Low cost robot that ticks plenty of boxes
Considering the low price, it’s impressive that the Dreamebot D10 Plus has LiDAR navigation and a self-empty dock. It vacuums well, although mopping is very basic, so it’s best to think of this robot as a vacuum-only model; buy an alternative one if you want your floors properly mopped. Ultimately, if you just want a robot vacuum cleaner that can clean well, this is a good choice.
Pros
- Excellent value
- Cleans well
- Comes with self-empty dock
- LiDAR navigation
Cons
- Basic mopping
- Basic voice controls
It wasn’t that long ago that low-cost robot vacuum cleaners were dumb devices that would bounce randomly around a house until their batteries had run out.
Now, with the Dreamebot D10 Plus, we have a sub-$500 robot with full navigation, multiple maps and a self-empty station.
Can it take on the might of the Roborock Q7 Max+ or is a budget cleaner to be avoided?
Read our full Dreamebot D10 Plus review to find out.
Dreamebot D10 Plus: Design and build
Although the name Dreamebot may make it sound like some kind of adult entertainment robot, the truth is that the D10 Plus is very similar to other robot vacuum cleaners.
A circular body is a very familiar sight, with this model having two buttons on top: one to start a clean and one to ask the robot to return to its dock.
Rival: Roborock S8 Pro Ultra review
On top, is the LiDAR dome, which is used for fast and accurate navigation. Again, this a good thing to see on such a mid-range vacuum cleaner, and more advanced than the visual navigation that the similarly-priced Yeedi Vac 2 Pro uses.
Flip open the robot, and there’s a large 400ml dust bin, which is plenty big to take dirt for a regular clean.
There’s a filter inside the bin, which is worth cleaning properly at least once a month, to keep suction power at a maximum.
Not that you’ll need to empty the bin yourself often, as the self-empty station takes 2.5-litre bags.
These will need emptying roughly every one to two months, depending on how dirty your house is and how often the robot is used, and cost around $20 for a pack of three.
Flip the robot over and it’s a standard layout underneath: a wide brush for agitating dirt, and a side-sweeper brush, built to push dust from the edge of a room into the main suction path.
The main brush isn’t an anti-hair one, so it will need to have hair cut away from it using the provided tool.
Dreamebot D10 Plus: Features and in use
Thanks to LiDAR-based navigation, the Dreamebot D10 Plus’s movement and mapping is up there with the best.
I found that this robot managed to get around quickly without tangling itself up.
Sure, there are the occasional times when the robot will get stuck and need a bit of help to move, but I’ve yet to meet the perfect robot vacuum cleaner.
There’s no front-facing camera on this model, so some tidying up before a cleaning session makes sense: pick up cables and other obstacles that the D10 Plus may get stuck on.
4000pa of suction is a decent amount, even if more expensive vacuum cleaners have more. What I found was that this vacuum cleaner had enough power to get regular dust up easily enough, and it did a good job into the edges, although bigger spills did need to be finished off with a regular vacuum cleaner.
I measured the robot at 59.6dB, which makes it pretty quiet. Certainly, it’s quiet enough that you can have it on while in the same room.
Dreamebot D10 Plus: Mopping function
Although the robot has adjustable water settings, there’s only a 125ml water tank in this model, so it can’t clean that far before this needs refilling. Also, without any agitating option, the Dreamebot D10 Plus can’t lift off harder-trodden-in stains.
As such, the mopping feels rather secondary on this device. I found that it was fine for removing light surface stains, but for anything else, the floor ended up looking dirty.
If you want to keep your hard floors looking clean and shiny, a proper mopping robot, such as the Yeedi Mop Station Pro would be a better choice.
Also, this robot doesn’t have any carpet detection, so it will quite happily wet any carpets or rugs that it encounters on a regular clean. Shutting doors or using a no-mop zone is a requirement.
Dreamebot D10 Plus: App and digital assistants
Dreame is part of the Xiaomi Ecological Chain, which Roborock was born out of years ago. It’s not that surprising, then, that both brandss have a similar app and layout.
That’s good news for the Dreamebot D10 Plus. On its first run, it builds up a map, which you can split into separate rooms.
Rooms make a lot of sense, as you can adjust the cleaning order, or choose to have the D10 Plus clean just one area, either manually or on a schedule.
Multiple maps are supported, too, which is good news for anyone with a house on multiple levels, as the D10 Plus can be carried to where you want it to clean, covering your entire home.
Maps can have virtual boundaries, no-go and no-mop zones added to them. As the D10 Plus makes its way around your home, it’s worth seeing if you need any of these features.
For example, I have one low bit of furniture that I usually add as a no-go zone, as robots often get wedged underneath.
Cleaning options include setting the vacuum power (I find that Strong does the job, which is the second from highest option), and that High water settings work best for the mopping option when the mopping bracket is attached.
There aren’t the advanced features that Roborock has: I couldn’t place furniture on the map, and there’s no option to perform more than one pass on a cleaning run.
Both Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant support are available, with voice commands to start and stop a clean available.
There aren’t voice commands to clean a specific area, so I found that it was easier to use the app most of the time.
Dreamebot D10 Plus: Battery life and maintenance
Dreame says that the D10 Plus can tackle areas of up to 270m2 on a single charge, but doesn’t quote a battery life in minutes.
That’s fair enough: almost all robot vacuum cleaners now have a big enough battery to tackle the job at hand, and the Dreamebot D10 Plus is no different.
I found that on a single charge the robot can handle my downstairs (around 60m2), and have enough power to go out for a second run or to tackle some spot cleaning.
The app will warn you when it’s time to clean the sensors and will say when the brushes need replacing. A visual inspection to make sure that they’re fully worn makes sense before replacing them.
