A stair-climbing robot vacuum isn’t a new idea. We saw an early attempt at it with the Dreame X50 Ultra, which was able to overcome thresholds of around two inches. Recently, at IFA 2025, we saw the Eufy Marswalker and Dreame CyberX, which use a system of treads and an additional shell to help the robot get up stairs. However, neither can clean the stairs itself. The Roborock Saros Rover is different; it’s a robot with legs, and I mean real legs, not treads or a lift system.
Yes, this robot vacuum comes with genuine chicken legs (or maybe frog legs) with wheels on the bottom. It’s a weird-looking device, no doubt, but the result is hard to argue with. I watched Roborock run the Saros Rover through a range of demos to showcase its stair-climbing abilities, balance and ability to hop over obstacles and even dance. Here’s what I thought.
The Rover's legs remind me of chicken or frog legs with the way they fold and unfold. Ajay Kumar/CNET
How the Saros Rover works
The Saros Rover uses its legs to wedge its body up on the next step, then draws them up after it. Ajay Kumar/CNET
As mentioned, the Saros Rover operates differently from the other stair-climbing robots we’ve seen demoed before. Instead of using a shell with tread attachments, the Rover deploys a pair of legs and wheels to lever itself up over stairs and other obstacles. Its climbing is vaguely reminiscent of a stork or other long-legged bird, with the two legs acting as a support to push its large, flat body up on the next step. Then the legs fold themselves up behind its back, and then it deploys them again for the next step.
The Saros Rover can handle all manner of stairs, including traditional, curved and carpeted. Ajay Kumar/CNET
It took the Saros Rover approximately 30 to 40 seconds to climb about five large steps, so it’s certainly not very fast compared to a human, but the Saros can and will clean each step as it moves up. It does that by using one leg for balance on the step below, then rolls itself up and down the next step to ensure it's clean before moving on. This is notably something that Eufy told us that its Marswalker isn’t able to do, and the same is true of Dreame’s prototype model as well.
The Rover takes some time to climb steps, but it's impressively responsive when using its wheels. Ajay Kumar/CNET
Roborock says that the Rover should be able to tackle both traditional and curved staircases, as well as different flooring types, included carpeted staircases with bullnose fronts. It’ll also help tackle other obstacles that may be present in your home, such as multi-level room thresholds.
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