In the past, we’ve always been torn about Proscenic robot vacuums. On the one hand, models like the Proscenic M8 Pro (test report) offered decent hardware including a suction station at a reasonable price, but on the other hand there were often problems with the software. There were always translation errors, the app was sometimes unfinished and overall the manufacturer’s models didn’t feel really “rounded”. Everything should be better with the Prosenic M9.
The price of the Proscenic Floobot M9 is currently at Geekmaxi 289 Euro (Code: VWNYIPT2) significantly cheaper than the normal price of around 550 euros!
Design and workmanship
There is nothing wrong with the design and workmanship, on the contrary. The robot itself is based on the typical round look with a laser tower placed almost in the middle of the top and a single side brush on the right. Nobody should seriously criticize the fact that only plastic is used here; this is no different with the (sometimes more expensive) competition.
On the other hand, we think the suction station is stylish. It is also made of plastic, but with its slim design and rounded sides it looks quite delicate and pretty overall. It’s a bit of a shame: You won’t find a cleaning function for the robot’s two rotating mops; Proscenic only installs a suction station with UV sterilization.
Commissioning and app
With the M9, connecting to the app works easily and straight away – just follow the instructions on the smartphone screen. The app itself is sufficiently clear and sensibly structured. It offers all the essential features that can also be found in the competition. The biggest point of criticism, which is now much less serious than before: There are still small translation errors, but this does not affect general understanding. The biggest drawback, however, is the robot’s inability to lift the two rotating mops in combination with the lack of carpet detection. More on this in the next section.
Navigation and cleaning performance
The general navigation is decent for a mid-range vacuum robot – thanks to the laser. It enables the robot to find its way around its environment and to be gentle with furniture and inventory. The fact that it can get stuck is probably due to the lack of 3D object recognition – but that’s not normal in this price range. Otherwise, the M9 moves neatly and organizes its tracks, starting with the edges. Here, however, the robot could sometimes move even more consistently and closer to skirting boards and pieces of furniture.
What we find more disturbing, however, is the already indicated lack of carpet detection. By this we mean both the option that the suction power is automatically increased on carpets (the advertised detection worked extremely unreliably/almost not at all for us) and also that recognized carpets are not included in the cleaning card.
This results in the Proscenic M9’s biggest problem: it cannot lift its two mops, but due to a lack of detection it still drives over exactly this carpet with them. This means that the carpet fibers are not only moist, but dirt that has already been wiped up is then released back into the carpet. Users can only avoid this by using the exclusion zones – users are allowed to define these as with other models and the robot sticks to them, but this can be quite time-consuming. In our opinion, the Proscenic M9 with a price of 600 euros disqualifies itself as a recommendable vacuum robot.
It’s a shame, because the pure cleaning performance is okay, the manufacturer specifies 4500 Pascals. This means that the M9 doesn’t quite come close to top models, but they also cost significantly more. We only looked at wiping superficially. There are two rotating mops, which are significantly better than simple wipes without vibration. There is also a controlled water supply. However, the robot cannot clean the mops at the station.
Accordingly, the bot requires regular interventions in the form of cleaning and refilling liquid, as the combined dust and water container only holds 250 milliliters each. The suction after the cleaning process is loud as always, but quite short and thorough. In addition, Proscenic promises sterilization of bacteria and allergens using UV light – we can’t verify that, but it doesn’t necessarily sound like a must-have feature to us.
The battery offers 5200 milliamperes hours, so the robot managed around 2.5 hours at a time when vacuuming, but more like 1.5 hours when mopping. The bot then recharges for up to 5 hours.
All pictures of the Proscenic Floobot M9 in the test
Proscenic Floobot M9
Preis
The Proscenic Floobot M9 costs just under 600 euros in the manufacturer’s RRP; at the time of testing it was available from German dealers for around 550 euros. Things are different for Asian retailers. At Geekmaxi the robot costs with the code VWNYIPT2 overall only 289 Euro – and therefore significantly less.
Conclusion
For 600 euros, the Proscenic Floobot M9 is disappointing – that has to be said clearly. This simply lacks a large part of the autonomy that other vacuum robots offer in this price range (or a slightly more expensive one), such as the only slightly more expensive Yeedi Cube (test report).
Things look different at a price of less than 300 euros. This is where good navigation, a decent app including powerful suction power and a suction station come to the fore. Despite the rotating mop, the mopping function remains a nice gimmick – it works, but requires a lot of manual intervention. For more, the mops would have to be able to be lifted and cleaned automatically – but that would be significantly more expensive.