Xiaomi Mijia Ultra-Thin Robot Vacuum Cleaner: The Best Slim Robot Vacuum Cleaner in 2021

Hello to all readers of robovac.washerhouse.com! This review will examine the most unique robot vacuum cleaner in the Xiaomi lineup. The model is called the Mijia Ultra-Thin Robot Vacuum Cleaner, and as its name suggests, it's ultra-thin. Standing just 5.5 cm from the floor, it can crawl under low furniture and pick up debris in hard-to-reach places. Furthermore, the Mijia Ultra-Thin can detect objects on the floor and carefully navigate around them while cleaning, create and save a room map, and perform wet mopping. Given these features, the Xiaomi Mijia Ultra-Thin Robot Vacuum Cleaner is undoubtedly the best thin robot vacuum cleaner in the world at the end of 2021. However, it's important to test how effectively this model performs its primary function and whether it maintains high cleaning performance while compressing the robot vacuum cleaner almost in half its size. Based on the test results, I'll express my opinion on whether this robot is worth buying. Incidentally, it costs between $230 and $270 on AliExpress. So, let's get started!

Equipment

Let's start with a review of the components. Besides the robot vacuum cleaner itself, the box contains:

1. Charging base.
2. Power adapter with Chinese plug.
3. Adapter for connection to a European standard socket.
4. Combined container for water and waste.
5. Wet cleaning nozzle with a microfiber cloth installed.
6. Spare napkin.
7. Robot vacuum cleaner documentation in Chinese.
8. Cleaning tool for robot vacuum cleaner.
9. A gift from the seller.

Overall, the package is pretty good. It even comes with a spare cleaning cloth and, potentially, a spare HEPA filter. One is in the combined container, and the other is in the dust collector inside the robot itself. At least for the first few days, you have spare consumables.

Appearance

Now let's take a look at the design of the Xiaomi Mijia Ultra-Thin Robot Vacuum Cleaner. It's black and made of glossy plastic.

It's worth noting not only the slim body but also the robot vacuum's reduced diameter, measuring 32.3 cm. Here's a visual comparison of the height of this model and a standard robot vacuum with lidar:

The Xiaomi Mijia Ultra-Thin Robot Vacuum Cleaner is much more compact.

The mechanical bumper at the front features a ToF sensor, which allows the robot vacuum cleaner to detect objects on the floor and carefully navigate around them while cleaning. A similar solution is implemented in Xiaomi Mijia 1T, who also attended the review.

The control panel contains two mechanical control buttons and the main navigation element – ​​a camera, thanks to which the robot vacuum cleaner creates an accurate map of the room and stores it in its memory.

The dust container is located at the rear of the robot. Surprisingly, it's quite roomy, despite its compact size. The container holds up to 500 ml of dry waste. There's even a built-in dust cover to prevent accidental spillage when the container is removed. The filtration system uses a mesh and HEPA filter.

Instead of a dust collector, you can install a combined water and dirt container in the robot vacuum cleaner. Inside, you'll find a pump for electronically controlling the water flow, which is a plus. The reservoir holds up to 200 ml of water, while the dirt container holds 225 ml of dry dirt. The filtration system is the same as that of a separate dust collector.

The attachment with the cloth is attached from below using clips. The cloth is secured with Velcro and a groove. Water flows into the cloth through three holes.

Let's take a look at the Xiaomi Mijia Ultra-Thin Robot Vacuum Cleaner's underside. It has four fall protection sensors. It has a single, three-beam, quick-release side brush. The center brush has bristles and petals. It can be removed from both sides to remove tangled hair and fur.

It is important to note that the length of the brush is significantly shorter than that of others Xiaomi line of robotic vacuum cleanersYou can see for yourself the difference between the standard central brush and the one installed in the Xiaomi Mijia Ultra-Thin.

Oh, and it's worth noting that there's an optical sensor above the brush that helps the robot vacuum navigate and more accurately map the room. That's a plus. And the wheels themselves are, of course, smaller in diameter. We'll definitely check next to see if the obstacle clearance has improved.

Overall, the robot's build quality is above average and well-suited to its price range.

Technical specifications

The main characteristics of the Xiaomi Mijia Ultra-Thin Robot Vacuum Cleaner, as stated by the manufacturer:

• Li-Ion battery 3200 mAh.
• Suction power up to 2200 Pa.
• Cleaning area up to 100 sq.m.
• Battery life up to 100 min.
• Dust collector 500 ml.
• Combined container 225+200 ml.
• Obstacle clearance 2 cm.
• Dimensions 323*55 mm.

Functional capabilities

Let's move on to a review of the Xiaomi Mijia Ultra-Thin Robot Vacuum Cleaner's features. I received the Chinese version of the robot vacuum cleaner, part number STYTJ04ZHM. This model, therefore, connects to the Chinese region. Connecting was straightforward; the robot vacuum cleaner connected to my smartphone and Wi-Fi network on the first try.

On the main control panel, the robot vacuum cleaner creates a room map and automatically divides the area into zones. Swiping up opens a menu where you can adjust the suction power and the wetness of the cleaning cloth.

To the right of the map, two cleaning modes are displayed: zone cleaning and local cleaning. You can also select specific rooms for cleaning by clicking on them on the map.

In the settings section, you can enable map saving mode and set up a cleaning schedule by selecting the time, days of the week, and suction power. Surprisingly, you can't select specific rooms to clean. You can also enable the option to continue cleaning after recharging at the base, set a time when you don't want the robot vacuum to disturb you, enable or disable notifications to your smartphone, choose one of two voice notification languages, and adjust the volume.

In addition, in the settings, you can view reports on past cleanings, monitor the status of consumables, manually control the robot vacuum, and enable the robot's sound detection feature. In case it gets stuck under a cabinet, you can quickly locate it by its sound.

In the map management section, you can manually change room boundaries, name them, and set virtual walls and no-go zones. You can even create separate no-go zones for wet cleaning mode.

Additionally, you can change the robot's name, share control with other family members, and update the firmware version. That's all the functionality of the Xiaomi Mijia Ultra-Thin Robot Vacuum Cleaner.

All the basic features are included, but to be completely satisfied, it's missing an automatic power boost on carpets, given the battery's limited capacity, as well as scheduled cleaning settings for specific rooms. However, it's worth noting that despite being controlled by the Chinese region, the robot vacuum responds quickly to commands and the app doesn't freeze, which is a plus!

Navigation

First, let's test the Xiaomi Mijia Ultra-Thin Robot Vacuum Cleaner's navigation in a room with obstacles. The robot vacuum first traverses the entire accessible area in a serpentine pattern, then makes a perimeter check, and returns to the base. It didn't get stuck around the dryer's feet and the box, but it did get stuck on the dryer's feet. The navigation is quite standard.

Regarding home navigation, the Xiaomi Mijia Ultra-Thin cleans room by room in a serpentine pattern, then sweeps the entire accessible area along the perimeter and returns to the base. It exhibits the same issue as the Mijia 1T: the object recognition sensor system malfunctions on carpets. This leaves not only uncleaned areas but entire rooms. For example, in one room there was a fluffy rug; the robot recognized it as an obstacle and refused to enter it. Most inconveniently, the sensor system can't be simply disabled in the app, allowing the robot to behave like models without a ToF sensor on the bumper. Similar models from the Roborock, Dreame, and Ecovacs lines do have this feature. As a result, the robot leaves uncleaned areas, which will result in points being deducted.

I'll also test how well the ToF sensor detects objects lying on the floor. For the test, I used the most common household items that could interfere with cleaning. The Xiaomi Mijia Ultra-Thin pleasantly surprised me; it neatly navigated around all the traps and finished cleaning.

Although the object detection system doesn't recognize objects or mark them with corresponding icons on the map, we see that it still does its job. It's worth noting, however, that the robot isn't always so good at recognizing objects; it does occasionally drive over them. So, the object detection system still needs some improvement, but progress is being made.

Suction power

Imagine my surprise when, when testing the suction power of the Xiaomi Mijia Ultra-Thin Robot Vacuum Cleaner, it was able to suck up debris from even a 10mm gap, a feat even powerful flagships claiming 3000-4000 Pa. This is not only an extremely thin robot vacuum cleaner, but also a very powerful one!

Dry cleaning

The dry cleaning performance isn't perfect, but it's definitely above average. Only the corners remain uncleaned, and a few particles of debris remain on the stand, scattered by the side brush. Some fur and hair got caught in the brush, but the bulk of the debris is still collected in the dust bin. Test passed!

Carpet cleaning

On carpets, cleaning performance was only average. The robot vacuum picked up most of the debris, but it still didn't clean the carpet perfectly.

It's worth noting, however, that this is a problem with most robot vacuums in the Mijia line. They are better suited for cleaning hard floors and low-pile carpets. The fact that this model doesn't have a power boost feature for carpets is indirect evidence of this.

Wet cleaning

The dirt removal performance is below average. The cloth doesn't press firmly enough to the floor and doesn't absorb dirt very well, so we see that after driving over the stand, a significant amount of dirt and streaks remain on the wall. This test failed.

It's worth acknowledging, however, that the system is perfectly suitable for everyday wet cleaning and dust collection. What's more, the device can vacuum and mop simultaneously!

Obstacle clearance

I was surprised to find that the Xiaomi Mijia Ultra-Thin Robot Vacuum Cleaner easily navigated a two-centimeter threshold, despite its smaller wheels and low profile. The robot vacuum cleaner has excellent maneuverability.

Driving on dark surfaces

Another plus is that the Xiaomi Mijia Ultra-Thin is not afraid of dark floors and moves freely across them, unlike most similar devices.

Noise level

Finally, let's check the robot's noise level in different modes. In silent mode, the noise level is between 60-62 dB. In medium mode, it reaches 64 dB, in intensive cleaning mode, the noise level does not exceed 67 dB, and at maximum power, the peak was 72 dB. This robot vacuum cleaner's noise level is higher, but this is also due to its high suction power.

Let's sum it up

The Xiaomi Mijia Ultra-Thin Robot Vacuum Cleaner has been thoroughly reviewed and tested. our evaluation system he managed to gain 66 out of 100 points and this is an excellent result for both chamber robot vacuum cleaner. Just 1 point less than the best Xiaomi robot in my opinion for under $200 – Dreame F9.

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

I'll share my impressions of the device I reviewed. I liked the following:

1. In fact, the case is very thin.
2. The presence of a camera for navigation allows the robot to create an accurate map and save it in its memory.
3. Function of detecting objects on the floor.
4. High suction power.
5. Simultaneous dry and wet cleaning.
6. Capacious dust collector.
7. All the basic functionality is in the app, which works well even on Chinese servers.
8. Good obstacle clearance.
9. Not afraid of dark floor coverings.

As for the disadvantages, the main ones are:

1. Not very high quality carpet cleaning.
2. Poor quality of dirt removal.
3. The object detection system does not work correctly on carpets.
4. There is no option to select rooms to clean when setting up a schedule.

Ultimately, the Xiaomi Mijia Ultra-Thin Robot Vacuum Cleaner is undoubtedly the best thin robot vacuum cleaner at the time of writing. All other possible alternatives are inferior in terms of navigation, functionality, design, and build quality. Xiaomi's engineers have truly done a great job and managed to squeeze everything a robot vacuum cleaner should have into such a thin body. This model is definitely worth considering, especially if you prioritize cleaning under low furniture, where a lot of dirt and dust tends to accumulate. The Xiaomi Mijia Ultra-Thin will do a good job of its primary task if you don't have fluffy carpets, as my main drawback is that it doesn't clean carpets very well and behaves oddly when driving on them. That's assuming it drives on them at all.

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