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Walking out of the house and leaving a robot to handle the vacuuming or mopping truly feels like we're living in the future.
Whether you're looking for extra help when you're not around, or simply want to recline on the sofa with your feet-up and let a robot handle the cleaning — these clever self-steering 'bots are more affordable than ever.
iRobot, the Massachusetts-based brand behind the best-selling Roomba robotic vacuum cleaners, has kickstarted its final sale of the summer. It has discounted up to £500 off its best-known Roomba range. The Roomba sale is scheduled to end at 11am on September 16, but iRobot warns that some models in the sale could be pulled early if stock sells-out — so be warned, don't wait too long to add to your basket.
Prices start from £169for the iRobot Roomba Essential. That's £30 cheaper than the last time iRobot discounted this model in a sale.
For that, you'll take delivery of a 2-in-1 autonomous Roomba Combo Essential that can vacuum and mop your floors, powered by iRobot OS. With the press of a single button, the clever gadget will begin removing dirt and dust from hard-to-reach places, like under the sofa.
You can keep tabs on its progress from the companion app on your iPhone or Android phone, as well as set a regular cleaning schedule and view an interactive map with a detailed report on where it cleaned. If you've got an Amazon Echo, use Siri, or Google Nest smart speaker, you can use these voice assistants to command the Roomba Essential to start vacuuming or mopping.
Using the companion app on iPhone and Android, you'll be able to schedule when the Roomba vacuums and mops your home, including when you leave, a chosen day each week, or when you issue a voice command to an Amazon Echo or other smart speaker
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You can ask it to clean everywhere, or specific a particular room. Using its navigation algorithms, the Roomba will methodically clean in orderly rows, while sensors stop it from falling down stairs or knocking over ornaments as it cleans around and under furniture.
iRobot offers free delivery on all orders over £50 and a two-year hardware guarantee.
Usually £269, you'll save £100 on the Roomba Essential in theis final sale of the summer. iRobot has equipped this model with three levels of suction power for vacuuming, and three power levels for its water output when mopping.
The major differentiator for pricier Roomba models is the charging stand, which doubles-up as a way for these clever cleaning 'bots to empty dust and debris into a bin bag
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By disposing of any dirt collected from the floors into the Clean Base charging stand, there's no need to empty the Roomba after every clean — saving you a lot of time. And when you do need to empty the bag, it's already sealed for you, avoiding any mess
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But the biggest discounts in the latest sale are found on the flagship Roomba models.
The Roomba j9+ Robot Vacuum and Mop has dropped from £1,249 to just £749. Again, this is an extra £150 off compared to the last sale.
This flagship vacuum improves on the j7 line-up by adding a reservoir of water to the charging dock, so the self-navigating cleaner can refill its tanks and mop your floors for up to a month before you'll need to do anything. Not only that, but you'll only need to empty the bin bag built into the stand every 60 days.
This model offers iRobot's SmartScrub system, which mops back and forth with consistent pressure for a 2x deeper scrubbing than other models in the line-up to eliminate stubborn messes, like coffee and grime. When it moves from mopping to vacuuming, the small 'bot will retract the wet mop whenever the 'bot senses carpet beneath its wheels. It means you can use this 2-in-1 to clean every floor in your home, without any concerns about smears or wet patches.
On hard floors, the top-tier Roomba j9+ will vacuum and mop at the same.
Leveraging Artificial Intelligence (AI), the Roomba j9+ Robot Vacuum and Mop will start to learn from past cleans to automatically prioritise dirtier rooms and adjust settings like suction, scrubbing, and cleaning passes. iRobot calls this functoinality Dirt Detective — and it's not available on the more affordable models in the range.
It means there's no need to specify where your new Roomba should begin cleaning, it'll start with the worst messes — even if you have to interrupt its vacuuming and mopping cycle because you have unexpected guests, you can be sure the biggest offenders will be gone.
Roomba leverages AI to prioritise dirtier rooms and automatically adjust suction and scrubbing
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If you're willing to spend a little more, the j7 Robot Combo Vacuum and Mop comes equipped with a charging base with a built-in vacuum bag that the Roomba can empty its contents into. These enclosed bags capture and trap 99% of pollen and mould, so you can empty the contents after 60 days and keep your hands clean.
During its cleaning routine, the Roomba will dock itself on the charging whenever it needs to top-up the built-in battery or empty its onboard vacuum reservoir. According to iRobot, the combination of this AI-powered gadget and the cleaning stand means you can "forget about vacuuming for months at a time".
This self-steering model is designed to be truly retractable, with the wet mop switching to the top of the robot for drip-free vacuuming whenever the 'bot senses carpet beneath its wheels — clever stuff. It means you'll be able to set this diddy droid off on a cleaning-cycle for every aspect of the flooring in your home, without any concerns about smears or wet patches.
Compared to the budget models in the line-up, US robotics firm iRobot says the j7 range delivers 10x power-lifting suction.
Usually £999, this advanced model has been reduced to £599 in the sale — a saving of £400.
