iRobot 560 Roomba Vacuuming Robot, Black and Silver
by iRobot
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List Price: Our Price: $344.99 You Save: $105.00 (23%) Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Buy Used: from $244.93 (click here) Category: Home See more product details |
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Tools and Hardware Reviews of iRobot 560 Roomba Vacuuming Robot, Black and Silver
Customer Review: As Always, iRobot Products Work For Me - When I Use Them
Summary: 5 Stars
I didn't get the housecleaning gene, so I'm always looking for a way to get it done effectively and with as little time and effort as possible, so I can do things I enjoy. I actually have come to enjoy using my iRobot Scooba and Roombas, as well as my Dirt Dog Shop Robot.
Since I have inside dogs and I do a lot of yard work and gardening, in red clay Oklahoma dirt, my hardwood floors and tile floors take a beating. I've already reviewed the Scooba and Dirt Dog and how helpful they are to me.
The Roomba is so much fun to just start up by hitting the button, and then watch it go. It makes a little noise, so I usually close the door so I can talk on the phone and take care of my business, which I operate from home. Later Roomba stops, either because it's finished and it makes a little celebratory song to let you know, or because it needs to be recharged. I have extra batteries and just plop one in and hit 'play' again. Sometimes it tells you that it needs to be emptied. While not exactly my favorite chore, although it's great fun to see how much dirt it has picked up, it's no big deal to shake out the dirt and the filter, replace it and let it go again.
Roomba is a great idea for me. A really great housekeeper will probably not be amused by it, and will likely say that it just doesn't clean to his or her standards, but I find it a great time-saver and it cleans MUCH better than I would if I were doing it myself.
Oh, and my dogs just stay out of its way. It wouldn't hurt them anyway, but they just keep an eye on it to make sure it doesn't bump into them, which they are sure they don't want to happen. When it does happen, they just move. It's actually a distraction for them and keeps them from being bored and bugging me to go out, have a treat, etc. It keeps them occupied, if not actually entertained.
I love my Roomba and recommend it. It doesn't offend me a bit to know that it cleans better than I do.
Customer Review: Saved me from prozac!!!
Summary: 5 Stars
This is the first time I've ever left a review but I feel so inspired to by this product. Lets begin by the fact that I live in a house with 3 boys, a dog, and a cat. I have hard wood floors on the main floor and I was constantly walking on grit. I was swiffering daily and not keeping it all up and probably not getting everywhere I should because I was sick to death of doing it. Despite my husbands discouragement, I bought this product over 3 weeks ago and I have not been disappointed in the least, and even converted my husband!!!! Now, it does take some maintenance but 5 min a day is still less than what I spent vacuuming before. I run this thing daily on my main floor and am astonished by the dust it still gathers. Yay for allergies, right? I never see pet hair or bunnies along the hallways anymore either (huge pet peeve, literally.)
If you are considering this product be aware of these things:
1. I have a fairly simple straightforward floorplan of 1200 sq ft on the main floor. With 2 lighthouses, Roomba cleans very well all rooms and docks back when he's tired. My mom bought one and returned it because her's "went all over willy nilly." I told her she probably just needed a couple more lighthouses to keep it working in the right rooms longer because she's got more sq footage and open concept rooms. So basically, it will work better if you have a complex floor plan w more lighthouses, don't give up on him so soon!
2. Clean him after every time he cleans. It doesn't take long at all and it keeps him happy.
3. If you have doors that shut easily, you may have to prop them open. I've come upstairs to find that he has shut himself in a room on accident. Poor guy.
That's really all I can think of right now. I have been so pleasantly surprised with this device and even my husband likes to brag about how it cleans better than I do. (Like he ever picked up a vacuum or mop before!!!!)
Customer Review: Great Vacuum! (and responses to the negative reviews)
Summary: 5 Stars
This is a great vacuum! I have 3 medium-sized dogs (2 Cocker Spaniels and a Poodle mix) and have the Roomba programed to run everyday. It's amazing how much fur this machine picks up on a daily basis. I shudder to think about the build-up from my past manual vacuumings of every 1 - 2 weeks. It's also great to come home after a day's work and see the tell-tail vacuum streaks throughout the carpet, indicating a fresh vacuuming had take place.
Now to address the negative reviews:
Hair/fur in the spools - I could not believe that some people posted this as a "negative". I mean c'mon, this happens with all full-sized, standard vacuums! These people must never have inspected their standard vacuums in the past. Bottom line, not a negative at all, it happens with all vacuums. The minor, 2-minute "chore" of cleaning the Roomba everyday is an easy trade-off for the job it does for me on a daily basis.
Breakdowns, malfunctions, etc. occurring after the factory warranty runs out - Answer: Buy from Hammacher Schlemmer, period. They have what they call an "Unconditional Lifetime Guarantee" (even including a return label, with instructions on how to return the machine back to them if necessary), and after much investigating, while no one really seems to have a concrete answer as to exactly what that means, there are LOTS of testimonials reporting that Hammacher has exchanged their machines, no questions asked over and over again. There are also multiple people reporting exchanges occurring over multiple years beyond the factory warranty, some ranging up to 5 years beyond the original purchase date! As a purchase tip, do a Google search for "Hammacher Coupon," and find a code that will save you $35 on shipping!
As a side note, I also purchased a Scooba 330 for the tile part of my house, solely based on the performance of the Roomba, and am quite happy with that product as well.
Customer Review: Believe the hype! Embrace the epic sloth within!
Summary: 5 Stars
Oh man. Man, oh man. Love is too small a word. I hate to vacuum. I'm a bachelor. Do the math. Visitors to my bathroom wear hazmat suits. So, I bought this thing thinking that it would be a cool novelty. A toy. Nope. This is a serious piece of dirt-destroying techno-zen. Reading other reviews, I knew I'd have to start out with clean floors for this to work, so I hired a professional to use a van-based steam cleaner to get my carpets perfect. With this done, I set the Roomba to work. First of all, it is amazing entertainment. I let it zip around the tv area for about ten minutes when its factory-charge began to run out. So, while it was charging, I examined the under-brush. Matted with hair... hair the steam cleaner didn't get! (I shed a lot. I am gifted with more and more forehead each year.) I cleaned it. The next day, it tried to do a cleaning, but got hung up on the circular base of one of my chairs and powered down. (A book-barrier solved this.) The day after that, I came home after it had done a full apartment cleaning. Bedroom. Living/dining room. Kitchen. The dirt trap was nearly full and the brush was again matted with hair. This tells me that the Roomba is very good at what it does. I expect less and less hair and dirt each day as the Roomba scours away the layers of single livin'. The extension brush gets all wall-edges and a sensor detects dirtier areas and focuses the Roomba on spot-cleaning them. I have come to the conclusion that the Roomba is more than a novelty. It's actually a really, really good vacuum. The fact that it's a robot isn't just a boon to the lazy. It has nothing better to do than clean, clean, clean. I have no idea how long it would take a human to do as good a job, but thanks to the Roomba, I'll never find out. It's as tenacious as it is powerful. This is actually worth the investment. It is NOT just a toy for the idle. It WORKS!Customer Review: Of course a woman invented it
Summary: 5 Stars
I received my Roomba for Christmas from my collie:-) I'm pretty sure she told my husband to order it, but regardless, I love this little machine so much I call mine Victor, and when people ask why, I tell them that there's nothing sexier than a man doing housework.
But all kidding aside, I love a freshly vacuumed room but I hate to be the one doing the vacuuming. Of course it's not totally carefree cleaning, Victor needs his brushes cleaned every day, and in the beginning, he'd stop because he'd pick up so much dog hair that his brushes couldn't spin. Also, Victor was still learning his way around and would get stuck under night stands and chairs. We quickly learned to block off the places we didn't want him to go and he's been a champ about it. He has even learned to put himself away when he's finished cleaning. Am I gushing like a proud parent at how smart my kid is? Well, at the moment, he's stuck in the bathroom, and either it's really dirty or he's having a mental breakdown.
All and all I'm very happy with my new present. He does a bang-up job and I don't know how I lived without him. My husband actually suggested I vacuum every day. I laughed. I guess he took the hint and decided that a Roomba was far cheaper than giving away half of everything he owned(again, I'm kidding).
What really amazed me about the cleaning power of this little machine is that since we had him on automatic, Victor came on after the housekeeper had finished vacuuming with her Dyson. When I cleaned Victor's dirt cup out, it was nearly full. I'm so impressed with my Roomba that Daisy(the collie) is buying my husband one for Valentine's Day for the boat. Now Daisy will be welcome on the boat with her glorious coat of fur.
Cheers to the woman NASA scientist who invented this wonder product(at least that what the rumor is).