ECOVACS WINBOT W2 PRO Omni vs W2S PRO

W2 PRO Omni vs W2S PRO at a glance

Head to head

The best result in each row is marked, based on my testing and the manufacturer specs. Where the robots tie, both are marked.

The tally is a guide, not my verdict. Where your outlets are matters more than any single row.

The real trade-off: station or better robot

These two sit close together in the Winbot range, but they spend the budget in opposite places.

The W2 PRO Omni puts it into the station. Its portable 6-in-1 base stores the robot, holds the solution, anchors the rope, charges the battery and runs the robot for up to 110 minutes away from any outlet.

The W2S PRO puts it into the robot. It has 10,000 Pa✕Pa, or pascalsThe unit for suction. A higher number means the robot presses itself to the glass harder. of suction, four TruEdge 2.0✕TruEdge 2.0Four felt edge brushes at the corners of the robot that sweep into frames and corners, with sensors that detect edges on two axes. brushes and seven modes, but it runs on a mains cord✕Mains cordThe W2S PRO plugs into a wall socket. A small backup battery holds it on the glass for about 30 minutes if the power is cut, but it cannot clean on battery..

Our tip: Walk your home and count the windows without an outlet nearby, because that number decides this comparison more than any score.

Design and storage

Both robots are full-size square crawlers. The W2S PRO is the heavier robot, with its four detachable edge brushes and a visible 4.1 fl oz tank.

The W2 PRO Omni comes in one kit that weighs about 19 lb with the station. It lives in a closet and comes out as one object.

The W2S PRO comes as a robot, a power supply, a safety rope with a carabiner, two pads and a starter bottle. With no station, I spent part of week one finding a tidy way to keep it all together.

The W2 PRO Omni’s station keeps everything in one place.

Setup and the first week

The W2 PRO Omni took about 3 minutes to set up per session, under a minute to move between windows and about 2 minutes to pack away.

The W2S PRO took about 15 minutes the first time, for the app and a firmware update. After that, it took about 3 minutes to prepare and 2 to pack away, much of it routing the cord and rope.

Week one went to the W2S PRO, 7.6 against 7.4, because it cleaned inside glass near outlets so well. By week two, outside glass narrowed the gap.

Our tip: Check that the W2S PRO’s cord reaches the far top corner with slack before you start, because the robot stops short when it runs out.

Suction and safety

Neither robot came off the glass. The W2 PRO Omni scored 9.0 for safety and the W2S PRO 8.8.

The W2S PRO has the stronger grip, 10,000 Pa, and 10-stage protection, and its backup battery kept the fan running for about 30 minutes when I unplugged it mid-run. Its rope, though, is only as safe as what you tie it to.

The W2 PRO Omni ties its rope to the station on the floor, a more foolproof anchor, and has 12-stage protection. That is why it edged the safety score.

My safety scores

Scores out of 10 for grip, alerts and anchoring.

Either robot is a safer way to clean upstairs outside glass than a ladder. The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission has reported more than 164,000 emergency room-treated injuries a year related to ladders.

How well they clean

The W2S PRO was the better cleaner across the board. On dust and pollen it scored 9.4 against 9.0, and on fingerprints 9.2 against 8.8.

The bigger gap was on hard dirt. On months of outside grime, the W2S PRO scored 8.0 in one pass, while the W2 PRO Omni scored 6.2 in one pass and 8.4 after a second pass with a fresh pad.

The W2S PRO also scored 8.6 on water spots, and the W2 PRO Omni 8.0 on light kitchen grease.

Months of outside grime

My scores out of 10.

Our tip: Use Thorough plus a quick Edge pass on the W2S PRO for sliders and large panes, because that combination gave my best results.

Edges and corners

This is where the newer robot pulls ahead. In the center of the glass, both were excellent: 9.6 for the W2S PRO and 9.4 for the W2 PRO Omni.

Along the frames, the W2S PRO scored 9.0. The W2 PRO Omni scored 8.0 with its edge-focused mode on and 6.6 with it off.

In the inside corners, the W2S PRO’s TruEdge 2.0 brushes scored 8.2, and the W2 PRO Omni 6.2. On a sunny day, that was the difference between clean corners and small dull triangles.

Inside corners

My scores out of 10.

Along frames

Same week, similar windows.

TruEdge 2.0 brushes gave the W2S PRO much cleaner corners.

Our tip: Turn on the W2 PRO Omni’s edge-focused mode for doors, because it lifted my frame score from 6.6 to 8.0.

Living with the cord vs the station

On the W2S PRO, every window started with the cord. Near a socket inside, that took seconds. Outside, I routed the cord through a door gap and kept it on the opposite side from the rope so they did not tangle and pull the robot off its route.

On the W2 PRO Omni, I set the station down and clipped the robot on. I ran it on battery about three-quarters of the time, and it covered every ground-floor window with charge to spare.

That convenience is why the W2 PRO Omni scored 8.7 for ease of use and the W2S PRO 8.2.

Ease of use

My scores out of 10.

Our tip: Keep the W2S PRO’s cord and rope on opposite sides of the window, because crossed lines pulled it off its route more than anything else.

Modes and controls

The W2S PRO offers seven modes: Fast, Thorough, Deep, Heavy-Duty, Edge, Spot and Zone, plus a joystick in the app. It moves at about 5.5 inches per second.

The W2 PRO Omni keeps it simple with standard cleaning and an edge-focused mode. I never felt short of options on clean glass, but I missed Heavy-Duty on the street side.

The joystick was more useful than I expected. I used it to steer the W2S PRO onto one stubborn spot and run Spot over it.

W2S PRO: relative time per window

Relative timings from my sessions.

Spray, tank and pads

The W2S PRO sprays from triple nozzles on each side and holds 4.1 fl oz in a visible tank. The W2 PRO Omni sprays from three wide-angle nozzles, with solution stored in its station.

On both, the pad mattered more than the spray. On the W2S PRO, a fresh, damp pad scored 9.0, the same pad after three inside windows 8.0 and after two dirty outside windows 5.8.

On the W2 PRO Omni, a fresh pad scored 8.8, the same pad on a second dirty window 7.0 and on a third 5.2.

Water quality matters too. The U.S. Geological Survey classes water above 120 mg/L of calcium carbonate as hard, and those minerals dry into spots and clog fine nozzles.

Our tip: Swap pads every three or four inside windows and every two dirty outside windows, because a tired pad cost both robots three points or more.

Which homes suit each robot

After four weeks, the simplest way I found to choose was to picture the home.

A modern condo with floor-to-ceiling glass and a balcony suits the W2 PRO Omni. The battery station made the balcony a five-minute job, and the big panes cleaned beautifully in the center.

A house with sliding doors and outlets near every window suits the W2S PRO. There, the cord costs you almost nothing, and the corners and frames look cleaner every day.

A family home with a mix is the hard case. If even one important window is far from a socket, I would lean to the W2 PRO Omni. If they are all near outlets, the W2S PRO.

Our tip: List the five windows that annoy you most and check each for an outlet, because that short list is the fastest way to pick between these two.

Which windows and glass suit each

The W2 PRO Omni was excellent on floor-to-ceiling glass and very good on balcony glass and sliding doors. Small windows were fine, but the station took longer to set up than the clean.

The W2S PRO was excellent on large windows and sliding doors near outlets, and the best of the two on frames. It struggled where there was no outlet in reach.

Neither suits arched or oddly shaped glass well.

Noise, pets and family life

Both make a steady fan whoosh, roughly like a hair dryer on low. You hear them in the same room, and they fade one room away.

With pets and children, the W2S PRO has two lines to watch, the cord and the rope. The W2 PRO Omni has one, the rope to its station.

My cat sniffed both ropes on day one and lost interest by day two. I ran every line along the wall.

A whole-house cleaning day with each

In week four I gave each robot the same day: the ground floor inside and out, the balcony and the upstairs windows I can reach.

The W2 PRO Omni took about 45 minutes of my own time: about 10 minutes of evening prep, about 25 moving the station and clipping the robot on, and about 10 rinsing pads. Neglected street-side windows needed two passes.

The W2S PRO took about 40 minutes of my time. It cleaned the street side in one Heavy-Duty pass, but I spent more time routing the cord, and the balcony needed an extension lead.

Cleaning and maintaining them

Both need pads rinsed after each session and the rope checked for fraying. The W2S PRO adds its four edge brushes, which I washed every few sessions, and a wipe of the sensors and bumpers after outside glass.

The W2 PRO Omni needs its station kept charged and a quick cloth wipe where the robot parks.

Neither washes its own pads.

Our tip: Wash the W2S PRO’s edge brushes every few sessions, because dirty brushes leave faint gray lines along the frames.

Mistakes to avoid

Most weak results came from the same habits.

My four weeks, week by week

Week one: inside glass. The W2S PRO scored 7.6 and the W2 PRO Omni 7.4.

Week two: outside glass. The W2 PRO Omni reached 8.2 on battery on the balcony, and the W2S PRO 8.3 once I routed its cord through a door gap.

Week three: the W2 PRO Omni dipped to 8.0 on neglected street-side glass. The W2S PRO climbed to 8.6 as I explored the joystick, Spot and Zone.

Week four: routine. The W2 PRO Omni finished at 8.6 and the W2S PRO at 8.8.

Week four satisfaction

My weekly scores out of 10.

Real-life scenarios

These are the moments during testing where one robot clearly pulled ahead.

For balconies and glass far from outlets, the W2 PRO Omni is the easier robot.

My scorecard

These are my own scores out of 10, from my single reviews of each robot after four weeks of daily use.

Overall scores

My overall editorial scores out of 10.

The W2S PRO wins overall because it is the better cleaner, especially at the edges and on dirty glass. The W2 PRO Omni is easier, slightly safer and the only one of the two that cleans without an outlet.

Which one should you buy?

Start with your outlets, then your corners.

If your glass is near sockets and dull corners bother you, buy the W2S PRO. If you have a balcony or big glass far from outlets, or you want the simplest routine, buy the W2 PRO Omni.

For everything I found, see my W2 PRO Omni review and W2S PRO review. If you want both the station and TruEdge 2.0, see my W2S PRO vs W2S PRO Omni comparison.

Living with them long term

Both need pads rinsed and the rope checked. The W2S PRO adds edge-brush washing and cord care, and the W2 PRO Omni a charged station.

What I would change: better corners on the W2 PRO Omni, and a longer cord or carry case on the W2S PRO.

For windows near outlets, the W2S PRO is the better cleaner.

W2 PRO Omni vs W2S PRO specifications

From manufacturer specifications and my own testing.

How I tested and compared them

I used each robot as my main window cleaner for four weeks, on inside windows, sliding doors, balcony glass and neglected street-side windows. A second HouseholdMe tester shared the robots, and we wrote the notes together.

I scored both on similar glass with the same solution, unplugged the W2S PRO mid-run to test its backup and timed every setup, session and cleanup.

I then checked my notes against ECOVACS’ specifications and owner documentation.

• Cleaning: dust, fingerprints, rain spots and months of outside grime.
• Edges: frames, inside corners and frameless edges.
• Safety: suction hold, power-loss behavior and the safety rope.
• Ownership: setup, pads, refills, storage and noise.