iRobot - Roomba 985

Get the straight vacuum. No combo because you lose suction. I had a 985 that is still running but was relocated to my son’s campus housing. That thing was not smart, but did an outstanding job. I have a J9 now. I feel like it does the job more efficiently, but is not quite as powerful. I still love it for cleaning up after my cat and dog though.

My wife won a Roomba 981 as a sales target bonus in 2016. It’s still going strong, doesn’t seem like it will ever die. Which sucks because I want to buy a new one with all the bells and whistles but she thinks it’s a waste of money if we already have one. Not that her point isn’t without merit, but there’s a reason ours is called “50 First Dates” in the app. It will start a job in the home room for a random amount of time then switch to a different room and do that for 5-10 minutes, then come back to the original room and start it again. Even at low suction it’s so loud and annoying in its random cleaning methods that we can’t program auto cleans so we start jobs when we’ll be out for at least 3 hours so we don’t have to watch, listen, or point at it and laugh. That said, it cleans very well and despite its quirks we can’t seem to get rid of it. The thing won’t die. I desperately want it to, but it lovably keeps trucking along, getting all the pesky dirt we can’t even see and keeping the place tip top. With the new combo-mopping, auto dumping and filling, and obstacle avoiding features out now I may be able to convince her to get 50 First an assistant, but until she dies she will always run the house.

I’m own professional cleaning company and have been messing with vacuums forever so when I get home just want a robot not that they clean as well but literally NOTHING robot works like an iRobot that I’ve seen so far esp the j7 and the 988 those are the strongest in their class

I don't know about the new lineup, but nothing beats a Roomba 9-series on carpet, though. Even on hard floors, my Saros 10 misses a lot of spots that my J9 never did.

I have a 900 series and a j7. I don’t really have an issue with either one. They rarely get stuck and complete jobs regularly. However I recently bought a Roborock and it is definitely better. The app is much more advanced and lidar seems to be more efficient and accurate.

Firstly going by the suction numbers alone never tells the full story. That's all marketing. Both will probably vacuum well and the roomba probably has a slight edge on deeper carpet. Both should work offline with basic functions. No idea about home assistant compatibility. Longevity, well, frankly thats not a guarantee on any model from any brand. I've had a roborock for a few years and its been perfectly reliable for me. But again, that varies. And I've heard you can get parts on ali express. Your 900 series roomba was probably one of the most reliable generations of robot cleaners made. Irobot is still pretty good with spare parts. But I've seen some of their newer models aren't built modular anymore. Plus the company has had a rough couple years financially and are struggling to compete. If they went under...well spare parts may get more difficult to find. The unfortunate reality is more money doesn't buy you more reliability, expecting 3 to 5 years is a little more reasonable these days. Planned obsolescence etc but it's industry wide.

Buy an old roomba instead, (500/600/700/800/900) they are the most reliable you can get.

The later Roombas with a camera/vision system are pretty good at avoiding things that could cause snags/clogs. I used to be vigilant with clearing the floor and even putting dining chairs on the table, but now I just have my Roomba run every night with dog toys, kid toys, wife's shoes and purse, chairs, charger cords, laundry baskets, and everything else blocking its path. It probably only cleans about 60% of the area I want it to, but I can still feel a noticeable difference when I walk barefoot through the house.

Our roomba tries to keep up. Hal (main floor roomba) needs maintenance every few days. But man 2 days where Hal is off duty and you can see it. The tumbleweeds roll in. Hal doesn’t replace vacuuming or steam cleaning area rugs. He does however help keep the dusting down and limits the tumbleweeds . My better half will tell me don’t pause Hal he is doing https://preview.redd.it/7mmkuro4c1ef1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=4fd808d8cc6c7e830934f5fb947860ae71518915 Gods work ROFL. We have 3 dogs 2 super shedders GSD and Husky/GSD mix and 1 wire hair terrier. This year we have had to even vacuum dogs as well. They are so worth it! ❤️❤️❤️

Mine is named Robbie, I can’t keep the floor clear enough to use him. My goal for the weekend is to clear his path. Wish me luck!

We named our Roomba Harry. We have a lab/beagle mix.

I have a roomba we named homewrecker because it leaves a trail of destruction behind it. It always knocks over something or gets tangled up in wires.

I had a Roomba, and it did a good job. It died after 2 years though, and they don't sell repair parts. I kept it limping along for another few months until I gave up on it. I don't think I'd ever get another Roomba, but I would like to try another brand.

We got the Costco iRobot Roomba on sale (just sweep function) and it’s been really helpful. Definitely worth the time savings and it probably does a better job than our manual vacuuming. We don’t care for the mop function that much, just don’t want to deal with the water compartment

I have one basic Roomba that moves around randomly and another that supposedly maps the space. The cheaper, random movement robot is vastly superior in all ways.