Know Its Purpose & Limitations and You'll Love it For What it CAN Do!
Written: Jul 11 '03 (Updated Sep 13 '03)
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Pros: Usable for impaired persons; Works well enough for light cleaning; Easy
Cons: Small dirt cup; Won't work for those with clutter
The Bottom Line: For someone with limited mobility this is a perfect gift! Allows them the freedom of having to ask for help.
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| briandalsmom's Full Review: iRobot Roomba 3000 Robotic Vacuum |
My mom thinks I’m amazing! No, not because I’m talented or cute, but because I bought her the PERFECT gift for Mother’s Day this year! I bought her the Roomba—something I thought was a bit silly when I first heard about it a year ago. At the time I wondered if we American’s had gotten so lazy that we needed a robotic vacuum cleaner to do the work for us. I changed my mind after my mom had knee surgery.
She lives at the ocean, about 4 hours away from all of her kids. There are neighbors to help but she doesn’t like to depend on others. She lives is a rambler home with lots of carpeting. Vacumming became too much for her and I searched for a solution. I looked into home help and other options (none of which she really wanted) and then I remember that silly infomercial about the robotic vacuum.
I started searching online to find out if the Roomba really worked or if it was like the Steam Buggy I bought that was a bunch of junk—I swore off infomercials after that fiasco. What changed my mind was that I was able to try the machine out for myself at the Sharper Image store before I purchased it—that sold me.
It’s not meant to replace your full-size vacuum or regular vacuuming, but so far for her, it’s been enough. She lives alone and doesn’t have pets—I have two kids, one husband, a cat and a dog and I’m beginning to think I need one! At first it bugged me that I was being “lazy” and then I thought about the fact that the dishwasher and clothes washer does work that could be done by hand and no one thinks twice about it. I’ve decided that perhaps I’ll put this on my Christmas wish list—how wonderful it’d be to come home to a freshly vacuumed living room every day!
WHAT IS IT?
It’s a small battery-operated machine that vacuums. Unlike traditional vacuums, this one doesn’t have an operator handle because it works on its own. It’s round, flat and operates by itself fitting under furniture and redirecting itself by bumping into things—like a remote control car, only there’s no remote.
GETTING READY TO ROOMBA
A simple process, especially for my mom whose furniture is up on legs (so no material to accidentally suck up). You need to be sure that the area is free from cords and other debris (normal stuff you’d do before vacuuming anyway). That’s it! If you want to confine the machine to one room you can use the enclosed virtual wall). She has an open floor plan so if she wants to keep it out of a specific area she places the virtual wall unit on the floor and beams the laser to another wall to tell the Roomba to turn around. You can tell if the redirection unit is working if the light is red—if not, check the batteries. You get one Virtual Wall Unit but you can purchase them separately as well should you need additional. They take D-size batteries. Her unit has lasted 2 months so far, with her vacuuming every day, with no sign of weakening yet. The unit has an on/off button but will also turn itself off after an hour.
Once your virtual walls are set up you put the Roomba in the middle of your room and the press one of the buttons. Each tells the computer approximately how large the room is. The choices are small (10-12’), medium (14-16’), or large (15-20’). Don’t worry if you’re not sure of the size the first time—you’ll know if it stops to soon to go one setting up—if it bounces into the walls go one setting down next time.
Don’t worry if you have stairs—it senses the “edge” and moves away from it. It also goes right over your throw rugs and goes from carpet to hardwoods or linoleum without any hesitation at all.
HOW IT WORKS
You put it in the middle because it travels in a circle—ever widening until it runs into the walls—don’t worry, there’s a bumper and a brush so not only will it not harm your woodwork, it will send the dirt from the corners into the brushing are.
After it finishes going in circles, it will cross the room in straight lines—it keeps repeating this pattern until the cleaning time has elapsed. If you decide you need to stop it before the process is complete, just pick it up with the convenient handle—it stops automatically or tap on any of the room size buttons.
It weighs just less than 6 pounds so for most it’s not a problem—for my mom it’s a little tougher because of her knee. Bending is hard for her so once started, she just lets it go. She’s able to tap the buttons with her feet to start it and/or stop it and leaves it under a chair when not in use. To charge it or clean the dirt cup she sits in a chair to avoid stress to her knee. It’s very adaptable and great for those with limited mobility.
IT COMMUNICATES—KIND OF
If it runs into trouble it plays a little tone to tell you it can’t unstick itself—that rarely happens and it can fit under just about anything! It’s never sucked up her bed skirt and except for an errant sock or two hidden under the bed it’s never been a problem.
HOW WELL DOES IT WORK
It’s fine for her use. She uses it daily because of the sand issue, but otherwise would only need to do it a few times a week. The battery in the Roomba itself lasts just under an hour, plenty of time for her Greatroom (living room, kitchen, entry, family room, dining room all in one open style). She can do the two guest bedrooms and master bedroom after a charging (takes about 11-14 hours to fully recharge).
It’s not horribly loud—you can have a conversation in the same room with it as well as talk on the telephone or watch TV. Quite often she forgets it’s running.
It goes from her tile to her carpet effortlessly, sensing automatically that the floor has changed. It cleans the tile well (kitchen area) and doesn’t just scatter things around. It's not meant for deep pile or shag carpeting--use it where it's meant to be used and you'll find it works well.
HAZARDS
To you? You may forget it’s going and trip over it.
In General: It’s for indoor use only, dry surfaces, and charge it only with approved chargers and only use the batteries warranted for it.
WHAT’S IN THE BOX
Roomba Intelligent FloorVac
Rechargeable NiMH Battery Pack
Battery Charger with AC Adapter
Virtual Wall Unit – requires two (2) D-size batteries (not included)
Two (2) Replacement Filters
Owner’s Manual (not shown)
Insert sheet entitled “Roomba Care Hints”
WARRANTY
90-day parts and labor warranty
SPECS
8.82 pounds, 3.63-H, 13.4-W, 13.4-D
FINAL THOUGHTS
For someone with limited mobility this is a great gift. The only interaction is to dump the dustbin (sometimes more than once in a cleaning depending on the amount of dirt). It works well, not perfectly (there are corners it just can’t get into), but for what it is it does a great job. My mom thinks I’m fabulous and now I know what to get her for Christmas…a robotic lawn mower!
CURIOUS ABOUT THE FAST CHARGER?
I've reviewed it here: http://www.epinions.com/content_110832225924
THINKING ABOUT AN EXTRA BATTERY?
Here's my review: http://www.epinions.com/content_110834454148
New models are out now so this original model is being closed out just about everywhere. Target has been having great prices on them. The newer models are exactly the same machine with different features--like a remote control, wall mount, and deep cleaning mode (it cleans a smaller area for a longer time). Since the machine itself is the same, I'd recommend buying this model. I did purchase a model with a remote for my sight-impaired grandmother, but only because it would be easier for her to direct it. I'll review the new one as soon as it gets added to the database. In the meantime, shop around, they're sold everywhere now.
Interested in knowing about the newest Roomba? Here's my review on the Roomba Pro Elite http://www.epinions.com/content_112136785540
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 179.99
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briandalsmom
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Member: Mom
Location: USA
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