Roborock QV 35A

Why the Roborock QV 35A Punches Above Its Weight

For under $500, you’re getting a robot vacuum-mop combo that honestly shouldn’t exist at this price point. The Roborock QV 35A launched in May 2025 with an MSRP of $599.99, but street prices have settled into the $429-$499 range, and it’s been spotted as low as $399 during sales. That’s remarkable given what’s packed inside.

Here’s what makes it stand out: 8,000 Pa of suction power (a solid bump over the Q5 Pro’s 5,500 Pa), dual spinning mops that automatically lift 10mm when they hit carpet, and an all-in-one dock that empties dust, washes the mops, and dries them. Six months into its retail life, user feedback has been overwhelmingly positive, though a handful of reports about dock flooding and occasional firmware hiccups deserve mention.

The Hardware That Matters

Cleaning Power

The 8,000 Pa HyperForce suction slots nicely between budget and premium tiers. It’s plenty for hard floors and low-pile carpet, though homes with plush carpeting might want the Q10 S5’s 10,000 Pa. Five suction modes give you flexibility: Quiet, Balanced, Turbo, Max, and Max+ (for vacuum-only sessions).

A single rubber anti-tangle brush handles the main cleaning duties. It floats to adapt to uneven floors, and the rubber design treats long hair more gently than bristle alternatives. The catch? Hair still accumulates at the brush end caps every couple of weeks. They’re removable, so cleaning takes about five minutes, but it’s worth knowing upfront.

The V-shaped side brush stays fixed rather than extending like premium models. Cost compromise, sure, but it handles edge cleaning competently in most room layouts.

Finding Its Way Around

PreciSense LiDAR provides 360-degree real-time scanning, and Reactive Tech (combining 3D structured light with an RGB camera) handles obstacle avoidance. The system detects furniture, cables, and shoes, identifying objects as narrow as 3cm.

One caveat worth flagging: dark or highly reflective floors—black tile, dark rugs, mirror-like surfaces—can trip up the Reactive Tech system. It sometimes sees obstacles that aren’t there. Not a defect, just a known limitation of this technology.

Mapping happens six times faster than standard cycles, supports up to four floor plans, and renders in 3D. Ultrasonic sensors detect carpet and trigger automatic mop lifting and suction boosting.

Battery Life in Practice

The 5,200 mAh lithium-ion battery (roughly 75 Wh) promises up to four hours in Quiet mode. Real-world testing tells a different story—expect 90-120 minutes of combined vacuum-and-mop runtime in Balanced mode for typical 700-900 square foot cleaning sessions. Max mode cuts that to around 70 minutes.

For context, one full water tank covers up to 3,552 square meters of mopping area before needing a refill. The battery shares compatibility with the Q5 Pro, though swapping it requires opening up the robot.

Physical Specs

The robot measures 13.78” by 13.9” and stands just under 4 inches tall (3.8”). It’ll clear 20mm thresholds—standard door lips are fine, but tall transitions and high-pile rugs pose problems.

Available in Black or White, weighing about 9.9 lbs.

Mopping: What You’re Actually Getting

Dual spinning pads rotate at 200 RPM and lift 10mm automatically over carpet. The 4-liter clean water tank dwarfs the dirty water tank (exact capacity undisclosed), and 30 water flow levels let you fine-tune moisture for different floors.

Here’s the trade-off: this is cold-water mopping only. The dock washes mop pads without heating, and air drying runs cold too. For daily maintenance on tile, laminate, or sealed hardwood, that’s perfectly adequate. If you want heated sanitization, you’ll need to step up to the Qrevo Edge S5A or similar.

The fixed (non-extending) mop pads mean edge cleaning isn’t optimized. Walls and baseboards may see lighter coverage than what premium models achieve. Maximum two passes per room, and there’s no adaptive repass based on dirt detection.

The All-in-One Dock

Dimensions run 19” deep, 13.5” wide, and just over 20” tall with the ramp. Relatively compact for an all-in-one station, though you’ll need 28 inches of vertical clearance above to remove the tanks.

The dock handles:

• Auto-emptying into 2.7-liter sealed bags (roughly seven weeks between changes)
• Mop washing with 30-level water flow control
• Cold air drying
• Tank refills as needed
• Maintenance alerts for full bags, low water, and full dirty tanks

A small number of users reported dock flooding during mop washing in the first few weeks after purchase. Root causes traced back to incorrect tank seating or damaged gaskets. Roborock support has been responsive to these issues.

App and Smart Home

The Roborock app earns its 4.6-4.8 star ratings across iOS and Android. Map editing feels somewhat sluggish on older devices, but the feature set is comprehensive: room division, virtual walls, no-go zones, individual room settings for suction and water levels, zone cleaning, spot cleaning, edge mode, and flexible scheduling.

Voice control works through Alexa, Google Home, and Siri. Home Assistant users can tap into third-party community integrations that are active as of late 2025. Matter and HomeKit support remain unconfirmed.

Real Cleaning Performance

On hard floors—hardwood, tile, vinyl, laminate—the QV 35A excels. Fine dust, large debris like cereal and crumbs, sand, rice: all handled swiftly with minimal residue.

Pet hair gets more nuanced. Short-to-medium shedding from cats or similar? No problems, rarely tangles. Heavy shedding from dogs on medium or high-pile carpet? The robot occasionally clumps hair instead of vacuuming it, especially in Balanced mode. Switching to Max or Turbo typically solves this.

High-pile carpet and shag are not this robot’s territory. The 8,000 Pa suction can’t penetrate deep fibers effectively, and the 10mm mop lift may struggle with tall pile heights.

Annual Maintenance Costs

Budget roughly $300 per year for replacements, though actual costs vary:

• HEPA filters (2-pack): $15-20 every 2-3 months
• Mop pads (2-pack): ~$25-29 every 1-2 months
• Side brushes (2-pack): ~$16 every 3-4 months
• Dust bags (6-pack): ~$32, replaced every 7 weeks
• Main brush cover: ~$21 as needed

Third-party combination kits on AliExpress and Amazon run $28-45 for mixed replacement parts.

Known Issues Worth Watching

Beyond the occasional dock flooding mentioned earlier, users have flagged:

• Hair wrapping at brush end caps (common but easy to clean)
• Occasional app disconnections (restart typically fixes)
• Rare firmware update failures requiring factory reset
• Rare dirty water tank sensor malfunctions

None qualify as widespread problems, but they’re documented in user forums.

How It Stacks Up

Against the Q5 Pro+ ($400-500): The QV 35A offers significantly better mopping with its dual spinning pads and auto-wash dock, plus 8,000 Pa versus 5,500 Pa suction. The Q5 Pro+ costs about the same but treats mopping as an afterthought.

Against the Q10 S5+ ($550-650): Higher suction (10,000 Pa) makes the Q10 better for carpet-heavy homes. It uses vibrating rather than spinning mops. Worth the extra $100-150 if you have lots of carpet.

Against the Qrevo Edge S5A ($699-799): Hot water washing, extending mop arms, and 10,000 Pa suction justify the premium for households that prioritize mopping or have tricky corners. The QV 35A costs $200-300 less but makes meaningful compromises.

Against the Dreame L40 Ultra ($699-899): Higher suction (11,000 Pa) and heated water put it in a different class for hard floor cleaning. Excellent reviews, but you’re paying for it.

Who Should Buy This

The QV 35A makes the most sense for:

• Budget-conscious buyers who want premium features without premium pricing
• Households with mostly hard floors where 8,000 Pa provides excellent results
• Pet owners with moderate shedding (not extreme)
• People who want granular app control and scheduling
• Multi-room homes needing up to four floor maps
• Apartment dwellers who appreciate the dock’s compact footprint

Look elsewhere if you have:

• High-pile carpet throughout the home (consider the Q10 S5+)
• Heavy-shedding pets (higher suction helps)
• Requirements for heated mopping (Qrevo Edge S5A or better)
• Obsessive corner-cleaning standards (extending mop arms cost more)

The Bottom Line

At $429-499, the Roborock QV 35A delivers what should be an $800 feature set. Cold-water mopping and fixed mop arms are real compromises, and the Reactive Tech obstacle avoidance stumbles on dark floors. But for the vast majority of homes—hard floors, low-to-medium pile carpet, normal pet hair levels—this robot handles daily cleaning with minimal intervention.

The Roborock app remains best-in-class. The dock footprint stays manageable. Maintenance is straightforward with tool-free, washable parts. Support has been responsive to the issues that have cropped up.

If you’re shopping under $500 for a vacuum-mop combo that actually delivers on both functions, the QV 35A sets the bar for late 2025.

Quick Reference

Spec	Value
Suction	8,000 Pa
Mopping	Dual spinning, 10mm lift, auto-wash, cold water
Battery	5,200 mAh / 90-120 min realistic
Navigation	LiDAR + Reactive Tech
Dock	Auto-empty, mop wash, cold air dry
Robot Size	13.78” x 13.9” x 3.8”
Threshold Clearance	20mm
Floor Maps	Up to 4
Price	$429-499 (MSRP $599.99)
Warranty	12 months