The Roombas’ bumper allows them to sense when they have bumped into an obstacle, after which they will reverse or change paths. Infrared “cliff sensors” on the bottom of Roombas similarly prevent them from falling off ledges such as stairways. These slow down the Roomba when nearing obstacles, to reduce its force of impact.
The Roomba j7+ avoids objects in its way and allows you to schedule multiple cleanings per day by continuously learning and adapting to your home. To reset a Roomba i and 900 series, press and hold the “clean” button on the robot for 10 to 20 seconds depending on the model. For the 600 and e series, press and hold the “home” and “spot clean” buttons for 10 seconds. Many homes have areas that aren’t always ready for a vacuum to roll through.
Bagless vacuums can potentially create problems for allergy sufferers when it comes time to empty the machine. The process can lead to some potentially sneeze-inducing dust clouds. According to Consumer Reports, HEPA (high-efficiency particulate air) filters can’t hurt – and they can help.
Our living room is set up in a way where two sofas are very close to each other, with just enough space between them to squeeze through to a makeshift home office. But the cleaner discovered it could go under one sofa, into the office space, then back under the sofa to return to its charger. Scouted selects products independently and prices reflect what was available at the time of publish. Prices are accurate at the time of publication, but are subject to change. If you buy something from our posts, we may earn a small commission. Yes, with the help of the sweeping brush on the edge of a Roomba, the round devices can get dirt out of corners.
Pet owners in particular seem to gain a lot from bots, but lots of owners have told us they are amazed at how clean their floors look and feel after they start using one regularly. If you run your bot a few times per week, or even every day, crumbs and pet hair will never get a chance to pile up—the mess is gone before it becomes a nuisance, with very little effort required. They’re more than a toy or a novelty item, and can be a valuable floor-care irobot vacuum cleaner tool in most homes. If you’re short on time or just hate vacuuming, a robot vacuum will probably make your life easier. This is the Roomba i3 EVO packaged with a charging dock that automatically sucks all the debris out of the robot after a cleaning session. Even if entry-level and mid-range robot vacuums remain superb machines, we must not hide our face, high-end models like this Roomba S9 + provide much more relevant daily comfort.
However, we still predict that Roomba bots on average will last longer than any of their competitors and work better at getting hair out of rugs. We haven’t tested the i3 EVO since its software was updated to include smart mapping, but when we do, we’ll report back with the results. Most robot vacuums will get snagged on charging cables, which jam the brush roll or sometimes pull the bots off course. The key is that bots don’t procrastinate or get bored, so they spend more time cleaning, and clean more thoroughly, than almost any human.
A robotic vacuum won’t replace your trusty upright or canister vacuum for deep-cleaning rugs. But it can be just the thing for low-hassle, daily floor maintenance. Keeping a constant eye out for pet waste didn’t seem to slow the Roomba J7 down.