I still have the 980 and I think its amazing as a vacuum even though they discontinued cloud support.
I also have a J9+ combo which I supposedly upgraded to a few years ago and its complete crap. It couldn’t find the base, it couldn’t refill the water tank. I ran the 980 after the J9 and it vacuumed a lot of stuff that the J9 missed.
Irobot isn’t what it used to be. You don’t see it talked about because it’s bad now
It's odd how navigation has became their weak point. I have a J9+ Combo and kept it upstairs because it picks up from carpet better than my actual vacuum did, but the much cheaper Ecovacs I have downstairs has way quieter modes and does the job in half the time.
I will also credit the Roomba at being way better at both object avoidance and untangling itself, whilst being way worse at finding it's way in to spaces it then can't find it's way out of.
I have only had it about two weeks but the ecovacs deebot x11 has beautifully managed my Bernese mountain dogs fur that I used to have to vacuum twice a day for. Previously had the iRobot j9 combo that could not cope at all with it. I do run the x11 twice a day to keep up. We also have a longhair chihuahua and two British shorthair cats.
Roomba combo j9, It does have it's germlings
\-doesn't like back out the bay onto the carpet sometimes
\-random midnight activations
\-the app is very finicky about when the wifi connection to the roomba works
But, it does a way better job then me cleaning consistently so i'm very happy with it.
though, fuck roomba and their expensive bags, I just empty the same bag over and over again
I agree with others above. Suction power really doesn’t make that much difference.
Airflow and roller design make far more difference.
I have a Roomba combo j9+ and it is great at vacuum with lower advertised suction but the dual roller really does clean the carpet effectively.
I have a Narwal Flow that is fantastic for mopping but not quite as good for vacuuming (though for my house it’s mainly tiles downstairs so that’s not so important)
These vacuums are all about compromises I believe. One may be good at one but not necessarily good at the other. Still looking for one to do it all.
Gulp is right! The moment they start crawling is the exact moment you suddenly realize how much dust, hair, and mystery debris is hiding perfectly out of sight under the sofa. You are very smart to get a robot vacuum to handle the daily floor patrol.
The specific combination of features you want is actually a bit tricky to find. The vast majority of premium, self-cleaning robot vacuums are over 9.5cm tall because they use a little spinning laser turret (LiDAR) on the top for navigation. To get under 9cm, you have to look for models that either use front-facing cameras or the newer "solid-state" built-in lasers.
Here are the best current options that fit under that 9cm clearance, have strong suction, and will save your sanity:
**1. The Best All-Rounder: Eufy Omni C20**
* **Height:** 8.5 cm
* **The Vibe:** This is arguably the best mid-tier option that hits every single one of your requirements without entirely breaking the bank. It uses internal navigation sensors, which keeps it nice and short.
* **Why it's great for parents:** It has a hefty 7,000Pa of suction, but the real star is the all-in-one base station. It automatically empties the dustbin, and it actually washes and dries the mop pads for you. Zero hands-on grossness required.
**2. The Premium Splurge: Roborock Saros Series (10R / 20X)**
* **Height:** ~8.0 cm
* **The Vibe:** Roborock is essentially the gold standard for robot vacuums right now, and their new Saros line (sometimes branded as the V20 depending on where you live) completely ditched the top laser turret for a fully integrated 3D sensor system, making it incredibly thin.
* **Why it's great for parents:** It is a powerhouse. It climbs over chunky floor dividers easily, has massive suction, and the base station is elite—washing the mop with hot water to kill bacteria, which is huge for crawling babies. The only downside is the premium price tag.
**3. The Ultimate Toy Avoider: iRobot Roomba Combo j9+**
* **Height:** 8.7 cm
* **The Vibe:** Because Roombas use cameras instead of lasers, they have always been great for low-clearance furniture.
* **Why it's great for parents:** As your baby gets more mobile, your floors will be covered in dropped pacifiers, socks, and tiny toys. Roomba’s AI obstacle avoidance is top of the class for recognizing these items and steering clear so it doesn't choke on a rogue block.
* **The Catch:** While the dock auto-empties the dirt and auto-refills the water tank, it *doesn't* scrub the mop pad for you. You still have to detach the pad and throw it in the washing machine.
Since the baby is going to be exploring every inch of the house, are your floors mostly hard surfaces, or do you have a lot of plush rugs and carpets the robot will need to navigate?
Top Robot Vacuums on Reddit
1
Roborock
Qrevo S
82% positive of 247 users
Reliable, great mopping (lifts pads), but poor cable avoidance.
Anub1s1990
