I’ve been on a mission lately to find the best robotic vacuum for our home. More specifically, I wanted the best budget robot vacuum for pet hair. We have a Saint Bernard who, at times, sheds a lot. It’s not all year, but twice a year it feels like she has enough hair coming out of her to cover 10 other dogs.
We also recently adopted a stray kitten. Then, of course, there are 8 human members of our family, many of them young and still likely to drop a lot of crumbs, dirt, etc. onto the floor.
As you can imagine, with a house full of kids and pets, I am a very busy lady; therefore, a robot vacuum is a huge help to me. Huge help! Robot vacs are an amazing invention and I’m so thankful to have their help in my home!
I have a Bissell robot vacuum that was working great…until it wasn’t anymore. And, to be honest, the customer service experience has not been great. At all. It’s made me not likely to purchase Bissell robot vacuum cleaners anymore and instead sent me looking at other brands.
I recently reviewed the Shellbot Robot Vacuum. I really like it and have been using it on my 2nd level (where the bedrooms are).
Because we don’t spend a lot of time on the second level (mainly for sleeping) it doesn’t get nearly as dirty as our main level. I’ve been noticing newer robot vacuum models that feature a built-in compartment to self-empty the dirt and knew THAT was the type of vacuum I needed for our main floor.
The main floor definitely has the most pet hair, human hair, crumbs, etc. and needs to be vacuumed more than our basement or second level. Having a vacuum that I only have to empty every 4 weeks is huge!
Dreametech D10 Plus Robot Vacuum Review
Today I want to tell you all about the Dreametech D10 Plus Robot Vacuum. At this point, I’ve tried 5 different robot vacuum cleaners (from 5 different companies too).
It’s my favorite budget vacuum for pet hair and pet dander. I know the term “budget” is relative to each family’s situation. Considering current inflation and rising costs on everything these days, my goal was to find the best robot vacuum cleaner under $500.
It’s been a godsend for helping me keep my main level clean. Any pet owners should definitely give it strong consideration.
Features of the Dreamtech D10 Plus Robot Vacuum
- Approximately 45 Days of Hands-Free Cleaning: An auto-empty base station quickly and quietly dumps dirt and dust into a 2.5L dust bag, to provide weeks of independent automated cleaning. All you have to do is dump the bag once it’s full.
- Cleans Strong, Cleans Long: A max suction pressure of 4000Pa is designed to easily lift dirt from floors and deposit it into the 400mL dust box. It has 4 suction modes to choose from to provide efficient, adaptable cleaning while a large, 5,200mAh, battery delivers up to 180 minutes of continuous cleaning to cover even large homes in a single run. To put it simply, this vacuum has powerful suction!
- High-Performance LiDAR Navigation: The LiDAR laser navigation facilitates detailed rapid map building and remarkable navigation. Fast, accurate map building and systematic path planning help ensure spots aren’t missed and cleaning isn’t repeated.
- Effective and Adjustable Mopping: You can set your water usage to wash your floors exactly the way you want. A 150mL water tank and three water volume options let you adjust water usage and mop dampness according to how dirty the floor is.
- Cleans at your Command: This robot vacuum is compatible with Alexa voice control to put automatic cleaning at the tip of your tongue. Just say the word to start, pause, or stop your robot vacuum and make automatic cleaning even more hands-off. You can also control it via an app on your phone.
- Customize your Cleaning — You can customize your cleaning via the app by selecting cleaning modes, cleaning certain rooms, setting a virtual wall, placing a no-go zone, and more. Decide where and when your robot vacuum cleans and what spots it should avoid, to clean just the way you want from the comfort of your own phone.
Assembly and Set-Up
There really isn’t any assembly required. Just take it all out of the box, plug the cords in, remove a few pieces of shipping materials, and then you’re ready to go!
For set-up you’ll want to download their app. It’s also important to note that you’ll want a wifi connection for this vacuum. We have slow (DSL internet) because we live in the county but it’s been sufficient for the vacuum.
Our Flooring Situation
You’re probably wondering what kind of flooring I clean with this vacuum. For us, it’s a combination of hardwood floors and carpet (rugs really). I do have a small rug in my kitchen with fringe that this vacuum gets stuck on. Now I just make sure I pick it up before I start the vacuum, although I could also set it as a no-vacuum zone. The rug usually needs a little shaking anyway, so it works for me.
I feel like the vacuum does a fantastic job on both hard floors and carpet.
If you feel like it’s not getting your carpet clean enough you can also set it to turn on a higher suction mode when it detects carpet. I did that to help with the rugs by my doors which get the dirtiest and need the highest suction power. Those rugs have a gripper backing and so the vacuum is able to do its thing without messing them up at all.
Mi-Home Smartphone App
I love the app that you use for this vacuum. It’s very easy to use and keeps great records of where your vacuum has and has not gone during a cleaning session. It effortlessly maps out a floor plan for your home (or level of your home). You can set up schedules for it and also select certain zones or specific rooms for it to vacuum.
The Mi-Home app is like having a remote control for your vacuum right at your fingertips, wherever you are. You can use the app to set up a custom cleaning schedule for your vacuum. You can also use it to set a specific area to be vacuumed.
You also have the option to connect it to Amazon Alexa. We have an Alexa but honestly, I find it easier to open my app and start it that way. If you however prefer to use voice commands, you’ll definitely want to connect it to your Alexa.
Auto-Empty Docking Station Dirt Storage
The base station, which is also the charging dock, features a compartment with a 2.5L dust bag. You can set your vacuum to auto-empty every time it cleans or empty on command. You can also remove the dust bin by hand and empty it in your trashcan if desired.
Even in our home where we make a lot of dirt, dog hair, cat hair, and food scraps, the bag has been big enough to store a full month’s worth.
When you purchase this vacuum it comes with two bags. You have the option to empty the bag yourself once it’s full and reuse it or just throw that bag away and put a new one in. Replacement bags are available on Amazon.
I’ve only had one instance so far when the dirt backed up because it was not emptying properly. I found out the vacuum had sucked up one of my kid’s pieces of fake felt food (bacon in fact) and that was causing a blockage. Once I got that out it went right back to working as it should.
Battery Life
This vacuum has excellent battery life! It also charges pretty quickly. I run the vacuum in our house multiple times a day to keep things clean without an issue. It can easily clean the entire main level of my home (just over 1000 square feet) on a single charge.
Even in a large home, I believe this vacuum will have the battery life needed to complete the job in just one cleaning session.
Noise Level
Compared to traditional vacuums, this robotic vacuum is so much quieter! There are times when it’s vacuuming over the carpet and the suction increases that I notice the sound then, but generally, it’s working in the background of my day and I don’t even notice noise from it.
Does Hair Get Stuck on the Brush Roll?
The simple answer is yes, it does. I have not found a good robot vacuum cleaner that does not sometimes get hair wrapped around the brush roll. It’s just going to happen. That being said, I don’t feel like hair gets stuck TOO badly on this machine.
What About Obstacles?
This vacuum is not perfect about avoiding obstacles left on the floor. Bigger items it will even start to push through your house. For example, I have caught it pushing one of my flip flops through my house. It has also pulled on cords that were dragging across the floor. If you have cords that always hang down somewhere, your best option is using the app to set up specific no-go zones for the vacuum.
The infrared sensors do a great job however at preventing the vacuum from running into the larger objects in your home (table, cabinet, etc.).
Wet Mopping
This vacuum does offer the ability to wet mop your floors as well. It’s important to note that using cleaning chemicals is not recommended. You are supposed to just use water. Personally, since you can only use water, I prefer to steam mop my floors with a steamer instead and just use this vacuum for vacuuming, but I did want to mention that option for anyone who desires it.
Conclusion
The best robot vacuums are the ones that work well AND for a long time before needing to be replaced. I can’t speak yet as to how long this vacuum will last but I can tell you that after using it for about a month, it works great!
Of the five different robot vacuums I have tried, this one is my top pick for high-traffic rooms and homes with pets and/or kids. Since I started using this vacuum, I haven’t felt the need to use my canister vacuum at all. It’s a big improvement over my first robot vacuum that I got over 5 years ago.
I love that it’s able to auto-empty. That’s been a huge help to me! It does a really good job of keeping my floors clean. You can purchase the Dreametech D10 Plus Robot Vacuum at Amazon.com.
Peggy Nunn
Monday 29th of August 2022
This would be nice for us. I will have to check it out.
Lauryn R
Friday 19th of August 2022
What an awesome robot vacuum! I love that it has the auto-empty feature, that is really handy! There is definitely a lot of pet hair in our home so we would need one like this that does well with it. I also love that it can mop as well. There are so many out there now it really helps to read reviews. Thank you so much sharing!