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Roborock has added an arm to its latest flagship robot vacuum. And this is not a small appendix like that of the company debuted its S8 MaxV Ultra at CES last year; it’s a real articulated robotic arm. The arm rises from the middle of Roborock’s latest flagship bot – the Saros Z70 – and can extend to pick up items like socks and fabrics while cleaning your floors. While it’s slightly terrifying and currently extremely slow – I can definitely see the potential in a robot vacuum that can clean in front of itself.
The Virgin had a sneak peek at the Saros Z70 in action before its launch at CES 2025 and can confirm the arm works as advertised, although, as mentioned, it is laboriously slow. During our demo, it took about a minute to pick up and move each sock in its path. It is also limited to socks, tissues, small towels and sandals weighing under 300 grams. Roborock says more items will be added over time, but hasn’t promised an increased weight capacity. No price has been released, but the company says the vacuum will ship by June 2025.
The Saros Z70’s arm is “the first mass-produced folding robotic arm with five axes,” according to Roborock. Called the OmniGrip, it can unfold, extend and twist horizontally and vertically to pick up items and move them out of the way. It includes a camera and an LED light in the arm to see objects and has sensors that allow it to detect the weight of the object and know its position – including if there is something on it, because the arm does not touch anything when he gets up
Roborock says that during its first cleaning run, the Z70 will detect and mark any object it can lift. He then deploys his arm again, moving items into the area he has already cleaned and cleaning the areas that those items were blocking. Finally, it can be programmed to go out a third time to pick up the items and put them in a place you designate on the map in the Roborock app, such as near a closet or in a basket.
Yes, this whole process will take a long time. Yes, it would be faster (and quieter) to pick up the socks yourself (assuming you’re at home). But then again, it’s a robot that takes your socks off! We really live in the future.
One intriguing feature that Roborock says will come to the Saros Z70 via an OTA update doesn’t involve the arm. Instead, it takes advantage of the new navigation of the robot and the recognition of obstacles, called StarSight Autonomous System 2.0to allow you to train the robot to recognize specific objects – for example, a favorite teddy bear or your bag. According to Roborock, you can use its app to see where the robot last saw that item, which could be useful for locating lost things.
StarSight was launched on the Qrevo Slim and uses 3D time-of-flight sensors, RGB cameras, and machine learning to navigate and identify obstacles. AI-powered machine learning allows the Z70 to detect and navigate up to 108 pre-programmed objects, according to Roborock. It also uses a new laser-powered obstacle avoidance technology called VertiBeam, which Roborock says can clean more precisely around extended cables and irregularly shaped walls and furniture.
Other features of the Saros Z70 include an impressive 22,000Pa of suction power, a dual anti-tangle system for the robot’s roller brushes, and dual rotating mops that can not only lift 2.2 cm to avoid carpeting, but also automatically disconnect in the base station when mopping is not. not necessary.
The Saros Z70 is just under 8cm high, which should allow it to fit under those low sofas, and has the AdaptLift chassis first seen on the Qrevo Curv. This helps the robot climb the transitions of high rooms and maneuver on high carpets.
The flagship robot pairs with Roborock’s new Multifunctional Dock 4.0 to charge, automatically empty, fill and empty its water tanks, and maintain mops with hot water washing and hot air drying; this model also introduces a quick charge function of 2.5 hours.
Realistically, as cool as the arm is, it’s clearly more of a proof-of-concept product (although Roborock assures me it will ship this year). So, alongside the Saros Z70, Roborock debuted two other top-of-the-line robot vacuums at CES. The Saros 10R and the Saros 10 will ship on February 10 and cost $1,599.99 each. Both feature a similar slimline body and the same AdaptLift chassis as the Z70, and can automatically detach their mop pads when not needed.
The main differences between the two are in the mopping and navigation technology. The Saros 10R has the same StarSight 2.0 navigation technology and obstacle recognition, the same mopping technology, and the same dock as the Z70. However, it has a slightly lower suction power (19,000 Pa).
By contrast, the Saros 10 is an upgrade to Roborock’s flagship model, the S8 MaxV Ultra (our first choice for the the best robot vacuum cleaner). With 22,000Pa of suction power, it uses the lidar navigation found on most Roborocks, but can retract its lidar tower to fit under low spaces, bringing it to the same height as the other two Saros models.
Instead of the oscillating mops on the Z70 and 10R, the Saros 10 has a new version of Roborock’s excellent VibraRise mopping feature. This uses a flat mopping pad that vibrates 4,000 times a minute to simulate scrubbing and can now soak up dry stains before trying to remove them.
The 10 also comes with an improved version of Roborock’s Reactive AI Obstacle Avoidance (version 3.0) and gets the new VertiBeam cable avoidance technology. It has Roborock’s new DuoDivide anti-tangle roller brush, first seen on the Qrevo Curv, and pairs with the company’s new Ultra 2.0 Dock.
Roborock says that all three new models will be updated to support Matter 1.4, which allows the vacuum cleaners to work with any Matter-enabled smart home platform. It looks like Apple is bringing support with iOS 18.3and Amazon Alexa and Samsung SmartThings already support robot vacuum cleaners through Matter. Out of the box, the robots are compatible with Alexa, Siri Shortcuts, Google Home, and Roborock’s Hey Rocky voice assistant.
