ECOVACS DEEBOT T9+ Review: A Trusty Cleaning Companion for Smaller Homes

There’s nothing quite like automation, and the ECOVACS DEEBOT T9+ automates one of the most annoying pangs of maintaining a home—vacuuming. However, for all of the benefits that come with this sleek robot vacuum, not everyone will see the DEEBOT T9+ as a full replacement for a standard vacuum.

I need to preface this entire review with the fact that I live in a 2,100-square-foot two-story home. It’s not massive, but the primary living spaces are an open floor plan of tile and touches of laminate, with bedrooms full of plush carpeting. Knowing this will help you understand just how efficient (or inefficient) the DEEBOT T9+ really is.

My first gripe isn’t ECOVACS’ wrongdoing, but one robot vacuum in a two-story home doesn’t cut it. This does highlight what I think the DEEBOT T9+ is best used as—a supplement to a standard, full-power vacuum. That’s not to say the robot vac can’t pull its weight, but in a larger space, and especially a two-story home, it’s not going to be as helpful. If this were a slightly smaller space and one story, I would definitely be singing a different song, as the vacuum’s suction, battery, and navigation are absolutely prime.

Save for the need for frequent maintenance and the added cost of some components, the DEEBOT T9+ is a wonderful little device with much to offer, so long as the home size is right. Where it falters most is with its pro oscillating system, which tries to break down dirt and grime using only water. Again, this feels more like a supplement to an actual floor cleaner as it may not address residue from messy spills and life’s frequent accidents.

Accurate 3D Detection and Environment Mapping

Before you get to enjoy having a small robot vacuum do your bidding, the DEEBOT T9+ has to learn the layout of the space it’s cleaning. It’s an effortless process on your part that starts when you download the official ECOVACS HOME app (available on iPhone/iPad and Android) and go through the quick setup.

The DEEBOT T9+ took about an hour to complete this process on one story, but its accuracy is pretty impressive. A map compiled in the ECOVACS app pinpoints any obstacles the vacuum has to maneuver around. You can go in later to make any edits, such as assigning specific rooms or merging two into one. Since you can tell the DEEBOT T9+ to vacuum specific rooms, say if you just want to spruce up the living space before company arrives, that it recognizes individual rooms is a great feature.

I owned a Shark robot vacuum in the past that didn’t populate a map and only used sensors to navigate with each cleaning. There’s a stark contrast between the options, especially since the DEEBOT T9+ uses both camera-free sensors and navigation. Rather than having to learn a space with each vacuuming, ECOVACS’ model can run as normal until it runs into a new obstacle. Then, its advanced TrueDetect 3D 2.0 obstacle avoidance tech kicks in to prevent collisions.

The result is faster cleaning. What the DEEBOT T9+ takes less than an hour to do, the Shark would take almost two hours.

Heavy Suction, But Not Quite Enough

The DEEBOT T9+ isn’t a big unit, per se, at least not to where I’d look at it and expect the same power as a modest-sized standing vacuum. However, it handles dirt and pet hair very well on hard surfaces. It’s effective on carpeted surfaces, too, but nothing beats the aggression and rapid rotation of a standing vacuum roller.

Every time I ran the DEEBOT T9+, the dirt reservoir was always full, so I knew it was doing its job. I also knew that it could do it marginally better, especially when it came to carpets. The unit kicks into a higher gear when it detects a carpeted surface, but it’s not quite enough for the deep clean you get from, say, a multisurface BISSEL vacuum, which remains to be my primary vacuum even with the DEEBOT T9+.

I tested the effectiveness of the robot vacuum by running it individually on both an uncleaned tile surface and an unvacuumed rug. In both instances, it ran as expected, picked up a decent amount of dirt, hair, and dust, and returned to its charging station to unload its haul into the auto-empty station.

Then, I ran my BISSEL over both surfaces with an empty dirt tank. The hardwood floor came back with virtually nothing in the BISSEL’s tank, indicating the ECOVAC performed a pretty solid cleaning. On the rug, however, the tank captured thin layers of hair and smaller fibers. The robot vacuum struggles to dislodge entangled fibers, so it’s not the best at deeply cleaning carpets.

Hitting the Occasional Roadblock

In fact, carpets tend to be the bane of the DEEBOT T9+. Running on the carpet kicks up very small pockets of dust that can block the sensors and force the unit to stop until cleaned. If you have a lot of carpet in your home, this could mean having to remain home until the cycle is complete to ensure the sensors aren’t blocked.

The vacuum does come with a small brush, so it’s a quick and convenient fix, but knowing you have to babysit the unit can sometimes defeat the purpose of being able to run it from the ECOVACS app.

I also found that the DEEBOT T9+ would sometimes get stuck at furniture that was light enough to move, like an ottoman I have in my living room. The robot would run into the ottoman and move it until the ottoman either hit an immobile surface or the vacuum lodged itself under. It was an infrequent occurrence, and I believe was a combination of a dirty sensor and the ottoman being moved from where it was originally detected during that initial mapping phase.

A Modest Mopping

The ECOVACS DEEBOT T9+ is a dual-purpose unit capable of both vacuuming and mopping hard surfaces. Swapping out to the OZMO Pro Oscillating system for water-based cleaning is simple, and the vacuum comes with a small pack of disposable mopping pads to get you started.

Running the oscillating system is identical to vacuuming, with adjustments to how much water is used available in the ECOVACS app. While it’s fine for a surface-level cleaning to freshen up the space, it’s definitely not meant for deeper cleaning. The system only uses water, and even the highest water flow level and deep scrubbing mode aren’t enough to break down residue from sticky spills.

It winds up being another feature that, while welcomed, further highlights that the DEEBOT T9+ is a supplement to more effective cleaning solutions. I don’t feel comfortable getting rid of my Swiffer WetJet as I wouldn’t use the OZMO Pro Oscillating system as a primary floor cleaner.

Long-Lasting Battery

The component I most expected to have issues with is barely worth talking about. Vacuuming my entire first-floor chips away at the battery slowly, but it was still above 50% by the time it hit the charging station. That was even running on the highest suction power.

Recharging is also a quick process, though it’s unlikely you’ll need a rapid-charging robot vacuum.

A Single-Story Solution

One of the biggest dilemmas with the DEEBOT T9+ (and really any robot vacuum) is if you live in a two-story home, which I do. The robot is equipped with stair detection, but that suggests I’m going to transport the vacuum between floors every time I run it. Much like a popular 90s infomercial, my ideal scenario for a robot vacuum is that I can simply set it and forget it.

I want to leave for the day, schedule it to run while I’m not home, and return to clean floors. Having to transport the device upstairs to ensure all floors are clean, especially as both stories are under heavy foot traffic from two litter-footed felines, isn’t as convenient as the vacuum is meant to be.

Having lived in a 700-square-foot apartment, however, I can see the value and purpose of such a device. After running the DEEBOT T9+ several times to get a feel for its efficiency and effectiveness, a single-story space of about that size seems to be a good limit for automated cleaning.

A User-Friendly App

When I first booted up the app, I expected it to be a convoluted mess of options. Beyond the initial run, during which the vacuum maps up the entire floor plan of your home, everything has been a breeze to navigate. Not only can you keep up with the vacuum’s status, from its surprisingly long-lasting battery life to any error messages, but you can also control suction power, water flow, mopping modes, and cleaning schedules.

The mapping system is quite advanced, complete with a 3D model where you can add furniture in an interface that reminds me of early “The Sims” games. While the DEEBOT T9+ is equipped with advanced sensors, giving it a basic idea of where your sofa or dining room table may sit cuts down on time spent manually maneuvering around them.

One of the most convenient features of the app is the built-in store, which you’ll get to know intimately.

Prepare to Shop

My primary issue with the DEEBOT T9+ is that the components wear down easily. You’ll need to replace dust bags, brushes, and scrubbing pads often, and they’re not cheap. An entire kit of supplies, including a replacement roller, side brushes, and dust bags, will run just under $70. And depending on how often you run the vacuum, that may only get you through a month of cleanings.

A supply of nine dust bags is just under $60, and though each bag is expected to hold a month’s supply of dirt, my dustbin was asking for a new bag after two weeks. It’s all dependent on your space, whether you have pets, and if you’re vacuuming carpets.

Shopping for this specific model also proved difficult. Being a newer model, the T9+ isn’t listed under compatibility for any of the accessories. That should change in time, though.

Should You Buy the ECOVACS DEEBOT T9+?

If you absolutely hate vacuuming, you should consider eyeing up the ECOVACS DEEBOT T9+. There are a lot of neat features to it, from the camera-less advanced navigation and sensors to the hypo-allergenic bags and auto-emptying station. However, it’s one of those household devices that depends entirely on your space. For my home, it’s a little too inefficient, but that’s not really ECOVACS’ fault.

You’re essentially shrinking the functionality of a standing vacuum into a much smaller unit. I didn’t expect there to be a 1:1 translation of cleansing power from my BISSEL to the ECOVACS model. In fact, for its size, the DEEBOT T9+ stands up fairly well to modern vacuums. My floors were definitely clean after it was run, and I could see the product of its efficiency in the auto-empty station’s dust bags. The space is just a little too big, especially when spread over two stories.

I do think the IZMO Pro 2.0 Oscillating Mopping System is the vacuum’s weakest feature, and households with children will see where it falters most. It may break through simple dirt and grime, but it struggles with heavier stains and residue.

The best testament to having the ECOVACS DEEBOT T9+ in your home is that it completed a full cleaning of my first floor in the time it took to write this review. Rather than vacuuming once I’m done, I can sink my time into something else. And it’s also not so loud that it’s distracting, though, like any vacuum, there is a certain level of noise you’ll have to deal with.

It’s not the perfect solution for automated vacuuming, but for the right square footage, it’s definitely a contender for one of the better options.