INTRODUCTION

   After testing the Roborock S6 Robot Vacuum a couple of months back and receiving positive input by some of you we decided to go online and read several customer reviews on Amazon and other stores to have a better understanding as to which is the main target group for such devices. Personally, not only do I live alone (ok most of the time) but I also happen to have pets in the house so instead of spending my free time to clean around the house when I get back it's far more preferable to have a robot vacuum do that for me. This is why I was somewhat surprised to see that the primary target audience for such devices are young couples who in many cases have more than just one model at home (in a way it does make sense, younger people are more into "smart" technologies). Well I guess it's only normal that we all want to spend our free time relaxing instead of cleaning around the house so because of that I decided to check a few other robot vacuum models like the brand new C30B model by Liectroux which I’ve been using at home for just over 3 weeks now.

   Liectroux, the leading global consumer robot company, designs and manufacture robots that empower people to do more both inside and outside home. Liectroux's products, have been welcomed into millions of homes around the world. Liectroux Robotics has been engaged in improving people's life and helping people to enjoy life more and more! Visit http://www.liectroux.us/.

   The main difference between the Roborock S6 and the C30B by Liectroux is that the latter doesn't feature laser navigation which means that it's just not as "accurate" when it maps out the interior of your house (LDS Laser Navigation has 360 degrees scanning capability and thus can provide 3D mapping as opposed to robot vacuums without laser navigation which are limited to 2D mapping). Still always according to Liectroux thanks to several algorithms along with an advanced gyroscope navigation the C30B features multiple cleaning modes for high-precision cleaning and energy efficiency. Other features include a powerful brushless motor with a maximum suction of 3000Pa (if this number is accurate then its 50% more powerful than the motor used in the Roborock S6), wide range of sensors (anti-collision, anti-fall, twining-proof), left/right side brushes, 2500mAh lithium-ion rechargeable battery, WiFi connectivity, moping function, large 600ml capacity dustbin, 350ml water tank and a bundled remote control (suitable for older people who are not into smartphones). So, leaving out the lack of laser navigation and the smaller capacity lithium-ion battery pack the C30B seems to have nothing to fear from more expensive solutions so let's see if that's really the case here.

SPECIFICATIONS AND FEATURES

PACKAGING AND CONTENTS

I received the C30B inside a plain cardboard box that has a basic drawing of a robot vacuum at the front right beneath the product name and description.

A small sticker with the product features is located on the left side of the box.

The entire bundle is placed inside plastic bags and is covered with pieces of cardboard.

Along with the main body of the C30B you will also receive a charging station with a power adapter, dustbin, water tank, 2 mop cloths (one is already attached onto the water tank), four side brushes (2 can be used to replace the other two when they wear off), 2 HEPA filters (one already mounted in the dustbin), cleaning brush, remote control and the user manual.

THE C30B

The C30B Robot Vacuum by Liectroux measures 33cm in diameter, 7.4cm in height and weighs a total of 2.7Kg.

Liectroux has used a black glossy plastic for the top of the vacuum and here we also see 3 activity LEDs (on/WiFi/Charging) and a large round button the right side of which is the on/off whereas the left side is the start cleaning function.

Although the sides are not perforated, they do feature such a design.

The entire front half of the C30B is a bumper.

Turning the C30B over the first thing you'll see is the very large opening for the dustbin and the water tank.

There are also two large plastic wheels (these wheels can get over obstacles up to 1cm in height), the main v-shaped brush, 3 anti-fall sensors, left/right brush mounting spots, round front wheel and several holes (located over a small speaker).

To access the v-shaped brush you just need to remove the cover as seen above.

Quality may not rival that of the brush used with the Roborock S6 but it comes close.

As mentioned earlier almost half of the total surface is taken by the dustbin/water tank mounting area.

Both the dustbin and the water tank have cleaning instructions on top (here you can also see how to access the HEPA filter location).

The water tank just has a rubber cover on top which you will need to open and pour water inside.

Turning the water tank over we see the water dispersion holes and the 4 areas where the mop cloth can be attached (unlike the Roborock S6 you can't adjust water flow).

The recharge station/base is very compact and also features a black glossy coating.

An activity LED is placed on top while on the right side we find the DC in.

Here you can see the C30B with the dustbin and both its side brushes attached.

Size-wise the C30B is slightly smaller compared to the Roborock S6.

As with the Roborock S6 I first used the C30B for 15 minutes to see just what it would gather and I wasn't disappointed.

TUYASMART APP

Although you can use the bundled remote control to control the C30B there's also a smartphone/tablet app called TuyaSmart which you can download and use.

You will of course first need to setup the up the app by entering your name, registering the device with specific rooms and of course add the device from a large list of products.

Adding the device is easy, you just need to follow the steps.

After that the app checks online for available firmware updates (there was one for our sample).

Not only can you turn the device on/off from the main screen but you can also control it manually.

There are 4 different cleaning modes you can use from within the app (six with the idle and recharge modes).

You can also set the cleaning strength to low, mid and high.

If you want you can configure the C30B to start cleaning automatically at specific times from the schedule tab.

Inside the device details it's clear that the C30B can also be controlled by third party apps/services like Alexa, Google Assistant, IFTTT, Rokid, Tmall Genie, DingDong, Tecent Xiaowei and DuerOS (some of these were just added to the latest version of the app).

There's also a manual update check in case you want to make certain there are no new ones available.

Here you can see the 2D map which although nowhere near as detailed as the one of the Roborock S6 still it covers almost the entire floor.

TEST RESULTS

Robot Vacuums may be home appliances but they are very advanced ones so we thought about running some tests like we do with most electronic devices. So here you can see the maximum cleaned area during our tests (single pass, start to finish), total battery life (in quiet/balanced/max modes) and noise levels again in quiet/balanced/max suction modes (since I also have two regular vacuums at home I also recorded their levels so you can all have something to compare these with). Of course, this testing methodology may vary slightly if we end up getting many more Robot Vacuum models (for example not all may have the same suction modes) but if that happens, I’ll be sure to update this section.

CONCLUSION

   I put the Liectroux C30B through every test i could think of alongside the Roborock S6 for a total of 3 weeks with surprisingly good results (especially if you take into account that this is a non-laser navigation model). Build quality is good, cleaning strength is superb, noise levels are comparable to those of the Roborock S6 (so no complaints here), battery life is very good on low mode (however at just over 5 hours for a full recharge things could be better in that area) and when it comes to cleaning time and total cleaned area the C30B again follows the Roborock S6 very closely. On top of all these thanks to the bundled remote control anyone can use the C30B and so I sure hope more manufacturers follow that example in the future since smart devices like robot vacuums can come even handier to older people. Although very good for its price range the C30B however does have 2 drawbacks/downsides, one it doesn’t feature laser navigation which means that it can't store the map of the area you use it to clean (so whenever you turn it off or even pick it up the map resets) and thus has a hard time getting back to its base if it's not in the same room (do keep in mind that if it's 2 relatively large rooms away from its charging base it may take a very long time before it does find its way back). The second drawback/downside has to do with its running time since recharge mode is automatically enabled the moment remaining battery life hits 20% (thus stops cleaning and starts its trip back to its charging base). Liectroux probably made that choice in order to allow enough battery juice for the robot vacuum to make the "trip" back to its base (they obviously know this might take a long time in some cases) but we think that 20% just for that is a tad much (and no you can’t override it).

   At the time of this review the C30B Robot Vacuum by Liectroux retails for just USD239.22/218,92Euros (Aliexpress) a price tag which is roughly 1/3rd of what Roborock asks for their S6 (to be fair they do have many lower cost models – we haven’t tested those however). At the end of the day you decide what to get based on your needs (and of course your wallet) but the C30B does offer a very good price/performance ratio and it doesn’t fall far behind compared to laser navigation models which is why it gets our Golden Award.

PROS

- Good Build Quality
- Size / Height
- Suction Power (3000Pa)
- Battery Life (Almost 3 Hours in Low Mode)
- Noise Levels (Always Compared to A Regular Vacuum)
- Mopping Feature
- Remote Control
- Left & Right Cleaning Brushes
- Large Dustbin and Water Tank Capacity (600ml / 350ml)
- Charging Base Size
- Control App
- Price (For Some)

CONS

- Lacks Laser Navigation (Maps Are Not Stored / Difficulty in Returning To Its Base From Afar)
- 80% Usable Battery
- Charging Base Size (Vacuum Is Exposed)
- Overall Availability