Hands-on review: Narwal Freo Z Ultra

Let's be honest, very few of us enjoy doing household chores. In fact, according to research from the International Data Corporation, 18.5 million 'smart vacuums' were shipped around the globe in 2023, proving that many of us are willing to pay good money to allow autonomous technology to complete some of our most mundane tasks.

Narwal Robotics has gone from strength to strength as a company since it was founded in 2016, winning several awards for its innovative products and ultimately becoming one of the top five global brands of vacuum cleaners.

Narwal's latest flagship device, the Freo Z Ultra, succeeds the Freo X Ultra and comes bulging with features, some of which we've not seen before on a robot vacuum. 

First impressions and setup
One of the first things you might notice when unboxing the Freo Z Ultra is how large the base station is – approximately 45cm (H), 42cm (W) and 32cm (D). This is all functional, mind you – it's designed to hold two large water tanks (one for clean, the other for dirty), as well as a dust bag and detergent bottle. It's also where the robot goes to charge, clean, and dry itself.

Despite its size, the base station is cleverly designed. There are two colours of the Freo Z Ultra – Galaxy Silver and Space Gray. Our test product was the Galaxy Silver, but both colour options complement the minimalist design perfectly. All the edges are curved, and there is a distinct lack of physical buttons – just a small black circular screen on top of the station with some basic inputs, including an all-important child lock. All other control functions can be done on the Narwal Freo app. 

From the outside, the robot itself is also designed well, though there isn't much in its design to separate it from other robot vacuums on the market – it's round and made mainly of plastic. Where it differs, however, is with the two RGB camera lenses on the front to get a better sense of what it needs to clean (and avoid). Underneath the robot is where it continues to stand out from its competitors, with its dual scrubbing and ingeniously designed spinning mop heads and zero-tangling brush.

Setting up the Freo Z Ultra via the app takes minimal effort, and once everything is in place you can go ahead and start mapping out your living space, so the robot knows exactly where to go and where to steer clear from.

The app allows you to do things like change the name of your robot, select no-go zones, view your living space in both 2D and 3D, schedule cleans, and view your cleaning history. Under 'History', there's also a neat feature that shows how many cleaning cycles your Freo Z Ultra has completed and how long its operated for over the course of a week, month, or year.

If you like using voice assistants, you can choose to operate the Freo Z Ultra via Siri, Alexa, or Google Home to make cleaning your space even more effortless.

Performance
The Freo Z Ultra excelled at most tasks it was assigned to over a four-week period. We generally clean our small apartment two or three times each week, but our dog, Clover, makes sure that our hard work is barely noticeable within a few hours thanks to her malting fur and mucky paws.

The Freo Z Ultra is powerful. It has up to 12,000 Pa at its disposal, meaning it packs a punch in terms of suction power, and the dual mops spin at up to 180rpm and offer up to 12N of pressure to get rid of even the most stubborn stains off your hard floors. Despite all this power, the Freo Z Ultra remains eerily quiet at just 53dB.

Within the app, there are four cleaning modes to choose from: 'Vacuum and Mop', 'Vacuum then Mop', 'Vacuum' and 'Mop'. Almost every day, we'd run the Vacuum mode, but a couple of times a week, we'd run the Vacuum and then Mop mode to ensure the floor was left in a pristine condition. Our apartment is primarily made up of wooden floors, so the Mop function, in particular, has been a godsend.

The dual RGB cameras work in tandem with the dual AI chips to establish exactly what needs to be done, how hard it needs to be cleaned, and what items need to be avoided - all in real-time. If you have spilt coffee, for example, the Freo Z Ultra will recognise this and spend extra time to remove the stubborn stain. All of this is done with your privacy in mind – nothing is shared to a cloud; everything is done locally via the AI chips and processor.

There are more than 120 objects that the Freo Z Ultra recognises and avoids, sometimes just a few millimetres away, to optimise the overall clean. So, if you realise you need to have a quick clean of your floors while you're out, but you've left some trainers or cables along the floor, the job will still get done. It also reacts to moving obstacles you may have left at home, such as your furry friend. 

Should you need to, the Freo Z Ultra also lets you connect remotely via the video so you can see exactly what it's cleaning, giving you a unique perspective of your living space at the same time.

One of the many neat features of the Freo Z Ultra is that it can lift its dual mops up and down. This is particularly useful if you have a rug in your cleaning space – the robot knows exactly where it is and lifts its components accordingly. Another feature worth mentioning is the optional skirting board cleaners, which clip to the side of the robot to clean the very bottom of your walls.

Another selling point of the Freo Z Ultra is how little maintenance it requires. In between cleans, and sometimes in the middle of thorough cleaning cycles, the robot will return to its base to top itself up with water, clean its mops and empty its dust bag. The mops can be cleaned at up to 60°C, depending on what it's been cleaning, and then dried again to remove as much bacteria as possible. This only helps to extend the lifespan of the product and reduce the risk of having to replace parts over time. It also prevents the base station from creating bad smells.

Where the Freo Z Ultra comes up short, and it's the same with almost every robot vacuum out there, is its ability to leave a carpet spotless. This is particularly noticeable with dog hair – it just doesn't do the job to the standard of a high-end 'manual' vacuum cleaner. It works fine with debris on your carpet that's a little easier to pick up. On hard floors, it's almost faultless.

Verdict
The Narwal Freo Z Ultra might just be one of the best robot vacuums available to buy today. Narwal has looked at what other products lack and fine-tuned its product to set a benchmark for the future.

The way in which the Freo Z Ultra navigates around your space and adapts to provide the optimum clean needs to be seen to be believed, as does the way it prepares for a task and sanitises itself afterwards. 

The combination of both powerful suction and strong mopping power, alongside the smart capabilities, make sure the Freo Z Ultra's cleaning tasks aren't just done, they're done to an exceptional standard. The only notable downside is its ability to get things like dog hair out of tighter carpets, but this isn't an issue that's exclusive to the Freo Z Ultra.  

The Freo Z Ultra is available now for $1,999 AUD, or considerably cheaper if you keep an eye out for the frequent discounts Narwal offers. This might be on the expensive side, but can you really put a price on opting out of some of life's most mundane chores?