Today, we’re taking an in-depth look at two of the most advanced robot vacuum mop combos on the market: the Roborock S8 MaxV Ultra and the Dreame X40 Master. Both of these “plumbots” feature plumbing-integrated water refill and drainage systems. This eliminates the need to refill clean water tanks or empty dirty water tanks, and ultimately brings us closer to fully automated floor care. We purchased both models and have extensively evaluated them over the past few weeks.
Letโs dive into the results and see which one came out on top.
The Dreame X40 Master is a high-end robot vacuum and mop combo equipped with advanced automatic refilling and draining capabilities via an 8-in-1 hands-free base station that connects to the home’s plumbing. This multifunctional hub streamlines maintenance by managing water, self-cleaning, self-drying, and self-emptying tasks. Designed with a sleek, low-profile build at just 11 inches tall, the base station is crafted to blend seamlessly into modern home environments. In our in-studio evaluations, the X40 Master delivered excellent overall performance, particularly standing out in navigation efficiency and battery life. See additional info
Price as of May 5, 2025
Auto Empty Station: Self Empties Debris | Washes Mop Pad | Washes Mop Pad with Hot Water | Dries Mop Pad | Dries Mop Pad with Heated Air| Self Cleaning | Dirty Water Sensor | Plumbing Option
Mopping: Lifts Mop Pads on Carpets | Extending Mop Pad for Hard to Reach Areas | Can Leave Pads at Base while Vacuuming
Hardware: Auto Extending Side Brush for Hard to Reach Areas | 22mm Threshold Crossing
Performance: Carpet Boost Settings
Mapping / Navigation: Multi Level Maps | Virtual Barriers and No Go Zones
Obstacle Avoidance: 120 Objects Recognized
Pet Features: Live Video Monitoring | Pet Checkup or Similar
Scores | Dreame X40 Master | Average Robot Vacuum Tested |
---|---|---|
Vacuum Wars Overall | 4.92 | 2.84 |
Features | 4.45 | 3.58 |
Mopping Performance | 3.76 | 2.68 |
Obstacle Avoidance | 4.69 | 3.56 |
Pet | 4.35 | 2.85 |
Navigation | 4.04 | 3.31 |
Battery | 4.26 | 2.62 |
Performance | 4.19 | 3.59 |
Official Battery Life: 198 Minutes | Navigation Type: Spinning Lidar |
Official Suction Power: 12000 Pa | Dust Bin Size: 350ml |
Obstacle Avoidance Type: Single Camera & 3D Structured Light | Objects Recognized: 120 |
Multi Level Maps: Y | Virtual Barriers: Y |
Detergent Capacity: Unknown | Disposable Bag: 3.2L |
The Roborock S8 MaxV Ultra is an advanced robot vacuum mop combo featuring the upgraded RockDock Ultra docking station, which uniquely offers an automated refill and drainage system not available in other versions. The dock empties the dustbin, washes and dries the mop pad with hot water and air, refills the water tank, and includes an auto detergent dispenserโminimizing manual maintenance. It provides 10,000โฏPa suction, a VibraRise 3.0 mopping system with dual lifting pads to avoid wetting carpets, and a FlexiArm side brush for edge cleaning. Intelligent navigation uses PreciSense LiDAR and a front camera for Reactive 3D Obstacle Avoidance, enabling pet care features like targeted cleaning, monitoring, and video calls via the app. See additional info
Price as of May 5, 2025
Auto Empty Station: Self Empties Debris | Washes Mop Pad | Washes Mop Pad with Hot Water | Dries Mop Pad | Dries Mops Pad with Heated Air| Self Cleaning | Dirty Water Sensor | Plumbing Option
Mopping: Lifts Mop Pads on Carpets | Extending Mop Pad for Hard to Reach Areas
Hardware: Auto Extending Side Brush for Hard to Reach Areas | 20mm Threshold Crossing
Performance: Carpet Boost Settings
Mapping / Navigation: Multi Level Maps | Virtual Barriers and No Go Zones
Obstacle Avoidance: 73 Objects Recognized
Pet Features: Live Video Monitoring | Pet Checkup or Similar
Controls: Virtual Assistant Options
Scores | Roborock S8 MaxV Plumbot | Average Robot Vacuum Tested |
---|---|---|
Vacuum Wars Overall | 4.57 | 2.84 |
Features | 4.68 | 3.58 |
Mopping Performance | 4.08 | 2.68 |
Obstacle Avoidance | 3.41 | 3.56 |
Pet | 3.74 | 2.85 |
Navigation | 3.45 | 3.31 |
Battery | 2.79 | 2.62 |
Performance | 3.46 | 3.59 |
Official Battery Life: 180 Minutes | Navigation Type: Spinning Lidar |
Official Suction Power: 10000 Pa | Dust Bin Size: 470ml |
Obstacle Avoidance Type: 3D Structured light & Single Camera | Objects Recognized: 73 |
Multi Level Maps: Y | Virtual Barriers: Y |
Detergent Capacity: 580ml | Disposable Bag: 2.5L |
Hardware and Suction
The Dreame X40 Master uses a single roller while the Roborock features a dual brush roller system. Both have automatically extending side brushes, which we found to actually improve corner coverage.
In terms of suction power, the Dreame X40 Master leads with 12,000 Pascals compared to the Roborock’s 10,000 Pascals. So it was no surprise in our suction and airflow evaluation that the Dreame X40 offers more raw power.
Vacuuming
When cleaning hard floors and carpets, both models excelled in picking up various sizes of debris without any issues.
However, in our Carpet Deep Clean evaluation, which we evaluate by embedding sand in carpets and weighing their dustbins after a timed run, the Dreame outperformed the Roborock, removing more embedded sand.
Additionally, Dreame’s single roller resisted pet hair tangles better than Roborock’s dual rollers, with only 26% of hair caught compared to Roborockโs 59%.
Mopping Features and Performance
These robot vacuums use different hardware to mop floors: The Roborock uses VibraRise technology with a vibrating single mop pad, while the Dreame employs dual spinning mop pads.
Both robot vacuums also have edge-mopping capabilities, but only Dreame’s mop pads extend. The Dreameโs auto-extending mop pad provided better coverage, even reaching under doors and furniture.
Both models also allow water dispensing control via their apps.
In our dried-on stain evaluations, the Dreame slightly edged out the Roborock, scoring 92 versus 88, although with the margin of error, those scores might as well be a tie.
What really sets these mopping systems apart are their fully featured charging docks. Both mopping systems have charging docks that handle nearly every aspect of cleaning and maintenance:
- Recharge the robots
- Empty the dustbins into a disposable bag
- Automatically wash and dry mop pads
- Refill onboard water tanks
- Use hot water to wash pads and hot air to dry them
- Dirty water sensors with self-cleaning options
Plumbing Integration
Compared to most robot vacuums, the primary distinction between these two models is that they both feature tubing and plumbing connections, allowingย you to connect them to your homeโs plumbing system. They both come with a remarkably similar three-way diverter valve and roughly the same amount of tubing, so there wasn’t much difference in terms of what was included.
There are many ways to connect these to your homeโs plumbing, but the simplest option is to place them near a sink or toilet. Alternatively, you could build a custom cabinet or similar enclosure. While the installation is relatively straightforward, having some basic plumbing know-how is helpful. So if youโre unsure, itโs best to ask someone handy for assistance.
Dock Size Differences
Another important note is that the Dreameโs dock is slightly longer than the Roborockโs dock. And depending on where you want it placed, it can easily stick out too far if not built into a custom cabinet or a similar structure. The Roborock dock is shorter and taller, and would fit well just against a wall.
Obstacle Avoidance
Both have front-mounted obstacle avoidance cameras and structured light sensors to recognize and avoid objects. While the Roborock got a respectable, average score in our obstacle avoidance evaluations, the Dreame was significantly better, earning one of the highest scores weโve seen.
The Dreame has also been programmed to recognize a higher number of objectsโ120, compared to only 73 on the Roborock. If obstacle avoidance is important to you, the Dreame X40 Master is definitely better.
Roborock S8 MaxV Ultra | Dreame X40 Ultra | Average Robot Vacuum Tested at Vacuum Wars | |
Obstacle Avoidance Score | 16 | 22 | 17 |
Objects Recognized | 73 | 120 | N/A |
Battery Life
We found the Dreame X40 Master to have better battery life overall, despite having similar official numbers on low power. In our evaluations, which we run on all power settings, the X40 Master was more efficient and had a much higher square-foot-per-charge estimation. While both of their battery scores were above average, the Dreame X40 was better.
Battery Scores
Roborock S8 MaxV Ultra | Dreame X40 Ultra | Average Robot Vacuum Tested at Vacuum Wars | |
Official Battery Life Minutes (Low Power) | 180 | 189 | 154 |
Battery Efficiency Minutes per % | 1.66 | 3.44 | 1.36 |
Square Foot Per Charge (Estimated) | 1489 | 2591 | 1007 |
Navigation
Both robot vacuums navigate the house in a similar way, using a top-mounted LiDAR sensor. They both featureย multi-level mapping andย fast mapping, and in our navigation and coverage evaluations, they demonstrated an amazing ability to efficiently cover the space without getting stuck. However, the Dreame X40 Master ultimately achieved a higher navigation score.
Apps and Software
Both brands have what we consider some of the best apps in the business, with seemingly every possible advanced software feature you can find on a robot vacuum. Plus, they both maintain excellent app ratings on the app stores.
The main difference between the apps is that the Dreame doesnโt have a built-in virtual voice assistant, whereas the Roborock does. However, the Dreame can still be used with Amazon Alexa and similar devices.
Final Verdict: Which one is better?
After adding up all the scores, the Dreame X40 Master (Amazon Link) beat out the Roborock S8 MaxV Ultra (Amazon Link) by a significant margin. However, both of their final Vacuum Wars scores were above average. As of the time of writing, the Dreame X40 Master is currently ranking #4 on our Vacuum Wars Top 20 list with 4.5 stars, while the Roborock S8 MaxV Ultra is in 11th place with 4 stars.
Update 1/27/25: The Dreame X40 Master is currently ranking 2nd with 4.7 stars, while the Roborock S8 MaxV Ultra is now 8th with 4.4 stars.