Roborock F25 review: Not a single F

On the internet the letter ‘F’ is used to acknowledge a failure, and while the Roborock F25 nomenclature might lend itself to a barrage of jokes I couldn’t find a single one. This electric mop vacuum combo is the latest in Roborock’s line of floor cleaning devices, and it had a tough act to follow.

The last range released in Australia was the Flexi Lite, and the Flexi Pro which were already excellent devices. In practice these devices all perform the same functions. They have a continuously self cleaning roller mop head, suction for hard debris, and self cleaning back at the base station. But the F25 comes with a new design which lends itself to better handling and manouevering on slick surfaces. Despite the name, the F series is anything but.

Following up from the Flexi series, the largest difference we see with the F25 is the design. Rather than having two water tanks on the front and back of the handle, the F25 has the clean water tank on top of the mop head, and the dirty water tank on the handle. Not only do the new shapes make for easier refilling, emptying and cleaning, but they create a better balance when using the device.

While the Flexi series could sometimes err towards feeling bottom heavy, making the mop head slip more as the floor got more wet, the F25 doesn’t have the same issues. While the clean water tank is full it adds extra weight to the floor which creates better traction, but as it empties out and the floor gets wet and doesn’t need that traction the weight redistributes back to the handle to balance out.

All up this makes the F25 feel significantly lighter than its 4.2kg (or 4.98kg with a full tank) weight. It also makes using it across different floor types, and at different angles just as easy. Since it can fold down to a flat 180 degrees, and the head can pivot around 45 degrees in each direction, it would be unsurprising to find some angles where it is off balance. Yet the design stops any significant issues, no matter how the mop is situated.

When it comes to wet and sticky messes the F25 makes light work, but mixed in hard debris is less reliable. While the clearance rate on messes like honey, tomato sauce, and water sit at about 99%, solid dander like oats don’t get pulled up as readily, especially on edges.

This is to be expected. Electric mops, even two-in-one devices are primarily made for wet messes while the dry debris is an added bonus. Still in the middle of the floor the pick up is generally quite good with most of the left over sitting up against the wall. Conversely sticky messes are picked up just as easily along edges as they are in the open floor space. Ultimately you can rely on the F25 to clean up almost anything, but you may need to give it a once over with a stick vacuum after the floor has dried.

Part of this performance comes from being able to use compatible floor cleaning solutions in the device. Usually electric cleaning devices steer clear of cleaning chemicals as they can cause corrosion and break down the device sooner. However, as long as you’re using a Roborock certified solution, you can add in a cleaner for nicer smelling, and better cleaning results.

Cleaning doesn’t take too long, or use up much water either. Over around ten minutes of use on auto mode the F25 went through 150ml of water and a little over 20% of its battery life. On the whole the device tracks to use a full tank, and all of its battery in around 42 minutes on auto. While it is rated to last for 60 minutes, that number is based on eco mode. Chances are you won’t be pulling this out for longer than 40 minutes at a time so I’m confident the battery won’t be an issue, even if it is practically a shorter run than what is advertised.

Most of the water is used back at the base station for the self cleaning function. It uses around 400ml of water to saturate the roller and clean it back off. After this cleaning function, which takes a couple of minutes (and admittedly can get quite loud), the F25 enters quiet drying mode which lives up to its name. After a couple of hours at the base station, gently humming away, the roller is mostly dry and the F25 is ready to use again.

The Roborock F25 has been released at the $699 price point. Similar models from the manufacturer have seen price drops as time goes on, but expect this launch price to stick for a while

Although the practical changes are small, Roborock’s latest wet/dry vacuum is a more polished device that is easier to use. Its functionality is simple enough, but the real boon comes from the design tweaks. Shuffling around the water tanks is a simple, but wholly effective way to make a product that is less of a strain to use. The F25 will be suited to more households than its predecessors simply due to the balancing act.