On the 9th (local time) at the world’s largest IT exhibition ‘CES 2025,’ the exhibition booth of Chinese company Roborock displayed the world’s first 5-axis folding robotic arm-equipped vacuum cleaner, ‘Saros 270.’ During its cleaning process, it stopped in front of a pair of scattered socks. After a moment, the robotic arm mounted on the top of the vacuum cleaner slowly unfolded, lifted the socks, and then cleaned the floor. Once cleaning was finished, it returned the socks to their original place.
At the exhibition center, Roborock showcased not only its flagship product, the robotic vacuum cleaner, but also a recently launched vacuum cleaner and a one-person washer-dryer. Roborock, which leads the robotic vacuum cleaner market in South Korea, plans to target the U.S. market with the new products unveiled at CES 2025. A Roborock representative noted, “By introducing a product that did not exist before, we aim to strengthen our leadership in the robotic vacuum cleaner market and promote our technology-driven new products aimed at the U.S. market.”
Roborock’s Saros 270 is equipped with sensors, cameras, and light-emitting diode (LED) lights to detect surrounding objects. When moving around the floor, it checks to see if it can lift objects that need to be moved. After the robotic arm extends and picks up an object, it automatically cleans the area where the object was located. It can lift weights of up to 300 grams.
One advantage of running the robotic vacuum cleaner while going out is that it can clean areas without the user having to move objects directly. However, some attendees expressed concerns about practicality and frequent malfunctions. One observer watching Roborock's Saros 270 commented, “I worry that the time it takes for the arm to extend may delay the cleaning process,” adding, “Given that it folds five times and has many parts that could break, it may easily malfunction if it collides with nearby objects. The U.S. market may respond skeptically to products that need to be used for a long time without malfunction.”
Roborock’s robotic vacuum cleaner features the StarSight Autonomous System 2.0 navigation system. This system self-maps the cleaning area and quickly detects obstacles. Side obstacle avoidance technology called VertiBeam is also included, enabling it to learn the layout, including furniture and terrain, regardless of home decor. The product unveiled this time is set to be released in the South Korean market within the year. Additionally, Roborock presented its new 2025 model robotic vacuum cleaners, the S9 MaxV Ultra and Slim.
At the back of the exhibition hall, a washer-dryer showcased last year was on display. A Roborock representative explained, “We plan to target the market by differentiating our products based on uncommon technologies while presenting technologies that are essential for consumers,” adding, “We will apply the same strategy in other fields such as washing machines, not just robotic vacuum cleaners.”