Reviewer: Christopher Keys| Date:2009-06-30

The roomba 535 was, as I understand it, created for the Home Shopping Network by iRobot and was discontinued after they finished selling it. Based on the 530 model, it does have a noticeable upgrade. The big upgrade is the addition of the lighthouse technology. Lighthouse is an advanced virtual wall that ensures your roomba will clean the room it's in first, then move on to the next room and ensure it's cleanliness. The lighthouse can be switched as well to function as a virtual wall if you don't want the roomba to venture into a particular part of the house.

We've had our 535 for about six weeks now and we love it. It tackles daily vacuuming quite well and returns to its base to recharge when it's done. We have a 1700 sq ft home and it does a great job of handling the whole house on a single charge. It does require some daily maintenance, where you empty the trash bin and clean the brushes daily, but this takes only 1-2 minutes and is a snap with the included tool. It goes under our furniture and picks up anything that's hidden under there. It even pushed out a pair of sunglasses that we were missing.

Flooring:
We have 4 types of flooring in our home: Carpet, linoleum, laminate flooring and ceramic tile. The roomba covers them all and transitions seamlessly between each.

Pet hair:
We have 3 dogs; a maltese, a silky terrier and a german shepherd. We didn't realize how much dog fur was lying around until we sent the roomba off on it's task, now we see the fur as we empty the container. I've heard its a wiz with cat hair as well, but we're not cat people.

There are 2 cons with the roomba:

1. It doesn't replace your standard vacuum. With daily use of the roomba you're standard vacuuming job will be greatly reduced, and it will get deep into the carpeting that the roomba cannot. If you vacuum once a week like we did, we've dropped to once every 3-4 weeks now.

2. The roomba isn't great with corners. You'll notice that you may have a buildup in the 90 degree corners of rooms.

iRobot support:

As I sing the roomba's praises, I do have to point something out. After a week of use, our roomba started making a thumping noise. I contacted irobot's technical support and found that we had a defective brush housing. They sent a new housing out right away and it installed in about 5 minutes. They've designed the roombas with replaceable components, so they're easy to swap out if needed.

Other common questions:
What about stairs?
The roomba has stair sensor technology that will stop it & reverse it if it senses a drop off.

Can I schedule it to clean when I want to?
Not out of the box. There are programming tools to do it if you really want to. I just hit "Clean" before I leave the house for the day. There are other versions that have a schedule function built in (ie. the 560)

What about cords? Does it get stuck?
There are safeguards against cords as well as technology to stop the brushes if it senses a cord and the roomba pushes on and the brushes resume when the cords are no longer sensed.

On a 1 to 10 scale, I give it a 9, but on a 1 to 5 scale, I give it a 4. I hope this helps.

Review from Review from Amazon

Reviewer: H. Nguyen| Date:2009-05-14

I bought this item in Sep 2007. Used it very lightly. A couple of weeks ago, the light started blinking red. I thought the battery went bad and ordered an expensive set of authentic iRobot battery as replacement. Still the same problem. Tech support confirmed that the machine itself was shot.
The plastic construction of brushes is of lowest quality: easily damaged by tangled hair, etc.
A model (also 500 series) sold at Costco seems to be better made.

Review from Review from Amazon

Reviewer: Linda M. Breaux| Date:2009-05-01

I love my Roomba, it does a great job and I love to watch it work. You need to divide up your rooms by using the lighthouse as a virtual wall or put something in the doorway to keep it from going to another room. You will be surprised at how much dirt it picks up.

Review from Review from Amazon

Reviewer: UmitoYama| Date:2009-04-03

I, too, got this on special through Woot.com and though "Little Button" (yes, we named him) has only been with us for 2 days, he's already an indispensable member of the household.

Indeed, both my wife and I are already regretting that we did not bring one of these into the family earlier.

We used to vacuum once a week (if that) and there certainly was no joy in the task. Little Button? That is the sole purpose of his existence. Everyday, we can just hit the little CLEAN button and head off to the office or out to dinner and Little Button heads straight to work with single-minded purpose and relentless determination. Dust, crumbs, hair --- none stand a chance against this little guy. And for the first time in years, the areas under our bed and dresser are getting regular vacuuming attention. Goodbye 2cm thick layer of dust under the bed.

There's a great review for the 530 model that points out another great perk of Roomba: Aside from the obvious benefit of never having to vacuum again, if you're like us (okay, me) and not always good about ensuring that things are tidy and put away, you get the motivation of knowing that Roomba's ability to do a good job vacuuming is dependent on you keeping things neat and potential obstacles out of the way. I'd like to think that this a change that is going to stick.

As if all this weren't wonderful enough, once the little guy is done vacuuming, he finds his way back on his own to his charging station (though I have to admit, it's a bit creepy when we set him to work before we leave the house and then come home to find him docked and glowing softly in the corner).

Finally, there is just something mesmerizing about watching the Roomba putter around and do its thing, especially if there's an obvious patch of dust or hairball somewhere. You just sit there watching and wondering which pass is going to be the pass it manages to pick it up.

We are totally in love with our Roomba and planning to purchase more for family members (the mopping one for my wife's mom, the vacuuming one for my mom) and as wedding gifts for people we want to love us forever.

Roomba has already earned itself a coveted place in our pantheon of modern gadgets that have changed our lives for the better:

1. Toto C100
2. TiVo HD
3. Roomba 535
4. iPhone

Roomba. Rocks. We love you, Little Button.

Review from Review from Amazon

Reviewer: Courtney Robertson| Date:2009-04-03

I bought the 535 model on woot.com because I had read mixed reviews and wasn't sure I wanted to pay $300+ for a Roomba just yet. I've had mine for two weeks now and I'm not sure how I ever lived without it! I've got dark hardwood floors and a very furry Golden Retriever. I used to vacuum with my upright two or three times a week but since I've had my Roomba I haven't pulled it out once.

It's not perfect but it is supposedly a learning robot and it does seem to be doing better every time I run it. I now spend 3 minutes emptying the bin and cleaning the brushes instead of 20 minutes vacuuming (and moving furniture to fit my upright). The Roomba even gets under my kitchen table with the chairs still in place! And it transitions from hardwood to rugs without any problem.

If you're looking to fully replace your upright vacuum this probably isn't for you. But if need some help keeping the pet hair under control the Roomba is your perfect companion!

Review from Review from Amazon

Reviewer: Denise P. Hull| Date:2009-06-11

My household consists of 3 dogs (one of which is a Husky), a toddler, a husband, and myself. As you can imagine my floors can get very dirty very quickly. I bought the Roomba Silver and then found the Roomba with the self-docking feature at another store. I bought the second Roomba with the intention of returning the first one. My husband and I decided to have a "clean-off" to see which Roomba worked the best. They worked so well we kept them both!

Let's start with the cons...
1. The brushes have a removable bushing on one end. If you are not paying attention, it is very easy to loose the bushing when you are cleaning out the Roomba. The brush doesn't work without it. I had to dig through a very smelly trash can to find it one day.
2. If you have pets that shed a lot, you can count on emptying your Roomba after every use. Not a big deal, unless you forget to do it.
3. If you use your Roomba primarily on carpet, you can plan on buying another battery in about 6 months or so, depending on how often you run it. Of the 2 Roombas we purchased, one was used on carpet and the other mainly on hardwoods. The battery in the one used on the carpet died after about a year. The other is still going strong.

Neutral...
1. The self-docking feature is nice, but not absolutely necessary. The Roomba without the docking station occasionally ends its cleaning cycle in inconvenient locations, like under the bed, but it isn't that big of deal.
2. The Roomba is a sweeper and does not have the suction or capacity to clean deep down like an upright. I still break out the upright once a week for a really thorough cleaning. Do not expect to never vacuum again...

Now the pros...
1. The Roomba has a side brush that gets all of the stuff that accumulates where the baseboards and floor meet. In fact it does a better job in getting in that groove than my upright!
2. It goes where the upright can't. I love the fact that it vacuums UNDER the bed and other furniture.
3. The Roomba is "smart". It doesn't fall down the stairs. It can easily go from hardwoods to carpet to tile to throw rugs, etc without getting stuck. If it detects an extra dirty spot it will focus on that area until it is clean.
4. No more pet hair tumbleweeds! When my dogs are shedding during the change of seasons, I run my Roombas every day. I turn them on in the morning right before I leave for work and I come home to a clean floor with no effort on my part.

I absolutely love my Roombas. My friends and family have been so impressed with them they have purchased their own! I have saved so much time it definitely makes them worth the price.

Review from Review from Amazon

Reviewer: M. Durochez| Date:2009-06-07

We have really enjoyed and are very pleased with this product. We would recommend it to others.

Review from Review from Amazon

Reviewer: Christine| Date:2009-05-07

For copious amounts of pet hair on hardwood floors (cannot comment on carpet as I have none), Roomba Sage has to be the ABSOLUTE BEST BUY I have ever made in my life. Seriously, it did save my sanity. I do not mind vacuuming, it is not my least favorite chore - but EVERY SINGLE DAY? No thanks. I was afraid to spend the money...times are tough right now...will it work....will it be worth it? I decided that I'M worth it. So I took the dive. I never should have worried....

Does Roomba get every single nook and cranny? No. Does it get under every single piece of furniture? No. It DOES, however, get those fur bunnies that accumulate every day. You know, the ones that suddenly appear out of nowhere as soon as you finally get to sit down and watch TV??

Regular vacuuming of extremely hard to reach areas is still necessary, but SO much less often as the bunnies are sucked up before they get there.

I foster pets and currently have three dogs - one being a HUGELY shedding Akita - and five cats. Needless to say, lots of fur, lots of paw dust. I have owned Roomba Sage for only about two months, and have used it every day on a 12'x24' room with no problems whatsoever. No clogs, no breakdowns, etc. (Will re-review in about 1 year regarding longer-term durability.)

It is incredibly quick and easy to clean - less than 5 minutes. Lay out upside down on a sheet of newspaper. I gently use an old comb for wound hairs on the brush. (Don't forget the little wheel in the front - the only part that's a little tricky to get unwound. I use tweezers. And that only about every 4-5 uses.)

None of my animals are "afraid" of it, nor do they step on it. Great Dane jumps around it, Akita actually lets it bounce off of him. (He's so laid-back, God love him.) Kitties lost their curiosity after two days.

Charges quickly! I was so pleasantly surprised with that as I only clean one room at a time, and I let it run entirely out of power with every use.

Cannot comment on the electronic containment accessories - I simply use whatever I have around to block other areas. Move any cords and small items on the floor. (Big deal.)

Only one teeny, tiny downside: It is a bit noisy. So what? It is so well worth it you will not care one iota. Turn up the TV.

At first it's almost hard to do other chores while it's working, cuz you find yourself sitting there watching it work for you. It's a beautiful thing.

So RUN, RUN, RUN - don't walk - and pick up this little gem.

Sounds a little disturbing, but I named mine "Rudy". And I think I'm in love.

Review from Review from Amazon

Reviewer: A. Mason| Date:2009-03-18

I can vacuum while grocery shopping! I can vacuum while gardening! I can vacuum while at work!

Got this model for Christmas a couple of years ago. We spent a lot of time the first few weeks watching it run around in it's zigzag pattern - it's rather hypnotic. Just like everyone will tell you, this thing is really powerful but it doesn't do corners. It will suck up cords, so you have to tuck those away. Sometimes it gets hung up on the corner of a rug. It does a great job transitioning from hardwood to carpet to tile and does an amazing job weaving underneath the dining room table with chairs in place. And it will sense stairs, you don't have to block them off or anything.

We got two dogs a year later, and this little Roomba got used every other day. The dogs aren't too fond of it, but don't seem to mind as long as it's not headed their direction. A couple of months ago, got a Scooba and a newer model of Roomba, relegating this model to the basement (concrete floor). I lost the screw that holds the brushes on, which makes it less effective, but it still does a fantastic job of running around the basement picking up dust, hairballs, tacks, and bits of dog food.

Get one, it's worth every dollar you pay for it!!

Review from Review from Amazon

Reviewer: Doctor Bobbs| Date:2009-03-08

With the economy on the skids, I had to find a way to cut costs at the office. We let our janitorial staff go and started cleaning the office ourselves. Thanks to the Roomba vacuum cleaner, we can attend to our jobs while the little robot takes care of vacuuming.

We plan on getting an iRobot Scooba soon for the tile floor in the office. And we're saving thousands of dollars a year compared to paying a janitorial crew.

Review from Review from Amazon

Reviewer: K. Arnett| Date:2008-12-09

The replacement parts were of good quality. The packaging protected the parts effectively. I also appreciated replacement screws being included with the flat rotating brush.

Review from Review from Amazon

Reviewer: L. Hess| Date:2008-11-15

They look like they are in great condition, but somehow we have yet to figure out how to get them re-installed. Everytime we run the roomba now it isn't picking up, but rather just sweeping the dirt around. Probably user error, but frustrating cause we love Rosie (from the Jetsons - our Roomba)

Review from Review from Amazon

Reviewer: Algesan| Date:2008-07-30

I gave this one two stars since they actually do save you 45 pennies in the end, but the MSRP on the iRobot site is 39.99 (+ $9.95 shipping), NOT 59.99.

So, what they did was have the item with "free" super saver shipping, after raising the price $20, then giving a "discount" of $10.50, which means your actual savings is .125%, not "18%".

Normally I'd save the $.45, but this was so sneaky, that I will be giving the manufacturer my business.

Review from Review from Amazon