[REVIEW] Viomi S9 is one of the best Chinese vacuum cleaners that can empty itself

If you follow the trends in the field of robotic vacuum cleaners or read our website, you must have noticed the novelty of recent months - the system of automatic emptying of the dust container in the vacuum cleaner. We got one of such vacuum cleaners into the editorial office - VIOMI S9.

We not only tested automatic emptying, but also subjected it to our vacuum and mop quality test. You can read our observations in a detailed review. We have already tested the VIOMI SE robotic vacuum cleaner from the VIOMI brand, with which we were very satisfied, so our expectations are high.

Where to buy VIOMI S9?

The VIOMI S9 robotic vacuum cleaner is currently available at several retailers such as Banggood, Geekbuying, Aliexpress or DHGate. The great thing is that it is available in European warehouses at all retailers, so delivery will be extremely fast. At the same time, you don't have to worry about any customs fees or VAT.

Basic parameters and properties

Probably the biggest attraction of this vacuum cleaner is the advanced system Dumping 2.0, thanks to which its dirt container is automatically emptied. The charging station has a disposable dust bag with a volume of 3 L and a 381 mm long pipe through which all dirt from the vacuum cleaner is transferred to the waste bag.

Thanks to the short pipe with only one joint, emptying is quick and trouble-free. Other systems use a much longer multi-joint pipe to drain, which is fed to the vacuum cleaner from below. This system is slower and less efficient.

Its sucking power is 2700 Pa, which is taken care of by an advanced and quiet carbonless engine, which adds to the excellent durability. The vacuum cleaner can also automatically detect that it is on the carpet when it exerts more pressure.

It does not lack quality HEPA filter a 5200 mAh batterywhich is enough for about 3.6 hours operation. It can clean up to 320 m². Of course, the VIOMI S9 can also wash the floor. It has it 250 ml water container.

There are 3 levels of vacuuming as well as 3 levels of floor washing. A great feature is that the vacuum cleaner can remember maps of several rooms and even several floors. It can also be used in large family houses or villas. It can then automatically recognize which room it is in.

VIOMI S9 has at the top 360-degree laserwho takes care of scanning the space. Laser technology is extremely accurate (less than 2% deviation) and fast. It can scan up to 6 times 360 ° in one second up to a distance of 8 meters. The robotic vacuum cleaner can also overcome obstacles up to a maximum height of 2 cm.

Also of interest is the sterilizing UV system, which kills up to 99.99% of bacteria.

Rich packaging with accessories, design and layout of elements

As the vacuum cleaner has a larger docking station, this was also reflected in the dimensions of the package. The box has 41,5 x 41,5 x 43.5 cm and is placed in another protective, cardboard box, which is very strong and protects the whole package well.

Inside, the vacuum cleaner is stored in a non-traditional, vertical position. Next to it is a docking station, a water container with a mop and also a small box with accessories. There is also a clear instruction manual in English.

In addition to a vacuum cleaner, a docking station for automatic emptying and a mop with a cloth, we will also find additional accessories here, which is not usual. Specifically, we receive a spare three-armed whisk, which collects dirt under the vacuum cleaner, 10 pieces of disposable moping cloths and 3 dust bags, which are inserted into the docking station. In addition, this accessory will please and we would welcome it with other vacuum cleaners.

As for the design, it is very successful from our point of view. We had the vacuum cleaner available in elegant white with blue elements. It is also available in black. The LDS 2.0 space scanning laser system is located in the middle of the upper part, where we find 2 more buttons - on / off and return to the docking station.

There is a bumper around the perimeter, with which the vacuum cleaner detects obstacles by impacts and several sensors. Unlike the VIOMI SE model, here the dust container is inserted from the rear. We do not have an opening top here, which increases the overall strength of the structure. The dust container easily slides out of the back and also includes charging connectors and an opening for automatic vacuuming of dust into a bag in the docking station.

The lower part is already classic and there are wheels, a removable rotating brush, a three-arm rotating brush and anti-fall sensors. In addition, we have a very interesting novelty here in the form of a UV sterilization strip, which is located between the rotating brush and the front, small wheel.

Docking station and first turn on

The docking station itself is, for obvious reasons, significantly larger than we are used to with robotic vacuum cleaners and has dimensions of approximately 25 x 19 x 36 cm. In the lower part there is an opening for sucking dirt from the vacuum cleaner and charging connectors. There are air holes on the sides and the front has an LED display that can show the current state of the vacuum cleaner battery and the status of the waste bag.

The docking station opens from the top and you will only find a dust bag, a brief description of its installation and a small brush for cleaning the rotary brush from hair and other dirt. The docking station does not switch off, it is active whenever it is connected to the mains and does not display any data while the vacuum cleaner is charging or operating. These are only displayed when the vacuum cleaner is connected and emptied.

The first switch-on thus consists in connecting the docking station to the electricity and switching on the vacuum cleaner itself with a button in the upper part. After switching on, the vacuum cleaner is ready to pair with the application, about which it also informs you with clear voice instructions.

Add to Mi Home

Because the VIOMI brand belongs to the Xiaomi ecosystem, the vacuum cleaner can be added to the Xiaomi Home (Mi Home) application. Pairing is very simple and fast, similar to any product. The vacuum cleaner appeared to us automatically in the application, as the smartphone detected it near it.

If this does not happen, just search for a specific model in the list or scan its QR code. Subsequently, we entered data about our WiFi network and the vacuum cleaner automatically paired with the application. The last step is to name the vacuum cleaner and place it in the room.

During the first vacuuming, a map of the spaces gradually appears in the application. The vacuum cleaner first went around the perimeter of the first room, which it immediately vacuumed with a well-known system, and so it moved to the next room.

In the same way gradually passed through all the rooms in the apartment. We tested the VIOMI S9 in a three-room apartment. Thresholds higher than 2 cm, which can not overcome lead to the bathroom and toilet. We didn't even let him into the closet, so the total area he was able to vacuum is 37 m². The first vacuuming took 43 minutes.

The next vacuuming was faster and took 37 minutes.

Automatic emptying

After each vacuuming, the VIOMI S9 automatically connects to the docking station, where the contents of its dust container are emptied. Everything happens automatically and the docking station with waste bag sucks all the dust out of the vacuum cleaner. During this process, the noise level rises significantly, but the whole process takes only a few seconds.

During this operation, the docking station displays on its LED display information about the current capacity of the battery in the vacuum cleaner, as well as information about the current status of the waste bag. The detailed filling level of the bag is not available, but the docking station can notify us if the bag needs to be replaced.

When the emptying process is completed, the LED display goes out and no longer shows any data. We are missing a button that would allow us to display the information on this screen, at least for a few seconds.

Our observations, levels and quality of vacuuming

The robotic vacuum cleaner VIOMI S9 vacuums very well and, moreover, its speed of vacuuming is relatively high. We were also surprised by the quick response to the instruction to start vacuuming from the application. The vacuum cleaner reacts almost immediately after pressing the "Start" button, when it immediately disconnects from the docking station and goes into space.

We also like the placement of elements in the application. The mode settings (vacuuming, moping or vacuuming with moping), vacuuming and moping levels are located directly on the home screen, below the current map. The upper part shows the floor area, vacuuming time and the remaining battery capacity in percent.

We see the disadvantage in the method of discovering obstacles. The VIOMI S9 does not have a camera or any sensors that would allow it to avoid and go around obstacles. Namiit also bumps into obstacles, like most robotic vacuum cleaners. However, the shocks are sometimes quite violent. It did not happen to us that the vacuum cleaner overturned anything, but we secured the premises in advance so that this would not happen.

Moving around the rooms and vacuuming or moping itself are seamless. During a few weeks of testing, our vacuum cleaner only got stuck once, when it got into a very narrow space from which it could not get out. When vacuuming carpets we see a significant slowdown and sometimes it happened to us that the vacuum cleaner on the carpet with longer hair spent more time than we would expect.

We have traditionally tested the quality of vacuuming on the tiles in the kitchen, where we scattered breadcrumbs mixed with coffee and red lentils. For a better idea, we enclose a photo of the floor before vacuuming:

However, after the first vacuuming at the highest level, some dirt remained on the floor. The coffee disappeared, but the vacuum cleaner could not vacuum the crumb or the lens perfectly. Even after the second vacuuming, the paving was not perfectly clean. A few dirt still stuck in the joints between the tiles.

As for noise, we measured it using a digital noise meter in all modes:

• quiet - 56 dB
• standard - 60 dB
• medium - 70 dB
• strong - 72 dB
• during emptying - 75 dB

Moping quality

As we mentioned in the introduction, the package contains 10 pieces of disposable mops and one cloth. We used a cloth. There is moping available in three levels - levels 1 to 3. Since robotic vacuum cleaners usually do not spoil the quality of moping, we used the highest level.

Again, we poured water diluted with cocoa and food coloring on the kitchen tiles, which we let dry. Then we sent a vacuum cleaner to wash the kitchen. You can see a photo of the floor before moping below:

After the first moping, the vacuum cleaner was able to wash off smaller stains. After the second, almost all of them were removed, and after the third mop, the floor was almost perfectly clean. Only a small stain of food coloring remained. The vacuum cleaner moped in Y mode, so it passed each place multiple times, making moping more efficient than most other robotic vacuum cleaners.

Hold on one charge

manufacturer indicates endurance up to 3.6 h per charge. However, we did not find anywhere under what conditions and in which fashion such endurance was measured. The vacuum cleaner has a 5200 mAh battery and should vacuum 320 m².

We first tested the endurance at the highest suction power, during which the vacuum cleaner managed to cross our apartment almost 3 times (a total of 105 m²) and it took him 1 hour and 50 minutes. In the standard mode, our apartment vacuumed almost 4 times (a total of 127 m²) and it took him 2 hours and 15 minutes.

Map customization

VIOMI S9 can divide the space into individual rooms right after the first vacuuming. We liked that each room got its own unique color and number. Other vacuum cleaners usually have only a very limited range of colors available, so that several rooms get the same color.

If we don't like auto-splitting or want to change something, map management is available. Here you can change the division of the map into rooms, rename them, mark virtual walls or forbidden zones. There is also the possibility of vacuuming only the marked area or individual point.

Rooms can be combined or divided and we can also name them with our own names, not just the default ones.

Settings in Mi Home

The settings in the application offer several customization options. Here you will find one-time vacuuming along the edges of the premises, repeated vacuuming, records of previous cleanings and do not disturb the mode. The choice of moping style is interesting. You can choose between S and Y modes, which represent the shape of the vacuum cleaner paths. S mode is a classic that we all know well. Mode Y goes through the space better, but it takes a little longer.

In the settings, we can also select the map if we have multi-storey spaces, or delete the map. There are 3 languages ​​in which the vacuum cleaner can speak to you. These are English, Chinese and German. You can also adjust the volume.

You will also find status displays of individual components and accessories (brush, mop, side brush and filter), vacuum cleaner search, remote control, renaming the vacuum cleaner in the application, sharing the device with other users, automation and other settings offered by most robotic vacuum cleaners.

VIOMI S9: Final Evaluation

VIOMI S9 is a quality robotic vacuum cleaner with automatic emptying of the dust container. This feature is excellent and relieves you from the laborious emptying of the container from the vacuum cleaner, which often makes you get dirty. Thanks to this system, which works well, all you have to do is throw a full bag of dust out of the docking station once in a while and insert a new one. The system is excellent especially for dust allergy sufferers and those who want to move the level in automatic vacuuming to a new level.

We also appreciate the novelty in the form of UV sterilization and several disposable mops and waste bags in the basic packaging.

A minor disadvantage is the increased noise during the automatic emptying of the dust container and the detection of obstacles by the impact of the vacuum cleaner. But overall, this is a very successful vacuum cleaner with new technology at an affordable price.