, the need to clean pads frequently, and edge cleaning. However, this is similar to the other windows robots I have tested.
Could I have manually cleaned the windows faster? Yes, but it is back-breaking work, and the robot can do high-level external windows that would require a ladder to reach.
Rating (86 out of 100)
The streak-free cleaning result outweighs any minor caveats – as long as you use it correctly, it does what it promises. It gets CyberShack’s buy recommendation.
- Features: 90 – it has all the expected features, a nice carry case, and the App is optional (but recommended).
- Value: 85 – At $799, it is a tad higher than other windows robots, but it is good value.
- Performance: 90 – It does an excellent job on well-maintained windows.
- Ease of use: 75 – While it does the back-breaking work, you still need constant supervision.
- Design: 90 – Well-made, and the leather handle and carry case are a nice touch.
Ecovacs Winbot W1 Pro
