Xiaomi Mijia Vacuum Cleaner Pro: A robot vacuum cleaner with lidar and object recognition

Hello to all readers of this site! This review will examine the new Xiaomi Mijia Vacuum Cleaner Pro (MJSTS1) robot vacuum cleaner, which went on sale in the second half of 2021. The model's alternative name, Xiaomi Mijia Robot Vacuum-Mop Pro, is indicated on the body. The key feature of this model is a sensor system on the mechanical bumper, which, in tandem with artificial intelligence, allows the robot vacuum cleaner to recognize objects on the floor, mark them on a map, and accurately navigate around them while cleaning. In addition, the robot is equipped with lidar for navigation, advanced wet cleaning, a powerful motor developing suction power up to 4000 Pa, and all the useful features controlled via a mobile app. The price of the robot is in the range of $250-$300, and can be even lower during sales (purchase link at the end of the review). For this price, it seems that the Xiaomi Mijia Pro could be one of the best, if not the best. This will be verified during real-world testing within the review. So, let's get started!

Equipment

The Xiaomi Mijia Vacuum Cleaner Pro arrived in this branded box:

The robot vacuum cleaner package includes:

1. Charging base.
2. Power adapter with Chinese plug.
3. Adapter for European standard socket.
4. Wet cleaning nozzle with a microfiber cloth installed.
5. Spare napkin.
6. A separate dust container that can be installed instead of the combined container installed in the robot.
7. Spare side brush.
8. Robot cleaning tool
9. The operating instructions are in Chinese, as the robot is a Chinese version.

This is the entire package, and it's complete. Surprisingly, there are even spare consumables, and the HEPA filter can be considered a replacement. One is installed in the combined container, and one in the dust collector, and they are identical. That's a plus.

Appearance

Now let's take a look at the Xiaomi Mijia Vacuum Cleaner Pro. It's black, with a powder-coated finish that doesn't show up easily. It's round in shape and about 96 mm tall.

The lidar is equipped with a spring-loaded cover that prevents the robot vacuum from getting stuck under furniture. The control panel has two mechanical buttons: a forced return to the charging base and a start/pause button.

The combined water and waste container is located at the rear. The tank holds up to 260 ml of water, and the waste container holds 300 ml.

The filtration system is mounted on the side. It's dual: a HEPA filter and a mesh filter. Inside the tank is a tube through which the pump delivers water to the cloth. The water flow is electronically regulated.

Let's take a look at the Xiaomi Mijia Vacuum Cleaner Pro's underside. It has six anti-fall sensors. It has a single, three-beam side brush, secured with a screw.

The central brush is made of bristles and petals. The bristles are very dense, and the brush is separated from the wound hair and fur on both sides. The workmanship is very good. The brush itself, by the way, is floating.

The wet cleaning cloth, however, isn't very well designed. There are bare spots on the sides, causing the robot to leave unwashed areas along walls and furniture. Water is supplied through two holes in the nozzle. At the bottom, we also see a spring-loaded button, like the new one. Xiaomi Mijia 2CShe presses the napkin slightly to the floor.

Here's a comparison of what a waste container looks like that can be installed in place of a combined container:

This dust collector holds up to 550 ml of dry waste. The manufacturer allows the mesh to be washed with water, but the filter can only be cleaned with a brush.

Overall, the Xiaomi Mijia Vacuum Cleaner Pro's build quality is clearly above average. I have no complaints about the robot.

For those interested, in a few weeks I'll be publishing a video comparing the build quality of Xiaomi robot vacuums from different sub-brands. The Mijia Pro was included in this comparison, and I have to admit, it's very well built. Minor spoiler:

Technical specifications

The main characteristics of the Xiaomi Mijia Vacuum Cleaner Pro, as stated by the manufacturer:

• Li-Ion battery 5200 mAh.
• Suction power up to 4000 Pa.
• Operating time up to 150 min.
• Cleaning area up to 250 sq.m.
• Dust collector capacity is 550 ml.
• The volume of the combined container is 300+260 ml.
• Obstacle clearance up to 20 mm.
• Dimensions: 350*97 mm.

The specifications are quite standard for the premium segment. The only notable feature is the increased suction power, which I'll definitely test during my tests.

Functional capabilities

Let's move on to a review of the Xiaomi Mijia Pro's features. The robot vacuum cleaner is controlled via the proprietary Mi Home mobile app. The version I received for review is Chinese, so to connect the robot to the network, you need to select the China region, and the app interface is in English. The robot connected to Wi-Fi without any issues.

The main dashboard displays a map of the room, which the Xiaomi Mijia Vacuum Cleaner Pro automatically zones into rooms and stores in its memory. In one room, it even recognized a carpet and highlighted it as a separate object on the map. Swiping up opens a section where you can adjust the basic cleaning parameters. Specifically:

• Select the type of robot cleaning: dry, dry and wet, or wet only.
• Adjust the suction power and the degree of wetting of the cloth.
• Switch to manual mode, where you can tell the robot which factors to focus on when customizing its parameters: the rooms it cleans or the type of flooring.

For example, if you customize cleaning parameters for each room, you can choose the number of passes the robot makes: 1 or 2, as well as customize the cleaning mode, suction power, and water flow level.

If you configure the settings by flooring type, you manually select the floor type for each room: wood or tile. Then, you set separate cleaning parameters for tiled and wood floors.

To the right of the map are the following functions: cleaning in a selected area on the map, as well as cleaning at a selected point on the map.

Let's go to the main settings. Here you can view the cleaning history and select one of several memory maps. Incidentally, the Xiaomi Mijia Vacuum Cleaner Pro supports multiple maps. You can set virtual walls and no-go zones on the map that the robot should not enter.

When working with the map, you can combine several rooms into one, divide rooms into zones, choose a name for each room, and select flooring material.

The next setting concerns the floor object detection system. You can turn this system on and off, as well as customize its settings. For example, you can turn on and off the display of recognized objects lying on the floor, as well as carpets separately, and enable automatic suction boost when approaching carpets, or conversely, avoiding carpets during wet cleaning. You can also display interior items on a map and view which objects the Xiaomi Mijia Pro can recognize. We see that the list of objects the robot can recognize includes pet surprises, cords, and socks. I'll check all of these during testing.

And, as I understand it, you can also set zones where the layout can be changed. For example, the opening zone of interior doors. But I haven't figured out how this works or what it's for, and I couldn't find any information online. So, if anyone knows, please let me know in the comments what these additional functions are. The last function in this section is stain and particularly dirty area detection.

When setting up a scheduled cleaning, you can choose the time, days of the week, and specific rooms to clean as needed. You can even customize the number of passes the robot makes over the entire area or apply individual cleaning parameters to each room.

If needed, you can enable a repeat sweeping motion and a double cleaning cycle, set a quiet time for the robot, launch a quick room map, reset the map, monitor the status of consumables, activate a sound signal to search for the robot vacuum, and configure additional settings. For example, you can turn on and off the robot's indicator lights, adjust the volume of voice alerts, and select a mode for wet cleaning. It's important to note that the Xiaomi Mijia Pro can move in an S-pattern (snake or herringbone pattern), which improves floor cleaning.

You can also calibrate the robot's sensors in the settings if necessary and switch to manual control mode.

As always, you can change the robot's name, share control with other users, and update the firmware when a new version is released.

This is all the functionality of the Xiaomi Mijia Pro, and as you can see, there are a huge number of settings and options! The only important point is that since the app runs on Chinese servers, you sometimes have to restart Mi Home when the connection with the robot is lost. Consequently, the server response can sometimes take several seconds. For example, you press the start cleaning button, but the robot only starts after three or four seconds. This isn't very convenient for app usability.

Testing

A detailed video review of the Xiaomi Mijia Pro, including all tests, has already been prepared and published on the channel. I recommend watching the video:

Navigation

Let's move on to the tests. First, we'll test this robotic vacuum's navigation in a room with obstacles. First, it navigates the perimeter of the room. The sensors on the bumper detected the feet of the dryer, and the robot carefully navigated around them without even touching its body. It also carefully swept around all the chair legs and around the box. The robot divided the room into two cleaning zones. After traversing the entire accessible area, the robotic vacuum returned to its base without a hitch. The test was successful.

When it comes to whole-home navigation, the Xiaomi Mijia Vacuum Cleaner Pro navigates room by room, first along the perimeter and then in a serpentine pattern. Like some other robot vacuum cleaners with object detection, this model has trouble cleaning high-pile carpets. The sensors detect the pile as obstacles, causing the robot to bypass certain areas and leave them uncleaned. You can, of course, completely disable the object detection, in which case the robot will clean the entire available area. However, the detection system doesn't work quite correctly on carpets, which is important to keep in mind.

Recognizing objects on the floor

Now let's test how well the Xiaomi Mijia Vacuum Cleaner Pro recognizes objects on the floor, and whether it recognizes them at all or just identifies them. Out of eight objects lying on the floor, the robot vacuum cleaner was able to recognize seven and accurately navigate around them. Moreover, it correctly indicated which objects were on the floor using icons on the map. However, it failed to recognize the simulated pet surprise and drove right through it. However, by the end of the test, it finally identified one as a sock and navigated around it.

However, the object detection system doesn't work in the dark. Here are the initial conditions for the test:

On the left, you can see how the Xiaomi Mijia Pro cleaned this room. It recognized the objects and didn't get caught. And on the right, the same test with the lights off.

The robot failed to recognize objects lying in the dark and chewed the charger's cable. Therefore, the sensor system does not function in the dark.

Mijia Pro also does not recognize puddles on the floor and drives through them.

In any case, in my opinion, the object recognition system works well and requires minimal refinement. Other robots I've tested also don't recognize puddles and are blind in the dark. So, this test was passed successfully! If it could also be connected remotely to a home surveillance camera, that would be really cool, and the Xiaomi Mijia Vacuum Cleaner Pro would be a strong competitor to the technology implemented in Roborock S6 MaxV.

Suction power

As for suction power, this robot vacuum cleaner only managed to suck up debris from a 2mm gap, despite the stated 4000 Pa. So, in reality, its performance is on par with its predecessors, standard.

Dry cleaning of laminate flooring

The quality of debris collection on laminate floors is excellent. The robot completely collected debris on the stand, leaving only a small amount in the corners due to its round shape. A small amount of hair was caught on the side brush, and a very small amount was caught on the center brush. The bulk of the debris was collected in the dust bin. Test passed successfully!

Cleaning the carpet

The carpet cleaning quality is above average, but still inferior to some premium competitors. The robot may leave behind some debris after each pass, and to clean it all, it needs to pass over the same area several times. So, carpets aren't exactly its strong suit.

Wet cleaning

The stain removal performance is on par with similar products, high. However, due to the bare spots on the sides of the cloth, the non-washable area along the baseboard is wider than on similar products.

Regarding the Y-pattern wet cleaning, there's also a small caveat. A thin, unwashed area may remain between the strips, resulting in some debris remaining on the floor. However, it's worth noting that the Xiaomi Mijia Pro can vacuum and mop simultaneously, which is a plus!

Obstacle clearance

The robot vacuum cleaner has excellent maneuverability. It easily navigates 2 cm thresholds. Even with the object detection system enabled, the robot can navigate obstacles.

Driving on dark surfaces

And another important point: the Xiaomi Mijia Pro is not afraid of dark surfaces, which is a big plus, since almost all Xiaomi robot vacuum cleaners detect dark areas of the floor, like elevation changes, and avoid them.

Noise level

Finally, we measured the robot's noise level in different modes. At minimum power, the noise level was between 60-62 dB, in standard mode it reached 65 dB, in high power mode the noise level reached 67.5 dB, and at maximum power the peak was 68.5 dB. The noise level is quite standard.

Let's sum it up

Xiaomi Mijia Vacuum Cleaner Pro has been thoroughly reviewed and tested. our evaluation system he managed to gain 75 out of 100 points, which is a good result considering the price. The robot has several shortcomings that affected its rating. But even with all these shortcomings, it has managed to make it into the top ten so far. robot vacuum cleaners tested at robovac.washerhouse.com.

I liked the following:

1. The robot vacuum cleaner actually recognizes objects on the floor.
2. Overall good level of navigation.
3. High-quality assembly, including taking into account the internal structure of the robot.
4. Simultaneous dry and wet cleaning.
5. All advanced functionality in the application.
6. High-quality cleaning on hard floor coverings.
7. Good obstacle clearance.
8. Complete set.
9. The robot vacuum cleaner is not afraid of dark floor coverings.

As for the disadvantages, they include:

1. The robot vacuum cleaner is designed for the Chinese market, so it's controlled via Chinese servers, and the app may experience some lag. Furthermore, the app interface is in English.
2. Poor quality carpet cleaning.
3. In the Y-pattern wet cleaning mode, there may be missed, uncleaned areas.
4. The object detection system may not function properly on carpets.

Overall, I would recommend this robot vacuum primarily for cleaning hard floors. Then there won't be any issues with carpets, and the only priority issue left will be support for the Russian region in the app. If a global version is released, the robot could earn additional points and move up in the rankings. Even so, it has performed mostly well, making it a definite recommendation, especially at this price. And if it comes with an optional self-cleaning station, then it could potentially be considered one of the best robot vacuums. best in 2021The dust collector's location allows for self-cleaning; you only need to change its design.

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!