Roomba Vacuum – iRobot Roomba Vacuum

Lowest Price

: 549.95

Brand

: iRobot

Model

:

Reviewer: Ken| Date:2009-05-11

The Roomba 610 Professional is simply superb. Roomba represents a very effective, fascinating and sophisticated technology. And, yes, it is worth six hundred bucks, definitely. Our home has NEVER had floors so clean. It doesn't get any better than this. I know Consumer Reports didn't think much of the Roomba in their last report. But I don't think they have tested the recent models with the new software and operational improvements.

Roomba is not a gimmick nor a novelty. I think when these type devices came out, they were. But, this thing is as helpful as a cell phone with true utility. Roomba cleans in a manner and with a thoroughness that would be virtually impossible for a human to do. (Under furniture, along walls etc.) It can keep up with the mess, definitely.

As many have said of the Roombas, they do require very simple maintenance with every cleaning cycle. This perceived high maintenance may be annoying to some. But really, a seven year old could do it. Doing the maintenance is one heck of a lot easier than doing the whole job of vacuuming yourself. The tools that come with the Roomba make this job virtually painless. But, yes, you will get dust, dirt and hair on your hands. (Sorry, ladies). There is just no getting around that. Roomba goes places a regular vacuum cleaner can't and it is extremely thorough. Keep that in mind.

Several important tips I have learned that I would like to share: First, you want to keep the brushes, axles, and wheels clean. This is imperative. If not, Roomba gets choked with hair and dust. Doing this takes one to two minutes, tops. Second, you want to run Roomba every day or two so that she can clean a little at a time instead of having to overwork and get choked. Third, using a can of compressed air (like the kind you use to clean computer keyboards) will be beneficial in maintaining Roomba. Use the can of air to blast the innards clean of dust and dirt. I would buy several cans via a warehouse club or amazon. Keeping the motor clean would have to help it last longer too because the motor won't overheat as easily. Finally, you want to make sure you are using the "lighthouses" correctly. IE: setting the lighthouses in areas you want cleaned sequentially. You can also use the light house to create a virtual wall to keep roomba out of areas you don't want cleaned. Placing the light houses in the room to room "path" is very helpful. Then, in the last room you want cleaned, you place the base station. That way, Roomba can go to the base and charge herself when she is done with the rooms.

Others have said that Roomba is a bit loud. While she is louder on tile, I don't think that overall she is loud. I would estimate the noise is equivalent to a clothes dryer or a kitchen exhaust fan (higher in pitch, however). Roomba is definitely a fraction as loud as a traditional vacuum cleaner. The sound rating is about 75 decibels which approximates an bathroom exhaust fan. Silence may be golden but clean is better. You can run roomba while you are gone so this won't be a factor, if you wish.

What will it do? Roomba will effectively clean the areas that it is possible for it to get access to (within the limits of her battery and dirt capacity). This includes under at least some furniture as limited by clearances. And YES, it cleans edges too. If you have oriental rugs that are 6-8 inches away from a wall or obstacle, obviously, Roomba can't get there to clean. (The in-between area).

Roomba generally does not get hung up on cords (though smaller diameter cords-such as thin Apple laptop power adapters seem to snag it sometimes). It also does not get hung up on fringes of oriental rugs. Surprisingly, the Roomba rarely gets stuck. It negotiates around cords and under furniture with varying clearances with surprising ease. It reverses and varies it's trajectory to prevent getting hung. She even lifts herself up a little to get in nooks and crannies. Hearing the motor rev and seeing it change direction in response to varying dirt levels, room dimensions and watching it utilize it's own internal logic is nothing short of flat "WOW, MAN!!!".

Roomba cleans a room in an "ADD" fashion, circling, "crevicing" and crisscrossing in a logic only it seems to understand. But, the result is a clean room (or rooms). The speed depends on the size of the room, how dirty it is and how many obstacles it must negotiate through/around. This generally takes about 25 minutes for each room. It cleans the edges, it cleans carpet, it cleans hardwood floors and it cleans tile. It collects an amazing amount of dirt that even professionals would/do miss. I would say that if you ran Roomba every day, you should rarely need to vacuum. I have three dogs (including a dalmatian that sheds very heavily). Initially, the Roomba may become clogged because it will be cleaning under furniture with vast amounts of dirt/hair. But, with successive cleanings, Roomba will work better.

What won't it do? Sorry, it won't clean stairs. It won't clean behind doors unless they are closed. It can't get to areas where it won't fit such as around door stops. Also, don't expect for Roomba to clean 5000 square feet in one day on a single battery charge. If you have a home of that size as I do, you will need to purchase a couple roombas. Unless, of course, you move Roomba around and let her charge up between cleanings. Too, she is not going to clean a badly neglected floor without getting "choked". The Roomba is meant to do everyday, basic cleaning for about 2 hours at a time.

In short, don't waste any more time hesitating about this purchase. Buy one. You won't be disappointed. Although you will have to perform simple maintenance, you WON'T be vacuuming, bending, stooping and fooling with a damn vacuum cleaner (or paying someone else to do it) Good luck!

Review from Review from Amazon

Reviewer: Unna| Date:2009-03-30

I got the professional series because I have a family of professional grade mess makers (kids, husband, pets, etc.). I love it! I think when people are dissatisfied with it they do not understand what it is and what it is not. It won't clean up an already neglected floor. You start with clean floors and then push a button everyday and let it run around your house doing upkeep and you won't have to vacuum anything except for behind items it can't get to once a month or so. Before my roomba I vacuumed 2 times a week and still dirt would show up on the bottom of peoples white socks. Since roomba no more dirt!!! It handles the cat fur and it even found an earring I lost over a year ago that must of been hiding someplace. The best part is it can get under things my vacuum never could reach. Yes, you have to know its limitations. It is a programmed device. You have to change something's around your home to work with it. Get wires off the floor so it won't get stuck, for instance. But this thing makes the floors shine and the rugs a joy to walk on. In fact I am purchasing another one for upstairs this week.

Review from Review from Amazon

Reviewer: DocT| Date:2009-03-03

I purchased this version(610) directly from iRobot thinking it could handle our main living space with hardwood floors. It has failed to say the least, dog hair makes its way into the gears and it cannot run unless you clean them. And that requires removing 13 screws. After cleaning them it runs fine for a few days at best with regular brush cleaning...

Review from Review from Amazon

Reviewer: Alisa Millet| Date:2009-06-24

I have been very pleased with the iRobot Roomba 530. It works better than my little upright. We have 3 cats in our house and it does a great job of picking up their hair. Only a few drawbacks I've noticed:

-sometimes dark borders on rugs seem to confuse it.
-2 virtual walls would really be better than 1.
-small dust bin needs to be emptied after each room.
-sometimes the "extra dirty" sensor gets, well, extra dirty so the robot thinks it needs to constantly spot clean. But that's probably just my gross floors. Removing excess dust from the sensor fixes this.

These aside, I am very happy with this product and would definitely recommend it. It saves time and allows me to multitask, and most certainly cleans under places I normally wouldn't get to. And quite frankly, its kind of cute. The biggest problem is that I find myself watching it instead of doing other chores, haha!

Review from Review from Amazon