I've seen this robot vacuum clean stairs on its own—it's a game-changer

Roborock’s new robot vacuum, the Saros Rover, stands out among the crowded field for the simple reason that it has two-wheeled legs and can actually stand up, above all the other robot vacuums.

The company showcased its new cleaning assistant at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES). It isn’t for sale yet, there’s no price to gawk at, and it even looks a bit scary when demonstrating its full acrobatics. Despite those major omissions, it might already be the innovative gadget of the year for 2026. And even if it doesn’t live up to that hype, it’s still a device that everyone should be paying attention to—for several reasons.

I’ve been covering consumer electronics for over a decade. I’ve personally tested dozens of these kinds of robot cleaners and mops over the last several years. I have a great grasp of what they are and aren’t capable of. Most of the time, I show someone a new premium, $1,000-plus automated vacuum and mop, they seem impressed but usually mention, in some form, “That’s great, but tell me when it can clean my stairs.” Well, I’m telling you, the new Saros Rover can vacuum your stairs, all by itself.

The vacuum with an arm demands to have legs

Last year, the company showed off the Saros Z70, its “vacuum with an arm.” It looked far-fetched and even a bit intimidating, too, but I’ve been using the Z70 on and off in my home for over 6 months.

While the Saros Z70 hasn’t quite lived up to its assumed potential of grabbing everything in its way to tidy up as it vacuums, it has performed adequately. The vacuuming and mopping portion of the device cleans very well over hardwood and carpet.

The arm does work as intended, but it’s just intentionally limited right now. For example, grabbing scissors to pick them up off the floor and rolling around the house with them could be a problem. I have heard, off the record, that we will continue to see continued work on “the arm.” It shouldn’t be discounted.

Whether the arm is a gimmick, the Saros Z70 did ship as shown. It set the stage for what’s possible to make its way to consumers in a short amount of time. In years past, when a company showed off an ultra-ambitious product like the Z70 or the Saros Rover in January at CES, it was destined to be a proof of concept for a long time.

However, after seeing the Rover in person, climbing stairs, balancing, and even jumping, it’s clear that this device is nearly ready for production. After talking with people at the company and in the industry, my understanding is that it’s the Rover’s software that’s being worked on the most at the moment and being fine-tuned. The device is spending a lot of time in testing scenarios, collecting data, and learning how best to use its skills in different environments.

Just going up and down stairs suddenly isn’t enough

There are plenty of concept robot vacuums that can climb stairs to clean first and second-story floors automatically. Eufy and Dreame were just some of the companies that showed off pre-released products at IFA in late 2025.

But in nearly all the examples that have been demoed, the products slid up or propelled themselves up the stairs, but didn’t stop to clean them. The Saros Rover’s ability to do both is the killer feature. It makes the idea of simply climbing stairs seem outdated, before that feature has even made it into consumers’ homes.

Being able to vacuum stairs is the primary reason that anyone who cares about smart home tech should be paying attention to the Saros Rover. It’s not the only reason though.

Once the Rover reached the top of the stairs during its demo, it lifted itself at least nine inches off the ground and balanced on its two-wheeled legs. It did this long enough to prove it could do it forever, if it wanted to. Then the robot rolled down a ramp, still fully extended. It’s an impressive enough visual that it received audible gasps from a crowd filled with people in the tech industry.

At the end, it spun around and even hopped sometimes. Mobility and versatility look like they are getting big upgrades.

For example, since the vacuum can fully raise itself, that means it can go over large spills without dragging remnants behind. It doesn’t have to try to go around pieces of chicken that fell on the floor. It can go right over. Large thresholds aren’t a problem. There are just a lot more scenarios that this vacuum becomes capable of handling when it adds height to its toolbox.

As a technology enthusiast, I’m excited by the prospect of the Saros Rover. It’s a very practical cleaning device from a lot of different aspects. Plus, it should actually ship this year. The Z70 set a precedent of Roborock being able to show off cutting-edge devices and then actually bring them to market in a timely manner. The year just began, but in terms of tech products, it’s already off to a great start.