Narwal T10 Vacuum Review

The Narwal T10 is amazingly well-built. It's made of high-grade plastic that looks and feels premium. The glossy top cover can be removed to let you access the dirt compartment and the power button. Unlike most robot vacuums, it doesn't have a brushroll and instead uses twin side brushes to direct debris into a suction inlet. The side brushes are part of an vacuum module that can be easily removed and swapped with a mopping module for use on bare floors. The vacuum itself feels quite sturdy for the most part, though the small internal dustbin could break if you were to drop it. Its base station is also solidly-built and features an LED screen that shows the vacuum's current status.

Out-of-the-box setup is quite easy, though you should download its companion app to access its full capabilities.

The Narwal T10 has quite a few maintenance needs, though most of its components are easy to access.

• Dirt compartment: You can access the dirt compartment by lifting the vacuum's top cover and then pulling it out of its housing with its built-in carrying handle. You should empty it after every cleaning session by unlocking the release buckles while holding it over a trash can.
• HEPA Filter: The filter is located inside the internal dirt compartment. You should wash it under water every two weeks.
• Side brushes: The side brushes are attached to the vacuum module but can be pulled free. Make sure to cut away any tangled hair or stuck-on debris with the included hook blade every two weeks. If necessary, you can also wash them, along with the vacuum module attachment, with water.
• Caster wheel: The directional wheel can be pulled out of the socket. Remove any stuck-on debris once a month.
• Mop pads: The vacuum returns to its base station, where the mopping pads are washed and dried by a series of built-in water nozzles and air inlets, so they're considered to be self-cleaned. You can pull the mopping pads off and remove any stuck-on debris if necessary.
• Water tanks: This vacuum's base station features two water tanks, one for clean water and the other for waste water. They can be pulled out very easily for refilling or cleaning. The clean water tank should be cleaned every three months and refilled once it's empty. Meanwhile, you should clean the waste water tank at the end of every mopping session.
• Water tank sponge filter: The sponge filter is located inside the clean water tank and can only be accessed after you empty it. You should clean it every three months in conjunction with the clean water tank.

Any part washed with water should be allowed to dry for at least 24 hours before being put back in the vacuum.

The Narwal T10 incurs moderately high recurring costs.

• Side brushes: You should replace the side brushes every three months. You can purchase them in packs of two from the manufacturer's website.
• HEPA filter: You should replace the filter every three to six months, depending on your usage habits. You can buy replacements in packs of two from the manufacturer.
• Mopping pads: You should replace the mopping pads every three months. You can purchase them from the manufacturer's website in packs of two.
• Water tank sponge filter: No specific replacement interval is given in the user manual, but it states that you should clean or replace it periodically.

The Narwal T10 has excellent storage capabilities. While the docking station is somewhat large, the vacuum is stored almost entirely inside it, reducing its overall footprint.

The Narwal T10 has a small internal dustbin. It needs to be emptied more frequently than other robot vacuums like the Roborock S7. On the other hand, if you plan on using its mop attachment, its external clean water tank has a fairly large capacity of 1.25 gallons, so you shouldn't need to refill it very often.

• Narwal T10 vacuum
• Robot vacuum body
• Internal dirt compartment
• 1x T10 HEPA filter
• Vacuum module
• 4x side brushes
• Mopping module
• 4x mopping pads
• Hook blade cleaning tool
• Magnetic strip
• Operational Manual
• Base station
• Base station
• Clean water tank
• Waste water tank
• 2x clean water tank sponge filters
• Power cord

The Narwal T10's range is limited only by the room left in its dirt compartment and its remaining battery life. However, it can't climb or descend stairs.

The Narwal T10 is quite portable. It weighs slightly less than alternatives like the Roborock S7, though it doesn't have a carrying handle to make it easier to pick up and carry.

Note: This vacuum is slightly heavier with the mopping module. It weighs 8.97 lbs (4.07 kg) with the mopping pads fitted in place.

The Narwal T10 has superb battery performance. Running it in its high-power 'Turbo' mode with the vacuum module yields over 130 minutes of runtime, while it should run for over 170 minutes when using it in its default 'Normal' suction mode with the vacuum module attached. It's fairly close to its advertised battery life of three hours.

The Narwal T10 has a couple of quality-of-life features. Aside from its mopping capability, it has two suction power levels that you can change through its companion app: the default 'Normal' mode and the high-power 'Strong' mode. That said, unlike the Roborock S7 MaxV, there's no automatic surface detection system that would allow it to avoid carpets when mopping; you'll need to block off these areas manually with the magnetic strips included in the box. The base station also has a small LED screen that shows the vacuum's current task, an estimate of remaining time until completion, battery life, and whether or not you've enabled the child lock.

The Narwal T10 has a vacuum module with two side brushes that direct debris into the path of its suction inlet, and two spare side brushes are included. You can swap out the vacuum module for the mopping module, which comes preinstalled with two mopping pads. It also comes with two extra mopping pads. There's also a hook blade tool to remove any stuck-on debris from the side brushes.

You can configure the Narwal T10 as a robot mop by detaching the vacuum module and fitting the mopping module in its place.

The Narwal T10 performs decently on bare floors. It's very effective in dealing with smaller debris like rice. However, its lack of a brushroll and comparatively small suction inlet can result in bulkier debris like cereal getting stuck and clogging the opening.

The Narwal T10 performs inadequately on low-pile carpet. Due to its lack of a brushroll, it can't provide the necessary agitation to dislodge large and fine debris like sand or baking soda from carpet fibers, even in its most powerful 'Strong' suction mode.

The Narwal T10 has middling performance on high-pile carpet. The lack of a brushroll means that it doesn't have the necessary means of working materials like sand and baking soda free of carpets.

The Narwal T10 pet-hair cleaning performance is mixed. It has no trouble dealing with hair on bare surfaces like hardwood or linoleum but struggles quite a bit when clearing it away on low and high-pile carpeting.

The Narwal T10's suction force isn't very strong compared to high-end models like the Roborock S7 MaxV. Its suction inlet is also positioned too high above the contact surface to generate a tight seal on bare surfaces, resulting in low suction power measurements.

The Narwal T10 is remarkably quiet when cleaning. With no brushroll to rub against the ground, it makes considerably less noise than most other robot vacuums. You'll hear what people nearby are saying even when the vacuum is running in its most powerful suction mode.

The Narwal T10 is good at maneuvering itself. It begins cleaning by moving around the room's perimeter before vacuuming small sections of its coverage area. Swapping between the mopping and vacuum modules is easy and only takes a couple of seconds. It's also small enough to fit under tables and chairs, though only just. Unfortunately, it can struggle to climb onto high-pile carpets, and rug tassels can get caught on its side brushes.

Its mopping capability is quite impressive, as it cleans its mopping pads throughout its cleaning job rather than tracking dirty water around your house and has an air-drying system built into its docking station to prevent mildew buildup on the pads. However, while the vacuum can recognize which module is in use, it's still important you set up the included magnetic strips around carpets or any other surface you don't want to get wet. You can see a video of its mopping maneuverability here.

The Narwal T10 does a good job of sealing in fine particles thanks to its onboard HEPA filter.

Due to its low suction force, the Narwal T10 does a poor job sucking up debris from cracks and crevices. Using it in its high-power 'Strong' mode does little to improve its performance in this regard, as seen here.

The Narwal T10 delivers impressive stain-clearing performance. Installing the mop pads is very easy. It takes about 90 seconds for the base station to thoroughly wet its mopping pads and let it start cleaning. While it can lift away most of a stain without streaks on a single go-around, it's recommended you allow it to make a second pass since the appliance will return to its base station to re-clean its pads. You can see the results of the Narwal clearing a stain with two passes here.

The Narwal T10 can't suck up liquid spills. Its mop pads might be able to absorb small quantities of water, however.

The Narwal T10's physical controls are a little limited. You can have the vacuum start cleaning without its companion app by using the control button, though you can only access most of its control parameters in its companion app.

This vacuum has a great companion app. It's pretty responsive and intuitive to navigate. The appliance itself uses a LIDAR sensor to draw a map of its coverage area as it progresses through its current task. You can use the app to set up no-go zones, set up individual cleaning areas and sequence cleaning sessions, check the vacuum's battery status, and enable or disable the child lock.