Midea VCR S20 Plus: Bagless station, 8000 Pa, napkin lift

The new Midea VCR S20 Plus robot vacuum cleaner, priced at $300-350, boasts an unusual bagless multi-cyclone station, suction power reaching 8000 Pa, a silicone turbo brush that reduces hair and fur tangling, and a cleaning cloth lift function for carpets. Overall, it's a great value for the money. So, below, I'll show you how it all works, put the robot vacuum through its paces, and then share my thoughts. So, let's get started!

Equipment

The robot vacuum cleaner arrived in a branded box like this:

The package includes the robot itself and its station, a spare cleaning cloth, a cleaning tool for the turbo brush and other components, as well as a Russian-language instruction manual and warranty card.

Appearance

Now let's take a look at the Midea VCR S20 Plus's design. Visually, it's not much different from its predecessor. Midea VCR S10 Plus, which was previously reviewed, but there are still some changes. At least in color. The new model comes in white and purple, while the S10 model was released in black and purple.

A robot vacuum cleaner of a traditional round shape, the body height is 97 mm from the floor.

A wall sensor is mounted on the right bumper. A system of sensors is located in the center to detect and accurately avoid objects on the floor. The technology is called DuoDetect AI 3D.

Navigation is handled by a lidar unit, which has a spring-loaded cover. Next to it is a control panel consisting of three mechanical buttons.

The combined water and dirt container is removable from the rear. The water tank holds 220 ml. The cloth's wetness level is electronically adjustable. The dust container holds up to 200 ml of dry dirt. The filtration system is based on a HEPA filter and mesh.

A holder with a cleaning cloth is attached to the bottom of the robot. The cleaning cloth itself is of a standard design, secured to the holder by a groove and Velcro.

As mentioned earlier, the Midea VCR S20 Plus can automatically raise the cleaning cloth holder when entering and exiting carpets. The cleaning cloth can be raised up to 10 mm.

The robot has four anti-fall sensors on the bottom, as well as a carpet sensor next to the swivel roller. It has two side brushes, three-beam and quick-release.

The central brush unit is floating, which is a plus. The central brush has been updated. It's now silicone, not fluffy bristles. It can be removed from both sides for cleaning hair and pet hair.

Speaking of the docking station, the robot vacuum cleaner charges and self-cleans. A switch is located on top, locking the vacuum cleaner into place. This makes the station easy to carry by the handle.

The dust collector is bagless, which is great because you won't have to keep buying extra bags. It empties with the press of a button that opens the bottom. The top filtration system features a combined fabric and sponge filter, as well as a multi-cyclone system with a mesh filter.

Another filter is located at the rear of the station. It's a HEPA filter. This results in a multi-stage filtration system, which is very good.

The pros and cons of the robot's design will be discussed during the final review. Let's move on!

Technical specifications

The main characteristics of the Midea VCR S20 Plus, as declared by the manufacturer:

• Li-Ion battery 5200 mAh.
• Suction power 8000 Pa.
• Operating time up to 180 min.
• Dust collector in the station: 3 liters.
• The dust collector in the robot is 200 ml.
• Water tank 220 ml.
• Obstacle clearance 2 cm.
• Robot dimensions: 350*97 mm.
• Station dimensions: 178*244*445 mm.

I'd like to highlight the increased suction power, which has been doubled compared to its predecessor. This will be verified in tests. The other specifications remain unchanged.

Functional capabilities

Let's move on to an overview of the robot's features. It is controlled via the proprietary SmartHome app. It's available in Russian, and connection is simple and convenient.

This model boasts the following functions:

• Self-cleaning of the dust collector at the station.
• Saving multiple cleaning maps in memory.
• Automatic zoning of premises into rooms.
• Selecting areas and rooms for cleaning.
• Virtual walls and no-go zones (and for wet cleaning mode).
• Suction power adjustment.
• Adjusting the degree of wetting of the napkin.
• Cleaning log.
• Setting up cleaning according to a schedule.
• Voice notifications in Russian.
• Automatic power increase on carpet.
• Automatic lifting of the napkin on the carpet.
• Yandex.Alice support.

Overall, it has all the basic functions for customizing cleaning parameters. The only thing I personally miss is a custom mode, allowing me to flexibly adjust the power and water flow level for each room individually.

Testing

A detailed video review of the Midea VCR S20 Plus, including all tests, has already been prepared and published on the channel:

Navigation

And finally, let's move on to the tests. First, we'll test the Midea VCR S20 Plus's navigation in a room with obstacles. The robot first walks around the room's perimeter, then cleans in a zigzag pattern. It easily navigated the dryer's legs, cleaned the table legs and a box, and then returned to its station.

Speaking of navigating within the home, the robot cleans room by room, following the perimeter, then in a serpentine pattern. There were no uncleaned areas, and the cleaning speed was standard; this test was also passed!

Passing under low furniture

I also tested whether the robot can fit under furniture within 10 cm of a gap. Yes, it can do this without any problem. The test was successful.

Autonomy

I also tested the battery life when running the robot at maximum power with wet cleaning enabled. It lasted 148 minutes, cleaning 141 square meters of usable space. In reality, that's more than three full cleanings of a 70-square-meter two-bedroom apartment. There's also a recharge mode that resumes cleaning after recharging at the charging station. So, the robot has excellent battery life despite its claimed high suction power.

Identifying objects on the floor

Regarding the object avoidance system, even in good lighting, the robot was only able to accurately navigate around a stuffed animal. It moved, chewed, or simply ran over all other objects. So, I can't confirm the presence of an object detection system.

It simply has a set of sensors that allow the robot to avoid colliding with large objects. It also didn't recognize anything on the map or mark it with icons, as shown in the promotional materials.

Suction power

One of the most important tests is to check the actual suction power. In Quiet mode, the robot was able to partially vacuum debris from a 2 mm gap. In Standard mode, it completely cleaned a 2 mm gap and partially cleaned a 4 mm gap. In Turbo mode, the Midea VCR S20 Plus cleaned 8 mm and 10 mm gaps partially. So, I can say that this robot vacuum cleaner truly has increased suction power!

Dry cleaning

The quality of debris collection on laminate floors was good. Various types of debris were collected from the rack, including cat litter pellets, which often clog the turbo brush. Only the corners were left unswept, a weak point for most round robots.

I would also like to point out that the robot doesn't clean not only internal but also external corners very well, and this needs to be corrected by Midea engineers.

I'd like to point out that the brush itself didn't pick up any hair. This is its main advantage.

Carpet cleaning

The robot cleans low-pile carpets without any problems. Cleaning quality is slightly lower on medium-pile carpets, but most of the debris is still picked up. A few particles of debris are stuck in the pile, but I don't think this is a big deal given the carpet's original condition.

Self-cleaning

After the dirty tests, I ran the self-cleaning cycle and saw that the station did a good job. Here's how to clean the station itself. Press the button, and everything inside falls out. If anything gets stuck, you can remove the filtration system and even rinse it if needed.

Wet cleaning

Although robots without a cleaning station are still a primitive wet cleaning option by 2025 standards, the Midea VCR S20 Plus mops floors better than most similar machines without a cleaning station. The cleaning station presses firmly against the floor and absorbs dirt. Since the cleaning station doesn't extend to the edge of the unit, there's a blind spot of approximately 3.5-4 cm along baseboards and furniture.

Wet cleaning and carpets

Speaking of wet cleaning on carpeted floors, thanks to the Midea VCR S20 Plus's lifting system, it can vacuum and mop simultaneously, leaving carpets dry and clean. That's a plus!

Passability

The robot vacuum cleaner can easily navigate 2 cm high thresholds. And that's a good thing!

Driving on black surfaces

Driving over black carpets is no problem. The robot glides over the black carpet as if nothing had happened.

Noise level

As for the noise level, it ranges from 63.5 to 68 dB, depending on the selected operating mode. In reality, the robot's noise level is standard.

The station's noise level during self-cleaning is approximately 76.9 dB. This is slightly elevated, but not alarming. This is likely due to the plastic container's poorer sound insulation than the bag inside the station, under the lid.

Personal opinion

The Midea VCR S20 Plus robot vacuum cleaner has been thoroughly reviewed and tested. our evaluation system he managed to gain 146 pointsConsidering the cost, the result is good.

Overall rating of tested robot vacuum cleaners: https://robovac.washerhouse.com/en/rejtingi/robovac-obshhij-rejting-robotov-pylesosov-robo.html.

Among the advantages of the model I would like to highlight:

1. The bagless design of the self-cleaning dust collector is very convenient for maintenance; it can be rinsed with water. Plus, you save on bags; you don't have to worry about ordering a spare bag in a timely manner and keeping it on hand. It's also convenient that the transparent plastic allows you to quickly detect if the robot has picked up something valuable from the floor, like a chain. While many might argue that a transparent container is a good thing because it allows you to see the debris, I'm just expressing my personal opinion.
2. High-quality filtration system in the station.
3. In reality, high suction power.
4. The robot has good autonomy even when operating at maximum power.
5. The silicone turbo brush makes it easier to clean hair and fur.
6. High-quality dry and wet cleaning for this price segment and considering the lack of a station.
7. Lifting the napkin when driving onto carpets.
8. Full Russification of the application and voice notifications.
9. Yandex.Alice support.
10. Two side brushes, for those who still care.
11. Good cross-country ability.
12. The robot vacuum cleaner is not afraid of black carpets.
13. Availability of warranty and service.

The following shortcomings were identified:

1. Increased noise level of the station during self-cleaning.
2. Doesn't sweep out debris in the corners.
3. There remains a narrow blind zone along the baseboard when wet cleaning, since the cloth does not extend to the edge of the body.
4. There is no custom mode in the settings.
5. Weak system for identifying objects.

Ultimately, in my opinion, these criticisms are not so serious and are typical for most robot vacuum cleaners in this price range. However, the model's station, power, and battery life are strong points compared to competitors in the $300-$350 price range.

On that note, I'd like to end this review. If you have any questions, please ask them in the comments. Happy shopping, everyone. Bye!