I blame 80s sci-fi. Growing up, we were promised jet packs and hover boards, or at the very least, there’d be robots for all our household chores. I imagined I’d arrive home after a long day in the office to a spotless house every time. Sadly, this has not been the case, and with kids and a house full of dogs, I could really do with a hand.
So, when I first heard about robot vacuums, I had to try one, and then another, and then more. I’ve tried Eufys and Roombas, and all manner of own-brand ones. There have been ones that didn’t pick anything up, or got lost under furniture and couldn’t find their way back to the charger. Some were so high-maintenance, I was quicker using my manual vacuum cleaner (yes, I have too many of those, too).
The best I’ve found so far is an early model Ultenic D5, which was a real game-changer when it came out. I’ve had it for a few years, and while it’s needed a couple of replacement batteries, it’s a real workhorse. So when I saw its newer updated model the Ultenic T20 pro in the Amazon Prime Sale, I wondered if it could be as good.
As luck would have it, Aldi has its own new Robotic Vacuum Cleaner is part the supermarket’s new Life Hacks range, which also includes a fancy smart kettle. Never one to turn down a middle aisle bargain, I got one to try, in my own little home-based Robot Wars. I pitted the pair against a series of challenges, to see which would fare best.
All that was missing was Craig Charles and a cast of house robots.
Aldi Ambiano Robot Vacuum (price £99.99)
This clever little gadget cleans floors with its three-stage suction, sweeping and mop functions. It’s billed as being for hard floors, but it coped admirably on my shorter-pile rugs too.
It has a battery life of 90 minutes, a HEPA filter, a 400ml dustbin and a 250ml water tank.
There’s a remote control, and an app-controlled system compatible with Google, Alexa, and Siri, and it’s £99, which is a steal when compared to similar products.
I found it very easy to use with both the remote control and the app, and it quickly picked up some flour, sugar and rice that I laid out to test it. It found its way back to its docking station after a few tries, and popped itself back on charge. The mop function worked well, but I prefer an old-fashioned mop to really give the floor a good scrub with scorching water, so I’d probably stick to vacuuming.
Ultenic T20 Pro Robot Vacuum Cleaner (£239.99, including a £50 voucher deal) from Amazon
It vacuums, sweeps, mops, and auto-empties dust into its station, and cleaned our whole ground floor in one go with 150 mins of battery life. It also boosts suction on carpets for deeper cleaning (how it knows to do this, I can only imagine). Again, I’m not really a robot mop girl, but it worked well.
It also integrated well with our Alexa, so it was easy to switch on with voice commands, or the remote control. It is, without doubt, the best robot vacuum I’ve tried.
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So, which wins robot vacuum wars?
In fairness, both are brilliant. The Aldi robot vacuum is a bargain for hard floors, and I’d buy it without hesitation for a quick and easy clean each day.
For bigger houses like mine, with different floor surfaces and a large area, plus pets and kids, the Ultenic T20 is worth the extra money because it picks up so much, and the fact that it’s self-emptying means I can run it several times a day without having to be at home.
There’s a place in my heart for both these little labour-savers, and I’m a step closer to living the life I always imagined. Next step, jetpacks and hover boards.
