Today, we’re reviewing the 3i S10 Ultra, the first robot vacuum to feature an integrated dehumidifier that keeps its clean water tank full, along with a wastewater recycling system. We bought one and in this 3i S10 Ultra Robot Vacuum review, you’ll find our findings after weeks of thorough evaluations in various scenarios. We’ll go over the features, pros, and cons of the 3i S10 Ultra and reveal whether it earned a spot on the Vacuum Wars Top 20 Robot Vacuum list.
The 3i S10 Ultra Robot Vacuum and Mop introduces the world’s first WaterRecycle System, which recycles and distills wastewater into a continuous supply of purified water—no plumbing or drainage needed. Its UltraReach Extendable Roller Mop, spinning at 330 rpm with 12 spray holes, delivers a constant 7N mopping pressure and automatically extends for millimeter-precision edge cleaning. Powered by 13,000Pa suction, it tackles dirt, hair, and debris on carpets and hard floors. Advanced AI algorithms, dToF LiDAR, and Dual 3D Structured Light provide seamless navigation and obstacle avoidance, while the Dual Anti-Tangle main brush prevents hair clogs. The 12-in-1 dock enables automatic mop washing, drying, and self-emptying for up to 60 days of hands-free cleaning. Easily set up custom cleaning via the 3i App, or control it using Alexa and Google Assistant.See additional info
Price as of March 28, 2025
Auto Empty Station: Self Empties Debris | Washes Mop Pad | Dries Mop Pad | Ionized Water
Mopping: Lifts Mop Pads on Carpets | Extending Mop Pad for Hard to Reach Areas
Hardware: 25mm Threshold Crossing | Removes Hair from Brush Roll
Performance: Carpet Boost Settings | Detects Dirt and Adjusts
Mapping / Navigation: Multi Level Maps | Virtual Barriers and No Go Zones
Obstacle Avoidance: Unknown Number of Objects Recognized
Pet Features: Live Video Monitoring
| Scores | 3i S10 Ultra | Average Robot Vacuum Tested |
|---|---|---|
| Vacuum Wars Overall | 3.84 | 2.84 |
| Features | 4.28 | 3.58 |
| Mopping Performance | 3.83 | 3.14 |
| Obstacle Avoidance | 3.41 | 3.56 |
| Pet | 2.79 | 2.85 |
| Navigation | 4.28 | 3.31 |
| Battery | 3.89 | 2.62 |
| Performance | 3.28 | 3.59 |
| Official Battery Life: 180 Minutes | Navigation Type: Type: Fixed Lidar |
| Official Suction Power: 13000 Pa | Dust Bin Size: 400ml |
| Obstacle Avoidance Type: dToF LIDAR, Dual 3D Structured Light | Objects Recognized: Unknown |
| Multi Level Maps: Yes | Virtual Barriers: Yes |
| Detergent Capacity: Unknown | Disposable Bag: 2.5L |
The 3i S10 Ultra Robot Vacuum
The 3i S10 Ultra is a robot vacuum and mop combo featuring a single roller design for mopping floors. It includes a sizeable auto-empty bin that not only collects debris but also washes and dries the mop roller, using ionized water for cleaning.
Available in just one color, the 3i S10 Ultra is priced at the higher end of the robot vacuum market, likely due to the added cost of its advanced water recycling system.
Evaluation and performance
For our 3i S10 Ultra review, we put the robot vacuum through a comprehensive evaluation, with performance evaluated across various real-world cleaning challenges. It delivered strong results in all critical areas.
The 3i S10 Ultra was showcased at CES 2025. Read more here about our CES 2025 coverage, including all the robot vacuums that were featured there.
Water Recycling System
One of the standout features of the 3i S10 Ultra is its innovative water recycling system, which consists of two main components.
The first is a clean water replenishing system. This is essentially a built-in dehumidifier that extracts moisture from the air to fill the main water tank. It eliminates the need to manually keep the tank full, as is common with other robot vacuums.
The second component is called “waste recycle.” This distills dirty water until it’s clean, then expels any residual solid matter into the dust bag. The system is designed so users don’t have to manually manage the clean or dirty water.
The dehumidifier worked effectively in areas with high humidity. For instance, the clean water tank filled overnight when placed in a downstairs area with elevated humidity levels. However, the system was less effective in drier spaces—like an upstairs area during winter—and manual refilling was necessary.
The app offers complete control over this feature, so you can set when the vacuum extracts water from the air and adjust for specific humidity levels. It also displays the current humidity, but the dehumidifier struggles to function efficiently if levels drop below approximately 30%.
As for the dirty water recycling system, it performed very well, but its results were more challenging to assess. The distillation process is entirely internal, leaving no option for manual emptying.
This became an issue during extensive evaluations, where consecutive mopping runs required waiting for the system to finish distilling the dirty water tank—sometimes taking several hours. While this posed challenges during our evaluation, it’s unlikely to be a problem for your typical daily use.
Mop System
The dock of the 3i S10 Ultra features a comprehensive mop management system that washes and dries the mop roller automatically. Overall, it stood out as a major advantage, considering its range of options and features.
Additionally, the robot vacuum uses a roller-style mop system, which offers superior performance over spinning mop pads, especially when dealing with wet spills. This is because the roller processes liquid spills by directing the moisture into an internal dirty water tank using a squeegee. In contrast, spinning mop pad systems are typically more suited for dried-on stains.
Further, the mop roller automatically lifts by 8 mm when carpets are detected, allowing it to vacuum and mop hard floors in a single run without wetting the carpets. It also extends near walls to mop closer to edges for more thorough cleaning.
Power
We were also impressed with the 3i S10 Ultra’s raw suction power. It has a manufacturer-claimed 13,000 pascals of suction, and it ranked among the highest in our suction evaluations. Airflow was also above average, contributing to its strong overall performance.
Debris pickup
Equipped with two side brushes and a single main roller, the 3i S10 Ultra demonstrated excellent sweeping capabilities in our evaluations. It effectively picked up debris of all sizes on hard floors and carpets, easily handling various messes.
Hair pickup
In our hair pickup evaluation, the 3i S10 Ultra excelled beyond expectations. While it performed about average in the flattened pet hair pickup evaluation, it achieved a perfect score in the 7-inch pet hair tangle evaluation—an uncommon result.
The main brush features an advertised active pet hair removal system, and unlike some competitors, it lived up to this claim.
Battery life
The S10 Ultra also delivered strong battery performance. It has an advertised runtime of up to 180 minutes on low power, and in our evaluations, it scored significantly above average in efficiency.
Its square-feet-per-charge results were impressive, allowing for extended cleaning sessions without frequent recharging.
Obstacle avoidance
Another pro is the obstacle avoidance system. It uses a combination of time-of-flight sensors, a camera, and 3D structured light. And in our evaluations, it identified and navigated around obstacles very well. However, the overall performance was average for its category. We expected slightly better results, considering the advanced technology and price point.
Navigation
Navigation on the 3i S10 Ultra was solid but not exceptional. It relies on a fixed top-mounted LiDAR system that doesn’t perform a full 360° spin like some competitors.
Usually, this kind of LiDAR design is used to keep the profile lower, but in this case, the S10 Ultra remains relatively tall.
Despite all that, coverage was thorough, and navigation efficiency was above average. However, the unit moved slower than average when operating in mopping mode.
Cons of the 3i S10 Ultra robot vacuum
No review of the 3i S10 Ultra would be complete without addressing its drawbacks. Despite its impressive features and performance, there are a few notable limitations.
Dried-on stains
The most significant drawback was the mopping system’s struggle with dried-on stains. It scored an average of 57 in our dried-on stain evaluations, which is well below the current category average of around 100. This was disappointing, especially given the product’s strong emphasis on mopping capabilities.
Deep cleaning
Despite its impressive suction power, the 3i S10 Ultra underperformed in deep-cleaning carpets. In multiple evaluations, where sand was embedded into carpet and the dustbin was weighed before and after a timed run, results consistently fell below average.
It also scored below average on the crevice pickup evaluation. However, while its deep-cleaning capabilities left room for improvement, surface-level debris pickup on hard floors and carpets was strong.
App
The 3i S10 Ultra has a surprisingly robust mobile app, offering many premium features expected from a flagship robot vacuum. However, it lacked a few key options, such as the ability to mop with the grain of hard floors and control how often the bin empties during a run—an important feature for homes with a lot of pet hair.
Size
Another consideration is its size and weight. With a shipping weight of over 80 pounds, the 3i S10 Ultra is one of the heaviest robot vacuum systems we’ve evaluated. No doubt, the docking station’s large bin adds to this weight. While not a big issue, space planning is essential when deciding where to place it.
3i S10 Ultra review: conclusion and recommendation
The 3i S10 Ultra deserves recognition for pioneering its innovative water recycling system. However, more long-term reviews are needed to help determine the durability and practicality of this technology. Yet, it wouldn’t be surprising to see similar features adopted more widely in the future—especially for homes with higher humidity levels.
If the water recycling feature is important to you, the whole system is well-executed and unlikely to disappoint. However, if that feature isn’t a deciding factor, the robot vacuum’s overall performance is fairly good based on its specs, features, and evaluation results.
It also scored high enough to secure a spot on the Vacuum Wars Top 20 Robot Vacuum list at the time of this review.
What’s in the box?
FAQ: 3i S10 Ultra Robot Vacuum
How does the 3i S10 Ultra’s integrated dehumidifier work?
The dehumidifier extracts moisture from the air to fill the robot’s clean water tank automatically. It’s most effective in areas with higher humidity (above ~30%). In dry environments, you may need to top off the water tank manually.
What is the wastewater recycling system, and do I need to empty any tanks manually?
The recycling system distills dirty water and sends any solid residue into a dust bag, so you typically don’t have to empty a dirty water tank manually. The process is mostly automated, although you may need to wait a few hours if the system is actively distilling water between cleaning runs.
How good is it at deep-cleaning carpets?
Despite its high suction rating (13,000 Pa), it performed average in deep-cleaning evaluations when compared to all robot vacuums we evaluated. It notably excels at picking up surface-level debris.
How large is the dock, and does it require a lot of space?
The 3i S10 Ultra’s dock is notably big and heavy. Its shipping weight is over 80 pounds, so you’ll need a dedicated spot with plenty of room. Make sure there’s enough clearance around the dock for the robot to maneuver and for easy access to the water tanks and dust bag.
