iRobot Roomba 500 Series

Updating my review as it don't work no more!! – I initially wrote a glowing review 2.5 years ago when I purchased the product. It was 5 months out of manufacturers warranty when it stopped working. Continually thinks it's falling off of an edge or something as repeats... error move Roomba to a new location. We are very gentle with it, it has never been dropped, solely used for open plan bamboo… Read more

floor and 2 carpeted bedrooms on a weekly basis (it could never do the thick rug, but small price to pay for everything else being done). Fortunately, I had purchased extended warranty. The approved repairer couldn't get a part to repair so I have been given a store credit which is not the same as having the machine replaced and is currently not enough to get another machine. Very unhappy with a 2.5year life for a $400 plus $100 extra warranty machine. I hope that other consumers in the same position will also write a review and then perhaps the quality of the product will be improved. I would be happy to purchase one that worked and did what it said it would do.

Best invention ever.....I've now got three!!! – I love Roomba's so much, that yesterday I bought #3....why, I hear you ask? Well my house is tri-level so now I have one on each level as they do such a fantastic job and it means I have time to do other more enjoyable things than cleaning my floors. Having polished porcelain tiles, a Roomba is definitely not a luxury but a 'must have'...the two… Read more

go hand-in-hand and who wants to spend their whole life cleaning floors....not me! Roomba also does a fabulous job on carpets, regular pile rugs, even the bathroom floors, although I have to block her from the shower.....she makes a mess in there if the tiles are still wet!! I love that under the beds are cleaned at the same time as every other nook and cranny.

It was funny a couple of weeks ago when I had Roomba #2 doing her thing and suddenly I realised I couldn't hear her anymore so went to investigate. There she was on the (large) back deck and she had it spotless. It seems the batteries in the virtual wall had gone flat and let her go outside, but in a way that was good because she cleaned up some dry leaves which had blown onto the deck the previous day. Now I will include the deck in her area.

The only hesitation has been the shag pile rug, she can't quite handle it, but that's OK because it only takes a couple of minutes to grab the handheld vac which I need to use on the stairs anyway.

Imho, the problem people have with Roomba's is that they don't clean the brushes/bearings/axles/etc...this is just plain common sense and takes a few seconds when you are emptying the bin. Also the comments about Roomba not being 'logic' in it's cleaning pattern....who really cares?? as long as the floor is cleaned, why worry about if it goes this way or that, the end result is what you need to think about. Sure it doesn't clean the floors on the same track as you would, but if you've got time to watch Roomba clean your floors, then you need to get a hobby.

I tried two of the cheaper clones, but what a waste of time. The first lasted an hour...the second lasted 15 minutes before both motors burned out, they were different brands from different sellers but they had one thing in common...I had to fight to get a refund in the first few days since I bought them.

Lastly, I love it that some people sell off their Roomba's, because I've bought two of them (one on eBay and one on Gumtree) and saved heaps of $$$s, otherwise my budget wouldn't stretch to owning three! I recommend Roomba to everyone, specially those with a bad back or other medical condition which makes doing their floors a painful experience. Absolutely everything...it's a lifesaver Not a thing....if there was I wouldn't own three of them!

Stunning – We had a Dyson, but it is hard to use under beds and around certain objects, so we decided to look at a robot vacuum. There are quite a large number of them ranging in price from $100 to about $1200, but when you check out the reviews only Roomba appear to have consistently good reviews, so we took the plunge and bought the 780. From day 1 we… Read more

were impressed. It is so efficient and so thorough and simply amazing. In the first few days I can tell you now it is NOT a time saving device....... because you can't help but watch it do its thing!! It is like having anew pet around the house - only this one cleans up after all the others!

After a couple of weeks however it developed a strange electronic problem, so we removed and replaced the battery and it cleared the problem (bit like rebooting your computer) but it would not turn itself off on the dock, so we sent an email to the tvshop people we had bought it from and they instantly arranged for its return - they collected it and told us exactly WHEN it would be collected. We assumed they would repair and return it to us, but within a few days a brand new machine arrived!! THAT is taking service to a new level and impressed us no end.

Our new pet is working perfectly and has been adopted into the family. We have recommended the Roomba to several friends and at least two are about to buy theirs - we KNOW they will be delighted. I can not recommend this product enough and can only urge you to spend the extra to get the one that works rather than a mickey mouse copy which simply isnt up to the task. EVERYTHING! Cleans under furniture... tells you when it needs emptying .. goes back to its dock to charge... gives hours of entertainment when there is nothing on TV! :0) Not a thing!

Best cleaning robot – Had this since 2009 and still working. Very durable and best thing of all is the parts are easily available from eBay. I have serviced and repaired Robert (name I have him) countless time. Every parts can be removed and repaired or replaced. There is a online store called OZ robots which offer a new version of the cleaning kit, it reduces its noise by 3/4 and is more durable.  Show details

4+ years on and still loving it!! – We purchased two iRobot Roombas from Harvey Norman in May 2012. We used one on our hardwood floors and woollen rugs; while a family member used the other on her thick carpet. We both loved the performance straight away; and continue to use these Roombas as our only home vacuum cleaners.

Saved my back – A crook back from vacuuming was saved by my 2007 purchase of this wonderful robot. I have just updated this year, after 8 years of heavy use on tiles and carpets to the 630. The 530 served us well, and we went through 3 battery packs over this period. We bought them from ebay as they were much cheaper than the irobot versions. These are great… Read more

machines, but at least every couple of weeks you need to clean out the hair, string and other fluff that gets caught in the moving parts underneath - still beats going around the whole house with the vaccum head. It never needed a service, nor have I neeeded to contact irobot . It always amazes me that a small machine can take so much dirt and fluff out of my house. You still need a strong vaccum for some jobs, but we only pull out our ducted vaccum once every few months. Now we have majority floorboards in the the house and roomba is fantastic. Very much recommend.

TV Shop borderline Scammers! Roomba not the best either! – We have had our Roomba for a year now. The vacuum is not the most effective in general; it seems to miss many parts of the room and I usually have to set it off to do the room again to get full floor coverage. My sister bought a similar type of vacuum from Big W for less then $200 and it works better than the Roomba that cost us $800! Our… Read more

biggest issue is that the TV Shop (Brand Development) kept taking automatic payments for twice a long as they should have without our permission and then have been extremely difficult about returning the extra funds to us…we are still waiting to have almost $700 returned to us. Terrible customer service and we are curious as to how many people have paid more than they should have and haven't notice…feels a bit like a scam!!

Don't buy IRobot this company are scamers – I have bought a IRobot Vacuum cleaner and it seems to loose power on the battery and parts where failing right out of the box when opening and using. I called there customer centre and they treated me terrible wanting to get more money out of me for a poor product. The product that works on a battery that is rubbish this company wont replace it… Read more

or any part after 1 year even when other companies replace parts or the whole product itself. This vacuum is $400.00 dollars or more depending on what you buy and for that money you can but a vacuum that you dont have to replace parts or pay one ten the amount to use it for that kind of money and be treated like rubbish on the phone trying to get parts replaced, so please stay away from these scamers and buy a better product that doesnt fail and waste your money dont buy any IRobot product from them ever.

Not worth it – We were so excited when the large box arrived. So we charged it overnight and programmed it the next day. Over the next few days Roomba started work on time ... but our excitement slowly faded as we watched the unit wander aimlessly around the Kitchen, lounge and dining room with no pattern or learning capability. The unit runs along a straight… Read more

line and suddenly changes direction when the line of travel has not been completed.

It took around 2 hours for the 3 rooms.

The price is also far too much for what it does.

I called the TV Shop around 30 days later to return it but was told they had Australia Post proof that delivery was 32 days ago so under no circumstances could it be refunded even after explaining we were overseas on holiday for 2 weeks and could send them our proof. Starts on time Does not get into corners or any space smaller than the unit, too expensive for what it does, not replace a vacuum

not too bad – I used this roomba nearly a year. it is very handy to have it if you are lazy to vacum your house very day. it helped you and save the your life. but if you are looking for really good and detailed clean, you'd better buy Dyson proper vacum matchine instead.  Show details

Near perfect, couldnt do with out it – I have had my Roomba 570 for 5 years now. Bought from Harvey Normans in 2012 Mandurah. It came with extra set of brushes and filters. The first battery lasted 3 years, the 2nd a cheap replacement from ebay didnt last a year. I finally opted to buy the better batter large charge capacity for $99.00 sounds a lot but it has enhanced the use it… Read more ·  1

now goes for 3 hours non stop and I can do the whole upstairs without recharging.

its an amazing little machine, it picks up more dirt and fluff than my built in vacuum system. Reaches under the bed no problem. leaves the carpets looking refreshed. It goes up onto my thick Turkish rugs from floorboards no problem. It has a dirt detector and while go round in circles till as is clear. Which is great as my husband wipes his feet on the rug inside and not outside after doing gardening. It picks up the dog hairs really well too.

I do clean it after every run, it takes two mins. I wrap the dirt into paper and put it in the compost bin.

I have recommended this make to others, but some of them have gone for cheaper models and not been happy.

What can i say?

Spare parts are readily available. But so far only bought new filters and batteries.

I have never taken it back for repairs.

I can sit and have a coffee while my little helper does his rounds. We have named him Reggie!

Twice a year I clean the skirting boards with a cloth.

I can honestly recommend this device to any one. My son and daughter have also bought on my recommendation and they too are so pleased they went with this brand

iRobot Roomba – I purchased one of these but I must say, I think these are much better for larger and open places, I live in a small unit and find while it does clean, I spend more time moving it out of corners. I like it, but I went back to my old vacuum, only because of this issue. In the better world, If I could, I would have a duct vac.

No back up service – Always getting jammed and getting a repair is a nightmare. Doesn't lock into its caddy correctly and cleaning the brushes is difficult.

Carry handle – I recently went shopping for a Roomba for a physically disabled friend. After owning mine for 2.5 years, I concluded that it must have a carry handle (many models don't) and 2 rollers (one brush and one rubber flicker). Those prerequisites eliminated most robot vacs on sale. Two other things to consider are the 'smaller the diameter' and the… Read more

'lower the machine' will mean it will clean lower furniture and get into smaller areas. Recently I had a door-to-door salesman demonstrate his very expensive manual vac and he was very surprised that our carpets were not 'as dirty' as he expected or usually encountered. Cleans better than any manual vac I owned over 40 years.

Not a bad little unit – We bought the iRobot Roomba 577 for our new home a a few months ago and have had no major issues with it. Sometimes it misses areas but will often do the job properly. Once a week we still vacuum the house, as the iRobot is best used to keep the residual mess away in between regular cleaning and mopping. Glad I bought it. Easy to use Sometimes misses areas

Love it! – It is great to come back every days to cleaned floor! Just one thing, don't forget to clear young daughter's hair bands from the floor as it does get truly stuck in the brushes. it live s up to all the claims in the Ad. The cat is gradually getting used to it :-)

My best friend – I love my robot I even named him herbie he's a great addition to the family! Having a dog and two young children the crumbs, dog hair and grass are constant so herbie helps me out a lot. Often I put him on before I go to the shops and when I get back my floor is clean! Don't expect him to be able to get into tight corners though which as a round… Read more ·  1

robot you can see he can't get into tight corners. The only bad thing about them is I wish it came with more virtual wall things, other than that I have had mine for 3 years now and have never had an issue, wish I had the money to get the newer one! everything need more than one virtual wall

do not buy – After less than 3 years I have replaced parts twice at my own cost and it is stuffed again. They have changed the product after realizing that dust gets inside and burns out the cogs. I cleaned it out regulary (This is NOT in the manual). But it has burnt the plastic and cogs. Irobot refuses to help out or even talk to me. Paying for an $800… Read more

product plus $80 twice on parts.... irobot wont even acknowledge there is a problem blaming it on me. All I asked for was one free part... there are cheaper brands which last longer and have better customer service. .... the cons out weigh the pros sorry taking it apart to clean even though your not told to, breaking every 6 months..... bad customer service

Wow – Should have bought one years ago. cleans so well. best thing since sliced bread.. Does the entire house. I sit and do nothing now and it does every floor i have. Not once has it got stuck. so impressive. I dont think that my house has ever been this clean. Roomba finds dust every time and is always full. Thank you Irobot for making the Roomba. … Read more

I call him Pablo. Does the entire house without a complaint, dosnt get stuck and gives me more free time. Nothing, it works so well and is entertaining to watch him everytime and even after the hundreth time.

Worst customer service I have ever experienced – Don't get me wrong I LOVE my roomba 530. But brand developers have changed staff in the roomba customer service department and it is shocking now! Machine wasn't suctioning currently at 11 and a half months so I sent it for service, 3 weeks later after pestering them I get a response that there's hair in the bearings and it's $60 to get cleaner… Read more

back because it's not under warranty. Cogs in dustbin which collect fine particles are also broken which they refuse to replace and when I stated I will check it when it gets back and if it's not fixed I'll be sending it back, her response was "if you undo the screws it'll void your warranty". Great tactics at keeping the machine till after warranty ran out. I could've got a refund from big w if it had of been looked at on time. Great machine of working well Terrible warranty service!

Love my roomba – Have had my roomba for 18 months and love it. Did have an error and contacted the Australia ditributor and they were not much help, think it was customer service person lacked training. Bought a new battery and that seemed to fix my problem. Best gadget I have bought. Have recoommended to 4 friends, (who have all purchased) and they also love theirs. Time saving Error message not easy to find problem

Love it! – I was contemplating to get a Roomba for a long time since giving birth. I'm so surprised that I didn't get it sooner! Honestly one of the best purchases I've ever made. If you think your house is clean - think again! I had vacuumed 3 days before getting my Roomba and was surprised at how much dirt is picked up. My daughter is now 15 months old and… Read more

often drops little bits of food pieces here and there so if we go out for the day I'll set Roomba on and come home to my floors looking schmick! Btw, I bought this refurbished off eBay for $300. cleans efficiently short battery life, have to constantly charge

love it – I have had mine for 5 years now and if it stopped tomorrow ,I would replace it in a heart beat . Its the best vacuum cleaner I have owned . It is much more cost effective than paying for someone to do it . I payed $389 for mine and that means its been $78 a year for a robot to do my cleaning not bad at all. Its also an excellent gift for older… Read more ·  1

parents , it also cleans billiard tables so well the vacuuming is done while i do something else or go out,

Average – I have a Roomba 780 it's an expensive duster. It has to be monitored all the time because unless your house is devoid of furniture it gets stuck often. Battery life is ordinary. It's also very noisy. It does a job but is the price tag worth it? I paid $600 on special down from $750 at Harvey Norman. Anyone who says it does a better job than they… Read more

can manually must be a lazy slob. It can't clean dust/dirt off the top of your skirting boards. Has a purpose as a first line duster, superficial clean to make presentable when busy. Limited as to what it will pickup, dust bin too small, noisy, frequent cleaning /maintenance, low battery life, too expensive, made in China

Roomba – It seemed like a good idea at the time. Many of my friends said they had seen them in action and that it was the way to go. The Roomba does collect dust and dirt efficiently and it does work. It does manage to remain within its selected cleaning area and it covers all areas needing to be cleaned. It will not climb onto our thick shag pile rug,… Read more ·  1

which covers omsot of the living room floor, so I still need my old push vac to get that cleaned. Compact size. Clean well. No hard copy manual. I hate having to use batteries, esp Cs. Will not climb over hag pile rug

works great when it works, false warranty – Purchased from harvey norman and paid an extra $150 for an extended 2 yr warranty, thats 3 years all up. Worked great for 4 months then broke down, i clean it every 2nd vacuum run, remove hair stuck on rollers etc. Never mis used or abused product. Put it into service and roomba company said it wasnt covered under warranty cuz there is hair stuck… Read more

in bearings. Fair enough but i cleaned it the best i could, what about flawed designed for a $500 product and paid extended warranty. I understand hair gets stuck in rollers, but bearings? They want to charge me $19 to post out, $60 for inspection and havent included repair cost. Thankfully harvey norman replaced me with new one cleaned well when it worked not reliable, not willing to honour waranty

Brilliant & Well Designed – Have a Roomba for 15 months now. The floors have never been cleaner. Roomba does a great job, it will work for approx 1.5 to 2 hours, eventually covering all areas and then dock itself when finished. Four members of my family now own Roombas and they have all been trouble-free. The trick for a trouble-free Roomba is to clean it's brushes and… Read more

remove dust from it's moving parts regularly. Removing dust from it's moving parts is a snap because the parts are coloured yellow, for easy identification and can easily be removed and cleaned. The front wheel for example can easily be pulled out to clean any dust caught there. It is thoughtfully designed to help the owner to maintain it.

When you first use the Roomba, it is a good idea to follow it around and find where it has trouble. The trouble spots for me were Roomba's tendency to get tangled up in iphone charger cords and power cords under the bed and along the wall. It also had a habit of closing the door and locking itself in the room. Putting the iphone charger out of the way, using draught stoppers (draught sausages) along some cords to keep Roomba away fixed the cord problems. Door stoppers on my doors stopped Roomba from closing the doors. Keeping clothes off the floor is a must.

The thing I like most about iRobot's Roomba compared to other brands is most parts are modularised. If a part does break down after the warranty period, it's simply a matter of buying the user-replaceable module on ebay. A search on youtube with the search terms "Roomba Modules" will yield videos from iRobot itself with instructions on how to change the user-replaceable modules. It's a brilliant design and it does ensure that the Roomba will provide many years of service.

All I can say is - buy it. You will love it. Do not buy cheap imitations though. It is far better to spend the little extra to buy an iRobot Roomba. Moduarlised Design. Throughness. Clean, vacuumed floors. Nothing I can think of. It's great not having to manually vacuum anymore.

The best thing I have bought in a long time – This this is simply magnificent. Yes it wont clean your carpet and place as WELL as a high powered Dyson, but because you can run it every day or every second day the place never gets build up. Its such a great way to keep your place dust free. I have got a hand held Dyson which helps to empty the Roomba effectively and its the best combo. I… Read more ·  1

haven't used my normal vacuum cleaner in >8mo and my place is spotless. The price went up after I bought mine from about $530 to $800 but its STILL worth every cent. Easy to use, cleans well, very impressive.

Wish I'd bought one sooner – I bought my little robot about 8 weeks ago after moving into a bigger home with more grey tiles, so everything showed up. Working long hours I was struggling to keep the floors looking fabulous & being a house proud person, this was driving me insane! We have a Golden Retriever who comes in for a couple of hours a day & an indoor cat. The… Read more ·  1

best money I spent was on my Roomba.

I set it off daily as I walk out the door to work and I come home to a clean floor, I barely have to get my Dyson out, but will weekly do the touch up spots that the Roomba can't reach or I have limited the access to due to get trapped in the furniture.

It does a great job on the floor tiles, and it also does a great job on the carpet upstairs, doing under the beds and all those hard to reach spots.

I highly recommend it, infact my Mum who has 4 indoor dogs & a bad back has since bought one and loves it.

I have no regrets in spending the money we did. It has been a fantastic investment great job, reliable

Good product when working! - poor customer service – Roomba works well when it is working!, However had a fault with the cleaning module after 6 months, took much arguing to get a replacement part. Now 4 months later that replacement has the same problem, now 10 days past the 2 month warranty and company refuses to replace it - despite it being their part which is faulty again. cleans well, love that it runs when you are out! not reliable and poor customer service Show reply

Good Robot! – Hi all, bought this robot at costco for $369. I have a special needs child and don't have the time or energy to clean. The roomba 530 does an excellent job of cleaning our wooden floors and rugs. Better then my wife does... he he he. This has been an excellent purchase. My only gripe is sometimes the roomba returns to dock too soon and I only… Read more

wished it would keep cleaning until it's batteries are almost exhausted, then return to dock. I believe the higher models have this function though. To get around this, I turn off the dock, then it will keep cleaning and will only return to dock when I turn the dock back on.... dodgy but it works.

The virtual wall works perfectly for me. I empty the robot after every use and it always amazes me how much dust it picks up!!!

I always make sure the brushes are clean and all hair is removed from the nooks and crannies of the moving parts. Excellent cleaning ability and gets into the edges and corners. Does not get tangled on power cords. Returns to dock too soon sometimes.

Works well but – This gadget does a truly fantastic job. My only gripe is that the lighthouses which set up to limit it to one area don't work properly unless I take the batteries out and put them back in. I wrote to to customer service but no reply. Pretty disappointed. Won't recommend Cleans beautifully. Extras don't work. No response from customer service.

Excellent product! – I love my roomba, it does my slate tiles perfectly and is fantastic on my normal tiles and carpet too. Always does a better job than I ever could with just the press of a button. I only have to empty the crumb catcher once a day. Picks up more dust than my usual vacuume cleaner and has completely stopped my allergies.

Dyson fan – I love my Dyson and I am very house proud but after having a baby I was finding it frustrating sitting on the couch to feed for an hour looking at my floors and not having the time or energy to pull the Dyson out. I was surprisingly impressed by the iRobot Roomba 530. It does not replace the thorough clean the Dyson is capable of but it is perfect… Read more

for making a room look and feel cleaner inbetween cleans. The battery lasts enough to do a few rooms but then needs a good charge inbetween. It doesn't get hooked on cords etc underneath cupboards and beds which I was also surprised by. I am particularly impressed with the job it does on our hardwood floors too, gets right into the corners where the dust accumulates.

I am one of those people who always buys the 'top of the range' model of anything and this was an exception for me as I was sceptial, this model is one of the bottom of the range and I confidently recommend the iRobot Roomba 530, especially if you're a new mum or working full time. I wish I had of bought mine earlier. Convenient, reasonably thorough and not as loud as anticipated