The Roborock Saros Z70 is the latest robot vacuum from the company, offering not just impressive vacuuming and mopping skills, but also a robotic arm. This can pick up items left on your floor, allowing it to provide you with a more comprehensive clean. However, our Roborock Saros Z70 review found it to be somewhat underwhelming. Meanwhile, the older Roborock Saros 10R offers many of the same features as the Z70 — minus the wild price tag and robotic arm.
So, which one makes a better robot vacuum for your home? The Roborock Saros Z70 or Roborock Saros 10R? Is the robotic arm worth the extra money, or can you save several hundred bucks by opting for the Saros 10R? Here’s a closer look at these two robot vacuums to help you decide which one to buy.
Pricing and design
The Roborock Saros Z70 carries the eye-watering price of $2,600, though it can often be found on sale for much less. Its size is fairly standard for robot vacuums, with a rectangular base and circular robot. There are a few unique accents throughout the dock and the robot, giving it a more premium appearance than most competitors. Of course, there’s also the robotic arm. This is typically stowed away in a small chamber on top of the robot. Only when an object is detected will it deploy.
The Saros 10R looks very similar to the Z70, though it’s missing some of the accents and fancy flourishes of the Z70. It still looks fantastic, however, and much of the designs are shared across the two products. The 10R is also much more affordable at $1,600, though it’s still one of the most expensive robots on the market.
Winner: Roborock Saros 10R
Vacuuming
Vacuuming performance is quite similar between these two devices. The Saros Z70 has the better suction numbers at 22,000 Pa, but the 10R is no slouch at 20,000 Pa. Both can also swing out their side brush to reach tight corners, can automatically detach their mopping pads to ensure your carpets stay dry, and use the same Starsight Autonomous System 2.0 for navigation. In testing, both were more than capable of dealing with daily messes, and they left behind nice tidy patterns that give your home a “just cleaned” feeling.
Obstacle avoidance was excellent for both robots, and the ability to lift their chassis to cross thresholds or deal with different types of environments made them versatile companions for all sorts of carpet. Both also feature an anti-tangle system that never once needed any manual intervention, as hair and long fibers were deftly removed and suctioned away into its dustbin.
In short — both are excellent vacuums. The Saros Z70 might have the upper hand when it comes to total suction, but real-world testing revealed two robots that are just about evenly matched.
Winner: Tie
Mopping
It’s a similar story for mopping. Roborock has equipped these two devices with essentially the same mopping systems. They feature two spinning mopping pads, one of which can swing outward to clean near baseboards. Both robots will lift their mops when traveling on carpet and give themselves a self-cleaning when back at the docking station. This includes a hot water rinse followed by an air dry — which goes a long way towards eliminating the mold and mildew smell found on lesser robots.
Testing once again found them to be perfectly matched for daily cleaning chores. Spills and stains were easily removed by the Z70 and 10R, and their ability to leave behind their mops when vacuuming is another huge win.
Winner: Tie
Additional features
Most additional features are shared by the Saros Z70 and Saros 10R. This includes:
- Intelligent dirt detection
- Auto detergent dispensing
- Auto tank refilling
- Auto dust emptying
- Auto brush lifting
- Adaptive route algorithm
- App support
- Voice assistant
The big difference, of course, is the robotic arm of the Saros Z70. But based on our testing, it’s not quite ready for the spotlight. It will almost never detect objects it can pick up when they’re placed on carpet, relegating it to only being useful on hard floors.
Even then, the arm has a difficult time gripping certain objects, and it takes a very long time to operate. A weight restriction of 300 grams limits what it can handle, and it’s not uncommon for it to take multiple attempts to pick up and properly move an object to the designated spot in your house. It’s a great first step — but like any innovative new technology, it still needs some time in the oven.
Winner: Tie
Verdict
Despite lending a robotic arm to your home, the Roborock Saros Z70 isn’t the best fit for most shoppers. Instead, consider picking up the Roborock Saros 10R. It packs in nearly all the same features — minus the arm — and it’s much more affordable. Capable of providing you with a superior floor cleaning experience, it’s one of the best robot vacuums on the market. Be sure to also compare the Saros 10R and Saros 10, and they’re both great products but they go about mopping in entirely different ways.
