The Roomba may have been the robot vacuum lineup that started it all, but competition has ramped up significantly over the past few years. We've seen some impressive options from Roborock, Narwal, and other companies. iRobot hasn't given up on the Roomba line, though, and now it has revealed its most expensive (and hopefully, most capable) model yet.
iRobot has unveiled its latest product, the Roomba Combo j9+. Like many other models, this one is designed to be not just a vacuum cleaner, but a combination between a vacuum and a mop, which makes it the ultimate home cleaning device. It also comes at a high price: $1,399 for the robot vacuum and mop combo, or just $899 without the mop.
iRobot might be extremely successful in the robotic vacuum space, but when it comes to robotic mopping, you could say it has been slightly less successful and has a bit of a troubled history. It first tried out entering that segment with the Scooba in 2010. However, that system proved inefficient, and the company later managed to actually figure things out and introduced the Braava line in 2012, which used cleaning pads rather than a water tank. The Braava system was more successful, and iRobot followed up on it and began exploring the concept of combining vacuuming and mopping in the more expensive Roomba models.
iRobot's new Roomba j9+ features a 4-stage cleaning system and dual rubber brushes, offering powerful suction and effective scrubbing. The company also boasts that its Dry Rug Intelligence (D.R.I.) ensures that even high-pile rugs remain clean and dry.
One of the key differentiators for iRobot is its software. CEO Colin Angle emphasizes the importance of software in the robotics industry, highlighting the company's innovative features like Dirt Detective and SmartScrub, both included in iRobot OS 7.0. Dirt Detective allows the Roomba to assess how quickly a room gets dirty and prioritize cleaning accordingly, while SmartScrub provides a deep clean when needed with double the scrubbing.
You can pre-order the Roomba Combo j9+ and Roomba j9+ starting today in Europe, the United States and Canada at the iRobot online store, and they should appear at other retail stores starting tomorrow. Other countries will have to wait until later this month or further into 2023 to buy one.
Source: TechCrunch, iRobot