Founded in 2016, the Chinese brand Narwal Robotics launched the world's first self-cleaning robot vacuum and mop in 2020. The Narwal Freo Z Ultra is one of the brand's flagship models and has some serious selling points. From its 12,000 Pa suction power to its two rotating mops, its dual camera for navigation, and its multifunctional docking station, the Freo Z Ultra is no small feat. As you'll see in our full review, Narwal's robot vacuum cleaner has nothing to be ashamed of compared to the market leaders Roborock, Dreame, or Ecovacs. Time for the test.
Design and installation: simple and effective
Narwal gets straight to the point by offering the fewest possible parts to assemble. The vacuum cleaner is the central unit around which you simply hang the essentials such as brushes and mops. The little extra of the Freo Z ultra: a bristle brush that attaches to the side to clean the joints and anything the vacuum cleaner could rub against.
The base isn't too bulky and its design is elegant enough that you wouldn't be ashamed to see it sitting in the middle of a room. On the top lid is a circular screen with touch control buttons. When you lift the lid, you'll find the two clean and dirty water tanks, which are quite large. The front of the station attaches and detaches magnetically, revealing the dust bag and the detergent refill slot. The station plugs into a wall outlet.
The application: complete, but confusing
As soon as you want to add the Freo Z Ultra to the application Narwal requires you to connect to your Wi-Fi network and create an account. The home page contains shortcuts, but you have to click on the robot vacuum's name to access its functions. A bit of a shame if you only have one. We then arrive at another interface composed of the main cleaning, programming and history functions.
Cleaning can be done by room or by zone that you define manually. A second menu is also present at the top right to change the way the maps are displayed (black and white, color, 3D, etc.). In short, all this is very complete, but requires a certain learning curve to find your way around. There are also some translation issues in French.
The small camera-shaped logo allows you to activate the video surveillance functionality of your home (including remotely). You can ask it to go to a specific point by selecting a point on the map. Patrols can be programmed to monitor your home or keep an eye on your pets while you're away.
Navigation: test passed
To navigate in space, the Narwal Freo Z Ultra uses a LiDAR laser system located in its small turret, as well as proximity sensors on the lower part of the vacuum cleaner. It is also equipped with two 1080p RGB cameras (1600 x 1200 pixels) and two AI chips for obstacle recognition and avoidance. All with a 136° field of vision. An arsenal that allows it to navigate smoothly between furniture and recognize up to 120 objects.
Overall, it does very well. Only a few small children's toys escaped its vigilance (a "Plus Plus" for those in the know). So you can't really leave everything on the floor and expect the robot to manage, but it's true that it does much better in this regard than other robot vacuums. The Freo Z Ultra also features fairly effective cable detection. It won't hesitate to bypass them, provided it can identify them. In fact, we encountered a problem with a thinner string light cable touching the floor.
Otherwise, the Freo Z Ultra maps the area to be cleaned very well and can recognize carpets. For these, the vacuum cleaner can raise the mops by 12 mm, which unfortunately isn't always enough to get over the thickest ones. The vacuum cleaner therefore sometimes picks them up in its path. However, there's no problem with furniture and chair legs, which it avoids very easily. You can also let the robot vacuum work in the dark; it will automatically turn on its front light if the cleaning environment is too dark.
Cleaning Performance and Noise
With its 12,000 Pa of suction and two mops, the Narwal Freo Z Ultra isn't just there to make up the numbers. Even on old parquet floors that aren't perfectly straight, it vacuums very well, including between the slats if the suction power is on a high setting. We also appreciate the cleaning decisions made by the vacuum cleaner, which automatically stops suction when it detects a puddle of water, to activate only the mops. A detail that isn't really a detail, as some vacuum cleaners tend to spread liquids.
The round mops do their cleaning job very well, and the robot makes small lateral rotations so that the mops also reach the edges. Clever and efficient. Unfortunately, we didn't have the opportunity to subject it to animal droppings, which are often the bane of robot vacuum cleaners (and their owners).
Special mention should be made of the vacuum cleaner's very controlled noise when it's working. Unless you activate the maximum suction mode, you can easily hold a conversation while the robot vacuum is around.
Automatic maintenance and proprietary detergent
With a cleaning area of approximately 65 m2, more than half of the water reserve remained after cleaning. This also depends on the mode used. The Freo mode, for example, intelligently determines the suction power and the amount of water required based on the dirtiness of the floor. This mode generally takes longer, but also uses more water. There is also an automatic water exchange system, but this is sold separately on the Narwal website. The station also cleans the mops with hot water, as well as the station itself, which avoids a lot of manual maintenance. Everything is dried with hot air at 40°C.
The app will tell you when it's time to change the dust bin and detergent (which is automatically dispensed from the station). It's unfortunate that the latter is proprietary, but there's enough of it that you don't have to change it too often. Here again, it all depends on how you use the device.
The Freo Z Ultra benefits from an automatic water and dust drainage system that passes through its base. For dust, however, we noticed that the vacuum cleaner's reservoir is never perfectly vacuumed. This is due to the hair and hair that creates dust bunnies that are sometimes difficult to dislodge from the small opening of the tank.
Solid battery life and fast charging
It's not always easy to measure The exact battery life of a robot vacuum cleaner, but the Freo Z Ultra's is long enough to run for over two hours without having to return to its base. At least, that's what we found after several weeks of testing. Unless you live in a castle, it shouldn't let you down before completing its household chores. Once returned to its base, allow about three hours for a full battery charge.
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