iRobot Roomba j7+ (7550) Self-Emptying Robot Vacuum –Identifies and avoids obstacles like pet waste & cords, Empties itself for 60 days, Smart Mapping, Works with Alexa, Ideal for Pet Hair, Roomba J7+

Compared with a broom and a dustpan, it is OK; its cat fur-ball cleaning capability is zilch. (Use a Dustbuster for that). However, because it is so well designed for the lazy man, my hardwood floors and rugs get cleaned a LOT more often, so that is a big win--I wont tell you how rarely they got cleaned before. Also, like all carpet vacuums, it cant get the edges. Again, use a Dustbuster. UPDATE 6/22/23: If you have cats, expect to have to open and empty the bin on the Roomba itself weekly. The cat hair doesnt get sucked out by the base. I have short haired cats, if I had long haired cats I probably would be cleaning the bin on the Roomba daily.

This is our second Roomba in about 8 years. The “cutting edge” vacuum back then couldn’t empty its own bin, set up room maps, schedule beyond start/stop and definitely didn’t have an app. In this way, the J7+ is superior. It’s smarter and more hands-off, to be sure. I love being able to start a routine via app and be able to check in on progress along the way. As for actual vacuuming, though, this one falls far short. It does a pretty good job on our short berber carpet but not a great job - at ALL - on the Saltillo tile that covers most of our house. It leaves small bits and pieces on the tile and almost always leaves balls of rolled up pet hair on rugs and carpeted areas (picture is attached, apologies in advance). I’ve gotten to the point of doing a single job twice in a row so she can pick up the dirt or hair she moved around but left behind in the first go. This isn’t the end of the world, but doesn’t seem to make a lot of sense. Like the older version, she will still get stuck when one wheel is up on a tile and the other is on a rug with a thick pile. We’ve come home a few times to find she was stopped with a dead battery because she couldn’t extract herself and return to the charging base. The convenience of having an automated robot vacuum is still high on my list, no doubt. Regardless of the issues outlined above, this machine does help keep the floors moderately clean in between deeper sessions with the traditional vac. I am just disappointed in the performance - especially given the price point and the fact that this is supposed to be such a grand upgrade over the earlier models. The company put a lot of energy into making a smarter vacuum that doesn’t handle the basics very well. A word of advice: the OEM bags that belong to this model (2 deliver in the box) do not hold much and, after they’re used, get thrown into the trash. Before buying more, check around for off-brand bags that are reusable and have a zipper along the back that allows the bag to be emptied.

We named her Hazel and she operates out of the Guest Bedroom away from being under foot or in constant view. Having mapped out the entire house, shes ready to head into specific areas (especially after the Grandkids leave) and make the crumbs and tracked-in dirt disappear. My wife has had breathing concerns for the past few years, but with Hazel now having removed 6-years worth of dust-bunnies from underneath the Master Bed, we both noticed a marked improvement sleeping in fresher air after just the first 2 days. Hazel also gets the dust out from under our sofa, coffee table, and leather chairs - and into the back corners of the walk-in closets. Shes much more thorough than the hand-pushed upright (now donated to charity) and dutifully vacuums multiple times a week vs. once a week (if I remembered to vacuum at all...). No turning back now!

It definitely works better than the last robot vacuum we had 7 years ago, but after about 10 days it started having sensor issues, emptying issues, couldnt find home, dog hair wrapped around the front wheel, etc. Familiar problems from the past, but at a higher price tag. Cleaning the vacuums sensors and resetting it seems to resolve the problems for another week or so. I guess I was just expecting less trouble for the price. Going to demo another make/model and keep the winner. Update: we tried a few different brands, and this device was by far the best performer due to the built in camera. It still needs attention every 5 days or so, but it beats vacuuming the old way, no question. If youre not in a hurry, considering waiting to see what other brands come up with once they start integrating cameras as well.

Ive had this roomba for 5 months now, and its doing a really great job. It cleans well. The app works great for me (android), it only froze on me once and it eventually came back. It navigates satisfyingly well (its mesmerizing). My house is not big enough for it to need to charge or empty itself during a run, but I have confidence itd get back home easily to do that (since Ive seen it B-line for home when its job is done). Setting it up was easy, and I love that I can set the rooms however I want. That way, I can tell it to clean most everything except where all the kids toys are, if thats the state the house is in today. It can hold multiple maps, so we have a second one saved for upstairs and it works so great; it just cant self-empty upstairs, of course. But it doesnt need to empty itself that often, so its a rare occurrence. But it does dutifully come right back to where its starting spot is (which I set as the top of the stairs). Self-Emptying, at our house, usually only happens at the end of the run, and its very very loud, but the kids got used to it real quickly and even sleep through it now. I didnt think self-emptying would be a feature I cared about at all, but I do appreciate it. In 5 months, I still havent had to change the bag yet. This roomba hasnt destroyed any cables that were accidentally left out. We dont have pets, but I do have super long hair and its doing great with that too. Theres a nice little feature where you can tell it, on a per-room basis, if it should do 1 vacuum pass or 2. So the eat-in kitchen area usually gets 2 passes. Because kids. I also really like that this roomba (among others) can pair with the mop bot (M6) so the M6 can go mopping right after the vacuuming is done. So convenient to just set it all up to just go.

I have owned at least six other iRobot Roombas and two iRobot mops. This is the best one yet! I love that it takes pictures of obstacles and allows you to label them and enter into the data base. I did a mapping run first, labeled the rooms and nw I pick and choose where I want the vacuum to go. So far I love it!

Like the ability after cleaning to clean out the bin.

The Roomba j7 is fantastic. The suction is only okay and its noisy. But I run it every day and keeps my floors very clean. Thats whats important to me. It deals well with obstacles (our house is very messy). It just goes around them. It tries to go back to spots it missed before it finishes. In a month of usage it only got stuck once. You do have to let it explore the first few times it runs. It gradually builds a map and continues to expand it on every run. It is very noisy when it empties itself into the base and is pretty noisy when cleaning hard floors. Its much quieter cleaning carpets and rugs. The vacuum isnt very powerful. So it doesnt always get everything on the first pass. However, you can run it often and it keeps the floors very clean. I run it in most rooms three times a week. I can also tell it to clean any room that gets messy whenever I want. Right now I only have one Roomba for a two story house. This means I have to carry the machine between floors. It works, but clearly having two machines would be better. I will buy another J7+ when I see it on sale.

Got on Amazon sale for $599 then they had another sale month later for $499 thank you very much Amazon for the Fin. Any way the jury is still out with this unit. Battery doesnt last Im having to find it in the house dead and take back to dock. It does avoid objects like advertised but it doesnt avoid liquids. It does clean carpet as well but Ive noticed it wearing out the rollers quicker. liquids make a mess with it turns the dirt into well you know mud then sticks to rollers filter and the waste bin Now you has the clean everything and new filter. I glad I got it for $599 really would have liked $499 at this point not sure its worth the money . Also I had the E5 Roomba prior to this one it performed as well as this one only upgrades Dock station vac, obstacle avoidance and the picture mapping. And I only paid $300 for it. so are the upgrades worth it? Yes for maybe $200 more not the $300 I paid

This is a review at the one-year mark of owning this J7+ with the dust-bin charging station. This is my seco-nd vacuum robot, having been so disappointed with a Neato I owned about 7 years ago that it took me this long to decide another foray was worth it. Im again left disappointed. J7 does the following well: - Mapping - Cleaning dog hair from hardwood floors J7 does the following okay: - Auto-empty (I have to manually empty the small internal bin and clean the sensors about 2x/month or more or it refuses to auto-empty, which means it wont run either) - Wifi speed is pretty laggy, and I sometimes have to force close the app and reopen, but this has gotten better with updates. Still, not as fast as it should be for the price. - Navigating obstacles. Rarely gets stuck with the latest updates, but I still dont know why it constantly bumps into my couch or other fixed items in the house that it supposedly mapped out. J7 is terrible at: - Pet hair on some types of rugs. I have a very low pile rug in my foyer that it just cant seem to get pet hair out of. Im not sure why, it drives across it fine, but just leaves it behind. This is despite thoroughly cleaning the brushes, and setting it force complete a second pass. - Randomly will just stop working for various reasons, and Ill finally get around to troubleshooting it a day or two later (usually a sensor needs to be cleaned, or the bin wont auto-empty). For the price-point, and the amount of time this company has been around, I expect a vacuum that just works. Id be fine with cleaning its brushes once or maybe even twice a month, or even having to manually empty its been on occasion if there is too much pet hair and it gets clogged. But, the fact it leaves hair stranded, and Im having to troubleshoot it at least once a week for various things is just frustrating. Im not replacing it because it does an okay job at pulling the pet hair off the hardwood floors, and I just dont trust the tech yet to buy something different. Your experience might be better if you dont have pets.