I just bought my second one for a present. I love mine. Keep him in the charger, whenever he is not out spinning and cleaning, and you will have no problems. Jeeves is cheaper than a maid and he does not rifle through your stuff. Just set him loose go out-he is noisy-come back to guilt free couch potatoeing. First you will want to watch him and marvel at his work ethic and style.

Well, drat. If you suffer from significant environmental allergies, you'll have to wait for the 700 series or do secondary vacuuming with another vacuum. IRobot doesn't make hepa filters for the 500 series.

I have this debate with myself for every woot roomba: on one hand, no one is vacuuming under the furniture, hepa filter or no, and scheduling these when you're not home means you don't have to deal with the dust that even my Dyson animal kicks up. On the hand that I'm sneezing into, though, I wonder how motivated I'll be to lug my ancient Dyson around when technically the vacuuming has already been done...though not to an allergist's satisfaction.

Given the price difference between this and a 700 series, it could be worth it just to see how compatible a roomba is with my lifestyle and cleaning habits. Hmm.

The Virtual Wall inclusion is great, if there's some specific area you want to keep it out of. Just set the little beacon down, and it project an invisible line the roomba won't cross. You just need to remember to replace the D-cell battery about twice a year.

Gwagg wrote:Does a roomba scar baseboards? I just installed hardwood floors with new white baseboards. Never imagined how much carpet hid dirt and cat hair.

It doesn't seem to be a problem for standard baseboards. It comes with an optional bumper strip that covers the front, if you are super worried just stick a halo of weatherstrip to it. Soft padding for your delicate baseboards.

OK, so here's the scoop on why Roombas (the 530 at least) eventually fail in circle dance mode (I compare it to a cat with a paper bag on his head):

There are two bumper sensors on the front that sense when Roomba has hit a wall. They work by moving a shutter between an LED and a sensor, blocking the light path. When this happens the Roomba backs up, turns away from the wall and then continues forward. The LED Emitter gets dimmer over time (just a function of the LED) and also as the battery voltage drops. The Roomba's sensing circuit doesn't adequately take these issues into account, and eventually one or the other bumper sensor LEDs dims to where the Roomba thinks it is perpetually hitting a wall on that side. It backs up and spins, backs up and spins, and eventually gives up with a 9-beep "uh-oh" tone.

When this happens the sensor assemblies can be replaced but if you're at all handy you can take the Roomba apart and solder in a new emitter-sensor pair. Might as well do both sides at once since the second sensor will fail soon after the first. In my opinion you shouldn't own a Roomba unless you don't mind becoming something of a Roomba technician.

More info on the repair for the 9-beep dance is here:
http://www.schneordesign.com/Avi/irobot/roomba_mod2.htm
(Not my page but I've used the instructions a couple of times).

Best purchase I ever made. We have this exact same one that we got about a year ago. We have two cats and a dog (along with two kids) and we run the roomba every other day. It keeps the furball tumbleweeds to a minimum and picks up the various other little things the kids leave behind. We have wood laminate floors throughout the first floor which is where we use roomba. Have used it on carpet, but that's not really where it's strength is. We usually turn it on and let it run as we go out the door to work/school in the morning and come home to a clean floor. For this price, this is a steal and if you have an itchy "buy it" finger, GO FOR IT! You won't regret it!

Greetings Wooters. On 8/26/09 I bought one of these from Woot, same model, also refurbished. I used it, I loved it, right up until May 2nd of this year when it burned down my house, killing my cat, and leaving me homeless. Seriously. The cause of the fire was put down to signs of internal heating in the base charging station. I'm not trying to talk anyone out of buying one of these, I liked mine. I do, however, STRONGLY recommend you don't leave it charging on the base station all the time. Here's the article from the local paper: http://www.gazettetimes.com/news/local/article_64f2e092-7632-11e0-84d5-001cc4c002e0.html
-Joe

I got one of these from Woot a year or so ago, and found that it's pretty useless if you have long haired pets. The hair gets wrapped around the brushes, and you'll find yourself having to clean it every 15 minutes.

It also has a bad habit of sucking up cat toys, and knocking things over. The optional remote control is useful for keeping it from wrecking the place.

ubiq wrote:The later Roomba models claim to be able to deal with rug fringe. Anyone know if this is true?

Works fine on fringe that is fully attached. I have a 560 and 530 and they handle fringe. The 400s get stuck. But buy a warranty. These seldom last a year unless you religiously use canned air. If they last out of warranty, you can open the gear box and clean out the crude-goop intertwined in the gears. Keeps them going.

Too slow... Man I wanted one of these bad. They're on woot all the time though, guess I'll wait for next time.

cujoturner wrote:Greetings Wooters. On 8/26/09 I bought one of these from Woot, same model, also refurbished. I used it, I loved it, right up until May 2nd of this year when it burned down my house, killing my cat, and leaving me homeless. Seriously. The cause of the fire was put down to signs of internal heating in the base charging station. I'm not trying to talk anyone out of buying one of these, I liked mine. I do, however, STRONGLY recommend you don't leave it charging on the base station all the time. Here's the article from the local paper: http://www.gazettetimes.com/news/local/article_64f2e092-7632-11e0-84d5-001cc4c002e0.html
-Joe

I assumed you were joking and then I read the article. My sympathies about your cat.

Yeah, I don't think I'll be getting one of these just yet.

Why does the picture look like a Roomba 532? Isn't the 530 all white? Or did iRobot change colors at some point...

Can I do anything to convince Woot! to put another one of these up tomorrow? I was thinking about new vs refurb, though I'd been waiting for this deal for a month, and by the time I got home from the bar, this deal was sold out!

I would have snap-purchased this if I'd expected this to sell out, but I don't ever remember seeing Roombas sell out. This makes me very, very sad.

:[

cujoturner wrote:Greetings Wooters. On 8/26/09 I bought one of these from Woot, same model, also refurbished. I used it, I loved it, right up until May 2nd of this year when it burned down my house, killing my cat, and leaving me homeless. Seriously. The cause of the fire was put down to signs of internal heating in the base charging station. I'm not trying to talk anyone out of buying one of these, I liked mine. I do, however, STRONGLY recommend you don't leave it charging on the base station all the time. Here's the article from the local paper: http://www.gazettetimes.com/news/local/article_64f2e092-7632-11e0-84d5-001cc4c002e0.html
-Joe

You''ve been through hell due to a stupid robot vaccum. I'm really sorry and thank you for letting others know. I hope Roomba is taking care of all of your losses plus. I bet your phone rang off the hook with ambulance chasers. Glad you were working and not sleeping after your shift. If you were sleeping, you might not be here to tell the story.

Maybe you can send it to Woot so they don't sell this item again.

For the person that missed their deal due to a bar trip, your bar habit might have done you a big favor. They won't put it up 2 days in a row. They're probably sold out anyway.

sdbcmr wrote:How can we not love a Roomba WOOT?

Remember: this is basically the only Jetson's promise that came through. (I'm still waiting for my personal jet pack ...)

HA!! It would really help me forget about learning to walk again. Can't get the hang of floating yet! Love, Granny

If you decide to get this vacuum, be sure you consider an additional purchase (from iRobot). Without it, pet hair especially and other dirt will get clogged between the dirt bin and the rollers. You will soon find that you need the AeroVac replacement dirt bin in order for the unit to function as you expect. I purchased the AeroVac bin from iRobot because I was not happy with the results while using the included standard or high capacity bins. With the AeroVac, all dirt and pet hair end up in the bin and not trapped between the brushes and the bin. No clue why they just don't include the AeroVac as standard and charge more for the package. Would make for more satisfied customers from the start.

I can't believe I effing missed this..I have been waiting forever and the one day I have to check end of day...bam...Figures!

Bah!

Sarzanini wrote:I know a great X-Mas present for the folks when I see one.....in for 1 with a 2 year Square Trade warranty (Thanks Rinverso!)....still less then I was planning to spend at Costco.....

you'll love it. kudos to you.

sunshinewonder wrote:Got one of these during a recent Wootoff. One morning as as I was I leaving for work thought that It's a shame I couldn't schedule it (without going through some hoops,) and then I came across a hairball that my cat left for me. It then occurred to me that if I wasn't around to take a quick look at the Roomba's path before it did it's thing, I would very likely wind up with schmeared hairball all over my carpet.

So I picked up the hairball, took a quick look at the carpet, and started up the roomba just before I left for work. Hats my routine now.

Sorry to be graphic, but maybe some of you will rethink needing scheduling.
one time my dog got a bit of diahrea, while i was away with the roomba was running, a very disgusting job i must say. won't ever describe
Btw, I am extremely happy with my Roomba.

imagine that.. another roomba...

I've had a Roomba vacuum robot for 6 months and it works like a charm. You can see my comments and reviews at Roomba reviews and more

It really helps having the room cleaner and saving time

I received my Roomba 530 today and I am very happy with it.

It DOES have the upgraded Aerovac bin and filter installed, and comes with an additional Aerovac filter. That's a pleasant surprise, since the Aerovac upgrade costs $70 from iRobot.

The virtual wall and home base for it are black, and do not match the Roomba, which is white, but that's no big deal. They are of the newer design that came with my 550 model.

jbayless71 wrote:I received my Roomba 530 today and I am very happy with it.

It DOES have the upgraded Aerovac bin and filter installed, and comes with an additional Aerovac filter. That's a pleasant surprise, since the Aerovac upgrade costs $70 from iRobot.

The virtual wall and home base for it are black, and do not match the Roomba, which is white, but that's no big deal. They are of the newer design that came with my 550 model.

I received mine just now. Does NOT include the Areovac bin. Also, the manual says the brush cleaning tool is included. It is NOT.

Register your Roomba at www.iRobot.com and they give you a 1 year warranty. Use the 21 digit code found on the sticker on the box, or under the removeable dust tray (hint: it is 3 letters followed by 18 numbers). If you want more than 1 year, go with Square Trade.

koobiluphi wrote:I received mine just now. Does NOT include the Areovac bin. Also, the manual says the brush cleaning tool is included. It is NOT.

Mine had nothing but the manual and one extra Aerovac filter included ... no cleaning tools like the ones that came with my retail 550.

I think these robots might be cobbled together from spare parts. I see that the SKU number on the bottom of the robot, usually located in front of the left wheel, has been removed. Mine works great ... cleaned my home office, the hallway and the nursery for the last two days and made it back to the base each time.

On the plus side ... as Ken24s2 said, it is possible to register it for a one-year-warranty with iRobot. That's pretty cool, and much better than the 90-day warranty listed with the Woot sale. When I registered it with iRobot, the site recognized it as a remanufactured 530, but the color scheme on it is that of a 531.

Sku Number? Mine has been scratched off the bottom. Any other way to know what the SKU is for this device? Why would they scratch it off anyway?

Woot didn't send me a Virtual Wall. I sent Woot support an email about it and they suggested I contact iRobot. So I contacted them and iRobot said to talk to Woot. I told Woot this and now Woot wants me to call back iRobot.

I'm not going to go back and forth. Woot, you did not fulfill the order as promised, it is your job to fulfill it.

I just started buying stuff from you guys (Xoom, universal remote, shirt, etc.) and this is the first problem that I've had and you are doing a terrible job to rectify it.

man, mine is already dead. Didn't even get a full month out of it. Should have known better than buying a refurb.

jtidmore wrote:Sku Number? Mine has been scratched off the bottom. Any other way to know what the SKU is for this device? Why would they scratch it off anyway?

The SKU number identifies exactly what features a Roomba has. Since these were put together from different parts, they probably do not match the old SKU any more. I know mine does not, since it came with the Aerovac bin and black virtual wall.

bebopblues wrote:Wrong, this roomba doesn't have the schedule programming feature. :P

Yes it does you just need to purchase the usb cable from iRobot and send the scheduling commands to the Roomba