Bosch Unlimited 7 Aqua Review
Mopping and vacuuming in one.
Verdict
Able to vacuum and mop at the same, the Bosch Unlimited 7 Aqua uses automatic dosing to its microfibre pads to remove stains gently. It’s a decent vacuum cleaner on carpet, but it lacks power and didn’t vacuum well while it mopped. It’s also relatively expensive, which makes it hard to recommend at this price.
Pros
- Mopping and vacuuming
- Good carpet cleaning
- Smooth and simple mopping
Cons
- Expensive
- Average suction power
Key Features
- TypeThis is a cordless stick vacuum cleaner with a mop attachment.
- Battery lifeOn automatic mode you can expect to get around 16 minutes of cleaning from a 3Ah battery.
Introduction
A model variation of the Bosch Unlimited 7 range, I’m reviewing the Bosch Unlimited 7 Aqua as a separate product, as it comes with a hard floor mopping system.
With the ability to vacuum and then clean, this package is an all-in-one system for hard floors and a neat vacuum cleaner in its own right.
Design and features
- Useful range of tools
- Integrated filter cleaning
- Mops and vacuums at the same time
- Simple controls
Although finished in white, the Bosch Unlimited 7 Aqua is the same physical vacuum cleaner as the Bosch Unlimited 7 ProAnimal that I reviewed. Although made of plastic, the vacuum cleaner feels rigid and well-made.
Controls are very simple on this vacuum cleaner, with a single slider switch that you use to move between the power modes: Eco, Turbo and Auto. With the latter, the Bosch Unlimited 7 Aqua doesn’t measure the level of dust it’s collecting and adjust power, which is how the Shark Stratos IZ420UKT works; instead, the Auto mode uses the floor head to detect the type of surface it’s on, adjusting power and the brush bar’s spin speed automatically.
A 3Ah Power For All battery is included in the box. This battery is compatible with any other tools that use the same system, which includes products from Bosch and Husqvarna. It also means that if you’ve got spare batteries from other products, you can use them in the vacuum cleaner to extend its run time.
The remaining battery life is represented by three LEDs that extinguish one at a time. It’s only enough information to get a basic overview of how much time is left.
The battery must be charged in situ, either with the power cable connected to the vacuum cleaner or via the wall dock. An external battery charge is available, too, which might make sense if you’ve got multiple batteries, as you can use one and have a spare charging.
While the Unlimited 7 ProAnimal had lots of accessories in the box, the Bosch Unlimited 7 Aqua is a little more basic for vacuuming tools. In addition to the floor head, there’s a 2-in-1 brush tool, a standard crevice tool and a flexible crevice tool. I’m a big fan of the latter, as it makes it easy to clean behind the backs of radiators and the like.
Of course, the big stand-out feature with this vacuum cleaner is the Aqua floor head, which consists of two spinning microfibre cloths, along with a 250ml water tank for self-dosing the mopping pads with water, although there is a foot-switch for turning water flow on and off.
While the tank can be used with just water, detergent can be added, provided you mix it at the specified ratio. In total, the 250ml tank can clean up to 50m² of floor space, which is enough to tackle a few rooms before needing to refill.
Externally, this looks similar to the mopping unit provided with the Samsung Jet 95 Pro, although there’s one significant difference: the Aqua mopping head has a tube at the front, so it can vacuum up solid debris while mopping stains. In theory, that makes it a more powerful tool, and can cut down on the amount of time it takes to clean.
Both the standard floor head and mop are compatible with the wand, which has a hinge that allows me to clean under furniture without having to bend down.
Dust goes into the 0.3-litre bin, which will likely need emptying after each clean. To empty, the bin has to be released, using the button, which is placed very close to the tool-release button. As such, I found it easy to accidentally remove the bin, when trying to change tools.
Once out, the filter has a twist mechanism at the top that agitates dirt, allowing it to fall into the bin. This mechanism means the filter doesn’t have to be washed, which is a real-time saver.
Once cleaned, the filter should be removed, dust can be tipped into the bin, and the entire bin cleaned if necessary.
Performance
- Battery can get hot
- Solid carpet performance
- So-so vacuuming in mopping mode
Rather than repeat all of the same floor tests here, the Bosch Unlimited 7 Aqua has the same basic performance as the Bosch Unlimited 7 ProAnimal. That’s to say that it has mid-range suction, ranging from a gentle 27AW on Eco to 93AW on Turbo.
That maximum level of performance is what I’d normally expect to see for a vacuum cleaner’s mid-level power setting. As a result, it could only pick up grains of rice from 1.5cm away, which can mean that it’s a bit slower to use hand tools than with the competition.
While low suction may make hand tools less effective, the brush bar does a good job on carpets, collecting 94% of my test spill. This cleaner also did well on my edge test, collecting 96% of my spill.
On hard floors, I got 99.6% of my rice spill, with a couple of grains dropping out onto the floor at the end.
Pet hair was removed with ease, and just a single strand of human hair was wrapped around the brush bar at the end.
For the mopping tests, I added multiple stains to the floor. I started with the mud test, where I trod 1 teaspoon of dirt into the hard floor. This mess is a mixture of mud stain and larger particles, perfect for testing the suction power.
I found that the Bosch Unlimited 7 Aqua did a good job lifting the stains from the floor, but vacuuming wasn’t quite as impressive. While some chunks of dirt were collected, other bits got hit by the microfibre pads and pushed out of the way.
For dry stains, I’d definitely vacuum normally first, and then use the mop and suction to collect anything left behind.
Tackling coffee stains, I found that the Bosch Unlimited 7 Aqua could remove these with ease.
The same was true for my red wine stain, which was lifted off the floor to leave it completely clean.
And, my dried-on ketchup stain was also removed with very little effort, and just a few sweeps of the floor head.
To see how well the Bosch Unlimited 7 Aqua can mop to the edge of rooms, I added ketchup right to the edge of the cupboards and then mopped. As the microfibre pads extend to the sides of the cleaner, I could get them right to the edges of the room, for edge-to-edge cleaning; something that a cleaner with a roller can’t do.
The downside of this type of cleaner is that the muck sticks to the microfibre pads. Once saturated, this type of mopping system starts to swirl dirt onto the floor, and you get less cleaning distance than with a self-cleaning roller system. At the end of cleaning, the mopping pads can go straight into the wash.
Battery life is a little basic: I got 31m on the low power setting, and 9m 40s on Turbo, with Auto coming in at 16m 55s. And, as the vacuum is used for all tasks, these battery life figures are what you can expect for mopping, too.
That’s not enough battery life to clean an entire house, so a spare battery (or cleaning in sections over a couple of days) will be required.
I found that once I’d drained the battery on Turbo mode, it took a while for it to cool down enough to charge.
I measured the vacuum cleaner at 67.3dB on low power and 72.5dB on Turbo power, which makes it one of the quieter vacuum cleaners around.
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Should you buy it?
You want vacuuming and mopping
A decent vacuum cleaner in its own right, this model can also mop your hard floors with automatic water dispensing.
You want better vacuuming performance or a better value package
Spend the same with a rival vacuum and you can get better overall performance. Mopping systems are also available for less.
Final Thoughts
Although the cleaning performance is the same on the Bosch Unlimited 7 Aqua as on the Bosch Unlimited 7 ProAnimal, the latter is listed to be £100 cheaper (and at the time of review was available on deal for £200 less than the Aqua).
Given the wide range of tools that come with the ProAnimal, it’s a more flexible vacuum cleaner, and I’m not convinced that the mopping accessory is worth between £100 and £200 more, especially as its vacuuming performance while mopping isn’t that impressive.
For £20 less, the Samsung Jet 95 Pro has a wider range of tools, more powerful suction, longer battery life and a useful mopping system. For other alternatives, check out my guide to the best cordless vacuum cleaners.
How we test
We test every vacuum cleaner we review thoroughly over an extended period of time. We use industry standard tests to compare features properly. We’ll always tell you what we find. We never, ever, accept money to review a product.
Find out more about how we test in our ethics policy.
Used as our main vacuum cleaner for the review period
Tested for at least a week
Tested using tools to measure actual suction performance
Tested with real-world dirt in real-world situations for fair comparisons with other vacuum cleaners
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FAQs
The differences are down to colours and range of bundled tools; power and battery life is the same between the range.
Yes, the battery is removable and compatible with all Power For All tools, available from a range of manufacturers.
Full specs
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Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
