Wi-Fi Enabled iRobot Roomba 960 Robot Vacuum Cleaner

This struggle leaves me with the question of whether there is a solution out there that will suit my busy schedule. And this is when I stumbled upon robot vacuum cleaners, which are automated vacuum cleaners that can clean my home while I am away. In other words, this is a perfect solution for busy workers like me.

If you have similar issues when it comes to balancing your time like me, then you are definitely going to love these machines the same way as I do. I chose to purchase the iRobot Roomba 960 robotic vacuum cleaner, which is one of the newest models from the well-known brand featuring some of the best robot vacuums.

While there are a lot of iRobot Roomba 960 reviews on the internet, I feel that they do not fully capture the wonders of this tiny yet miraculous machine. And that is the reason why I took it upon myself to share with you my experience and some tips for using this robot vacuum.

Via: Amazon.com

Introducing The iRobot Roomba 960 Vacuum

I am sure anyone who is familiar with robot vacuum cleaners will be familiar with the Roomba series from iRobot. After all, the brand is known as the pioneer for this type of vacuum cleaner. And the iRobot Roomba 960 vacuuming robot is the newest addition to their impressive catalog of products.

With a robot vacuum, all you need to do is to connect it with your home Wi-Fi and you are ready to control it remotely from the comfort of wherever you are, so long as you have your phone with you.Well, at least that is what is expected when we think about robot vacuums. However, the newer iRobot models have some special tricks that set them apart from the competition.

➜ RELATED: Bissell Cleanview 9595A: Affordable King

Being the newest addition in a long line of good robot vacuum generations, the iRobot Roomba 960 model offers the latest solutions to some problems that its predecessors had in addition to the superior features that the Roomba series is already known for. A complete list of the pros to owning an iRobot Roomba 960 include the following:

• Intuitive Setup: The Roomba 960 only takes a few minutes to assemble and set up full remote control.
• Improved navigation: Compared to its predecessors, the Roomba 960 has been integrated with a smart auto-navigating system.
• Cleaning scheduling: You can now schedule cleaning jobs for your Roomba 960 instead of having to rely on manual control to start the jobs.

Of course the vacuum cleaner is not flawless and it does have some limitations. These include:

• No steering options
• Navigation failures leading to accidents and getting stuck

We are going to discuss these pros and cons  in more detail below to let you get a more comprehensive view of the vacuum.

The Modern Technologies

As mentioned above, there are a lot of great things that a Roomba 960 comes equipped with.

No time for proper home cleaning is heartbreaking

User-Friendly Design

I cannot stress enough how easy it was for me to put the robot vacuum together and get it ready to clean in less than 10 minutes. This was especially great because at first I was not sure about purchasing these robot vacuums because I was not a tech-savvy person. I would not want to spend my precious time from my already busy schedule reading guides to know how to use a machine.

But very surprisingly, I was able to assemble the vacuum intuitively without any professional assistance. It was also equally easy for me to download the accompanying mobile application and finish  the setup as I was guided by the step-by-step instructions. And so in less than 10 minutes, I have created my very own little robot helper around the house.

Needless to say, this user-friendly design is an important feature for products like these, especially for customers like me. This is because these vacuums are intended to be helpers for busy people like myself. Specifications have it that the less time it requires us out of our busy schedule to know how to use it, the more attractive and effective as a solution it becomes for us.

But if you are still concerned that such a high level of technology will be too overwhelming and difficult for you to handle, then no worries. Because you can always contact the iRobot support team on their website for assistance. They will be more than happy to help you with any problems you may have.

Navigation System

The critical flaw with old robot vacuum models was the lack of an efficient navigation system. This means old robot vacuums have the tendency to wander around aimlessly until it runs out of battery. And you have no other way than praying that it will have cleaned everywhere it is supposed to clean by that time. Not to anyone’s surprise, it does not most of the time.

In addition, lack of an efficient navigation system makes them prone to accidents in houses with many raised areas where the Roomba has to work. Some systems even mistook dark color carpets for stairs and avoided cleaning those carpets. They also left annoyingly repetitive notifications on your phone that they encountered a cliff when they had not. These flaws greatly limited their cleaning potential and capacity.

This was fixed with the newer models. The Roomba 960 that I have has a smarter navigating system. And thanks to this system, it is able to differentiate clearly between the different floor types and remember the layout of the room that it is working in.

When I gave it a test and put it in my living room, it could remember that it cleaned under my sofa and avoided that part to move on to other parts. And although one of my carpets was pitch-black, there was no problem with the vacuum cleaner when it was working on the carpet. With this smart navigating system, I can always rest assured knowing that my machine can work entirely by itself without my supervision or babysitting.

Via: Amazon.com

Smart Scheduling

I have to admit that this is one of the best things that this vacuum cleaner is able to do for busy people like me. With me not being physically home from 9 to 5, it used to be impossible for me to have the machine give my home a cleaning during the day before I got home. But it all changed when I found out that I could schedule my Roomba 960 through the app on my phone.

After I discovered this feature, you can say that I have been abusing it ever since. It simply is so convenient! I do not have to do anything else once I have the schedule set once. And I can even do something like scheduling my Roomba to give a heavy duty cleaning in the morning and then a light cleaning in the afternoon. This is all possible thanks to modern technology, of course.

If you are familiar with a robot cleaner then you would know that they tend to run nonstop for about 75 minutes before needing to be recharged. But the newer robot vacuum cleaners such as this Roomba 960 can find its way back to its charging station. This essentially means the machine can work nonstop as long as you give it a 2-hour break to rest in-between.

You can use this to your advantage and also schedule it in such a way that is like what I did above: A deep clean, then rest, and then another cleaning session  but a bit lighter.

Performance

I purchased this vacuum cleaner fully knowing that it is one of the newest vacuum models on the market. And so, I also fully expected that only the best performance quality awaited me. Thankfully, it did not disappoint me.

The first thing that must be mentioned, which I am sure is also what you are most interested about, is the suction power. While the suction is not on par with a full sized vacuum cleaner, it still manages to suck up a lot.

By the time I got home, I always saw that its dust bin was full and the house was clean, even the wall corners. Only the carpets were still a little bit dusty, although that could always be fixed easily with a light manual cleaning.

Secondly, the shape of the vacuum cleaner... I just love how this little machine conveniently dances around the underside of my sofa, my table and other living room furniture. I have read that this design is one of the smallest of its kind specifically just to be able to do that. It is also quite relaxing to watch the machine doing its work on the weekends.

But despite what iRobot Roomba 960 reviews might say otherwise, users have reported that the small shape of the vacuum makes it rather clumsy when it comes to dealing with thick carpets. Perhaps this is the reason why my carpets were a bit dirty, but I am fine to do some light manual cleaning myself, when the alternative is to be doing heavy cleaning during my weekends.

Alternative Options To Consider

If for whatever reason you do not enjoy the 960 as much as I do, the least I can do is to recommend a few other options for your consideration.

iRobot Roomba 960C: This and the Roomba 960 are basically the same thing, and you will be shocked to hear the difference between them. The extra “c” only means that this is a Roomba 960 sold by Costco. What a surprise, no? But actually, this version of the Roomba 960 offers an extra virtual wall plus an upgraded repair kit with more replacement parts than the original. And yet, it is still the same price as the original. I’d think this is a very good deal if I was living in the U.S.

iRobot Roomba E5: You can think of this as a more budget friendly version of the Roomba 960. This is a smaller cleaner with a less effective capacity, but it is available at a more affordable price while being a close sibling to the Roomba 960. Considering that the price is what people find the most unattractive about the Roomba 960, this offers a decent alternative option for your consideration. For more details about this model, please find a more dedicated iRobot Room E5 reviews.

CONCLUSION

It was a headache for me trying to find a solution to my scheduling problem. But after sorting through my “what are the best vacuum cleaners for busy people” research, I have discovered my perfect solution in a robot vacuum cleaner. But I also wanted my investment to be worth it, and that is why I chose the iRobot Roomba 960 model over the older models with less impressive features.

I hope that my post  above has taught you a bit more about the wonders of having a little helper like a Roomba 960 around the house, especially for people with busy work and life balance like me. Click here to check out this little wonder yourself.