Let’s be honest—nobody wakes up excited to vacuum, but we’ve all had that satisfying moment when a robot vacuum zips through the hallway while we lounge on the couch. Still, picking the right robot isn’t as easy as pushing a button. We’ve tested more models than we care to admit, and when it comes to Roborock’s Q Revo, S8 Pro Ultra, and Q8 MAX+, we were surprised by how different they feel once they’re in action—even if they seem similar at first glance.
The S8 Pro Ultra promises high-end automation, the Q Revo strikes a tempting balance, and the Q8 MAX+ tries to impress with brute endurance. But only one of them truly feels like you’ve hired a cleaning service and not just bought another gadget. Let’s break it all down, feature by feature.
Base stations that think they’re cleaning butlers
There’s a certain comfort in watching your robot vacuum stroll back to its dock and just… take care of itself. No dustbin emptying, no mop-wringing, no water refills—just silence and a clean floor.
The Q Revo surprised us with a base that does everything except tuck the robot in at night. It empties the dustbin, washes and dries the mop pads, and even refills the water tank on its own. The cherry on top? Its 2.7-liter debris tank is slightly larger than its siblings, so if you hate chores (who doesn’t?), you’ll be interacting with it less.
But then, there’s the S8 Pro Ultra, which doesn’t just maintain the robot—it maintains itself. In addition to handling dust, mop pads, and water, the base cleans the lower dock area, scrubbing where grime would normally collect unnoticed. It’s the kind of detail that makes you go, “Wait… why don’t they all do this?”
The Q8 MAX+ brings up the rear with a simpler self-emptying base. No mop pad washing, no water refilling. It’s like buying a robot that does the job, but still leaves you with a to-do list.
Suction that separates the deep-cleaners from the dust-nudgers
Not all suction is created equal. 6000 Pascals may sound like a random number, but in practice, the S8 Pro Ultra practically yanks debris out of carpets. Pet hair? Cookie crumbs? Dried mud? Gone. Almost unfairly good.
The Q Revo and Q8 MAX+ come in just behind at 5500 Pascals. And honestly, for most floors, that difference won’t be noticeable unless you’re the kind of person who sprinkles coffee grounds just to test machines. Still, that extra bit of power can matter on thick rugs or when your dog’s been on a shedding spree.
Each model offers four suction modes, which helps tone things down when you want to clean without scaring the cat.
When battery life actually makes you exhale
Here’s the twist: the Q8 MAX+ quietly steals the spotlight with a whopping 240 minutes of runtime. That’s four hours. Four. It kept going when we were already bored of watching it.
The Q Revo and S8 Pro Ultra tap out around 180 minutes, which is still respectable, but for larger homes, that extra hour on the Q8 MAX+ might be the difference between finishing a job or needing to recharge mid-mop.
Of course, all three models include “recharge and resume” functionality, so they’ll pick up where they left off. But come on—who wants to wait an hour to clean that last bedroom?
Navigation that avoids your dog’s bowl (and pride)
All three of these bots use Roborock’s PreciSense LiDAR, which is just a fancy way of saying “they know exactly where they are.” They don’t bump around randomly like confused Roombas from 2012.
They map out your rooms with precision, recognize furniture, avoid socks, dodge cables, and can store up to four different maps, so you can move them between floors and still have perfect control.
Want to set no-go zones or clean just under the dining table after lunch? The apps let you command them like a general on a battlefield. And thanks to Reactive Tech object detection, they avoid most embarrassing encounters.
Brushes and mops that go beyond wiping the surface
This is where things start to really diverge. The cleaning mechanics under the hood are not all created equal.
The Q Revo keeps it simple but effective: a single rubber brush and two spinning mop pads. These pads rotate at 200 rpm and, best of all, they lift themselves when the vacuum hits a carpet. No soggy rug surprises. It feels clean and clever.
The Q8 MAX+ takes the brush game up a notch with its DuoRoller system—two rubber rollers that counter-rotate to grab more grime. Pair that with a decent mop, and it’s better suited for pet-heavy homes. Still, the mopping pad itself is nothing special—it wipes, but it doesn’t scrub.
Now the S8 Pro Ultra? It combines that same DuoRoller system with something called VibraRise. And wow. It vibrates while it mops, like a toothbrush for your floors. You can hear and feel it scrubbing at tougher stains. And yes, it also lifts on carpets. It’s the kind of detail that makes you double-check the floor after and go, “Did I do that? Oh no wait—it did.”
Sound levels that won’t ruin your podcast
We never cared much about vacuum noise until one kicked on mid-Zoom call. And then it was all we cared about.
The Q Revo is the quietest at 63 dB, which is soft enough to hear yourself think. The Q8 MAX+ and S8 Pro Ultra get a bit louder—67 and 68.5 dB respectively—and while it’s not hair-dryer levels, it’s noticeable in a silent room.
If you plan to run it during work hours or while binging shows, that Q Revo hush might be worth it.
Capacity: the overlooked lifesaver
It’s easy to overlook dust and water tank sizes until you find yourself emptying the bin three times a week.
The Q8 MAX+ surprises again here with a 470 ml internal dustbin and a 350 ml water tank. That’s more than either of its siblings. For homes with pets or a lot of floor to cover, this cuts down on interruptions.
The S8 Pro Ultra sticks to 350 ml dust and 200 ml water, while the Q Revo has 350 ml for dust and a mere 80 ml water tank. But let’s not forget—both of those models auto-refill water and empty dust through their docks, so the actual tank size matters less.
It’s a case of more storage vs. more automation.
Smart features that feel, well… smart
Every model here plays nicely with your phone, smart speaker, and schedules. They all support voice commands, app syncing, multi-map setups, and use washable HEPA filters.
You can tell them to clean while you’re grocery shopping, check progress from the gym, or get alerts when cleaning’s done. They’re not just smart—they’re integrated.
But in use, the apps feel nearly identical. No clear winner here, which is kind of nice for once.
So, who actually wins—and why does it matter?
Look. We expected the S8 Pro Ultra to be good. We didn’t expect it to feel like it was from a whole different generation. Between the 6000 Pa suction, self-cleaning base, DuoRoller Riser system, and VibraRise mopping, it doesn’t just clean—it works like something that wants to replace you.
And that’s not even exaggeration. The hands-off experience is real. It needs the least from you, and gives the most in return. If you’re someone who hates even thinking about cleaning, it’s kind of ridiculous how well this machine fades into the background while leaving spotless floors behind.
The Q Revo is great—don’t get us wrong. It’s the sweet spot if you want serious automation without paying the S8 Pro Ultra price. But the mop system isn’t as intense, and the suction just misses the high bar.
The Q8 MAX+? It’s a workhorse. Long battery life, big tanks, strong brushes—but it makes you do more work. There’s no water auto-refill, no mop washing. It feels a little more… old-school, even though it’s technically newer.
And that’s what surprised us most. Sometimes, the specs don’t tell the full story until you live with the machine. Until you’ve seen one mop pad come out steaming clean while the other’s dried and folded, or realized you haven’t touched the dock in two weeks, because it cleans itself.
So yeah, the S8 Pro Ultra is overkill. It’s excessive. It’s expensive. And it’s amazing.
The others? Useful, practical, and definitely worth considering—especially if budget or runtime is your top concern. But when you’ve seen what’s possible… it’s hard to go back.