For years robot vacuums have been seemingly marching toward bigger everything: giant docks that vacuum the robot, wash and dry mops, and refill tanks. They work, sure, but they eat floor space, sometimes make a racket, and almost always cost a premium. The 3i G10+ takes a different route. Instead of competing with the all-in-one towers, it challenges the idea that hands-free has to mean a bulky base station.
The concept essentially shakes out to putting a curated set of flagship-level features inside the robot, keeping the dock tiny, and pricing it where normal people shop. The marquee move is a patented onboard debris compression system that lets the G10+ store up to two months of dust in its oversize one-liter bin. No loud self-empty cycle. No bags. No tower.
The 3i G10+ proves you don’t need a giant tower to go hands-free. Its built-in debris compression, strong suction, and whisper-quiet operation deliver big-bot performance in a small, apartment-friendly package.
Pair all of that with truly strong suction, LiDAR mapping, and clever edge cleaning, and you have a budget robot that feels smarter than it should at this price. At least that’s how it all sounds on paper.
It is not perfect. The mopping system is basic, obstacle avoidance can be inconsistent, and a design flaw around docking on medium-pile carpet is a serious gotcha. Factor in that we’re dealing with a younger brand with an uneven support reputation and you have a product that is brilliant for some homes… and a poor fit for others.
Design and Footprint
The robot keeps the all-familiar puck shape with a slightly taller top turret for the dToF LiDAR and power button. The one-liter dustbin lives under the lid and is easy to pull and empty. Underneath you get a floating main brush, a single side brush, and a flat mop pad. Build quality feels solid, and the vacuum aims to climb thresholds up to roughly twenty millimeters.
The dock is the statement piece here because it is not a statement. Rather than taking up a bunch of space in the kitchen and making its presence felt, it goes another direction. It is a tiny, charge-only stand that can disappear under a console table or tuck beside a nightstand. If you live in an apartment or simply do not want a giant box in the hallway, this is the appeal.
Key Specs at a Glance
- Suction: up to 18,000 Pa
- Navigation: dToF LiDAR with 3D structured light and AI camera
- Dustbin: one liter with onboard compression
- Water tank: about 247 milliliters
- Mop: flat reusable pad with auto extension and ten millimeter lift on carpet
- Runtime: up to four hours in low power
- Reported noise: roughly the low-to-mid 50s dB range
- Obstacle crossing: up to twenty millimeters
The Standout Ideas
Onboard Debris Compression
Think mini garbage compactor. As it cleans, a paddle compresses dust and hair so the bin packs tight and lasts much longer. The benefits are obvious: no screaming self-empty cycle when things are finished, no disposable bags to replace, and no dock the size of a dorm fridge. If you are sensitive to noise and/or short on space, this is the reason to buy the G10+.
UltraReach Edge and Corner Cleaning
Round robots struggle with corners. Things keep improving with each generation, but there’s still work to be done. Here, the side brush extends to reach into ninety-degree angles and along baseboards, and the mop pad shifts outward to keep cleaning tight to the edge. It noticeably reduces the telltale dust line that many bots leave behind. If you know, you know.
Mapping and Navigation
The dToF LiDAR delivers quick, precise maps, even in low light. The app’s first-run mapping is fast, room detection is good, and editing tools are easy to use. Day to day pathing is efficient and thorough.
Where it stumbles
Obstacle Avoidance
On paper, the camera and 3D sensor suite can identify a lot of household clutter. In practice, it is hit or miss. One run it tiptoes around a cable, the next it nudges a pet bowl or wedges on a chair base. This is the classic budget-robot trade-off we’ve seen with other brands in the space. That is to say you get strong hardware but the software still needs some polish.
Mopping
This is a maintenance mop, not a scrubber. Fortunately, that’s how I tend to treat robot vacuum cleaners anyhow — at all price points. We’ll run it 3-4 times a week and then still manually mop a few times each month.
The flat pad wipes dust and fresh spills but will not tackle dried-on messes like a sonic or dual-spinner system. That’s what starts to separate entry-level devices with more robust experiences. Similarly, the small tank means more refills, and the pad design encourages hand washing rather than tossing into a machine.
A Caution on Carpet
I’d recommend scouting out where you’d plan to place this ahead of time. If you must place the dock on medium-pile carpet, the G10+ can struggle to climb and seat reliably. On hard floors it is fine. Cushy carpet? It may fail repeatedly. That is a deal breaker if your only available outlet sits over carpet.
App and Setup
Setup is simple and right in line with our expectations. It amounts to attaching the side brush, parking the dock, pairing the app, and then running it for an initial map.
The app is clean and full featured: choose rooms, set schedules, draw no-go and no-mop zones, tweak suction and water flow, and store multi-floor maps. Voice control works with Google Assistant and Alexa. There is even a live camera view for pet check-ins, though the image quality is basic. Still, I came away rather impressed with what was on offer.
Cleaning performance
Vacuuming
This is where the G10+ really shines. The spec sheet boasts 18,000 Pa of suction, which is an eye-popping figure for a robot in this price range. In practice, that translates to visible results. On hard floors it clears fine dust, flour, and pet hair in one or two passes, while larger debris like cereal or kibble gets pulled in cleanly without scattering.
On low- to mid-pile carpet, the automatic boost function kicks in, and you can hear the motor ramp up. This deeper draw is enough to lift sand, grit, and embedded hair that many budget robots simply leave behind. For pet owners especially, the combination of suction power and a roomy dustbin means less babysitting and fewer mid-week touch-ups with a stick vac.
The cleaning pattern itself is efficient and systematic, thanks to LiDAR pathing. The robot tends to complete a room in neat, overlapping lanes, which helps avoid the random missed spots you see from cheaper, bump-to-navigate bots. You know, that old bouncing DVD logo effect.
When it detects a high-traffic or dirtier area, the DirtScan feature cues it to linger a bit and increase suction. That kind of targeted cleaning is a small but welcome perk when dealing with entryways or under the dining table.
Edge and Corner Cleaning
The aforementioned UltraReach brush extends to physically reach into corners and sweep along walls, while the mop pad adjusts to make direct contact with the edge. This does noticeably reduce buildup along baseboards and makes corners look genuinely finished rather than simply good enough or acceptable for the money.
Mopping
The mop here is more of a maintenance tool than a deep cleaner. The flat pad provides consistent coverage across hard flooring and keeps daily dust under control, leaving behind a light, streak-free shine if the water level is set correctly. It will handle small spills or a trail of paw prints, but it is not designed for scrubbing dried coffee or sticky juice. That limitation is expected at this price, but still worth calling out.
The water tank’s small size means you will be refilling often if you try to mop larger areas, and the attached pad requires hand washing rather than a quick toss into the washing machine. That maintenance overhead makes it feel less automated than the vacuuming side of the equation.
I worry that some users will grow tired of the manual touches expected with the G10+, wishing they’d spent a few hundred bucks more. Then again, if this is your first time with a robot vacuum, then you probably won’t even think in those terms.
Where it does stand out, though, is the carpet handling. The mop lifts itself a full centimeter when it senses carpet, preventing wet pads from dragging across rugs or dampening low pile areas. It is a premium-level feature that works reliably and helps make the hybrid system less of a liability in mixed flooring homes.
Navigation and Consistency
The pathing produces straight lines with logical coverage, and room-to-room transitions are reliable. Obstacle avoidance is where reality lags behind the marketing. Some runs are flawless with the vacuum weaving around cables and pet toys, while other times it will push a water bowl a few inches or wedge against a chair leg.
If your home has a lot of clutter on the floor, you will need to do some pickup before pressing start. Homes with pets or small children will want to get in the habit of a room-to-room preclean before letting the G10+ do its thing.
Battery and Runtime
Battery life is another strength. In lower suction modes it can push close to the claimed four-hour runtime, which is way more than enough for apartments and most mid-sized homes. On a balanced setting it comfortably covers seven hundred to a thousand square feet in one charge. If it does happen to run low in the midsts of a clean, it returns to the dock, tops up, and resumes where it left off.
Noise Levels
One of the quieter robots out there. In standard suction modes it hums along in the low fifties (dB), which blends into background conversation or TV. Even at max suction it is more tolerable than the roar of many premium competitors. And the lack of a self-empty cycle means there’s no sudden jet engine seemingly blasting off every few days. For households with kids, pets, or work-from-home routines, that makes the G10+ easier to live with day to day.
Value
Street pricing often lands between $350-$400, which is the sweet spot for its feature mix. Snag it on sale as part of a limited-time promotion or discount? Even better. In fact, as of today you can pick this one up from Amazon for just $270, which is a really impressive value proposition.
Warranty and Support
You get a standard one-year limited warranty with this one. The so-called elephant in the room, however, is brand maturity. As a newer player, 3i does not have the same long-term parts and service footprint that the big names do. If rock-solid support is your top priority, weigh that before you buy. But, based off of what I’ve come to know about the brand so far, it seems to be among the safer bets.
Maintenance Notes
Plan on regular brush cleaning if you have long hair or pets. The mop pad prefers a quick hand wash after runs. Filters and brushes are common-sense consumables.
Bottom line
The 3i G10+ is a smart rethink for small spaces and shared spaces. If you value quiet, hate giant docks, and want real vacuuming power with excellent edge work, you’re going to come away happy. If you need heavy-duty mopping, flawless obstacle dodging, or must dock on medium-pile carpet, you may want to look elsewhere.
Buy If…
- You live in an apartment or smaller home with mostly hard floors
- You want strong pickup without a bulky, noisy dock
- You are budget conscious and prioritize vacuuming over mopping
Skip If…
- Your dock must sit on carpet
- You want scrub-level mopping
- You are risk averse about brand support
Conclusion
The 3i G10+ is not trying to be everything to everyone, but that is why it works. By stripping away the towering dock and putting smart features inside the robot itself, it creates a different kind of hands-free experience. This is one that values space, silence, and affordability as much as suction power.
In daily use, the vacuuming performance and edge cleaning punch far above its price tag, while the onboard debris compression feels like a small but meaningful rethinking of what “convenience” should look like.
Awarded to products with an average rating of 3.75 stars or higher, the AndroidGuys Smart Pick recognizes a balance of quality, performance, and value.
Products with this distinction deserve to be on your short list of purchase candidates.
To be sure, it is not without its caveats. The mopping system is more about upkeep than deep cleaning, and obstacle avoidance can frustrate. The carpet docking flaw is a serious limitation in the wrong home and maybe the biggest factor to consider. The uncertainty of a younger brand that is still building its reputation is also worth taking an extra moment for consideration.
If your priorities are strong vacuuming, minimal noise, and a dock that does not dominate your living space, the G10+ stands out as one of the most compelling robots you can buy under four hundred dollars. And if you’re able to get it for less than $300, you’re really doing well.
If you demand flawless obstacle dodging, heavy-duty mopping, or the peace of mind that comes with a household name, you will want to look higher up the food chain.
For the right home, though, the 3i G10+ is more than just another budget bot in a crowded space. It is proof that smaller and smarter can be every bit as satisfying as bigger and bolder. And we always love it when competition gets a bit tougher, too.
