iRobot - Roomba j7+

I have two dogs and two cats and the j7+ works just fine

I have a Roomba J7+. It was their first one that they say will avoid poo. Fortunately, we've never had to test that in the year we have had Ranger. It works well, but iRobot is having issues with money right now and the model is older. If you get one, it is important to remember that they still require regular maintenance to keep them from getting clogged or overwhelmed with hair.

Hair wraps around the brushes and needs to be removed. If you get a self emptying unit, they cannot get all of the dust out of the bin. Filters need to be cleaned and changed.

Please do not get a Roomba. They have no lidar so when the light in the room is dim it has a hard time navigating. They don’t have anti hair clogging bristles. My Roomba J7+ gave constant error messages that could mean anything. Never ever again.

Thanks, I hadn’t heard about fur compression yet. I have a very furry dog and this feature sounds useful. My Roomba J7+ always thought the dustbin was full if some hairs were sticking out in front of the sensor.

I agree. I had a J7+.

Same. My j7+ has been a trooper. Just put a new battery in it. Annoying that there’s so much open space, the battery could have had more capacity.

Personally I prefer the vacuum only devices which is where the Roombas really excel. If I was going to get a combo device I think the minimum I would look at is a J7 + or above depending on your budget. I know there are some sales on right now, and they're always seems to be some great sales over the past several months that really bring the prices down on the higher end units. Hopefully you can get some more advice with regards to your price point.

For those that don't want to click on the link it's a J7+ vacuum only device.

I’ve got two j7+ and a 705 max with a golden! (Used to be two 😢). They work great for upkeep but you’ll still need to deep clean every once in awhile.

Don't get a roomba. I got the J7+ for the pet and toy friendly avoidance options and half the time it isnt running because of a clog in the vaccuum bin or base station. The bin is usually easy to fix, but this last time it was the tube that goes to the bag (another expense i didnt have with the shark) and that required disassembly. It also burnt out its suction fan in the first month I had it, prompting a warranty replacement of the part which meant had to disassemble the unit, install the new part, and send back the defective part. Incredibly frustrating. Comparatively, my shark IQ that I sent to the basement for eating too many toys runs consistently and clogs *maybe* once every 3 months, but the shark app sucks nuts, and the model I have uses the black strips for keep-out zones so it just ran everywhere and I prayed it didnt eat any cables. Its very robust about going up and doen ledges, but it is also way more prone to tracking pet messes about, that happened once with a pile of cat vomit and I was a little traumatized.

I have the J7+ and it does get up pet hair well on hard floors, BUT it clogs constantly. It can't handle any debris larger than a quarter in diameter at most without it getting stuck in the bin due to the size of the emptying tube. I have a kid whose paper scraps freqently end up on the floor and those clog it about once every 2 weeks and prompt me to have to take apart the base. If I dodnt spend so much on it Id have thrown it away by now. My shark IQ did not have that problem, but its app sucked and it runs over a lot more stuff. It has eaten and unloaded barbie shoes into its base, wheras the roomba i always find the shoes in the unit when it throws an error.

I bought my j7+ refurbished from the manufacturer for $175 USD with a 2 year warranty off of ebay!  It does a great job picking up after three dogs, a cat, and people walking around. 

My $175 USD  refurbished off eBay J7+ goes around the dog beds, the dogs, the cat, under the couch and around whatever toys the dogs lost under there. I run it on a schedule during a lull in my evening, so I can toss my charger up on the couch and shoo the dog out of prime vacuuming space.  The most annoying thing it does is get stuck behind my bedroom door on occasion.  It doesn't mop,  but it was $175 and self empties. I'm not mad at all. I adore it. I've heard really mixed reviews about the moping combo, so I'm content.  I might spend the $50 and get a J5 mop tank to stick on it just for the hell of it down the line, just to pick up some dust, but meh. I'm not worried about it. 

Yup. I had a $100 vacuum/mop combo that got me into the robovac world.  It got stuck under everything and  lasted about 2 years before it got too dumb to use.  I adored that stupid thing. One of my favorite $100 purchases. Even the drag mop that everyone hates on isn't that bad. It's just a wet duster.  There's nothing wrong with sub $200 devices as long as there's no expectation for them to function like a $1000+ device.  Even now, I have a refurbished  $175 j7+ direct from roomba. That thing is a workhorse.  At the end of the day, it's a just a vacuum.  

Exactly this. I've had my Roborock for around one month now, I think, and I am actually very happy with it. I had an iRobot Roomba j7+ for around three to four years and had so much trouble with the device that I sold it.

True story. I got banned for saying they peaked with the J7+ (which I still own by the way).