irobot 550MIT Engineers Rodney Brooks and Colin Angle used their personal credit cards to launch iRobot in 1990. Helen Greiner, also from the MIT AI Lab joined shortly thereafter. The robots for the first decade or so were part science project part custom design engineering for companies and governments. They built a small robot for the Japanese Ministry of Trade, and a mine sweeper for DOD (they still build military robots, in fact several are now in service in Afghanistan and Iraq). Their first real consumer product was a toy, my Real Baby. Using the cost consciousness from dealing with the toy manufacturers, they launched the Roomba in 2003. It has been joined by a mopping unit called Scooba; they've even created a gutter sweeper (Looj).

I've had a number of Roombas over the years, and each time I've upgraded I'm always impressed at how much the next generation has progressed. The 500 series is the quietest model I have used yet, and it benefits from the feedback and refinements of the robots before it. We have tile throughout most of the house, with carpet in the living room and bedroom. The Roomba cleans it all, and I've never had a problem with it getting stuck on normal surfaces. I have had it try to eat a lamp cord, but after I "Roomba Proofed" the house (tied up cords, etc) I never had another issue. It goes over the bathroom rugs without issue- I don't know how it would handle rugs with large tassels however. I just treat it like a regular vacuum (ie you wouldn't put your Hoover on a Turkish rug with 6" tassels) and it works just fine.

I love the fact that it's so small- with 3" or so of clearance it can go under dressers, under the bed, and under the coffee table with no effort. It also does a great job of grabbing hair and dust bunnies off the floor, no spreading the dirt around at all. This model comes with an intelligent scheduling feature, so you can have do the vacuuming while you're gone. It also can find it's charging station and dock itself, so it's ready for the next day. It makes worrying about keeping your floors free from dirt a thing of the past.

One of the hallmarks of truly exceptional engineering is that it makes something very complicated, very easy for the end user. To get Roomba to clean, you press one button, aptly titled "Clean". This Roomba talks! It walks you through the setup, and tells you when there's a problem- no more running to the manual to figure out what the beeps mean. There's also new virtual walls called Lighthouses. They work in two ways- one they force the Roomba to completely vacuum one room before moving on to the next, and secondly to create invisible barriers to areas that Roomba will not cross. Overall this is a great vacuum, and it makes me wonder why I did it the hard way for some many years.

Some additional improvements over previous models include:

  • 33% Larger Filtration Unit
  • 33% Larger Dust Bin
  • Faster Brush Speed
  • Better Suction

Sources
Inc Magazine
iRobot
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Here are the current prices on Amazon:

iRobot Roomba 550 / 551 AeroVac Technology Vacuum Cleaning Robot
List Price: $530.99
Sale Price: $399.99
You save: $131.00 (25%)
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Features

  • Covers up to 4 rooms on a single battery charge.
  • Cleans the whole floor, under and around furniture, into corners and along wall edges. Detects dirtier areas and spends more time cleaning
  • Faster counter-rotating brushes with improved design pick up more hair, debris and dust and are easy to remove and clean
  • Improved anti-tangle technology keeps Roomba from getting stuck on cords, carpet fringe and tassels
  • Counter rotating Bristle Brush and Beater Brush work together like a dustpan and broom
Tenergy Replacement Battery for iRobot R3 500, 600, & 700 series 14.4V APS Battery
Sale Price: $23.99
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Features

  • APS battery compatible with all 500 series Roomba® FloorVac® models
  • Charges in 3 hours with APS charger
  • Provides up to 100 minutes of run time
  • 50 percent greater useful life than original Roomba batteries
  • Dimension: 5.7 x 2.2 x 2.5inches
Pwr+® Extended 3ah Capacity Battery for Irobot Roomba 500 510 530 532 535 540 545 550 552 560 562 570 580 581 582 585 595 600 620 630 650 660 700 760 770 780 790 R3 80501
List Price: $59.90
Sale Price: $32.90
You save: $27.00 (45%)
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Features

  • Extended Capacity 3000 mAh
  • PWR+ products were tested by manufacturer to match and/or exceed original specifications of iRobot products
  • PWR+ batteries are made with the highest quality materials.
iRobot 560 Roomba Vacuuming Robot, Black and Silver
List Price: $449.99
Sale Price: $332.88
You save: $117.11 (26%)
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Features

  • Vacuuming robot picks up dirt and debris with the touch of a button
  • Easy-to-empty bagless dustbin; fine-filtration system traps allergens
  • Anti-tangle technology; gentle-touch bumper system; built-in cliff sensors
  • Self-charging Home Base, 2 Auto Virtual Walls, an extra filter, and more included
  • Measures 16-3/4 by 21 by 5 inches; 1-year limited warranty
3 iRobot Roomba 500 Series AeroVac Blue Filters 500 550 Series; Fits IRobot Roomba AeroVac Filter Part# 20938; Designed & Engineered by Crucial Vacuum
Sale Price: $10.99
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Features

  • Breathe more easily while your Roomba cleans thanks to this replacement vacuum filter 3-pack by Crucial Vacuum designed to work with All AeroVac Roomba 5xx series Vacuums only.
  • Compatible with Roomba 5xx series models that utilize the AeroVac Bin design
  • Essential for Allergy Sufferers - Reduces infiltration of dust, pollen and other allergens from entering the air you breathe
  • For optimal performance, filters should be replaced every 2 - 3 months
  • Designed and Developed in the USA by Crucial Vacuum


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