Not bad, but unfortunately with annoying detail weaknesses

As such, the device would be a dream, it sucks my apartment (tiled floors and short-pile carpets) perfectly. Convert large furniture I did not have, from time to time, the Roomba gets caught in the dining room between chair legs, but he frees himself with patient fore-aft always myself again. At first I was, of course - like others - of the suction not enthusiastic, as compared to a "real" vacuum cleaner that's just pathetic, but then you realize that the unit achieves its effect by its regularity: it is allowed to each running day, the apartment is noticeably cleaner because looser dust can not settle only. In addition, the Roomba even under beds and boxes where you get there is difficult with a vacuum cleaner. One should however, as far as possible only to make when you're away from home, the device makes a hell of a noise. Apart from that he bangs to my taste very violently against the wall socket, furniture legs and corners ... I do not hope that it causes damage over time.

Unfortunately, he has serious design flaws, what you do not forgive a mid-range device.

It begins with the recognition of crashes does not run reliably. Mostly he recognizes the staircase that separates my two house parts (split-level house), and turns around, but if he happens at full speed approximately straight zufährt it, he braked too late and rushed to the front from. So he hangs helplessly at the top of the stairs and beeps for help. Also on a wall opening to him happens repeatedly, as it can be while in reverse gear most pull and go from the edge, but naturally startled at first, because it behind 1m would in depth, because one would like to its Roomba rather not see fall down , Even at an approximately 2cm high threshold he fails, he goes over to the front wheel, and then relies on the component shelf and hanging helplessly in the air. The same happens when you are resting chair with flat on the floor frame ("cantilever") on these runs Roomba on and then stuck.

All this can be prevented by either the chair clears away, or stations for "virtual walls" to buy that make - up right - reverse the Roomba before the problem areas. However, the virtual walls work not just exactly (ca 10-20cm), the vacuum cleaner soaked in problem areas so rather spacious, and a portion of the space is not sucked. I would have found it wiser when the virtual wall (set?) Roomba could not turn around, but only his driving speed would decrease.

Next porblem: at the end of his work, or battery life versa Roomba back to its charging station. Since this is made from light plastic, it is not very safe. The Roomba pushes the easy part aside. The tip, they set up with their backs to the wall helps of course, but unfortunately it often happens that the Roomba bumps into the part during vacuuming and shifts / twists, and then it can often no longer be in the charging station. The actual power supply is an extra block, and disturb, because the Roomba gladly hooked in the lying about power cables. To integrate the AC adapter into the charging station would have solved both problems mE.

However, the main problem is the nose wheel. The problem applies only Pet Owner. At each Saugfahrt to dog and cat hair wrapped around the axle of the nose wheel and destroy the cheap made suspension within a few months. The nose wheel then fall out easily and can no longer be secure. As long as the device has warranty, the manufacturer will send to letter out quickly and efficiently, a new, replacement requires no tools and can be done in a few steps, but what will be if the warranty has expired? A final solution seems not to aim, I get every time sent the exact same disabled part, and it is after 4-6 months, consequently broken again. I also got a warning about this problem, and notes how to mitigate it has not - what one has me really when registering an email address extorted?

And another problem area is coming up: the Roomba runs almost every day with me, so the batteries do not last forever. They have anyway only 6 months warranty, and are therefore to be regarded as wearing parts. It would therefore have been smart if the manufacturer would have made the battery removable, but is somewhere installed in the belly of Roomba. Well, a skilled hobbyist gets the device safely, but then expects what you so read on the internet - a special battery pack can not be bought on the open market. Roomba requires well-violent 70 euros for the replacement part.

9/2014 AL