The list of things that robot vacuums can now continue to grow. They can accurately map your home so they don’t bump into things. They can empty themselves and recharge themselves. They can reach under your bed to clean the crud. Many have dual mopping-vacuuming functionalities to wipe away your dog’s muddy footprints.

One thing most robot vacuums do not possible now is to pick things up from your floor. Running a robot vacuum can save you a lot of time and energy, but it usually takes 10 to 20 minutes of frantic running around trying to get rid of robovac booby traps by moving or pulling out cables, shoelaces, and stray strands of hair.

This year, Roborock won the race to launch a commercial robot vacuum with an extendable arm that can pick up small pieces of clutter in its path, thus becoming the robot butler of your dreams. The Roborock Saros Z70 has this extendable arm with grip pincers that the company calls Omnigrip. I screamed when I saw it.

Courtesy of Roborock

Turn Me Right Round

In my testing, a robot vacuum is only as useful as its accurate navigation system; all the suction power in the world won’t help you if it doesn’t find its way out from under your bed. I have found Roborock’s navigation systems to be consistently accurate. The Saros Z70 uses a combination of sensors for navigation. There is an array of 3D Time-of-Flight sensors to measure the distance between objects, and AI-powered RGB cameras to detect obstacles and to decide when to deploy the Omnigrip . (The arm stays folded and stored in a small bay on top of the vacuum when it’s not in use.)

The Omnigrip has five separate axes, so it can twist and turn itself horizontally and vertically to grasp delicate objects in its tiny pincer grips. Currently, it can pick up anything under 300 grams, or a little over a pound—so, things like tissue, socks, or even sandals.

To use Omnigrip, Roborock customers activate it through the app. When the Saros Z70 moves around your home, it identifies potential items it can pick up while it’s cleaning, and then circles back to pick them up and put them away when it’s done. In the app, you can choose the areas in your home where the Omnigrip works, how it works, and where the items it picks up should be placed.