TechRadar Verdict
The Yeedi M12 Ultra Plus is a wonderful robot vacuum if you're looking for a flagship model that delivers an excellent clean. Its vacuuming is powerful and mopping great, while reliable object avoidance and a useful extending mop pad ensure complete coverage. It's missing some of the add-on features you get with other premium models – most notably voice assistant support – but otherwise there's little to fault here.
Pros
- +
All-round great cleaning
- +
Powerful suction
- +
Can mop close to edges
- +
Reliable object avoidance
- +
App is easy to use
- +
Comprehensive dock
Cons
- -
No voice assistant support
- -
Bulky base station
- -
Premium pricing
- -
Mopping light unless in max mode
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Yeedi M12 Ultra Plus: two-minute review
The robot vacuum on review here is the Yeedi M12 Ultra Plus. Elsewhere in the lineup you'll find the Yeedi M12 Pro Plus – this is essentially the same vacuum, but the Ultra Plus has marginally higher suction: 11,800Pa for the Ultra, 11,000Pa for the Pro Plus.
The Yeedi M12 Ultra Plus is a fantastic robot vacuum in terms of cleaning power. The vacuuming is powerful (with suction specs up there with the highest on the market) and reliable, the mopping is efficient – especially thanks to a pad that can shift outwards to enable this robovac to mop right up to the edges of rooms. Reliable object avoidance and very good mapping also help ensure a thorough clean.
In fact, in terms of cleaning alone, it's up there with the best robot vacuums on the market. However, it doesn't quite set itself apart in a way that's much of a game-changer, and it lacks extra features that you will find with other premium models. Perhaps the most notable of those is the lack of voice assistant support (which is surprising at this price point), but you also can't do things like use the bot as a security camera / pet checker. To some, those features will be unnecessary extras, though.
The base station is comprehensive, taking care of much of the maintenance for you, including refilling the bot's water tanks, and washing and drying the mop pads. However, the knock-on of that is that it is quite bulky.
That's the short version; read on for my full Yeedi M12 Ultra Plus robot vacuum review.
Yeedi M12 Ultra Plus review: price & availability
- List price: $1,099 / (about £840 / AU$1,630)
- Available: US
- Launched: September 2024
An asking price of $1,099 / (about £840 / AU$1,630) may seem exorbitant, but it really isn't with flagship models such as the Yeedi M12 Ultra Plus. Top-of-the-line models basically start at around $1,000 / £1,000 so something that's just a hundred bucks more is reasonable. Add on to that the fact that the Yeedi M21 Ultra Plus comes with powerful suction rated at 11,8000 Pa and has an extendable mop pad for mopping edges, along with great object avoidance, and you're getting pretty good value. While I hesitate to call it a deal, it's worth the price.
Compare, for instance, to the Narwal Freo X Ultra. At $1,399.99 / AU$ 2,299 (about £1,110), it's quite a bit more expensive, doesn't have that extendable mop pad, and isn't quite as powerful(it has 8,200 Pa of suction). The Narwal is a bit more aesthetically pleasing, however, and more feature-filled. For instance, you can actually use it as a security video camera drone.
The Ecovacs Deebot T30S Combo is another option that's going to set you back quite a bit with its $1,199.99 / AU$2,299 (about £950) price tag. It's very feature-rich and even comes with a handheld vacuum that self-empties into the base station. While it shouldn't be a huge consideration since all of these robot vacuums frequently return to the base station to wash their mop pads, it does have a 200 minute battery life to the Yeedi M12 Ultra Plus' 290 minutes.
- Value for money score: 4 out of 5
Yeedi M12 Ultra Plus specs
| Max suction: | 11,800 Pa |
| Robot size (W x D): | 13.9 x 13.8" / 35.3 x 35.1 cm |
| Robot height: | 3.9" / 9.9 cm |
| Dock dimensions (W x D x H): | 16.1 x 19.29 x 18.9" / 40.9 x 49 x 48cm |
| Dust bin volume (robot): | 0.27L |
| Dust bin volume (base): | 3.4L dust bag |
| Water tank volume (base): | 4L clean, 3.5L dirty |
| Base type: | Charge, empty dust, refill water, clean and dry mop pads |
| Max noise level: | 54dB |
Yeedi M12 Ultra Plus review: design
- Spinning mop pads – one of which extends to reach the edges of rooms
- 3D mapping sensors for improved object avoidance
- Large water tanks and dust bag in base station
The Yeedi M12 Ultra Plus, as a flagship robot vacuum, comes with some top tier design choices. For instance, while it comes with just one side brush (some models have two), it does have an anti-tangle brush roll. Plus, it comes with two spinning mop pads, one of which can extend out for edge mopping. Both can also lift off the ground for carpet cleaning as well, though it's not quite high enough for thick, shag carpets.
As far as its sensors go, it utilizes 3D mapping – you can see the results in the app. When it goes around mapping or cleaning, you can actually see two lasers cross in front of it. This helps with seeing objects more fully to avoid them. (Here's more on how robot vacuums navigate, if you're interested.)
Moving on to the base station. This is on the bulky side, although that's common for docks that offer comprehensive maintenance features, as this one does. Not only will it empty the bot's dustbin, it can also refill its onboard water tank and clean and dry its mop pads.
The most unusual thing about the dock is the fact that the clean and dirty water tanks are flat and wide, sitting on top of the base station instead of the thinner, deeper tanks of other models that sit inside the base station. I'm not sure there's a real practical difference other than the water tanks here are harder to tip over if you're filling up or emptying them.
They're both sizable, with the clean water tank holding 4L and the dirty water tank 3.5L. The dust bag that the robot vacuum automatically self-empties into is also pretty big at 3.4L. Also on hand are features that I've come to expect in flagship robot vacuums with mopping capability, such as hot mop pad washing and drying.
- Design score: 5 out of 5
Yeedi M12 Ultra Plus review: performance
- Both vacuuming and mopping are great
- Extendable mop pad means edges get mopped
- Object avoidance is very good
As one would expect with a flagship model, the vacuuming and mopping are both very good with the Yeedi M12 Ultra Plus. I tested this robot vacuum on hardwood and marble floors as well as a bath mat to see how it would do with carpeting.
Tackling the vacuuming first, it sucked up all manner of debris very well. For a more controlled test, I used cereal and sugar and it sucked everything right up. That's to be expected for a robovac that boasts 11,800Pa of suction – right up there with the highest on the market.
If there's any place to mildly criticize the M12 Ultra Plus, it would be nice to see two side brushes instead of just one, as this would push more dust and debris in front of it to pick up per pass. At least it has a tangle-free brush roll.
While I was impressed with the mopping as well, it's a bit light on how much water it uses so I ended up preferring to use the highest water level when running it. Still, it left floors looking very clean. During that cereal and sugar test, I also tossed some coffee on the floor and it mopped that up fairly quickly.
Also, one of the mop pads extends out during cleaning so that the Yeedi M12 Ultra Plus is able to get to the edges of rooms. It's a nice feature that not all flagship robot vacuums come with.
Since the mop pads can lift up, when it vacuumed the bath mat that I used to simulate testing on carpet, it left the bath mat dry, meaning you can use this robot vacuum in a hybrid space and it will vacuum and mop hard flooring while just vacuuming carpeted areas.
Since this robot vacuum utilizes its 3D sensors for navigating and mapping, it does a very good job avoiding objects. I saw it go right up to and around chairs that had been moved, without touching (or sometimes barely touching). Just be aware that Yeedi hasn't yet solved cables and cords (no one has, frankly) so you should still pick those up before running the robot vacuum.
Performance-related features also include mop pad washing and drying as well as auto-emptying. They all work very well, though the robot vacuum has a tendency to wash the mop pads before running, which can be annoying if something just spilled and you want to do some spot cleaning.
Battery life
Since the Yeedi M12 Ultra Plus is one of those robot vacuums that regularly returns to its base station to wash its mop pads and empty its onboard dustbin, squeezing every minute of battery life out of it is not going to make a big impact on your experience. Still, its up to 290 minutes of use is fairly remarkable as many robot vacuums, especially with spinning mop pads, have a battery life that's closer to 200 minutes.
- Performance score: 4.5 out of 5
Yeedi M12 Ultra Plus review: app
- Straightforward to use
- Somewhat light on features – no option of voice assistant support
- Mapping is mostly good
The app is straightforward, from setup to use. There are no surprises, though some of that is due to the fact that there aren't a lot of extra features here. You won't find the ability to pair with Alexa or use as a remote video drone (this may seem random but more than a few flagship models have this feature).
But, the more important stuff is here, such as running the Yeedi M12 Ultra Plus in vacuum only, mop only, or vacuum and mop mode and the various settings during its cleaning (vacuuming power, mopping water level, etc.). There's also the ability to schedule cleanings, see a log of previous cleanings, edit the map, and adjust some other settings.
I like to focus specifically on the maps as I typically test robot vacuums in a semi-open floor plan and find many to have issues dividing the mapped space into smaller rooms – typically, the whole space, which comprises four rooms, are registered as one big room.
The Yeedi app does a good job dividing that space into smaller rooms, though I did find one instance where it wouldn't accept a division, so I have to either clean two rooms at once or use the zone setting to clean one of those specific rooms. This is an improvement over what I've experienced in the past, not just from Yeedi but other manufacturers as well.
- App score: 4 out of 5
Should you buy the Yeedi M12 Ultra Plus?
| Attribute | Notes | Rating |
|---|---|---|
| Value | Premium bracket, but in line with other flagship models in terms of features and price. | 4/5 |
| Design | Hybrid vacuum and mop with extending mop pad and does-it-all dock. | 5/5 |
| Performance | Mopping and vacuuming both great, good at tackling the edges of rooms, and reliable object avoidance too. | 4.5/5 |
| App | Though a little light on features, the app is easy to use. | 4/5 |
Design
Sizable water tanks and dust bag in the base station, and the robot vacuum has an extendable mop pad.
5 /5
Performance
Vacuuming and mopping performance are both very good.
4.5 /5
Buy it if...
Don't buy it if...
Yeedi M12 Ultra Plus: alternatives to consider
How I tested the Yeedi M12 Ultra Plus
To test the Yeedi M12 Ultra Plus, I used it for a week to vacuum and mop the hardwood floors and a bath mat (to simulate carpeting) in my house. I also tested all the features listed in the app, particularly its mapping. I took note of how well the vacuum cleaned the edges of a room as well as around obstacles.
Read more about how we test robot vacuum cleaners
- First reviewed October 2024
