Yes, it’s a “smart” device, but all of the E20’s smart features are limited to its robot vacuum. This is not entirely surprising; Robovacs literally rely on features like customizable cleaning schedules, auto-docking, auto-emptying and home mapping to achieve their usefulness. This is not the case with cordless vacuum cleaners as they are still manually operated devices.
Some of the cordless vacuums I tested have included apps, but they usually only tell you when a filter needs cleaning and how long it takes for the unit to fully charge. Good. But not necessary.
Eufy E20 as a robot vacuum cleaner
Since the standard form of the E20 is a robot vacuum. I first tested it as such..
This template supports smart house maps, so the first attempt was to create a map of the main floor of my house. The robot took about 10 minutes to walk through the house and create an accurate map and immediately started cleaning. It was very easy to change the card in the Eufy Clean app. This allowed me to assign automatically generated “rooms” to rooms in my house. Label them correctly. Set up no-go zones around my cat’s food.
Water bowls.
Every robot vacuum app asks you to pick up anything that shouldn’t be on your floor before starting the cleaning job. Eufy does the same.. I intentionally do not follow these instructions to test the device’s ability to avoid obstacles. The E20 impressed me in this regard: it avoided some small boxes on my living room floor, shoes in the hallway and my cat’s counter before even creating an exclusion zone around them.
Only once did he get stuck and ask for help (via an error message) when he got stuck in a wobbly corner of the carpet outside the door leading to my patio. Removing the Robovac was easy (without damaging the robot. The carpet). Then the machine continued to clean as if nothing had happened.
The E20 has four cleaning modes that you can select in the app before you start: Quiet. Standard. Turbo. Maximum..
There is also a BoostIQ mode that you activate to increase the suction power when the robot vacuum cleans deep-joint carpets. I always leave this setting on, even though the main floor of my house only has tile and hardwood floors. Overall, as a robot vacuum, the E20 excels at cleaning and avoiding most objects in its path. It’s also one of the most responsive robot vacuums I’ve tested. As one second after the Eufy Clean app tells it to go home. For example.
It returns to the base station.
During a job. It is also smart enough to detect when the dust container is full. Return to the base to automatically empty itself before continuing with cleaning.. This happened about 4 times when I was cleaning downstairs in my house and it happened every time I used it. Normally, at the end of a mission, the E20 would have about 40% battery left before shutting down. The self-draining container is slightly smaller than others I’ve used on competing robot vacuums.
But Eufy claims it can hold dirt for up to 75 days.
The Eufy Clean app has come a long way since I first tried the Anker vacuum cleaner.. It’s still not as easy as apps like iRobot or Shark, but I mainly attribute that to Eufy building a lot of features into the app. With the push of a button on the home page. You can quickly ask Robovac to start cleaning. Return to the base station. Change cleaning modes. Tap the device profile to access the home card.
Other settings.
Two nice things this app offers that most others don’t are manual directional control. So you can treat the robot almost like a remote control car. A little robot avatar that appears on the house map as it moves. So you can see exactly where it is in your house. Where it’s already been cleaned.. Of course. The latter is probably more useful than the former for most people. But both are features that are not that common in robot vacuums.
Even high-end models.
Eufy E20 as a cordless vacuum cleaner
You can easily convert the E20 from a robot vacuum cleaner to a cordless vacuum cleaner.. Just press the big red button on the robot vacuum cleaner to eject the cleaning module (including filter system. Fan motor. Dust container). Lift up. Out of the robot body.
Attach the vacuum cleaner to the base.. The arm extends and retracts, so you can use it to clean floors with the included roller head or tackle hard-to-reach areas with the precision brush head. There’s an elegance to it that impresses me: it’s very easy to do. Requires very little adjustment on the part of the user; Anyone who has ever used a standard cordless vacuum cleaner with multiple attachments will be very familiar with this process.
But how effective is it as a cordless vacuum cleaner?.
The answer is: okay. If the E20 were just a vacuum cleaner, it probably wouldn’t be the top choice in our guide. This unit is clearly a robot vacuum first and a handheld vacuum second, and it’s not as powerful or efficient as other cordless vacuums I’ve tested. It has four cleaning modes, all with different suction power, and I’ve always used the most powerful for the deepest clean, both on carpets and hard floors. However, he didn’t choke at the first sign of animal hair and grabbed a large chunk of my cat’s fur, which was hidden in the carpet. But especially with carpets.
It took at least two passes to trap the larger dirt in its path.
As a cordless vacuum cleaner. The E20 stands out with its one-button start. Easily exchangeable accessories.. Although most of these devices are largely made of plastic, the E20 looks downright cheap compared to a Tineco or Dyson vacuum cleaner. This may be because the overall design is quite small (after all. The guts have to fit into a compact robot vacuum cleaner).
There is a small dustbin.
Some may like it because it makes it easier to carry it in the car. Anywhere else if it’s battery powered.. It’s also striking that, despite the small container, I never received any warning that it was too full and needed to be emptied before I could continue vacuuming. I also never had to stop to charge the battery while manually cleaning; In most cases.
The vacuum had about 30% battery left after cleaning all three floors of my house (which usually took 20 to 30 minutes).. According to Eufy. It only takes 2.5 hours to charge the vacuum from 0 to 100%.
The device also has the practical function that the dust container is automatically emptied after cleaning with a cordless vacuum cleaner.. That way, you don’t have to empty it yourself, even if you decide to clean it yourself.
Simply place the module back into the robot vacuum and press the home button for a few seconds. It is then emptied automatically. As if the robot had done all the work.
Summary
Overall. The Eufy E20 is an impressive machine.. While Eufy is no stranger to making solid robot vacuums, this unit is still a first generation product in my opinion, and a solid one at that.
But you need to know in advance what you’re going to buy: an above-average robot vacuum cleaner that transforms into a regular stick. Hand vacuum cleaner.
In the end. The convenience of the 3-in-1 design may be enough to overlook the only average performance in two of the three applications.. The E20 isn’t the best vacuum on the market, but I honestly didn’t expect it to be either. It’s pretty cool to practically integrate the robot vacuum part of the machine.
So you can have a unit that vacuums itself most of the time. Lets you clean tough spots manually if needed.
The price is also reasonable considering the convenience of the device combined with the good performance.. Some robot vacuums cost around $550 and only offer a self-draining base as their main advantage. Other similarly priced units have a cleaning function and may be more useful for people who have different types of floors in their home.
Also consider this: You’d spend roughly the same amount if you bought our most affordable cordless vacuum cleaner (la). Our most popular budget robot vacuum cleaner (la). But you wouldn’t have a self-draining base. Would have to install two separate machines in your home.
(tagToTranslate) Vacuum cleaner(s) Cordless vacuum cleaner(s) Vacuum cleaner(s) Cordless vacuum cleaner(s) Cordless vacuum cleaner(s) Eufy
