iRobot Roomba Combo j9+ review

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7 ай бұрын

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iRobot invented the Roomba, so is its newest floor bot, the iRobot Combo j9+ still a market leader? The company has made some possibly curious choices about how this bot works, so in this hands-on review I’ll try it out, show you what it’s good at and what it won’t do. And I’ll explain why this mopping miss isn’t actually anything to worry about.
Plus I talked to iRobot about this bot and they gave me some interesting insight about why it does -and doesn’t-include some popular features.
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What you get
iRobot has been taking its time advancing in the robot vacuum world. As the de-facto inventors of the robot vacuum, making Roomba as synonymous with floor cleaning as Asprin, Jello and Kleenex are with their own product categories.
This is iRobot’s first foray into a fully automated vacuum and mop combo unit. The company is several years behind competitors Roborock and Ecovacs, but in my opinion if they've taken their time developing the product in hopes of making it the best it can be, this may have been worth the wait.
The Roomba Combo j9 robot itself has a very unique design where the mopping plate actually lives on top of the robot on a set of articulating arms. When the robot detects that it needs to begin mopping, it lifts the mop and plate off its own back and settles it under its backside.
The Roomba Combo j9+ comes with an automatic dustbin emptying and water-refilling station that can manage some of the maintenance for you (the Plus in the name denotes it has that auto-empty base). I will say the base station is both compact and extremely well-designed, using what appears to be a wood grain top to help it blend into your space a little better; you could even use this as a small side table, and that's exactly what iRobot intends.
(By the way the iRobot j9+ is the vacuum-only version of this bot, in case you’re wondering. ‘Combo in the name indicates the Roomba can mop, while the ‘+’ denotes an autoemptying base station.)
What you won’t get
It is worth noting what you will not get with this unit, particularly because these features are extremely common on robot competitors. The base station is smaller because it has a more limited feature-set: The mopping plate is not going to be cleaned or dried by the dock. It’s up to you to keep the mopping pad tidy.
I recently had the opportunity to speak to iRobot team about this new floor robot. iRobot tells me this is for a few reasons; primarily that it feels self-cleaning base stations become nasty and dirty themselves after a few days or weeks of self-cleaning and the company is trying to figure out if it can do better.
iRobot says the company has been prioritizing dirt and dust pick-up and making their robots the absolute best at vacuuming. They developed some impressive vacuuming and dirt detection features, and even improved object recognition and hazard avoidance (Roombas can detect and avoid pet poop, by the way), something the company was already extraordinarily good at.
The question I have is does the hyper-focus on vacuuming mean the robot will not be as adept at mopping? We will find out in my cleaning tests.
Something you should know: no mopping-only option
There is something you should know before we get too much further. This robot has only two settings; it will vacuum, and it will vacuum and mop together. There is no mop-only setting. Within a few days I found this extremely disappointing… But we will get to more on this and why I think it's a problem coming up.
Set up
Setting up your Roomba is going to be a really easy process. I've set up quite a few floor cleaners from iRobot and have always found the experience quick and easy.
You'll power the robot on by plugging it in, and ensure that it's got a little bit of charge. Then use the iRobot app to connect to your home Wi-Fi network. The app is easy to follow and takes you through the process step-by-step. I was online and ready to roll in about five minutes. The first thing your robot will need to do is create a virtual map of your home. It does this by going out on an initial vacuuming run, and using its array of cameras and sensors to map your space. I had a very accurate virtual map on the very first day.
With the virtual map you can schedule room specific cleanings, find your robot at any time, or even create no go zones and the app makes this easy even for newbies.

Пікірлер: 47

@jason6412

What are you talking about. You can set the vacuum to do anything you want. Clean any room whenever you want. That’s a bad thing to say in a review as it’s not true and I always want it vacuuming to make sure nothing gets under mop and start scratching the floor. Vacuum always gets smarter and learns every new run.

@rogerbrooks8275

Nice review. But - regarding the fact that this robot cannot be set to mop only: that is actually a good thing. It is always much better to sweep/vacuum any loose dust & debris before wet moping. Otherwise, wet moping alone will clog the mop much faster as the wet cleaner turns the dry dust/debris into a sludge that then gets imbedded into the mop head. If there are things like hair present as well, the problem gets worse. And, the larger the area being mopped, this problem gets exponentially worse. iRobot does recommend changing out the pad after each use, which may sound like a pain, but it is very easy to do. Prior to purchasing our the j9+ Combo, we thought we wanted the self cleaning drying mop feature. But, after viewing some other KZbin reviews of the j9+ Combo (see Vacuum Wars), comparing it against units that wash and dry their mop elements (which really does sound great), until they showed the mess left in the cleaning apparatus of the respective base units and the need to empty the dirty water containers those units all have. And if you don’t clean out the apparatus or forget to empty the dirty water container regularly, you will end up with odors and in the container - mold & mildew. We opted to buy a few extra mop pads to change out after each use. Hand wash or throw them in the washer. Let them air dry (do not put in the dryer).

@elbubulubu 21 сағат бұрын

These things are terrible for tile floors with white grout. The mop pad gets dirty and leaves the grout completely stained.

@DanielAcostaAZ

40 seconds in, looking at the bottom, shows the design is the same as our i7+ and j7+ units that all failed within a year. The metal contacts develop fretting and don't make consistent contact, resulting in a robot that usually charges but no longer self-empties. Roomba exchanged our i7+ three times, all eventually failed. We were dumb enough to try again with the j7+ thinking newer would be better, but multiple units failed again. Roomba support is pretty good the first year, but once the warranty is up they're no help. So if you buy one, get it on sale and be prepared to just toss it and buy a new one once the electrical contacts wear out. Ecovacs and Roborock have been more reliable for us, currently very happy with a Q Revo.

@brandonavants7662

Sounds like another iRobot fail. Sad.

@tales825 19 сағат бұрын

The bin looks different than my J 8 plus bin

@jakepthsd

meh Irobot's falling behind. The latest one is robot vac/mop and clean the mop during the operation as well (Eufy S1 Pro)....

@gld1010

I rather have vacuum only with object avoidance. I have the S9+ and it is very nice but doesn't have object avoidance and that is the only con for me. Some say its too noisy but that doesn't bother me.

@benton.

Get the Roborock Q Revo instead. It’s the best robot in the world.

@mikearrigo5674

Great review, I love your robot vacuum reviews. Irobot is really behind the times. Here in the U.S. this bot is selling for only $100 less than the Ecovacs X2 Omni. It uses the camera to create a map instead of Lidar, Lidar is much better and faster at creating a map which is why the Roborock and Ecovacs robots navigate so well. The mop does not spin or vibreate, and the station does not wash or dry the mop pad. Companies such as Roborock, Ecovacs and Dreametech have gotten far ahead of them.

@StephenYoung-iq7qg

Great job on the video you always do a good job love the channel,hope next year will be even better hope you have a wonderful day and merry Christmas. 🤗🎄

@mateobravo9212

Wife just field tested our older Roomba e5 on the stone steps outside....oops! - this video helped me find the sweet spot between capability and my budget, so pulled the trigger on the model shown. Our climate here should ensure the pad will dry pretty pronto...Thanks and greetings from Spain.

@ronm6585

Thanks for the review Erin. Merry Christmas to you and Roger and pets. 👍🏻🎄🎅🏻❄😊

@youdontknowme3935

is there a propper mop and vacuum roomba out there? (with self cleaning docking station)

@cks4758

I've got an S9+ plus and an M6 (I wish that was as good as the S9+ because sometimes it has issues with the reusable wet mop heads (I think water gets in between the sensor and the top of the mop head. With the single use ones (I give them multiple uses) and I don't get that problem)). This robot vacuum has definitely made my tech wish list (same as Dyson V15 because my old V11 died on me).