iRobot 510 Roomba Vacuum

Don't buy this model!, April 18, 2008

No, this is not going to be a review telling you how awful the Roomba is. Actually, the 510 is a really wonderful maintenance robot. The problem is that for just a little more you can get the Roomba 530 which comes with the Home Base. What that means is you never have to plug in your Roomba to recharge it: whenever it's done cleaning it...read full review No, this is not going to be a review telling you how awful the Roomba is. Actually, the 510 is a really wonderful maintenance robot. The problem is that for just a little more you can get the Roomba 530 which comes with the Home Base. What that means is you never have to plug in your Roomba to recharge it: whenever it's done cleaning it automatically goes back to the home base for charging. Although the Home Base is available separately, it is not compatible with this model, leaving you with no upgrade path should you ever want this extremely convenient feature.
More expensive models have a timer for programmable operation (Roomba 560) and even a remote control (Roomba 580t).
All models are identical in terms of performance. The diminutive size and quiet operation would lead you to believe these are little toys akin to hand vacs... until you get back to a thoroughly cleaned room.
I set the 510 loose on the cats room, where the little devils send litter flying everywhere. The room has hardwood floors and an area rug. When I came back, the Roomba was sitting proudly in the middle of the room, and the rug was spotless. There was hardly a trace of litter or cat hair on the hardwood floors, either.
So, the Roomba is definitely a thumbs up. However, I wish I had paid more attention to the product line and at least picked the model that docks back to the home base. The 510 is potentially a tripping hazard, so it's well worth the extra fifty dollars to move up to the model 530. minimize

Basic, fine model., May 1, 2008

I have my Roomba for about a month now, and I'm generally pleased with him. I reduced my vacuuming chores at least in half. I 'm gonna say right away: Roomba is a good robot, and just an okay vacuum. Convenience between doing your own cleaning is THE ONLY factor that you should be looking for when considering Roomba. If you are looking for a...read full review I have my Roomba for about a month now, and I'm generally pleased with him. I reduced my vacuuming chores at least in half. I 'm gonna say right away: Roomba is a good robot, and just an okay vacuum. Convenience between doing your own cleaning is THE ONLY factor that you should be looking for when considering Roomba. If you are looking for a superior suction and a super clean job - this vacuum is NOT going to deliver that! Go buy a normal vacuum that you push yourself.

Pros:
- he is VERY easy to operate
- virtual wall works 100%
- he's very smart: knows when to slow down, when to stop (e.g. a step next to the lower area of the house), when to turn around the corner or a table leg. He knows when to circle around an exceptionally dusty area
- He DUSTS pretty well, picking about 85-90% of dust, small leaves and small particles, including metal nuts. I have two dogs, and Roomba sucks up the dog hair fairly good.
- he is exceptionally good on berber-type rugs
- he cleans one huge room on one charge.Sometimes two rooms
- although he seems to be moving in a random pattern, after 45 minutes he covers the whole room. Don't watch him. Leave him alone and just come back later, you will notice the difference
- emptying dust container is easy
- he never got stuck on any room and rug transition areas

Cons
- Roomba needs a room to roam: if you have tight spaces with bunch of furniture, planters, stuff on the floor- Roomba will be less efficient in cleaning your house, because his patterns are affected by the amount of bumping he will be doing.
- Roomba is not that good on the high-pile carpeting: he seems to just brush over debris that he otherwise picks without problems when on a berber rug
- he is less efficient on hard wood floors as well, as he just spreads the dirt around a lot before picking it up
- cleaning brushes is not difficult, BUT time consuming
- He scares the dogs

I had done quite a lot of research and decided on this basic, least expensive, but fairly current model.Now, do I regret that I didn't get the fancy model with scheduling that would add $100? NO!! The same goes for base self-return that would add another $50. I don't mind bending over to pick him and place him for charging myself.

Anyway, I do recommend this unit. If only he had suction of my Eureka - that would eliminate ALL vacuuming on my part!! Hence 4 stars minimize

I Heart Roomba!, April 16, 2008

We had a Roomba Discovery for about 3 years and recently upgraded to this model. This model is wonderful. It will automatically stop when the brushes need cleaning or the bin needs dumping, which I hope will help with the life cycle of the machine. This is great if you have pets. We run ours everyday for cat hair maintenance, and our house has ...read full review We had a Roomba Discovery for about 3 years and recently upgraded to this model. This model is wonderful. It will automatically stop when the brushes need cleaning or the bin needs dumping, which I hope will help with the life cycle of the machine. This is great if you have pets. We run ours everyday for cat hair maintenance, and our house has never looked better. I've also noticed that my allergies have improved. My Mom liked mine so much, she got one of her own and loves it as well. We bought one for a friend, but they don't use it much. If you have a cluttered house with lots of "eatables" on the floor, this may not be for you. We had to learn what things the Roomba would and would not "eat" and then adjust. We can't leave certain cat toys or wires and chords on the floor, but that has helped us learn to pick up after ourselves! The only reason I am giving this 4 stars instead of five is because the scheduler kit I had for the Discovery is not compatable. I miss being able to set the Roomba to clean after I've left the house. I heart my Roomba! minimize

Great, until you need customer service, April 23, 2008

I purchased the Roomba and loved it. Shortly after the purchase the roomba began malfunctioning. I contacted IRobot for service and after an enormous hassle was finally told that I had a model with a bad program. To accomplish the reprogram I was sent a firmware update tool. It took over three months for the tool to arrive.

After...read full review I purchased the Roomba and loved it. Shortly after the purchase the roomba began malfunctioning. I contacted IRobot for service and after an enormous hassle was finally told that I had a model with a bad program. To accomplish the reprogram I was sent a firmware update tool. It took over three months for the tool to arrive.

After the three month wait and reprogramming the unit it worked but only for a short period of time. I then recontacted IRobot for further repair or replacement. They do not repair their product and as far as replacement they offered me a discount. I refused, so they suggested cleaning the unit.

I went through the cleaning process and again the Roomba worked for a short period (just long enough for me to tell them my problem was resolved). The roomba began malfunctioning again. I tried to clean it on several other occasions and to date I cannot get it working.

IRobot refuses to either repair or replace the unit even though I have agreed to pay to ship it to them.

DO NOT BUY, unless you don't think you will need customer support from them, as they will never take responsibility for repair.

I have spent hours with customer service, via chat, e-mail and phone, to no avail and their final comments to me are as follows:

"we unfortunately will not be able to replace the unit free of charge"

Again not what I requested and not helpful. minimize

Not perfect, but getting there!, June 14, 2008

We got our 510 about three months ago. In a house where everyone seems allergic to vacuuming, Ruby (what we call her) has been a godsend. We were astonished by how much cat and human hair and dirt she picked up. (In one room, she had to have her brushes cleaned three times the first time she cleaned it. This will give you some idea how, um,...read full review We got our 510 about three months ago. In a house where everyone seems allergic to vacuuming, Ruby (what we call her) has been a godsend. We were astonished by how much cat and human hair and dirt she picked up. (In one room, she had to have her brushes cleaned three times the first time she cleaned it. This will give you some idea how, um, "sub-optimal" our vacuuming used to be). Anyway, we just love her. She does a surprisingly good job for a vacuum her size. Her foibles include a tendency to sometimes get confused by the curve of the carpeted edge that drops into a sunken parlor. She does just fine detecting sharp drop-offs, but this edge sometimes (not always) confuses her and she plays that sad little "help me, please" melody. She also sometimes gets confused by the heat registers in the floor. We have an end table that has a shelf just exactly far enough off the floor that she fits under it. Initially she'd get stuck under there sometimes, but I put coasters under the legs of the end table and Ruby cleans under it just fine now. The cats were originally unsure just how to regard Ruby. Is it alive? What is this thing, anyway? But now they just gaze upon her as a mild distraction. I think iRobot should make a version of Roomba able to detect cats and play with them. (If it just had an LED laser it could shine around as it cleans, that'd drive the cats bonkers).

For her to be ideal, she'd need some way to dump her own dirt and, especially, to clean her own brushes. Brush cleaning is a small but fussy chore that needs to be done about once every three vacuumings. Still, everyone here would much rather clean her brushes than run a regular vacuum, so this is a big net win. And, if we're preparing a wish-list of what she'd need to be perfect, she'd have some way to vacuum stairs and upholstery. (In theory, we still have to do this with the old upright. In practice, we rely on diffusion of dirt from these unclean areas into areas where Ruby cleans to maintain a constant equilibrium of filth).

The other less-than-perfect aspect of Ruby is the apparent ongoing subscription to maintenance parts. She's already lost one of her five little arms on her side brush. (Which she dutifully cleaned up. Poor little amputee robot). Anyway, maintenance brush and filter kits appear to add around $40-$80 per year to the total cost of ownership, so factor that into your purchasing decision.

As I said though, for a house where everyone always has something more important to do than vacuuming, Ruby has been a huge win. minimize