Expert’s Rating
Pros
- Self-emptying dock
- Lightweight stick vac
- Compact
- Dock stores 70 days of debris
Cons
- Mopping requires wipes
- Short power cable
- Unergonomic stick handle
Our Verdict
A three-in-one solution to floor cleaning is, on paper, a great idea. But overall, there’s a feeling of compromise with SwitchBot’s K10+ Pro Combo. The pint-sized robot vac doesn’t have quite enough suction power, its mopping is more trouble than it’s worth, and the stick vac’s handle is uncomfortable to hold for anything beyond a quick task. There are some highlights though, such as a compact dock that both devices empty into, so if you can live with the trade-off, it could still be a good option.
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Given that robot vacs are not a like-for-like replacement for an upright model (a robot vacuum is no use on stairs, for a start), it’s easy to see the appeal of a combined floor cleaner. SwitchBot’s K10+ Pro Combo blends a small robot vacuum with a stick vacuum, and a dock they both empty into, thus keeping on top of everyday mess and providing a tool for a targeted deeper clean when required.
In addition, it features a dock that takes up less floor space than many, with the ability to store up to 70 days’ worth of dust, and a clip-on system that uses disposable wipes to ‘mop’: making it a viable option for those with compact living spaces – or households reluctant to commit to one type of cleaner.
Rachel Ogden / Foundry
You can see how this model stacks up against the competition by checking out our round-ups of the best vacuum cleaners, the best robot vacuums and the best cheap robot vacuums.
Design & Build
- Compact robot vacuum
- Dock has 3-litre dust capacity
- Matter compatible
If you like white, SwitchBot’s K10+ Pro Combo robot vacuum and cordless vacuum doesn’t disappoint. There are hints of silver and grey but other than that, this is one for the minimalists out there.
Its design is more novel. It centres around a compact base, which conceals a 3-litre dust collector complete with a bag, and connects to both the stick vac, which hangs on the back, and the robot, which necessarily has to dock at the front. The stick is lightweight at 1.84kg/4lbs including the floorhead (it’s lighter with one of the three tools attached), while the base measures a compact 82.6 x 19.5 x 22cm (32 x 7.7 x 8.7in) by itself.
Its companion robot vacuum is ‘the world’s smallest’ at a mere 24.8cm/9.76in across (although it has a more standard height of 9.2cm/3.6in) – ideal for reaching places larger vacs can’t access. Its two buttons can be used to send it home or continue cleaning if it’s interrupted, without the user needing to reach for the app.
Rachel Ogden / Foundry
The SwitchBot K10+ Pro Combo also works via a SwitchBot hub (not included) with Matter over Thread, meaning that it’s future-proofed and will work with any major smart home system, and you can issue voice commands for the robot using Apple Home and Google Home.
Performance & Features
- Good app
- Robot navigation not advanced
- Mopping is a weakness
While SwitchBot’s K10+ Pro Combo dock itself is well designed, its short power cable can limit where it can live. I ended up using an extension cable for location flexibility, given that the back of it had to remain accessible so the stick vac could be removed and replaced.
My first impression of the stick vac was that while its lightness and manoeuvrability were good, it was uncomfortable to hold. The battery sits within the handle, adding weight.
Rachel Ogden / Foundry
Meanwhile, the handle itself is wide and plastic (rather than being a soft grip material), causing it to slip from the hand during use without a reasonably firm hold. The controls at the base of the handle – there’s just one on/off button, and a turbo button – are small and awkward to reach, plus it’s hard to make out the remaining battery level while in use.
Rachel Ogden / Foundry
What we did like was that placing the stick vac back on the dock causes it to auto empty thoroughly (this is very loud), and that the wide brush bar features concealed teeth to prevent hair wrap – during testing, there were no clogs or clumps.
Rachel Ogden / Foundry
The robot connected easily to the app. Mapping was similarly straightforward although its guesswork as to room divisions required more editing than many rivals. Once up and running, it was easy to set schedules, adjust settings and most importantly, it never lost connection, and always found its way home to the base without issue.
Rachel Ogden / Foundry
It did, however, struggle with obstacles during the test period. While the robot’s wheels are sprung so it can climb, it continually became stuck on a doormat, ate pet toys (cats are not tidy), and we had to make a hearth a no-go area as it would mount the edge.
Mopping feels like an afterthought – there’s no water tank on-board or mop pads, but a clip-on module that requires disposable wipes to be attached to it. Mopping disengages the vacuuming function, meaning that larger particles of dirt lifted by the wipe will stay on the floor. It is, essentially, wiping the floor.
In this mode, it doesn’t know when it’s on carpet or rugs, so you’ll need to create no-go areas. While we liked the idea of not needing water to refill a tank, and that there was no need to wash cloths afterwards, the wipes were tricky to fit, and we felt we could have mopped manually in the same amount of time.
Rachel Ogden / Foundry
We tried the mopping for cleaning up brown sauce and tomato puree that had been left to dry. Unfortunately, the wipe stuck to the tomato puree and tugged it loose from the module. Three wipes later, most of the visible mess was gone but the floor was distinctly sticky. This function would probably only be suitable for light everyday dirt.
The robot did better with dry debris on the hard floor: for the test we were using flour to represent dust and oats as larger particles. Even in the turbo mode, the robot left quite a lot of flour behind, but oat pick-up was good, with only a few remaining that had been flicked away by the side brush. On a mid-pile carpet, the result was much the same: good pick-up of the oats but a noticeable amount of flour was left behind in the pile.
The stick vac packs less suction power than the robot (2000Pa vs 3000Pa) but we felt it delivered a better performance. Flour pick-up was good on the standard power, although it could spread the mess a little.
Oats were mostly sucked up on standard but a few tended to escape the brushes, so a few passes were required. On carpet, standard power picked up the oats, but there was flour residue left behind that its turbo mode couldn’t lift.
We had to use our regular vacuum to suck this up. We also tried the stick vac using some of its attachments – here it was pleasantly light as a handheld on upholstery, good for small particles, but didn’t pick up pet hair well.
Price and Availability
The SwitchBot K10+ Pro Combo had a launch price of £799.99/$799.99 but at the time of writing, it’s available for much less. In the UK, you can buy it for £496 from SwitchBot (with the code LMTSM250) or £499.99 from Amazon.
In the US, both Amazon and SwitchBot (with the code LMTM50M) are selling it for $399.99.
These prices make it very good value and well worth considering if you need a new vacuum cleaner and a robot vacuum on a budget. And if it isn’t discounted when you’re tempted to buy, we’d advise waiting for one of the regular sales periods to come along – because the discount is huge.
But if you have more space or more budget, the Combo doesn’t feature the best of either option. You can see our top recommendations in our round-ups of the best vacuum cleaners, the best robot vacuums and the best cheap robot vacuums.
Should you buy the SwitchBot K10+ Pro Combo?
While it solves the conundrum of what type of cleaner to buy, the SwitchBot K10+ Pro Combo doesn’t completely deliver on either. The stick vac isn’t as comfortable to use as some and it lacks the beefy suction and multiple brushes of others. The robot is small but as prone to getting stuck as its bigger counterparts, and can leave mess behind.
Its mopping isn’t really mopping – plus disposable wet wipes are no friend to the environment. The most appealing feature is the compact dock: efficient, ideal for small space living and time-saving in the amount you’ll have to empty it. For this, it may be worth overlooking the flaws of the cleaners themselves – but be sure you can live with the compromise before you buy.
