Robot vacuums that can both mop and sweep your floors have improved significantly in recent years. While they are still not as effective as good ol’ manual labor, if you run them regularly, they will help keep your floors cleaner with much less effort on your part.
Technology
The best robot vacuum and mop to buy right now
The difference is that newer “combo” robot vacuum and mop models are designed to actually scrub your floors. The first robot vacuums that could also “mop” simply slapped a thin, flat microfiber pad on the bot that kind of Swiffer-ed your floor. Basically, all this was good for was getting up fine dirt that the vacuum left behind.
A robot vacuum with a real mopping system will make your life easier
Newer models now come with vibrating or oscillating mop pads, and some even have roller mops. Most models have onboard water tanks to keep the mops wet while in use, and many can wash and dry their mops in their charging docks, which also automatically empty and refill their water tanks, meaning less work for you.
While most robot vacuums today come with some sort of mopping feature, this guide focuses on those that excel at mopping. If you’re more interested in the best vacuum, check out my guide to floor-sweeping bots.
The downside to these combo bots with serious mopping chops is that they tend to be bigger and heavier and need more frequent intervention than regular vacuum bots. Water equals gunk, and cleaning their giant multifunction docks, even the self-cleaning ones, can be an icky job. You also have to empty and refill their tanks about once a week.
Mopping bots also need to return to their docks more frequently than robot vacuums in order to refill their onboard water tanks. This means they’ll take longer to clean your floors than a dedicated vacuuming model, but they are doing two jobs at once. Robot mops with roller mops will self-clean as they work, negating this issue, but these models are also the largest and bulkiest, as they carry a bigger water tank on board.
Combo bots can mop and vacuum simultaneously, but for especially dirty floors, it’s best to have the option to vacuum first and then mop. A mop-only mode is also good, as you can send the bot to clean up a wet spill without it sucking up water — something they’re not designed to do yet.
If you have a lot of hardwood or tile floors and constantly struggle with muddy paw prints or the general dirtiness of life with multiple pets, people, and kids, a good robot vacuum and mop combo will definitely make your life easier.
What I’m looking for
I’ve been testing robot vacuums for more than six years and have tested over 60 models. I wrote The Verge’s best robot vacuum buying guide and the best budget robot vacuum guide, and for this guide, I tested 15 different mopping robots.To evaluate the bots, I ran each regularly for at least a week and measured their progress, evaluating how clean the floor stays, how well they navigate, how often I had to refill the tanks, how well the auto-empty function worked, and how easy the app was to use.I run them in my kitchen, where I have hardwood floors, and in a large bathroom with a white tile floor — one that looks filthy just a day after being cleaned. For specific tests, I deploy a wet and dry challenge. The wet challenge features dried-on OJ and ketchup, plus fresh spills of milk, water, and some kind of sauce. For the dry challenge, I place cereal (usually Cheerios) and oatmeal (a really tough one to clean). I evaluate how well the bots deal with mopping the stains and vacuuming the debris.Finally, I test their obstacle detection by running them through an obstacle course featuring common robot trip-ups, including fake dog poop, cables, socks, and tricky chair legs.
This is a charging base that empties the robot’s bin, washes and dries the bot’s mops, and empties and refills its water tank. This is essential if you want to be as hands-free as possible when mopping your floor. Some offer hot-water washing and drying options that will keep your pads cleaner for longer. But you’ll want to throw them in the wash eventually. A dock that can self-clean the washboard (the area where it cleans the mops) is a nice upgrade, as you won’t have to do it yourself as often.
The bigger the clean and dirty water tanks on the dock, the less often you’ll have to refill them. If the dock can connect directly to the plumbing, even better; it’s a more complicated install, but it makes for a more hands-off experience long-term.
Mop type matters. The main options are circular and spinning, flat and vibrating, or rolling and self-cleaning. Rolling (like the beater bar on a vacuum cleaner) is my favorite because it does a better job of getting floors really clean. The greater surface area of a roller mop, combined with the self-cleaning function — the vac sprays water onto the mop as it runs — makes it a more effective option than flat or spinning mops in most cases. However, oscillating mops that can extend outward are better at getting into grout between tiles, along baseboards, and under low furniture.
If you have low-pile rugs and carpet, mop pads that the robot can lift up (by at least 10mm) should prevent your carpets from getting damp when the robot rolls over them. However, robots that can remove the mop pads entirely before vacuuming carpets are a good option, especially if you have high-pile rugs.
Specs around mop pressure and rotation speed are similar to those for suction power on the vacuum; they matter to some extent, but what’s more important is how effective the pads are. The higher the pressure, the more effective it should be on tougher stains. The higher the rotations per minute (RPMs), the more friction the stain has to deal with. It’s hard to judge pressure, as several manufacturers don’t list it and those that do use different measurements, but 12 Newtons, roughly 2.2 pounds of downward pressure, is very good.
A well-laid-out app is key. It should let you choose which rooms to clean, and in what order. Generally, you want a mopping bot to clean the dirtiest room last (think bathroom or hallway) to avoid cross-contamination. I also look for the option to mop only, in addition to mop and vacuum, or vacuum then mop, and, of course, vacuum only.
Best robot vacuum and mop
$700
The Good
- Self-cleaning roller mop
- Extendable mop
- Excellent obstacle avoidance
- Smaller, sleeker dock
The Bad
- Limited mop lift
- Heavy, struggles with transitions
- Single roller brush
Multifunction Dock: Yes, auto empty (3L) and drain/refill (4L dirty, 4L clean) / Mop style: Roller / Mop washing: Yes, hot water and hot air drying / Mop pressure: 4,000Pa at 200 RPM / Mop lift: Yes, 10mm / Edge cleaning: Yes, mop extension / Mapping: Yes, lidar / AI-powered obstacle detection: Yes / Suction power: 18,000Pa / Vacuum brush style: Single rubber/bristle / Works with: Amazon Alexa, Google Home, Siri Shortcuts, Matter
Ecovacs’ Deebot X8 Pro Omni is a welcome return to form for Ecovacs’ flagship line. Its new tower-less lidar navigation system did a much better job of mapping and navigating than the previous flagship, the Deebot X2 Omni, which was constantly getting lost in my tests. However, the most notable thing about the X8 is the Ozmo Roller Mop.
This is the best roller mopping bot I’ve tested, thanks mostly to the Ozmo’s ability to extend outwards to clean along baseboards and furniture. This is a unique feature on a roller mop (for now) that makes up for the mop’s relatively short length (both the Eufy S1 and Switchbot S10 have longer roller mops). At $1,299, the X8 is also one of the less expensive flagship models (though the new X9 Pro Omni retails for $1,599.99).
The X8 did an excellent job on my milk, OJ, and dried ketchup tests, absorbing the small spills with one or two passes. It covered the floors evenly, without leaving any streaks or gaps, something that I’ve seen happen with spinning mop pads. When it comes across an edge — be it a baseboard, furniture like a chair or table leg, or any obstacle — it extends out its mop to the right to clean as close as possible. It did an excellent job getting the grime up from the stools around my kitchen counter, something most other bots struggle to do.
This is the best roller mopping bot I’ve tested
The self-cleaning brush system kept the bot from smearing any spills it encountered. As it’s cleaning, a scraper squeegees off the dirty water and 16 nozzles spray it with fresh water and solution, if you use it. As with most high-end mopping bots, the dock has the option of auto-dispensing cleaning solution.
The X8 was the best vacuuming robot among the serious combo bots I tested, outperforming my Cheerio and oatmeal tests and doing a good job on rugs (when it could reach them). However, its vacuum has a relatively small, single rubber roller brush, which is less effective than Roborock’s dual roller brush models (which include the S8 MaxV Ultra and the 10 Max).
The X8 uses lidar and a 3D camera for mapping; the latter also facilitates its obstacle detection, which is very good — it easily navigated fake dog turds and cables while sucking up oatmeal and Cheerios. It’s much better at navigating than the X2, but it did occasionally get itself trapped, including when it went under a chair that was too low for it to get out from. The top of the robot was fairly scratched up after just one week of use. (Worth noting, Ecovacs suffered a hack last year in which bad actors could access the camera and microphone on the X2)
The X8’s multifunction dock is much smaller than the X2’s and has some nice rose gold accents. Its water tanks are integrated into the dock and supereasy to remove to empty and refill — there’s no lid to mess with, you just lift up and go. The X8 doesn’t self-clean its washboard, however, and while it’s removable to make it easier to clean, I still had to get on my knees and scrub its base station after just a week of use.
It easily navigated fake dog turds and cables while sucking up oatmeal and Cheerios
The downside of roller mop bots is that they are big and heavy: the X8 weighs a whopping 12 pounds. Despite an ability to lift itself up to clear thresholds, the X8 isn’t as agile as smaller, lighter robot vacs. It struggled with the combo challenge of a large, tasseled, high-pile rug and spindly chair leg. Very few robot vacs tackle that one well, but it got stuck on the chair leg and sucked up the rug tassels. I ended up setting a keep-out zone so it could complete its job.
The integrated nature of the roller mop means the bot can’t remove it when it goes to vacuum carpet, as some mopping bots with pads can. It can lift it, but only 10mm, which isn’t going to work for the fluffiest rugs. The X8 does have carpet sensors, and you can choose to avoid them automatically, pass over them, or vacuum only. But its best carpet feature is the option to have it vacuum the carpets first, then mop everywhere else.
Overall, the Deebot X8 is a stellar vacuum mop combo for anyone seeking a robot that will thoroughly scrub and sweep their floors. With high-end features at a decent price, the X8’s roller mop, slick navigation, and excellent obstacle avoidance will get the job done.
Best midrange robot vacuum and mop
$495
The Good
- Good AI-powered obstacle detection
- Effective mopping
- Excellent value
- Nice dock
The Bad
- Single rubber / bristle brush
- Lower suction power
- No heated mop washing
- Some navigation issues
Multifunction Dock: Yes, auto empty (2.5L) and drain/refill (2.7L dirty, 3L clean) / Mop style: Dual spinning pads / Mop washing: Yes, hot air drying / Mop pressure: 2.2 lbs at 180 RPM / Mop lift: Yes, 12 mm / Edge cleaning: Yes, swinging motion / Mapping: Yes, lidar / AI-powered obstacle detection: Yes / Suction power: 8,000Pa / Vacuum brush style: Single rubber bristle hybrid / Works with: Amazon Alexa, Google Home, Siri Shortcuts
The Eufy X10 Pro Omni is an excellent mop vacuum hybrid with a full multifunction dock. It can wash its mop, drain, and refill its water tank. It’s also the cheapest model to offer dual spinning mop pads, and it has very good obstacle detection for this price range.
However, the X10 has just 8,000Pa suction, no hot water washing, and smaller water tanks. While it has most of the same functions as the top-of-the-line mopping bots, it’s not quite as effective at any of them. Which is sort of the definition of “midrange.”
An edge-hugging mode makes the robot swing its behind into the baseboards to help mop edges, but this is less effective than mop extension found on the more expensive models. With its squarish shape, it gets into corners better than most of the round bots, but its 12mm mop pad lift over carpet wasn’t effective, resulting in its pads getting hung up in a few places.
1/4
The Eufy performed very well in my mopping tests, eradicating dried stains with its 2.2 pounds of downward pressure. Thanks to an onboard water reservoir, it didn’t have to head home to fill up as frequently as some bots do. It also has heated mop drying to help prevent the base from getting stinky — a first in this price range.
The X10 has great object recognition, allowing it to suck up Cheerios and piles of oatmeal while deftly navigating fake dog turds and cables. However, its navigation sometimes got screwy; it would go into a corner and stay there for a while, trying to figure itself out.
Read more of my Eufy X10 review.
Best robot vacuum and mop for a mix of hard floors and rugs
$500
The Good
- Self-removing mop pads
- Mop extension reaches under edges
- Self-cleaning washboard
- Dirt detection tech
The Bad
- Middling AI obstacle detection
- Single rubber roller brush
- App can be flaky
Multifunction Dock: Yes, auto empty (3L) and drain/refill (4L dirty, 4.5L clean) / Mop style: Dual spinning pads / Mop washing: Yes, hot water and hot air drying / Mop pressure: Unknown / Mop lift: Yes, 10.5 mm / Edge cleaning: Yes, mop extension Mapping: Yes, lidar / AI-powered obstacle detection: Yes / Suction power: 12,000Pa / Vacuum brush style: Single, rubber / Works with: Amazon Alexa, Google Home, Siri Shortcuts
If you have a lot of fluffy rugs or carpets as well as hard floors, the Dreame X40 Ultra is the best robot vacuum for you. It’s not quite as effective as a mop or vacuum as the Ecovacs Deebot X8, but it’s better suited for high-pile carpet and rugs because it can automatically drop and reattach its mopping pads during vacuuming, eliminating the risk of getting your rugs wet or stained. The Ecovacs X8 can only raise its mop 10mm, not remove it, so it struggles on high-pile carpets.
Along with dropping its pads, the X40 can also extend and swing them to get under your cabinets and consoles. The X8 can extend to an edge, but won’t get under those low cabinets or furniture. I watched the X40 spread its mops wide apart and swing behind my TV console, allowing it to access the dust wedged a good inch under it.
However, because the X40 features dual spinning mop pads rather than a self-cleaning roller mop, it requires more frequent returns to clean the mops, which means it takes longer to clean your home. The X40’s spinning pads are effective at scrubbing your floors, but I found the X8’s roller mop to be better overall and more consistent.
1/3
The X40 can clean its washboard and features AI-powered smart dirt detection, which uses its cameras to identify spills, such as milk, or particularly dirty areas. When it spots something, it slows down and performs a more thorough cleaning. It also has an option to just mop. These are features the Ecovacs X8 doesn’t offer.
Dreame recently released the X50 Ultra, which adds 20,000Pa suction power and the ability to climb over higher thresholds. I’m currently testing this model.
Read more of my Dream X40 Ultra review.
Best robot vacuum and mop for hardwood floors
$540
The Good
- Long roller mop
- Sleek, futuristic design
- Dual side brushes
- Square shape helps with corners
The Bad
- Middling vacuum performance
- No self-cleaning base
- No mop extension
Multifunction Dock: Yes, auto empty (2.5L) and drain/refill (2L dirty, 3L clean) / Mop style: Roller / Mop washing: Yes, warm water and hot air drying / Mop pressure: 10N, 170 RPM / Mop lift: Yes, 12mm / Edge cleaning: No Mapping: Yes, lidar / AI-powered obstacle detection: Yes / Suction power: 8,000Pa / Vacuum brush style: Rubber / Works with: Amazon Alexa, Google Home, Siri Shortcuts
If you have mostly hardwood floors, the Eufy Omni S1 Pro is an excellent option. With its sleek, high-tech design and a long 11.4-inch roller mop, this product did an excellent job of keeping the hardwood floors of my main living area spotless.
I found the Eufy’s longer roller mop to be slightly more effective than the Deebot X8’s, mopping evenly and getting up more dirt on its first pass. While there is no mop extension of edge mopping, its square shape does help it get into corners, and its dual spinning side brushes help pull in debris.
However, its vacuuming prowess is middling; this really is a dedicated mopping robot. With just 8,000Pa suction power and a small rubber brush, it did a decent job of getting up debris, but left several flakes of oatmeal, thanks to its side brushes spinning the debris out beyond the bot’s reach. Its obstacle avoidance is also fairly average; it dodged larger items but struggled with cables.
The S1’s omni station is quite eye-catching, with a tall, futuristic design, and clear water tanks with glowing lights inside — although it might be considered an eyesore, depending on your style. Usefully, everything you need to interact with is located at the top, so there’s no need to bend down: a touchscreen display provides controls and the clean and dirty water tanks are easy to remove.
If you have tile or scraped wood floors, a bot with oscillating mop pads will be better at getting into the crevices
While it has a mop lift of 12mm (which is higher than the X8’s), it really struggled on my high-pile carpets, to the point where I had to set keep-out zones around them.
Like the X8, the S1 self-cleans the mop with water jets as it’s working, and you can set how frequently it returns to the base station for a thorough clean with warm water before continuing to mop. It will also dry the mop with hot air, which is effective, if noisy.
Neither the X8 nor the S1 have self-cleaning washboards, something Dreame offers. This is where the dock automatically washes the mopping tray in the dock – Dreame’s uses little wipers that go back and forth. It still needs to be cleaned eventually, but it does help keep the ick at bay for longer.
The S1 station’s debris filter got grungy fast and required manual cleaning, although this is fairly straightforward. After a month of use, I also had to disassemble the scraper and filter inside the bot, as well as remove the roller mop. This is something you’ll need to do for all mopping bots, but the Eufy’s was the most involved process, requiring me to disassemble multiple parts.
In my testing, I found that roller mops are great for most hardwood floors, but if you have lots of tile or scraped wood floors with grooves and nooks and crannies, a bot with oscillating mop pads will be better, as these do a better job of getting into crevices such as grout lines.
Best robot vacuum and mop for tile floors
$650
The Good
- Superb mopping
- Great obstacle avoidance
- Excellent dirt detection
- Self-cleans its washboard
- Very quiet
The Bad
- Minimal mop lift
- Edge cleaning just okay
- Uses a lot of water
- App is unreliable
Multifunction Dock: Yes, auto, empty (2.5L) and drain/refill (4.1L dirty, 4.5L clean) / Mop style: Dual triangular spinning pads / Mop washing: Yes, hot air drying / Mop Pressure: 2.6lbs at 180 RPM / Mop lift: Yes, 12mm / Edge cleaning: Yes, robot swing and fluffer / Mapping: Yes, lidar / AI-powered obstacle detection: Yes / Suction power: 12,000Pa / Vacuum brush style: Single, conical rubber bristle hybrid / Works with: Amazon Alexa, Google Home, Siri Shortcut
Narwal’s latest flagship mopping bot, the Freo Z Ultra, combines everything I loved about the Freo X Ultra, and adds better vacuuming, better object avoidance, an auto-empty dock (a first for Narwal), and a fluffy side brush to polish your baseboards. It also now comes in gray (white robot vacuums are not a good idea, unless you like cleaning your robot vacuum).
With its dual, triangular spinning mop pads (the unique shape helps avoid missing spots), the Freo Z is a great choice for homes with lots of hard floors, and especially tile. The oscillating mop pads are slightly better than roller mops at getting into grout lines and other crevices found on natural surfaces. The Freo Z’s downward pressure of 2.6 lbs meant it did a great job of scrubbing up dried-on debris, excelling in my dried ketchup test, even getting the red gunk up from tile grout.
Like the Deebot X8, the Freo Z can recognize various floor materials, including tile, hardwood, and marble, and clean in the direction of the flooring, such as along the wood grain. Unlike the X8, it automatically adjusts pressure and “mopping humidity” based on the floor type, using higher humidity on tile floors than on wood floors, which can be impacted by excessive moisture. The Freo Z also self-cleans its station and has a removable tray, making maintenance easier.
The Freo Z is remarkably quiet, making it a great option for running in a bedroom
Vacuuming is much better than the Freo X, with the Z boasting 12,000Pa. While that’s not as high as the X8, the Freo Z is remarkably quiet, making it a great option for running in a primary bedroom suite where you may have a tile bathroom combined with carpet.
As with the X8, the Narwal doesn’t deal well with high-pile rugs, as there’s still only a 12 mm mop lift and no automatic mop removal. However, you can set it to perform one of four actions when it encounters a carpet: sidestep, cross it without cleaning, power boost to clean the carpet more effectively, or regular cleaning.
The obstacle detection is vastly improved and very good. A dual camera system allows the bot to not only see objects but uses AI to identify what they are and “decide” how to clean them. The best use of this I saw in testing is when there was a large puddle of water and it automatically switched to mop-only so as not to suck up liquid.
Similarly, Narwal’s dirt detect feature is very good. The bot goes back and forth over a stain or dirty area to ensure it’s clean.
My two biggest gripes with the Freo Z are that it uses a lot of water; it doesn’t have an onboard water tank, so it has to return frequently to refill — and could only clean my 800 square foot area once before I needed to refill the main tank in the dock. By comparison, the X8’s tank only needed refilling after three runs.
Additionally, its app can be frustrating. It’s not easy to navigate, gets hung up between screens, and frequently disconnects from the robot. However, unlike the X8, the Narwal has controls on top of the station to start a clean, and once I had programmed a schedule, I didn’t find myself needing to use the app much at all.
The fluffy sidebrush feels more of a novelty than a necessity and doesn’t really seem to do much. Also, at this price, it would be nice if the Narwal offered a self-cleaning washboard. However, its washboard is removable, which makes it easier to clean manually.
Best robot vacuum and mop with a plumbing hookup
$400
The Good
- Almost hands-free
- Excellent roller mop
- Self-cleans
- Battery-powered water station
- Supports Matter
The Bad
- Big and wide
- Can’t mop a second floor; it will only vacuum
- Short battery life
- Low suction power
Multifunction Dock: Yes, auto, empty (4L) and drain/refill (two separate devices) / Mop style: Roller / Mop washing: Yes (during use), hot air drying / Mop Pressure: 2.2lbs at 300 RPM / Mop lift: Yes, 7mm / Edge cleaning: No / Mapping: Yes, lidar / AI-powered obstacle detection: Yes / Suction power: 6,500Pa / Vacuum brush style: Single rubber bristle hybrid / Works with: Amazon Alexa, Google Home, Siri Shortcut, Matter
The SwitchBot S10 is a multitasking robot that hooks into your plumbing for a virtually hands-free sweeping and mopping experience. It’s one of the best robot mops I’ve tested, thanks to its self-cleaning roller mop and the fact that I never had to empty or fill its water tanks. These two features meant I could set it and forget it and have clean floors for weeks.
My other favorite feature of the S10 is its dual docking system. Its main dock is a charging / auto-empty dock, and there’s a separate battery-powered dock water station that you can put in a different room. This battery-powered dock is what makes the S10 the best plumbing hookup option, as it gives you much more flexibility with placement. Roborock, Dreame, and Narwal also have plumbing hookup docks, but they require power (I’ve not tested either of those yet).
1/5
While the SwitchBot is a decent vacuum, it’s not the best. Its relatively paltry 6,500Pa of suction power is low compared to the competition, but the bot’s weight did help the rubber roller brush dig into the carpet and get up most of the cat hair.
S10 frequently got stuck on clothes left on my floor and bath mats — which are the bane of most mopping bots
Other downsides include the AI obstacle avoidance, which isn’t great. The S10 frequently got stuck on clothes left on my floor and bath mats, its battery life is short, and it lacks high-end features like dirt detection. There is also no edge cleaning function, meaning it didn’t do a great job along baseboards and around furniture.
SwitchBot recently released the Switchbot S20 ($480 $799.99), which looks like the Pro model that made its debut at CES. The upgrade addresses some of my issues with the S10, including adding an extendable roller mop and side brush to add edge cleaning, as well as 15,000Pa. It also comes with the option of two all-in-one auto-empty base stations: one with a regular water tank you manually refill, or one that can hook into your plumbing. But it will also work with the battery-powered water station. I plan on testing this soon.
Read my full SwitchBot S10 review.
What I’m currently testing and what’s coming next
- We’re currently in the process of testing the $329.99
$549.99Roborock Q10 S5 Plus Robot Vacuum and Mop, but so far are impressed. It delivers 10,000Pa of suction power and uses a sonic mop that scrubs floors 3,000 times per minute. It also comes with a 2.7-liter self-emptying base that can hold up to 70 days’ worth of debris, along with room-specific cleaning, no-go zones, and customizable cleaning schedules. - As mentioned before, Ecovacs recently released a successor to the Deebot X8 Pro Omni, aptly called the X9 Pro Omni ($1,299.99). It sports a roller mop like the X8 Pro, but the big difference is that the new model is designed to optimize airflow from intake to exhaust rather than relying solely on suction power. The upgrade could lead to better deep-cleaning.
- The Ecovacs X11 OmniCyclone ($1,099.99
$1,499.99) is a bagless robot vac that features a roller mop and an impressive 19,500Pa of suction. It comes with a multifunction dock, and its mop can extend up to 15mm to reach into corners. It should also handle floor transitions well, thanks to its built-in mechanical climbing levers. - The Dyson Spot+Scrub Ai Robot comes with a multifunctional dock along with a self-cleaning roller mop, lidar navigation, and onboard cameras that can detect stains and clean accordingly. The company has yet to release details about its price or release date, though you can read our hands-on for more details.
- The Eureka J15 Max Ultra ($1,199) can detect liquids with precision and automatically rotate its body to clean wet spills using its dual spinning pads, all while keeping its vacuum duct dry, which most mopping vacs can’t manage.
- Roborock’s Saros 10 ($1,299.99
$1,599.99) and Saros 10R ($999.99$1,599.99) are upgrades to my pick for the best overall robot vacuum, the S8 MaxV Ultra. Both can automatically remove their mop pads when not needed, which is a new option for Roborock. One uses dual spinning mops, the other a flat vibrating pad. - Roborock also recently released the Saros Z70 ($1,999.99
$2,599), the first mass-produced robovac to feature a robotic arm that can pick up light objects — including socks, tissues, and sandals. The arm isn’t the most reliable, and the vacuum occasionally struggles with correctly identifying items, but it’s otherwise an excellent model with 22,000Pa of suction power and dual spinning mop pads that it can remove on its own. Read our review. - Roborock’s cheaper Qrevo Curv ($899.99
$1,599.99) also has dual spinning mop pads (which you have to remove) and can raise itself to clear thresholds up to 40mm. The company’s Qrevo Slim ($799.99$1,399.99) offers similar functions but features a new navigation system and lacks a lidar tower, allowing it to fit under low furniture. - iRobot’s new Roomba lineup features two models with dual spinning mopping pads and auto-wash docks. The new Roomba Plus 505 Combo Robot Plus AutoWash Dock ($549.99
$999.99) also offers heated mop drying, a feature the higher-end Roomba Combo 10 Max lacks. However, in early testing, the 505 has shown some problems, including failing to return to its dock. The redesigned Roomba app has also been unexpectedly fiddly and less intuitive than the older version used by previous models. It’s also worth noting that iRobot’s future is extremely uncertain. While it is able to work offline, if the company closes, then app and voice-control support could be affected. - iRobot also recently introduced an upgraded version of the Roomba Max 705, the Roomba Max 705 Combo, which is available for $899.99
$1,299.99. Like the Max 705, it features dual rubber roller brushes that are resistant to tangling, along with AI-powered obstacle detection. It also comes with a unique roller mop cover that automatically deploys as it cleans, as well as a design that allows the mop to extend into corners and clean along wall edges. - Priced at $699.99 (with code WS24T2352111), Eufy’s new Robot Vacuum Omni E28 is a self-emptying, self-refilling, and self-washing robot vacuum with a rolling mop that can go over tough stains a second time if needed. The charging dock also includes a built-in deep cleaner that sprays water to tackle stains before sucking the mess into a separate wastewater tank.
- The recently launched Narwal Flow costs $1,099.99 with code NFLOW
$1,499.99, and features the company’s first roller mop, which can also extend. We haven’t spent any time with it yet, but Narwal claims it can easily tackle thick, fluffy carpets thanks to its deep carpet boost mode. - The Matic is a $1,245 robot vacuum that doesn’t need a cloud connection to work and can suck up wet spills as well as dry ones. This is easily one of the smartest cleaners I’ve tried, with great mapping and cleaning performance that feels surprisingly close to what a person would typically achieve. It’s also simple to run, easy to maintain, and reliable. We’ll have a full review soon, but for now, here’s some video of it in action.
- The $1,099.99 Eureka J20 features a very wide roller mop but only 8,000Pa suction, but it is no longer available on Eureka’s website. The new J15 Max Ultra ($1,199.99) can accurately spot liquids and automatically rotate its body to tackle wet spills with its dual spinning mopping pads. It’s an upgrade to the J15 Pro Ultra ($999.99), which can identify colored liquids but not clear or white ones.
- The Dreame X50 Ultra ($899.99
$1,699.99with code X50UXM) features a “motorized swing arm” that functions like a leg, enabling the robovac to climb over transitions up to 6cm tall. Otherwise, it’s a lot like the X40 Ultra in this guide, only with higher suction power and a retractable lidar tower. - The Switchbot S20 ($639.99 with code KLKS20,
$799.99), which resembles the Pro model announced at CES earlier this year, is now available. It’s essentially the successor to our previous pick for the best mopping vacuum, the Switchbot S10, with an extendable roller mop / side brush and 15,000Pa of suction power. - SharkNinja’s PowerDetect NeverTouch Pro 2-in-1 robot vacuum mop ($599.99
$999.99) can lift itself up as high as 20mm to get over rugs and transitions. Its automatic empty /wash / dry cleaning station doesn’t require bags, either. - The $999.99
$1,599.99(with code M10UXM) Dreame Aqua10 Ultra Roller Complete features a roller-style mopping system that continuously cleans itself in real time. Its companion model, the Aqua10 Ultra Track Complete, adds hot-water mopping and automatically adds cleaning solution as it moves about, so you don’t have to stop and refill anything. - The $1,599.99
$1,999.99(with code M10UXM) Dreame Matrix 10 Ultra comes with a multi-mop switching dock, one that lets it automatically swap between nylon scrub pads, sponge pads, and thermal mop pads based on where it’s cleaning. Its three-solution compartment also holds separate cleaners aimed at tackling pet odors, wood floors, and general messes, which the robovac will dispense on its own depending on the situation.
Photography by Jennifer Pattison Tuohy / The Verge
Update, December 8th: Adjusted pricing / availability. Mentioned the Ecovacs X11 OmniCyclone, Dyson Spot+Scrub Ai Robot, and Eureka J15 Max Ultra, while adding information regarding the Roborock Q10 S5 Plus and iRobot’s latest Roombas. Sheena Vasani also contributed to this post.
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Towerborne, a side-scrolling action RPG published by Xbox Game Studios that has been available in early access, will officially launch on February 26th. But instead of launching as a free-to-play, always-on online game as originally planned, Towerborne is instead going to be a paid game that you can play offline.
“You will own the complete experience permanently, with offline play and online co-op,” Trisha Stouffer, CEO and president of Towerborne developer Stoic, says in an Xbox Wire blog post. “This change required deep structural rebuilding over the past year, transforming systems originally designed around constant connectivity. The result is a stronger, more accessible, and more player-friendly version of Towerborne — one we’re incredibly proud to bring to launch.”
“After listening to our community during Early Access and Game Preview, we learned players wanted a complete, polished experience without ongoing monetization mechanics,” according to an FAQ. “Moving to a premium model lets us deliver the full game upfront—no live-service grind, no pay-to-win systems—just the best version of Towerborne.”
With the popular live service games like Fortnite and Roblox getting harder to usurp, Towerborne’s switch to a premium, offline-playable experience could make it more enticing for players who don’t want to jump into another time-sucking forever game. It makes Towerborne more appealing to me, at least.
With the 1.0 release of the game, Towerborne will have a “complete” story, new bosses, and a “reworked” difficulty system. You’ll also be able to acquire all in-game cosmetics for free through gameplay, with “no more cosmetic purchasing.” Players who are already part of early access will still be able to play the game.
Towerborne will launch on February 26th on Xbox Series X / S, Xbox on PC, Game Pass, Steam, and PS5. The standard edition will cost $24.99, while the deluxe edition will cost $29.99.
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Cybercriminals have found a clever new way to get phishing emails straight into inboxes.
Instead of spoofing brands, they are abusing real cloud tools that people already trust. Security researchers say attackers recently hijacked a legitimate email feature inside Google Cloud.
The result was thousands of phishing messages that looked and felt like normal Google notifications. Many slipped past spam filters with ease.
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How this Google Cloud phishing attack worked
At the center of the campaign was Google Cloud Application Integration. This service allows businesses to send automated email notifications from workflows they build. Attackers exploited the Send Email task inside that system. Because the messages came from a real Google address, they appeared authentic to both users and security tools.
According to Check Point, a global cybersecurity firm that tracks and analyzes large-scale threat campaigns, the emails were sent from a legitimate Google-owned address and closely matched Google’s notification style. Fonts, wording, and layout all looked familiar. Over a two-week period in December 2025, attackers sent more than 9,000 phishing emails targeting roughly 3,200 organizations across the U.S., Europe, Canada, Asia Pacific, and Latin America.
Attackers used trusted Google Cloud infrastructure to route victims through multiple redirects before revealing the scam. (Thomas Fuller/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
MALICIOUS CHROME EXTENSIONS CAUGHT STEALING SENSITIVE DATA
Why Google phishing emails were so convincing
The messages looked like routine workplace alerts. Some claimed you had received a voicemail. Others said you were granted access to a shared document, like a Q4 file. That sense of normalcy lowered suspicion. Many people are used to seeing these exact messages every day. Even more concerning, the emails bypassed common protections like SPF and DMARC because they were sent through Google-owned infrastructure. To email systems, nothing looked fake.
What happens after you click
The attack did not stop at the email. Once a victim clicked the link, they were sent to a page hosted on storage.cloud.google.com. That added another layer of trust. From there, the link redirected again to googleusercontent.com. Next came a fake CAPTCHA or image check. This step blocked automated security scanners while letting real users continue. After passing that screen, victims landed on a fake Microsoft login page hosted on a non-Microsoft domain. Any credentials entered there were captured by the attackers.
Who was targeted in the Google Cloud phishing attack
Check Point says the campaign focused heavily on industries that rely on automated alerts and shared documents. That included manufacturing, technology, finance, professional services, and retail. Other sectors like healthcare, education, government, energy, travel and media were also targeted. These environments see constant permission requests and file-sharing notices, which made the lures feel routine.
“We have blocked several phishing campaigns involving the misuse of an email notification feature within Google Cloud Application Integration,” a Google spokesperson told Cyberguy. “Importantly, this activity stemmed from the abuse of a workflow automation tool, not a compromise of Google’s infrastructure. While we have implemented protections to defend users against this specific attack, we encourage continued caution as malicious actors frequently attempt to spoof trusted brands. We are taking additional steps to prevent further misuse.”
The incident demonstrates how attackers can weaponize legitimate cloud automation tools without resorting to traditional spoofing.
Ways to stay safe from trusted-looking phishing emails
Phishing emails are getting harder to spot, especially when attackers abuse real cloud platforms like Google Cloud. These steps help reduce risk when emails look familiar and legitimate.
1) Slow down before acting on alerts
Attackers rely on urgency. Messages about voicemails, shared files or permission changes are designed to make you click fast. Pause before taking action. Ask yourself whether you were actually expecting that alert. If not, verify it another way.
2) Inspect links before you click
Always hover over links to preview the destination domain. In this campaign, links jumped across multiple trusted-looking Google domains before landing on a fake login page. If the final destination does not match the service asking you to sign in, close the page immediately.
3) Treat file access and permission emails with caution
Shared document alerts are a favorite lure because they feel routine at work. If an email claims you were granted access to a file you do not recognize, do not click directly from the message. Instead, open your browser and sign in to Google Drive or OneDrive manually to check for new files.
The final step led users to a fake Microsoft login page, where entered credentials were silently stolen. (Stack Social)
4) Use a password manager to catch fake login pages
Password managers can be a strong last line of defense. They will not autofill credentials on fake Microsoft or Google login pages hosted on non-official domains. If your password manager refuses to fill in a login, that is a red flag worth paying attention to.
Next, see if your email has been exposed in past breaches. Our #1 password manager (see Cyberguy.com/Passwords) pick includes a built-in breach scanner that checks whether your email address or passwords have appeared in known leaks. If you discover a match, immediately change any reused passwords and secure those accounts with new, unique credentials.
Check out the best expert-reviewed password managers of 2025 at Cyberguy.com.
NEW GOOGLE AI MAKES ROBOTS SMARTER WITHOUT THE CLOUD
5) Run strong antivirus software with phishing protection
Modern antivirus tools do more than scan files. Many now detect malicious links, fake CAPTCHA pages, and credential harvesting sites in real time. Strong antivirus software can block phishing pages even after a click, which matters in multi-stage attacks like this one.
The best way to safeguard yourself from malicious links that install malware, potentially accessing your private information, is to have strong antivirus software installed on all your devices. This protection can also alert you to phishing emails and ransomware scams, keeping your personal information and digital assets safe.
Get my picks for the best 2025 antivirus protection winners for your Windows, Mac, Android & iOS devices at Cyberguy.com.
6) Reduce your exposure with a data removal service
Phishing campaigns often succeed because attackers already know your email, employer or role. That information is commonly pulled from data broker sites. A data removal service helps remove your personal information from these databases, making it harder for attackers to craft convincing, targeted emails.
While no service can guarantee the complete removal of your data from the internet, a data removal service is really a smart choice. They aren’t cheap, and neither is your privacy. These services do all the work for you by actively monitoring and systematically erasing your personal information from hundreds of websites. It’s what gives me peace of mind and has proven to be the most effective way to erase your personal data from the internet. By limiting the information available, you reduce the risk of scammers cross-referencing data from breaches with information they might find on the dark web, making it harder for them to target you.
Check out my top picks for data removal services and get a free scan to find out if your personal information is already out on the web by visiting Cyberguy.com.
Get a free scan to find out if your personal information is already out on the web: Cyberguy.com.
7) Enable two-factor authentication (2FA) everywhere
Even if attackers steal your password, two-factor authentication (2FA) can stop them from accessing your account. Use app-based authentication or hardware keys when possible, especially for work email, cloud storage, and Microsoft accounts.
8) Report suspicious emails immediately
If something feels off, report it. Flag suspicious Google or Microsoft alerts to your IT or security team so they can warn others. Early reporting can stop a phishing campaign before it spreads further inside an organization.
Google phishing emails looked like routine workplace alerts. (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)
Kurt’s key takeaways
This campaign highlights a growing shift in phishing tactics. Attackers no longer need to fake brands when they can abuse trusted cloud services directly. As automation becomes more common, security awareness matters more than ever. Even familiar emails deserve a second look, especially when they push urgency or ask for credentials.
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If a phishing email comes from a real Google address, how confident are you that you would spot it before clicking? Let us know by writing to us at Cyberguy.com.
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You can’t shake a stick without hitting an AI gadget at CES this year, with artificial smarts now embedded in just about every wearable, screen, and appliance across the show floor, not to mention the armies of AI companions, toys, and robots.
But those are just the beginning. We’ve seen AI pop up in much stranger places too, from hair clippers to stick vacs, and at least one case where even the manufacturer itself seemed unsure what made its products “AI.”
Here are the gadgets we’ve seen at CES 2026 so far that really take the “intelligence” out of “artificial intelligence.”
Glyde smart hair clippers
This is a product that would be silly enough without the AI add-on. These smart hair clippers help amateur hairdressers deliver the perfect fade by dynamically altering the closeness of the cut, helped along by an ominous face mask that looks like it belongs in an optician’s office.
But it’s taken to the next level by the real-time AI coach, which gives you feedback as you cut. Glyde told me it’s working on voice controls for the AI too, and that eventually it will be able to recommend specific hairstyles, so long as you’re willing to trust its style advice. Are you?
“Where Pills meet AI.”
That was the message emblazoned across the SleepQ booth, where company reps were handing out boxes of pills — a multivitamin with ashwagandha extract according to the box, supposedly good for sleep, though I wasn’t brave enough to test that claim on my jetlag.
Manufacturer Welt, originally spun out of a Samsung incubator, calls its product “AI-upgraded pharmacotherapy.” It’s really just using biometric data from your smartwatch or sleep tracker to tell you the optimal time to take a sleeping pill each day, with plans to eventually cover anxiety meds, weight-management drugs, pain relief, and more.
There may well be an argument that fine-tuning the time people pop their pills could make them more effective, but I feel safe in saying we don’t need to start throwing around the term “AI-enhanced drugs.”
Startup Deglace claims that its almost unnecessarily sleek-looking Fraction vacuum cleaner uses AI in two different ways: first to “optimize suction,” and then to manage repairs and replacements for the modular design.
It says its Neural Predictive AI monitors vacuum performance “to detect issues before they happen,” giving you health scores for each of the vacuum’s components, which can be conveniently replaced with a quick parts order from within the accompanying app. A cynic might worry this is all in the name of selling users expensive and proprietary replacement parts, but I can at least get behind the promise of modular upgrades — assuming Deglace is able to deliver on that promise.
Most digital picture frames let you display photos of loved ones, old holiday snaps, or your favorite pieces of art. Fraimic lets you display AI slop.
It’s an E Ink picture frame with a microphone and voice controls, so you can describe whatever picture you’d like, which the frame will then generate using OpenAI’s GPT Image 1.5 model. The frame itself starts at $399, which gets you 100 image generations each year, with the option to buy more if you run out.
What makes the AI in Fraimic so dubious is that it might be a pretty great product without it. The E Ink panel looks great, you can use it to show off your own pictures and photos too, and it uses so little power that it can run for years without being plugged in. We’d just love it a lot more without the added slop.
Infinix, a smaller phone manufacturer that’s had success across Asia for its affordable phones, didn’t launch any actual new products at CES this year, but it did bring five concepts that could fit into future phones. Some are clever, like various color-changing rear finishes and a couple of liquid-cooling designs. And then there’s the AI ModuVerse.
Modular phone concepts are nothing new, so the AI hook is what makes ModuVerse unique — in theory. One of the “Modus” makes sense: a meeting attachment that connects magnetically, generating AI transcripts and live translation onto a mini display on the back.
But when I asked what made everything else AI, Infinix didn’t really have any good answers. The gimbal camera has AI stabilization, the vlogging lens uses AI to detect faces, and the microphone has AI voice isolation — all technically AI-based, but not in any way that’s interesting. As for the magnetic, stackable power banks, Infinix’s reps eventually admitted they don’t really have any AI at all. Color me shocked.
There’s a growing trend for AI and robotic cooking hardware — The Verge’s Jen Tuohy reviewed a $1,500 robot chef just last month — but Wan AIChef is something altogether less impressive: an AI-enabled microwave.
It runs on what looks suspiciously like Android, with recipe suggestions, cooking instructions, and a camera inside so you can see the progress of what you’re making. But… it’s just a microwave. So it can’t actually do any cooking for you, other than warm up your food to just the right temperature (well, just right plus or minus 3 degrees Celsius, to be accurate).
It’ll do meal plans and food tracking and calorie counting too, which all sounds great so long as you’re willing to commit to eating all of your meals out of the AI microwave. Please, I beg you, do not eat all of your meals out of the AI microwave.
The tech industry absolutely loves reinventing the vending machine and branding it either robotics or AI, and AI Barmen is no different.
This setup — apparently already in use for private parties and corporate events — is really just an automatic cocktail machine with a few AI smarts slapped on top.
The AI uses the connected webcam to estimate your age — it was off by eight years in my case — and confirm you’re sober enough to get another drink. It can also create custom drinks, with mixed success: When asked for something to “fuck me up,” it came up with the Funky Tequila Fizz, aka tequila, triple sec, and soda. What, no absinthe?
Photo: Dominic Preston / The Verge
Should you buy your kid an AI toy that gives it a complete LLM-powered chatbot to speak to? Probably not. But what if that AI chatbot looked like chibi Elon Musk?
He’s just one of the many avatars offered by the Luka AI Cube, including Hayao Miyazaki, Steve from Minecraft, and Harry Potter. Kids can chat to them about their day, ask for advice, or even share the AI Cube’s camera feed to show the AI avatars where they are and what they’re up to. Luka says it’s a tool for fun, but also learning, with various educational activities and language options.
The elephant in the room is whether you should trust any company’s guardrails enough to give a young kid access to an LLM. Leading with an AI take on Elon Musk — whose own AI, Grok, is busy undressing children as we speak — doesn’t exactly inspire confidence.
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