I have the S5, not the max. I use HA to schedule the vacuum Monday to Thursday, if nobody is home (although I’ve had to tweak this for covid-19). I only use the app for room cleaning or mopping, since I don’t use them much, and therefore not worthwhile automating.
Since I only use the Mi Home app, I don’t know if I lose any functionality, but there is nothing extra I’m wanting - it was updated with the room detection version some months ago.
The quality of the mopping is “better than nothing”, but it should be better on the max given it has “precision water control”. I would use it more if it was better (and maybe for the whole house rather than just the lino in the kitchen).
If you’ve never used a robot vacuum, the most important question is whether or not it will work effectively in your circumstances. Some of the considerations:
young kids mean prying fingers and little toys to be sucked up (shoelaces are a big problem)
doors that don’t fully open, where the vacuum can get behind and shut itself in a room
dark rugs that trigger the cliff sensors (I use 3d-printed covers to fix this).
power cables, or worse still, phone charger or laptop cables
weird little nooks between furniture or the spaces between chair legs where it can get confused and stuck. In my house this happens about once a month in the same spot when the couch and bean-bag and pedestal lamp have moved. Also, I put the dining chairs on the table beforehand, mainly to ensure it cleans well underneath (we are slobs).
pets
multiple floors (I think the max supports it, whereas mine does not).
If you pass these issues, I would strongly recommend getting one. I had an LG that made it home 10% of the time, whereas the roborock makes it 99% of the time.
I did own a couple of robo-vacuum over 10 years ago actually (iRobot’s) and I didn’t find them that good to be honest (also very expensive to maintain in the long run).
I am hoping the newer models finally offer better cleaning abilities and also the RoboRock brand seems cheaper to maintain…
Anyway, I don’t consider the robo-vac as primary vacuum device (got a bigger Dyson for the major cleaning operations).
Regarding the problem you mentioned about the robot getting suck in same places - does your model have the “no-go zone” / “no-go Line” features ? I am aware of this type of issues and was under the impression such a feature would be a good remedy… (does your robot have it AND is it supported if you initiate clean cycle from Home-Assistant ?
Thanks again and hoping to hear a few more such reviews before I make my decision
I love mine and it works well with the roborock app and HA if you use the custom component „roborock communication“
I use HA just to use a zigbee button to start a cleaning cycle, but that works well.
The robot itself is working fine, main issue is with cords and laces of toys the kids leave on the floor. Navigation works impressively well, it also fits nicely under our 10cm low bed. Just like most other bots it does not like very steep ramps.
I too have the Roborock S5 (not max) and find it great for cleaning up the house. It does an amazing job of carpet too. I haven’t tried out the mop function yet.
Yes the no-go zones work. I just hadn’t set them up for that area because it’s only a problem sometimes, but you’ve prompted me to do so. Older non-LIDAR vacuums like the LG I had are a bit hit-and-miss, and my couch legs have scratches as a result. It also used to push light objects around the room, whereas the roborock has no such problems. It is my main downstairs vacuum, even though I also have a Dyson stick. The kids rooms upstairs are way too messy for a robot.
Been a while since i tried the mii home app, but as far as i remember the official ones is better with maps, storing different maps, setting zones and so on.
I haven’t tried that integration you mention, but I will see if i can get it to work.
We have the S5 Max. I’d say that the vacuum works well and the mop is not bad. We only use the mop once a week or so (because you have to fill the tank, put the pad on etc.). I just use the built in Xiaomi integration. The biggest pain was getting the ‘token’ that you need to make it work. It used to be easy, but that’s gone. I use the MI Home app. I ended up installing a PC Android emulator to run the app and get the token.
Once you have the token, the built in integration works fine. It took a bit of trial and error, but I got all the room codes (segments). I then setup scripts/buttons so my wife can just click a room on her tablet and it sends the vacuum to do that room.
I don’t want to sound like an ad, but if your interested in the S5 Max and you have prime, it’s really quite cheap for Prime Day.
