iRobot's app is fairly intuitive and does a great job creating a map of your floor plan. The Settings menu is a little jumbled, but overall I like this app better than most. (Rick Broida/Yahoo)
iRobot all but pioneered the robot vacuum category — the original Roomba dates way back to 2002 — so I expected nothing but good things from the decades-under-its-belt Roomba Combo j9+. It's certainly an attractive cleaning machine, with stylish gold accents and a decor-friendly dock. It also promises to solve a problem common to modern vacuum/mop combos: mop pads dragging on carpet. It delivers on that account, but you might have to deal with a different problem. Meanwhile, the price tag isn't for the faint of heart (or budget). Is it worth the splurge? Will this robot keep your floors clean with a minimum of fuss? Here's my Roomba Combo j9+ review.
VERDICT: iRobot's robo-cleaner is relatively easy to use, smart about obstacles and good at transitioning from hard floors to carpet. But it's better at vacuuming than mopping, and without an auto-washing dock, it's hard to justify choosing this over other robots in the same price range.
To help you get set up, iRobot supplies a pair of illustrated quick-start pages, which I found clear and informative — to a point.
Once you've found a home for the dock and rolled the j9+ into it for charging, the iRobot app handles the rest of the setup process. It's pretty good at showing you the basics, but take note that the app-based Owner's Guide is basically a PDF that's hard to read (because it's so tiny) and limited in scope. If you're looking for help with specific features or operations, you won't find it here.
Luckily, the app is pretty intuitive overall. I won't say it's novice-friendly, because there are a few areas that confused me (and I've used a lot of these things). For example, why are there "Empty bin" and "Refill tank" controls when those things are supposed to happen automatically? Why does clean-zone setup offer weirdly specific names like "coat rack" and "desk," which are more like obstacles I'd rather it avoid?
Like most robo-vacs at this price point, the Combo j9+ can sweep, vacuum and mop — and do so on demand or at scheduled times. It self-empties its dustbin into the dock, which also contains a clean-water tank that must be refilled from time to time. (Just how often depends on how often you clean your floors, but iRobot estimates 30 days.)
A word about the dock: It's among the prettier ones I've seen, with a wood-paneled top that would actually make a nice little end table, seeing as it doesn't ever need to be lifted. Instead, you access the water reservoir by opening the front-facing door. The downside is that reservoir is wide, not tall like in most other docks, and therefore a little unwieldy when you're trying to refill it.
In my tests, the Roomba performed reasonably well overall, though it was a little slow and meandering at first. iRobot says it can take the Combo j9+ three to five runs to create a detailed map of your floors. Other models I've tested get this done after the first outing, but to iRobot's credit, the map here seems more accurate and detailed. I also like how easy it is to name rooms, create dividers and establish no-go zones — tasks some other robo-vac apps make complicated.
But why doesn't the app show the robot's position or cleaning progress on that map while it's running? That's a pretty common feature in other cleaners. You do get status notes like "dampening pad," but I miss being able to see exactly where the robot is — especially if it gets stuck and I have to hunt it down. (The app does have a "locate" feature, which will play a sound to help you find it.) I was also surprised that my phone didn't notify me when cleaning was done.
Less surprising: The Combo j9+ did a fine job sweeping and vacuuming, which makes sense given iRobot's pedigree. It's also quite good at avoiding obstacles, thanks in part to a camera-powered guidance system. If you have pets, you'll be glad to know iRobot guarantees the Roomba will steer around any detected "accidents," which could otherwise lead to a pretty nasty mess. (If it fails to do so, you're entitled to a free robot replacement.)
The mop is arguably the most interesting feature here. Some robots use a flat pad mounted to the underside; others employ spinning brushes. The challenge with both designs is what happens when the machine rolls onto carpet: The wet mop ends up dragging on it. Some newer models can automatically lift their pads or brushes, which helps on low-pile carpet, but there's only so high they can go. Anything with a little height still gets wet.
The Combo j9+ has a mop pad that's built into the top. When there's hard floor to be cleaned, that pad swings out on a mechanical arm, then tucks underneath the robot. It's a clever solution that definitely solves the wet-carpet conundrum.
Also clever: iRobot's SmartScrub technology, which causes the robot to move back and forth over problem spots, the machine equivalent of elbow grease. Alas, in my testing, this didn't work quite as well as spinning brushes, especially with sticky stuff like jam. The pad can't get into corners, either, though brushes have limitations there as well.
There's one other hiccup with the mechanical-arm design: On a few occasions, the mop pad got trapped under the corner of an area rug. I suspect this was because the robot didn't have enough room behind it to back up. This happened with two different rugs in two different rooms.
All robo-cleaners get stuck on occasion. My main complaint with the Roomba is that while it uses clean water on every mopping run, it won't actually clean its own mop pad, something most other high-end robos can do. While it's not difficult to remove, wash and replace the pad, it's an extra step for me — and something else I have to remember. A robot vacuum/mop should require minimal intervention from its owner; the whole point of spending this kind of money is to free yourself from floor chores.
It's also worth noting that I encountered an operational glitch or two during testing. At one point, I started a "vacuum and mop everywhere" cycle and it only vacuumed. The next time around, it worked as it was supposed to. Similarly, during one cycle, it ran out of battery power and returned to the dock to recharge, but never ventured out again to finish the job.
There's a lot to like about iRobot's flagship robot, from its pleasing design to its clever mop that solves a real problem with these kinds of machines. It vacuums particularly well, and I also appreciate its ability to avoid obstacles (especially pet waste) and detect areas that need extra attention.
However, I don't think it's as effective at mopping as robots that employ spinning brushes, and I don't like having to wash the mop pad myself — not when I'm spending this much money. That aspect alone makes this harder to recommend than, say, the latest Roborock model (which I'm currently testing).
Speaking of money, though, it's worth noting that despite the $1,400 price tag, the Combo j9+ is frequently discounted to $1,000 — almost every other month, in fact. That makes it a little more palatable relative to higher priced competitors. If this sounds like your cup of robot, definitely wait for a sale price.