To test a robot vacuum’s pickup performance, I lock it in a 100-square-foot carpeted room in my home, with the floor already cleaned. I then spread a specific quantity of dry uncooked rice on the floor and run the robot. I weigh the robot’s dustbin before and after to see how much of the debris it picked up. I repeat this test using sand, a much more challenging type of debris to remove than rice. I then run the same series of tests in a room with hard floors.
For these tests, I run the robot on its normal suction setting, and if available, enable any smart features that let it automatically boost suction when needed, depending on floor type and/or soil level. For the E28, I enabled BoostIQ, which increases the vacuum’s suction power when it detects carpet.
The E28 did well enough when vacuuming large debris particles, as represented by the rice pickup tests. It picked up 97.8% of the rice on carpet, which is within a reasonable margin of the Deebot X8 (99.9%) and the Saros 10 (98.6%). The grains it missed were usually left in a line or two in the middle of the floor. This test is primarily meant to check coverage, and with its default settings, the E28 can occasionally miss small strips between rows.
The dual side brushes paid off on hardwood, and the E28 picked up 96.3% of the rice. The brushes worked together to keep debris centered in the vacuum’s path, leading to better results than the Deebot X8 (90%) and the Saros 10 (95.1%), both of which have a single side brush. For this test, I sprinkle the rice along a wall to gauge perimeter and corner cleaning. I also check whether a vacuum flings particles as it cleans the slick surface. The E28 minimized flinging and did a good job digging grains out of corners.
Sand on carpet is a suction power stress test, and the E28 only picked up 20.6%, falling well short of the Saros 10 (40.7%) and the Deebot X8 (37.7%). On this test, the E28 even ranks behind our Editors’ Choice winner for budget-friendly robot floor cleaners, the TP-Link Tapo RV30 Max Plus ($299.99), which picked up 26.9% of sand on carpet. I’m sure the E28 would have fared better if I’d used a higher suction level, but the test is meant to see if the robot is smart enough to sense dirt and do it on its own.
On hardwood, the E28 snagged 56.2% of sand, which again puts it well behind the Saros 10 (82.7%) and the Deebot X8 (82.2%), and in the range of the affordable RV30 Max Plus (53.9%).
In terms of cleaning pace, the E28 completed its carpet runs in an average of 15 minutes and 48 seconds (15:48), though it was usually done vacuuming the room in six to nine minutes, and spent the remaining time trying to figure out how to escape and vacuum the rest of my apartment. Its hardwood time is similarly elongated (17:37), but still relatively quick. Both numbers align with the Saros 10’s results. The E28 would have come closer to matching the Deebot X8’s quicker pace if it had realized it was closed in and called it a day sooner. Given that the parameters of my testing mostly caused the extra time, I’d call the E28 one of the most efficient models I’ve tested.
To test mopping performance, I spread 0.25 ounces of raspberry jelly in a single spot on my kitchen floor, then close the robot in the room and let it go to work. The E28 mopped up nearly all the jelly, save for one small splotch. It spread two seeds to other parts of the floor and left a little bit of sticky residue where I had spread the jelly, but kept the rest of the floor clean.
This is an excellent result on this mopping stress test, rivaling the Deebot X8, which picked up most of the jelly, including all stickiness, and limited spread to a couple of seeds. The newish roller mop design offered by both models seems to improve scrubbing efficacy and reduce cross-contamination compared with the dual spinning mop pads that have become common in high-end hybrid robot floor cleaners. It’s certainly a better mop design than the dated vibrating pad of the Saros 10, which left a smear of jelly behind and spread both seeds and sticky residue to other parts of the floor.
The E28’s automatic mop washing feature worked without issue, removing all jelly remnants from the roller. For comparison, the Deebot X8 still had some raspberry seeds along its spindle following its auto mop washing.
