A clean approach
by Ian Knott | January 8, 2026 8:15 pm
There are product updates, and then there are course corrections. Metropol’s Gadget Guy Ian Knott finds that the ECOVACS X11 Omnicyclone robot vacuum feels very much like the latter.
It is still worth looking back a little, because there was a period where ECOVACS experimented with a square-bodied design. On paper, the idea made sense. In reality, it proved awkward. Navigation suffered, cornering was compromised, and the shape introduced friction where there should have been flow. It quickly became clear that this was a direction that worked against the fundamentals of how robot vacuums actually move through homes.
That thinking has since been abandoned. The square form quietly disappeared, and ECOVACS returned to a round design across subsequent models. The X11 feels like the point where that decision fully pays off.
What is new here matters, and it shows in daily use. At the heart of the X11 is ECOVACS’ BLAST suction system, delivering around 19,500Pa of peak suction and roughly 18 litres per second of airflow, driven by a 100 W motor and supported by a 6400mAh battery. Those are serious numbers, but more importantly, they translate into cleaning that feels assured rather than aggressive. Dust, hair and heavier debris are picked up consistently, particularly on carpet where earlier machines could feel tentative.
The ZeroTangle 3.0 brush system also plays its part. In homes with pets or long hair, it noticeably reduces hair wrap, cutting down on the kind of maintenance that quietly undermines the promise of automation.
Navigation and obstacle avoidance have taken a clear step forward. The X11 combines lidar, 3D structured light, edge sensors and improved mapping algorithms to read rooms more accurately and react more calmly. Furniture legs, stray cables and everyday clutter are handled with fewer bumps and less hesitation. It also copes better with thresholds and surface changes, moving confidently between hard floors and carpet without second-guessing itself.
Mopping finally feels integrated rather than bolted on. The Roller 2.0 system spins a nylon scrub roller at around 200 rpm, feeding it with a continuous supply of fresh water and applying more consistent pressure to the floor. TrueEdge cleaning pushes the roller closer to walls and corners, avoiding the familiar untouched strip many robot mops leave behind. Flooring changes are detected reliably, with the mop lifting automatically on carpet and behaviour adjusting without fuss. For more stubborn stains on moppable floors, the unit will recognise them in advance, spray them with liquid and then cleverly wait a few seconds for the solution to do its work before taking them on.
The camera system has improved in a way that actually matters. Video quality is sharper and clearer, making remote viewing more useful and object recognition more dependable. It feels less like a novelty feature and more like a practical tool supporting navigation.
The OmniCyclone base station is also bagless, using a multi-stage cyclone system with a clear collection canister instead of disposable dust bags. That keeps ongoing costs down and makes it easier to see what the robot is actually collecting, even if it still requires the occasional empty and filter clean.
It is not flawless. Dust transfer from the robot to the base station is not always clean, and on occasion the outlet or inlet can clog during emptying and needs to be manually cleared. It does not happen often, but when it does, it punctures the idea of a completely hands-off system.
Taken as a whole, the X11 Omnicyclone feels like ECOVACS back on solid ground. It is stronger, more thorough, and far more intelligent about how and when it vacuums and mops. Rather than chasing novelty, it focuses on getting the fundamentals right and refining them.
After a period of experimentation and eventual retreat from ideas that did not quite work, this feels less like another iteration and more like a confident return to form.
Source URL: https://metropol.co.nz/a-clean-approach/