How Roomba’s $1,000 robot vacuum handled my house of children and pets

ZDNET’s key takeaways

• The Roomba Combo j9+ is a $1,400 two-in-one robotic vacuum and mop that makes use of a retractable mop head. It is $400 off on the time of writing.
• Its greatest improve comes with the Clear Base, which might now routinely refill the water tank.
• The mopping function is simply satisfactory when tasked with huge messes, particularly in comparison with opponents with twin oscillating mop heads.

The Roomba Combo j9+ has made its means into my rotation of robotic vacuums — and let me inform you, I am very impressed. It is modern and has a contemporary feel and appear, and iRobot went out of its technique to repair the shortcomings of the earlier Combo j7+. Essentially the most notable function is the Clear Base’s Auto-Fill Dock, which means the robotic can merely return to the docking station every time it must refill its clear water tank.

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The Combo j9+ is supposed to be iRobot’s best robotic but, using iRobotOS to map your own home seven occasions sooner than earlier than. The robotic can routinely label your map with as much as 90% accuracy, preserve its P.O.O.P. (Pet Proprietor Official Promise) assure, and achieve this far more. I beloved my Roomba j7+ final yr, however was left wishing for extra with the Combo j7+. I now really feel as if the 2 worlds have collided efficiently with the Combo j9+.

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Straight out of the field

I like the high-end feel and appear of the Roomba Combo j9+. The robotic blends in superbly with my furnishings and is not a machine that I’d tuck away in my laundry room or workplace so friends do not see it. It’s bulkier than its predecessor, however that is as a result of this mannequin has a sturdier, refillable water tank, a drawer that holds the detachable mud bin, and storage on the within to maintain further mop pads. The trade-off is effectively price it.

The robotic has a comparatively easy setup course of. You will have to discover a appropriate place towards a wall close to an outlet, get the Clear Base plugged in, and align the robotic with the charging port. Pair the system with the iRobot companion app and also you’re all set.

Additionally: The most effective robotic vacuums, mops, and mowers from CES 2024

Subsequent, the mapping run. With the app updated, it took just some minutes for the robotic to determine my house’s format. The robotic caught to the partitions and edges of the furnishings, used AI to try to predict the place the rooms have been divided, after which labeled them accordingly. I solely have to make a couple of tweaks to the mapping, so it was typically dependable. For those who already personal an iRobot system and you’ve got created a map of your own home, you may switch the map from one system to a different within the iRobot app.

How does the Combo j9+ carry out?

After I first examined the robotic, I made a decision to run it simply hours earlier than internet hosting my household for Thanksgiving, as a result of who would not stay life on the sting? One factor I instantly seen was how for much longer the robotic took to scrub my house than my earlier j7+ mannequin. That is not essentially a nasty factor.

The Combo j9+ cleans in smaller, shorter passes versus the longer passes of the j7+. In methods, this lets the robotic clear at a finer tempo. To offer you an thought of how for much longer it took, the j7+ can clear my front room in 14 minutes whereas the Combo j9+ takes half-hour. This is not an enormous deal if you’re simply cleansing a room or two, however it undoubtedly made a distinction after I was cleansing my complete house. 

Additionally: The most effective robotic vacuums: Skilled examined

The most important distinction and most notable enhancements include the Clear Base. The Roomba Combo j9+ can now routinely refill its clear water tank, fixing my greatest gripe with its predecessor. I now not need to babysit the machine; the Combo j9+ is that self-sufficient. The water tank itself feels sturdy and holds a substantial quantity of cleansing answer earlier than it must be refilled.

The Clear Base additionally permits the Roomba j9+ to self-empty as wanted, storing the grime and particles within the disposable bag for about 60 days. Your mileage will fluctuate with this function; my house with pets and youngsters will definitely be dirtier than somebody’s house of two. 

Simply as spectacular is how quiet the Combo j9+ self-empties. It’s noticeably quieter than any of the earlier Roomba fashions; I can run the Combo j9+ whereas my toddler sleeps, with out worrying that the suction from the auto-emptying will wake him up. I am unable to emphasize sufficient how a lot I like this function. I can reset my fundamental dwelling areas within the night whereas getting my vacuuming and mopping accomplished. It is a very engaging function and essential for fogeys with little ones.

Vacuuming efficiency

For what it is price, vacuuming has by no means been a difficulty for the Roombas I’ve examined. My house is regularly affected by grime, particles, pet hair, meals crumbs, and extra, and I have been impressed time and time once more with the suction functionality of those robotic vacuums. Pet hair is cleaned up effectively, my rugs and carpets have fairly vacuuming strains, and the house beneath my eating room desk stays crumb-free. 

Additionally: This one function might revolutionize the best way robotic vacuums and mops work

With the Combo j9+, you may select to have the robotic vacuum or each vacuum and mop. For those who ship the j9+ to a room with simply carpet, it one way or the other is aware of that it is going to be performing a vacuum-only job. Plus, impediment avoidance is pretty dependable. My cords, pet toys, stray footwear, and every part in between are all the time left untouched.

Mopping efficiency

The Clear Base liquid container is provided to deal with iRobot’s authorised liquid cleansing answer, so that’s the solely liquid I put within the refillable container. I desire this over simply utilizing water as a result of my flooring require one thing slightly extra highly effective.

Whereas the Combo j9+ will not put your native deep cleansing service out of enterprise, it is in a position to hold flooring trying tidy sufficient. Throughout testing, I seen the longer I went with out manually mopping, the extra streaks I noticed left from the robotic. The j9+ applies simply sufficient stress to wipe off most stains, grime marks, and different messes, so I’ve felt comfy with letting it clear the home throughout the week, whereas I manually mop on the weekend.

ZDNET’s shopping for recommendation

I am totally impressed with the upgrades that got here to the Roomba Combo j9+ from the earlier mannequin. For those who’re like me and might get the heavy-duty mopping accomplished on the weekends, this machine goes to maintain your flooring clear in between these deep cleanings. In a home crammed with pets, children, and every part in between, that is an enormous win for me.

It definitely helps that iRobot loves to run gross sales, particularly across the holidays, and I’ve seen this mannequin routinely drop under the $1,000 value level (from $1,400).