New Roomba vs. Old, December 1, 2007
If you are new to Roomba, you will wonder if it is worthwhile. The answer is clearly YES, since anything it cleans is that much less for you to clean. However, which is better, the old (and cheaper) Roomba, or the new models like the 530?
First, the 530 comes with the charging/base station, and this is very useful. I have placed...read full review
If you are new to Roomba, you will wonder if it is worthwhile. The answer is clearly YES, since anything it cleans is that much less for you to clean. However, which is better, the old (and cheaper) Roomba, or the new models like the 530?
First, the 530 comes with the charging/base station, and this is very useful. I have placed this in the entranceway which leads into the livingroom, the kitchen or the bedroom. Using the virtual walls (included), I block off rooms so that it can only do the entranceway + 1 other room. I simply press the "Clean" button, and it backs itself off the charging stand and then spends the next 2 hours cleaning, finally returning to the charging stand. Nice!
Should you upgrade from an older model Roomba (I now use my old Roomba upstairs)? It depends on your situation. By-the-way, the old virtual walls do NOT work with the new Roomba.
New Roomba:
Fall down stairs? Never
Climb onto thick throw rugs? Sometimes
Effectiveness on hard floors? Excellent
Effectiveness on carpets? Good
Trap itself in electrical cords? No
Trap itself in carpet fringes? No
# rooms it can do at once? 2
Ease of emptying dirt? Fairly good
Scare cats and dogs? No
Clean under low furniture? Yes
Quietness? Fairly
Old Roomba:
Fall down stairs? Never
Climb onto thick throw rugs? Rarely
Effectiveness on hard floors? Excellent
Effectiveness on carpets? Good
Trap itself in electrical cords? Usually
Trap itself in carpet fringes? Always
# rooms it can do at once? 2
Ease of emptying dirt? Fair
Scare cats and dogs? No
Clean under low furniture? Yes
Quietness? Fairly minimize
It's Like a Beloved Pet Who MAKES EVERYTHING BETTER, October 11, 2007
Awesome. This new generation fixes all the problems of the previous. Much smarter, much bigger dust bin, much better in every way. Great that it self-docks when tired. Maintanence is a snap...really could not be easier/faster. There are some negatives - how could there not be? - but this thing has such a contagious personality that it starts...read full review
Awesome. This new generation fixes all the problems of the previous. Much smarter, much bigger dust bin, much better in every way. Great that it self-docks when tired. Maintanence is a snap...really could not be easier/faster. There are some negatives - how could there not be? - but this thing has such a contagious personality that it starts feeling like your pet, and you're inclined to forgive, and even find the faults charming.
You have to prep the room (cords up and out of the way, no papers or clutter on the floor, move small items out of the room and learn which objects present problems and get them out of the way). Performance varies on throw rugs (it's great on rug/carpet surfaces themselves, but Roomba can get caught up as it travels over edges of throw rugs that don't have much weight or cling). It's good at slowing down and banging objects gently, but less so on narrow vertical objects (e.g. piano legs), which it really clunks (not enough to damage, but it will make you wince). In terms of results, it's a notch below a stout top-end British maid with her sturdy Hoover, but several notches above what mere mortals can achieve, and it's especially good on edgework, under baseboards and furniture, and other spots most people would miss.Yes, it gets corners fine, in spite of its round shape. It's got a whirling brush that ably gets at them.
Most of all, if you're someone who's non-meticulous about keeping up housekeeping cycles (even if not, like, a total slob), it's hard to describe the satisfaction of ALWAYS having spotless floors. Since, per above, you'll develop at least some degree of affection for your Roomba, it's the ideal pet...it vastly contributes to the household, yet its needs are few (I pull hairs out of its brushes with the affection of a dog owner checking his dalmation for tics).
I have a fairly large house, and one unit is more than enough. Every other day, I bring her upstairs to work, that's all.
Oh, and it's extraordinarily entertaining to watch. The drama of whether it'll ever get to this hairball or that crumb is downright fraught. In spite of its seemingly random pattern, it does somehow get everything in the end.
One nice side effect: the act of prepping a room for vacuuming - i.e. getting clutter off the floor - is itself a life-changing improvement. I find it much easier to organize books, papers, etc, when it's for an immediate purpose than as a general habit. So the house isn't just cleaner, floor-wise....it's also generally better kept-up. Love my Roomba. Buy one now. minimize
A Great Product Made Even Better, September 12, 2007
With two dogs in the house we could not live without our Roomba. The 530 is a vast improvement from earlier models. It seems to pick up more dirt, the battery life is longer, the fast-charge is about 33% more rapid than its Discovery predecessors and it is generally more quiet.
The new sensors that prevent the robot from...read full review
With two dogs in the house we could not live without our Roomba. The 530 is a vast improvement from earlier models. It seems to pick up more dirt, the battery life is longer, the fast-charge is about 33% more rapid than its Discovery predecessors and it is generally more quiet.
The new sensors that prevent the robot from "speed-bumping" into furniture are a very nice touch, but beware if the robot is in a tight area, it may appear sluggish -- the sensors are working to continually slow it down. It's a feature I like, but need to get used to.
My only concern with this robot is the high cost of parts. The bot itself is cheaper than earlier models but the components most prone to breakage or wear-out are twice the cost so the lifetime operation costs may be higher. Replacement batteries are nearly $100. Earlier models were $50.
ONE MONTH LATER ....
This is a slight amend to my review above. Having used it for a month a couple points of note:
1) All of the new 5-Series Roombas lack the "Max Mode" that was common on earlier models. I miss this. I can no longer let it go util the battery runs out. It goes until it "thinks" it's finshed. Well, sometimes we disagree. And I'm usually right. It simply doesn't cover as much ground as I need it too in the standard clean mode. I'd have to mark it down a full star for this -- I can't count on it to do the whole house when I'm at work anymore.
2) The folks I know who have these encountered problems with the side cleaning bushes breaking off. After a month's use, I lost all but one. I'm sure this is high on their list of fixes. minimize
iRobot unprepared for broken critical accessory, November 15, 2007
I love the Roomba 530. There's one big problem with user experience for me right now. The side brush (one that has 5 or 6 legs sticking out) started to shed legs. After a month, I am down to two legs!
I tried iRobot online store and the replacement side brush is on back order. I called customer support and they offer to send...read full review
I love the Roomba 530. There's one big problem with user experience for me right now. The side brush (one that has 5 or 6 legs sticking out) started to shed legs. After a month, I am down to two legs!
I tried iRobot online store and the replacement side brush is on back order. I called customer support and they offer to send replacement, except they don't have any!
So, if I use the Roomba 530 a lot now, it'll shed all the side legs. The side brush is very important because it sweeps trash to the front of the robot.
It seems iRobot didn't anticipate this. Lots of people are unable to get this critical part for replacement. Plus, it shouldn't break this easily anyway.
minimize
Close, but Jams on Area Rugs. Sidebrush Flawed!, January 1, 2008
OK, I really give this 2-3 stars, but am only listing 1 star in hopes of more people getting to and finding this review. Just spent over 8 hours on the irobot.com and roombareview.com forums and i am exhausted from weighing all the pros/cons of whether to keep this. But here's the verdict: it's too new and you need to wait a year given the...read full review
OK, I really give this 2-3 stars, but am only listing 1 star in hopes of more people getting to and finding this review. Just spent over 8 hours on the irobot.com and roombareview.com forums and i am exhausted from weighing all the pros/cons of whether to keep this. But here's the verdict: it's too new and you need to wait a year given the various bugs/design flaws that are all over the discussion boards, especially with the defective side brush issue that either (1) loses arms due to material flaws and/or (2) gets stripped and comes completely off due to poor plastic being mated with metal screw design. And don't waste time on these Amazon forums where most just seem so excited by the concept of having this little thing running around and give it 4-5 stars without pointing out any offsetting costs (yes, we were all real excited at first too). The forums I mention above are where the hardcore multi-unit owners participate. Read them. Read about these new 5th gen. issues. Anyway, we have had ours for about only 24 hours and although we WANT to keep it, we realize we can't and it will have to go back. Yes, it does many wonders like all these 4-5 star posts state, and yes it is cute, and yes it does 95% of what it is supposed to . . . but it is that last 5% that is so critical. We have already experienced both of the problems with the side brush that I mention above (trust me, will happoen to you too like it is for eveyone else), but the big hassle is that it does NOT go up small area rugs without that sidebrush getting caught under the rug and torquing at the rug and causing the unit to not climb it as a result) . Our whole house is hardwoods (where it works fine), but the front foyer rug and two simple kitchen rugs (all of which are high traffic areas needing daily cleaning) all experience the same problem with this problem side brush. We contemplated keeping the unit and simply unattaching the side brush (which keeps fallign off anyway due to the plastic screw hole), but I am not going to pay this much money and would rather wait for a fix to the materials and screw design of this all-important brush (i.e., the side brush gets all the crumbs that accummulate along the baseboards). Other than that, I would probably keep the unit . . . provided you don't have antique furniture (despite reviews, it DOES hit table/furniture legs and anything skinny VERY HARD becaused the sensor that is supposed to slow it down can't see these things . . . actually left white plastic residue on all the furniture). But, still, I would have tolerated this (we have kids and don't have high end furniture) if the other design flaws weren't there. Again, read the forums if you don't think I am being accurate or honest. Clearly I am not a paid poster and am just frustrated from the ordeal. The concept is so great and it really did do well on the bare hardwoods, but I am not ready to get rid of or remove all my rugs, and I got tired of the brush problem/breaking, so at this point I will wait and buy a year from now. Again, they are 95% of the way there with this. But not for this much $$ and aggravation. Good luck to all! P.S. They alos need a better manual as it contains very little on how to set everything up and you instead spend hours on the forums with other users to get the real ins and outs. minimize
