Earlier this year, Switchbot announced the S10, a robot vacuum and mop that could pull clean water directly from your home’s water line to not only mop your floors, but to also shuttle the water to a separate humidifier. Today at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES), Switchbot announced the K20+ Pro, a robot vacuum cleaner that can transport drinks, fans, air purifiers (and more) around the house on a special platform. Switchbot is calling both of these robots their “Multitasking Household Robots.”
If you have a robot vacuum, you understand that they become a very visible presence in your home. The dock takes up space, and in most cases, the robot does its job vacuuming while your family is using the home. The idea that these machines can do more than one job is intriguing and, given how expensive they often are, economical.
The K20+ Pro is an update to the K10+, a “mini” robot vacuum that I adore, and the new version only improved on the original. The K20+ Pro is a powerful robot vacuum, running 15,000Pa suction—and it's only the size of your hand. With that small stature, it can get around chair legs and into corners more easily. What makes this new version unique is that the robot can connect to a larger platform—the "FusionPlatform"—and you can use that stage to shuttle drinks or other items around the house.
The FusionPlatform has a number of holes, ports, and plugs so that other items can be attached, plugged in, or stowed on it. Switchbot will sell a fan, a security camera, and an air purifier with a small table on top that can dock and then move around the house. Switchbot even encourages you to 3D-print your own parts for the FusionPlatform, creating a world of possible accessories and uses. (The platform can hold up to 18 pounds.)
Now, there are some drawbacks. First, the robot can’t vacuum when the FusionPlatform is attached; it has to undock to do so, and Switchbot was unclear on whether you could abandon the platform anywhere or if it has to return it to the dock first. Also, the extensions like the fan and air purifier don’t work while the robot is moving, only when it has stopped.
Second, while having a robot drive an air purifier around the house is neat, I’m not entirely sure how useful it actually is. Perhaps the most utilitarian use is the K20+ Pro Mobile Stand, which will effectively turn the K20+ Pro into one of those tablet robots the height of a person that can be remotely controlled.
The third drawback: As you add more and more accessories to the FusionPlatform, they have to get stored someplace. And, well, they really can start to pile up.
Lastly, the K20+ Pro and the S10 don’t interact, meaning the two whole-household robots don’t acknowledge each other or work together in any way, which feels like a real miss. For what it’s worth, Switchbot is releasing an update to the S10 and the S20 Pro this week with a number of improvements to what I already considered two competent vacuum/mop combos.
Still, the point that’s worth focusing on if you’re a real robot nerd like me is that Switchbot has imagined an entire ecosystem of devices their robots can work with, and a future where robots don’t have one singular gig but are more deeply tied into your household.
The K20+ Pro is expect to be available in late March; there is no pricing information as of now.
