EUFY X8 PRO SES robovac/mop (cleaning review)

09/12/2023
By Ray Shaw
In Reviews

The EUFY X8 Pro SES (Self-Empty Station) is one of the most powerful robot vacuums with a mopping attachment. That power can be used well for pet owners – it removes more hair shedding than most.

Let’s start by positioning the EUFY X8 Pro SES

Why? Because most people who buy a robot vacuum/mop buy the wrong one, thinking they are all much of a muchness. Wrong!

There are five generations of robot vacuums (referring to capabilities) and more than 20 brands/models on offer. You need to know what you want, then look at Robovacs, which can do that. We have a comprehensive guide, Five tips for choosing a robovac/mop that you should read first.

Gen 1 ‘Dumbots’ (<$500, bump/pattern cleaning, no intelligence easily identified by no top LiDAR turret). Pro: Cheap Con: No one pass clean, requires full house prep, and only for hard floor homes with few obstacles.
Gen 2 ‘Dimbots’ (<$1000 2D LiDAR mapping, bumper obstacle avoidance, preprogrammed cleaning patterns, and cliff detection). Pro: A map allows you to set go /no go zones and basic scheduling. Con: No one-pass clean, no obstacle detection, and best on hard floors.
Gen 3 ‘Averagebots’ (<$1500 with 2D LiDAR mapping, basic IR obstacle detection, basic AI navigation, Basic App). Pro: We consider this the entry-level with 2D mapping and limited forward IR obstacle avoidance. Less house prep is required. Con: No one-pass clean, limited obstacle detection, and best on hard floors.
Gen 4 Brainybots’ ($1500+ 3D Mapping, extra IR sensors, AI navigation, Comprehensive App, Voice control and beginnings of one-pass clean). Pro: The beginnings of one-pass cleaning (mix of carpet and hard floors), front and side obstacle avoidance and less house prep. Con: Expensive.
Gen 5 ‘SmartBots’ ($2000+ with cameras, extra sensors like ToF, higher levels of AI like object recognition, cleaning stations, better mopping, carpet lift systems and more. Pro: One pass vacuum and mop clean of carpet and hard floors, no house prep, vastly better mopping, and intelligent AI obstacle detection. Set and forget. Con: Even more expensive.

The Eufy X8 Pro is – a Gen 3 ‘Averagebot’ with 2D LiDAR, forward IR obstacle detection, forward/side bumper obstacle detection, plus basic pre-programmed pattern navigation. It has no AI obstacle avoidance (no cameras), so small objects are a blind spot issue. It cannot do one pass clean with mixed floor types.

If you are looking for a well-priced Gen 4+ robovac/mop, consider the Eufy X9 Pro robot vacuum and mop – one of the best of 2023. One-pass clean has never been more affordable.

Best use

If you mainly have ‘contiguous’ hard floors (no carpet in between), it can vacuum and mop simultaneously. Otherwise, you need to set up various zones – hard floor and carpet – and vacuum the latter with the mop pad removed. You will need to do most of the home prep.

The SES empties the internal dustbin – you might want to save money by buying the robot alone.

In my case, I need a one-pass vacuum and mopping cleaning due to a mix of carpet, ceramic tiles, and hardwood floors. I also want unattended, reliable cleaning. Frankly, that means a Gen 5 like Ecovacs Deebot X2 Omni – can a robot vacuum/mop get any better? or DreameBot L20 Ultra is a very smart, efficient robovac/mop. I also don’t have to do extensive house prep.

If we leave you with one message – buy what is right for your needs, not the cheapest.

Australian review – Eufy X8 Pro SES robot vacuum and mop Model T2276

Website	Product page X8 Pro SES (T2276) Product Page X8 Pro only (T2266) Manual
RRP	Eufy X8 Pro SES $999.95 but seen as low as $799 Eufy X8 Pro $799.95 but seen as low as $499.95
From	My Anker, Harvey Norman, JB Hi-Fi
Warranty	1-year ACL
Made in	China
Company	Eufy is an Anker Innovations brand. Directed Electronics Australia and New Zealand exclusively distribute it. Anker (Shenzhen Oceanwing Smart Innovations Technology Co., Ltd) is a Chinese electronics company that produces computer and mobile peripherals, including phone chargers, power banks, earbuds, headphones, speakers, data hubs, charging cables, torches, screen protectors, security cameras, and more under multiple brands.
More	CyberShack robot vacuum news and reviews

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.

First Impressions – Pass

Basic black, 34cm round x 9.5cm high x 9kg robot vac with a removable platten mop plate. The SES station empties the internal dustbin, and it is pretty small at 390 (H) x 280 (W) x 450mm (D), which includes the robot. You must have about 1.5m clear in front and .5m at each side.

I think Eufy could sell many more if they looked at fashion colours – but I guess a robovac is meant for dirty work.

Privacy – Minimal risk

Robovacs generally present minor privacy concerns, unlike, say, security cameras. The privacy provisions are typical and benign. There is no camera, and you can turn off telemetrics in the App.

Consumer Advice: While the privacy policy is benign, we recommend that all online accounts use a ‘junk’ email address easily obtainable from Gmail, and you do not use your name or date of birth to prevent any personal data from being used.

Setup – Pass+

Download Eufy Home for Android or iOS, register for an account, and connect to 2.4GHz Wi-Fi (which also supports Mesh routers/satellites). That is it.

Then, a Quick Map (a few minutes), set no-go zones, and you are ready.

Having recently reviewed the Eufy X9 Pro, it is interesting to see what is missing from the X8 Pro app – carpet cleaning and A.I. See settings.

2D LiDAR generates the map and lacks the razor-straight lines that 3D LiDAR and a camera can do, although you can edit rooms (merge/divide/name/set cleaning sequence), set zones, etc.

Navigation – Pass+

As a Gen 3, it has three tools – 2D LiDAR for the map, a front IR sensor to avoid larger obstacles and a 180° bumper (to work around chair legs, etc). Underneath are cliff detectors to stop death dives off stairs.

It starts with an edge pass of the whole area. Then, it does a repeating U-shape clean before returning to the base for a dump. That is set at 30 minutes but can extend to 45 or 60 minutes (not advisable if you have pets).

There is no AI to go back and do areas it may have missed or to focus on dirty areas and do multiple passes.

Obstacle recognition and House Prep – Pass(able)

A forward IR sensor detects larger objects and stops the robot from bumping into them. It does not have a camera, so it does not recognise obstacles or have the smarts to work around them.

We found a blind spot – obstacles less than 25mm high, like shoelaces, power cords, Lego blocks and soft toys are not avoided. You need a Gen 4 or 5 robovac to do that.

Home prep is not as onerous as Gen 1 or 2. But you must lift chairs, footstools, electrical cables, shoes, bathmats, rugs, etc, before you let Eufy loose.

Speed – Pass

At 1m per minute – about average for this type of robovac.

Sills – Pass

It navigated 20mm sills that lower-cost robovacs get stuck on.

Head Height – Pass

At 95mm tall, it is like most robovacs. It is too tall to fit under cupboard overhangs, so you will need a stick vac to do this.

Corner Clean – Fail

All round robots fail corner cleaning because they cannot enter the area. You will need a stick vac to finish.

Edge Clean – Pass

All round robots (except the Dreame L20 Ultra and Ecovacs Deebot X2 Omni) do not do edges very well, especially if they are under cupboard overhangs. This has a right-side whisker brush to sweep objects into the roller brush. As it does not have a side IR wall sensor, it will gently bump along the wall, getting as close as a round robot can. Ditto for needing the stick vac.

The rotating brush is 90mm from each side and while the whisker does a reasonable job it does not clean edges. Note this is an issue with all round robots.

BoostIQ – Pass

Where the X9 Pro has cleaning modes (user definable vacuum/mop passes, water control and power levels), The X8 Pro does not. When it encounters carpet, it will boost the vacuum power.

Vacuum Efficiency – Pass+

Tested on Standard mode. There are Quiet, Turbo and Max modes (full 2 x 2400Pa)

We use a 100g sample ranging from sand to rice. We used to use Kellogg’s Nutrigrain, but most lower-cost robovacs cannot handle that size. The test is over 2m2 in a single pass and does not have edge overhangs. We use a Dyson Gen5detect – the evolution continues after with its particle counter to estimate efficiency.

Wood floors: 92%
Wood floors with pet hair: 90%
Short pile carpet: Boost IQ 85%
Medium Pile: 83%
Long Pile: 82%

We re-ran the tests on Turbo and Max, which collected an additional 3-5%. However, the BoostIQ mode on carpet remains the most efficient. The internal dustbin is 335ml and should be good for at least 100m2.

These are above average for this type of robovac.

Mop Efficiency – Pass

Tested on medium mode. There is low and high dampness from the 270ml water tank.

Dragging a static platten over a floor can, at best, only do a maintenance mop. To get more, you need either a vibrating platten or, ideally, rotating mop pads with significant downward pressure. This has 600g downward pressure – the static weight of the unit.

If you look carefully you will see streaking when the mop pad is too wet.

It will vacuum and mop at the same time. The mop leading edge picks up most of the dirt. The pad is dampened via five micro-jets under it. It does leave streaks as the pad is continually moistened. We recommend that every 15-20m2, remove the pad, manually hand wash, and wring as dry as possible before proceeding. The mop pad is not the easiest to remove or replace, with a leading edge ‘bead’ that must be threaded into a channel.

It is not a wet/dry vac, so don’t try to vacuum spills. It will not handle pet poo – be warned!

Eufy has a biodegradable, plant-based, hard floor cleaning solution that you can use to improve grease cutting. We could not test it (as it was unavailable), but a cleaning solution makes quite a difference with other robovac/mops.

Pet Hair – Pass+

Pet hair is the bane of robovacs. The roller can get tangled, especially with long hair. The App has a detangling mode that can only be run when docked. It reverses the rotating brush, and a serrated comb cuts the hair and cleans the bristles. Additionally, it has an 80% larger inlet to reduce clogging.

Battery – Pass+

It has a 14.4V/5.2A/75W battery. It can be charged by the SES or, optionally, a small dock.

The battery life claim is 180 minutes on quiet mode. We got closer to 100 minutes on standard mode with mop and vacuum. If using Max mode, it is about 10 minutes.

Recharge is about 5 hours.

Noise – Pass

Noise ranges from 65-74db, depending on the mode. Boost IQ gets to the top end.

Voice Assist – Passable

Alexa and Google are limited to a few commands.

Build Quality – Pass+

It is very well-made, verging on over-engineering.

Maintenance – Pass+

Internal dustbin filter: wash and air dry after each use (can be less frequent). Buy a few to keep in rotation.
Internal dustbin: occasionally wash and air dry
SES Dustbag: It is 2.5L and should hold at least a month of detritus. There is no dustbag full sensor. We could not find a local price.
Roller Brush: Wash and air dry after use. Replace when worn or 6-12 months.
Roller Brush guard: It can wear, so replace when visibly worn or 3-6 months
Mop pads: hand or machine wash after each use (or every 15-20m2). Advisable to buy several to keep in rotation. $19.95 per pair.

Maintenance pack: $79.95 includes four internal dustbin filters ($10 each), two whiskers ($10 each), one roller brush ($19.95) and one floating head ($14.95).

Eufy has a pretty good record for low-cost consumables and spare parts. For example, it can provide replacement left/right wheels/motors ($19.95), front swivel wheel ($4.965), charging base ($29.95), and replacement battery packs are generally well under $100.

CyberShack’s view – EUFY X8 PRO SES robovac/mop is good for what it is

It is a Gen 3 robovac and ticks all those boxes and then some. The important point is to know what you need and buy accordingly. If this suits you, then there is no better recommendation.

Competition

We review robovacs from Eufy, Ecovacs, LG, Samsung, Robot my Life (Ultenic and Hobot) and soon Roborock. I suspect we know more about how they work than most.

This compares favourably with:

Ecovacs Deebot $899 N10 Plus Ecovacs Deebot N10 Plus robot vacuum, mop and auto-empty station with 4300Pa and 2-year warranty.
LG has a $999 R5T Auto empty that is technically similar.
TP-Link has a $999 Tapo RV30 Plus auto empty station – ditto.

But my strongest recommendation is the $1299 Eufy X9 Pro robot vacuum and mop – one of the best of 2023 or the $1145 Hobot Legee D8 and Lulu mop cleaning station.

EUFY X8 PRO SES rating

Features: 85 – It has all Gen 3 features plus more powerful suction and detangle brush.
Value: 85 with an auto-empty dustbin station is reasonable value, but do you really need the station?
Performance: 85 – it meets or exceeds what you could expect from other brands.
Ease of Use: 80 0 The App is easy to set up, but it is not for one-pass cleaning
Design: 80 – It is another round robovac/mop.