Dreame X50 Ultra: The Ultimate Robot Vacuum for Multi-Cat Homes (Yes, I Have 8 Cats!)

I’ve been using robot vacuums since 2010, back when I was still in college. As a tech enthusiast, I’ve always aimed to automate everything to free up time for the things I actually enjoy—because, let’s be honest, who likes spending hours cleaning?

The idea of fully automated home cleaning sounds amazing, but in reality, most “smart” robot vacuums haven’t been smart enough to truly free your hands—especially when you have kids or pets running around. That is… until now.

I’m not a full-time tech reviewer—I buy most of my gadgets myself and only share my experience when enough people ask. When it comes to robot vacuums, I’ve purchased at least 10 flagship models from top brands like iRobot, Ecovacs, Xiaomi, Roborock, HiSense, and now Dreame. Each year, these brands update their flagship models with new features—better sensors, stronger computing power for smarter navigation and route planning, more suction power, innovative mopping solutions, and now even robotic arms that lift themselves or pick up your dirty socks (yeah they're not joking).

With 10 years in the EV industry, I can’t help but see robot vacuums as mini autonomous electric vehicles for home cleaning. They even go a step further with self-charging stations, making them even more autonomous.

I live in a 3,000 sqft home with a little human, a wife, and 8 cats—so keeping things clean is no small task. We like to keep our space organized and our floors spotless, which means a twice-daily routine of handheld vacuuming followed by a thorough robot vac + mop session. I’ve lost count of how many Dyson V12s and V15s we’ve burned through and how many robot vacuums have failed us.

Some models, like the Ecovacs X2 Omni, worked well initially but started failing within three months. We bought two units—one for each floor—and both had to be sent in for repair three times before being fully replaced three times. Even after all that, neither could complete a cleaning cycle. And before you ask—yes, we maintain our vacuums religiously. We clean them at least once or twice a week and replace mopping pads monthly.

At CES 2025, I checked out the latest models from Roborock and Dreame. While both were impressive, I ultimately went with the Dreame X50 Ultra—purely for its aesthetics. It looks sleek, modern, and fits better with my home. For those unfamiliar with Dreame, it’s a fast-growing brand from China that initially gained traction as a “Dyson alternative.” With a similar branding aesthetic and product lineup, Dreame offered more affordable options—often packed with additional features.

Over the years, the brand has evolved significantly, becoming more original and expanding its product offerings beyond vacuums. Today, they even manufacture robotic pool cleaners and continue to push innovation across multiple categories.

I was impressed from day one with the new X50 Ultra but didn’t want to share my thoughts too soon. Now, after two weeks of testing—running it twice or even three times daily—I can confidently say it has performed flawlessly. So, here’s my take on it.

OVERALL DESIGN

For me, aesthetics matter just as much as functionality when it comes to smart home products. Given the size of modern robot vacuums with a base station, they’ve essentially become furniture pieces, making design and how well they blend into a space more important than ever.

The Dreame X50 Ultra is by no means compact—while it’s slimmer, it’s also taller than most flagship robot vacuums on the market. This larger form factor allows for bigger fresh and grey water tanks, improving overall efficiency. It comes in two color options, black and white, both featuring a brushed metal-look trim (though it’s actually plastic). This removable trim panel provides easy access to the dust bag.

One thoughtful design touch is the base station’s mop cleaning tray, which is smaller and tailored to the shape of the mopping pads—making it more efficient and much easier to clean compared to other models. (It's definitely a nightmare to clean the Deebot X2 Omni's tray.)

As for the robot itself, it maintains a traditional round shape, but with some clever engineering:

• A robotic arm extends the side brush for better edge cleaning.

• The mopping pad extends to tackle hard-to-reach areas, and both features work surprisingly well.

• On top, there’s a retractable Lidar module, which lowers itself when navigating under height-restricted areas like sofas and cabinets.

• A vision camera module at the front with a built-in LED fill light for low-light cleaning

The design actually reminds me of the original Faraday Future concept—a brand I worked for back in 2017 during its peak. Their Lidar module design always stood out to me—not necessarily the most practical, but undeniably cool.

MOBILE APP

The Dreamehome App makes Ecovacs’ companion app feel outdated—like something built in the early 2010s. While there’s still room for improvement, such as better localization (I still haven’t figured out how to switch from m² to sqft), the overall user experience is intuitive and modern.

One of my favorite features? The built-in camera not only enhances navigation but also captures fun moments of your pets, allowing you to save them directly to your album. The object recognition capability is another standout—it’s highly accurate, and the robot adapts its cleaning strategy based on different obstacles and scenarios.

The app offers plenty of customization options, including:

• Adjustable suction power and water usage for mopping

• Customizable corner-cleaning strategies

• Seamless switching between 2D & 3D visualization

• Easy setup for no-go zones and virtual walls

These features are now fairly standard in high-end robot vacuums, but Dreame’s implementation is especially smooth and user-friendly.

STATION

One of the standout features of the Dreame X50 Ultra is its auto mop pad cleaning system. While it’s not the first robot I’ve used with this feature, it might be the first that’s truly low-maintenance and hands-free.

For comparison, my Deebot X2 Omni also has a hot water mop cleaning system, but it’s far from effortless. Even after its 3-hour drying process, the water always looks murky, and the tray gets dirty and smelly quickly. I’ve had to scrub the tray with an old toothbrush and deep-clean the pads at least every two weeks just to keep things hygienic.

The X50 Ultra, however, claims “no scrubbing” thanks to its 20-spray nozzle steam system—and after two weeks of intensive testing with over 300+ mop cleaning cycles, I can confidently say it delivers. The tray stays clean and odor-free, with only some dried dust and cat hair that’s easily wiped away (see pic below). I’m genuinely impressed.

Another feature I love? The built-in cleaning solution tank. Instead of manually measuring, diluting, and refilling, the X50 Ultra automatically mixes and dispenses the solution for you. Plus, the water tanks, cleaning solution, and dust bag are all trackable in the app, which also sends alerts when they need attention. A simple but brilliant improvement.

SUCTION

The X50 Ultra is definitely high-powered—and yes, it really does suck (in a good way). With 20,000 Pa of suction power, it’s one of the strongest in the industry. But for me, the real game-changers are the extendable side brush and the tangle-free dual main brushes.

With 8 cats at home, I’ve always started my day vacuuming with my Dyson, especially around the Litter Robots, to clear out any visible litter and pet hair before running a robot vacuum. However, even that, every other robot vac I’ve owned became noticeably louder and less efficient within three months of use. While it’s not three months yet, the X50 Ultra has remained impressively quiet and smooth. I’ll check back in a few months, but so far, the suction performance has been excellent.

The dual-brush system also promises a 100% tangle-free experience—and so far, it’s delivered on that promise.

I don’t personally need a robot vacuum to climb over obstacles, but if that’s a feature you’re looking for, the X50 Ultra can handle obstacles up to 2.36” with ease.

MOPPING

Okay, this thing is incredible. Seriously. I’ve already talked about how well the X50 Ultra’s station keeps the mop pads clean, but it goes way beyond that.

Game-Changing Features:

• Automatic Mop Pad Removal – You can configure the robot to remove its mopping pads and leave them at the station when vacuuming. This prevents dirtying the pads and significantly reduces the risk of getting carpets wet.

• 32 Levels of Water Usage – Yes, 32 levels. This level of customization ensures optimal cleaning for any floor type or level of dirt.

• Real-Time Mess Detection – In larger homes like mine, there’s a good chance one of my 8 cats will use the litter box mid-cleaning, tracking litter onto the floor. The X50 Ultra is smart enough to detect these events using its vision system and will automatically return to re-clean the area when needed.

I’ve never been a fan of so-called “intelligent cleaning modes” on other robot vacuums. In my experience, they’re rarely intelligent and almost never work well in a multi-cat household. But after multiple tests, I have to admit—the X50 Ultra’s intelligent mode is actually reliable.

For reference, I set its mop cleaning strategy to “intelligent”, meaning the robot decides when to return to clean its mop pads based on detected dirt levels. For a 1,000 sqft cleaning session, the X50 Ultra cleaned its pads 20 times. In comparison, my Deebot X2 Omni did it fewer than 10 times—which explains why its pads always ended up dirtier.

VERDICT

Bottom line? This truly feels like the first genuinely smart robot vacuum I’ve ever owned and used.

That said, it doesn’t come cheap. With a flagship price tag of $1,699 (currently discounted to $1,499), it’s definitely an investment—and not everyone will want to spend that much on a cleaning robot. But for someone like me, with 8 cats and a high-maintenance cleaning routine, I don’t have many other options. If you ask me, it’s worth every penny.

In fact, I’m already considering buying a second one for my upstairs and replacing my X2 Omni (which, by the way, is currently on sale for just $799).

Full transparency: This isn’t a sponsored review, and I wasn’t paid to write it. However, I’ve included Amazon affiliate links, which means if you purchase a product through my review, I may earn a small commission—which helps me keep testing and sharing honest experiences like this one.

BUY DREAME X50 ULTRA

BUY DEEBOT X2 OMNI