iRobot Roomba 560 Robotic Cleaner

I am long time customer of iRobot. I have multiple early generation Roombas (and still have 4 4th generation Roombas in my house). I bought two 560's in September and the side brushes became "amputees" within the first few weeks, with the brushes breaking off.

Upon calling Technical Support (not listed on their website: 877.855.8593) I was told it was a "known problem", and they would ship out the new redesigned side brush replacements as soon as received. Weeks later, still no date and even today "maybe three weeks".

Now they are hedging on whether it was a design defect. What IS clear is that none of the units on sale have a "redesigned" part, so you may have the same problem I have had. So forget about getting one before Christmas unless you want to go through this same debacle I am.

I have always had the highest respect for iRobot (despite the Scooba), but my faith has been shaken by this product.

*** UPDATE 12-03-2007 (another part also on "back order")

BTW, I still have received no replacement side brushes after almost two months.

Another problem exists with some of the 560's (I assume all of the early 500 series). The original two 560's I bought in September did not have a "bumper extension" included.

MAKE SURE THAT THE ONE YOU BUY HAS A BUMPER EXTENSION INCLUDED. I saw a 560 at a store this weekend with this new piece, which is just a piece of rubber that you stick on the lower part of the bumper and a "slip sheet" to the manual that tells how to place it, but does not say what it is for.

When I called iRobot and told them that I did not receive these with my original 560's, they first claimed "all of them" shipped with it, but they would order me two -- Guess what else is now back-ordered?

I suggested that the bumper extension might be a new "fix" for the side-brush problem, but the customer service representative said it was to keep the "IR sensors from being scratched" by furniture. To defend that this had nothing to do with the side-brush problem, he said that they had had side brushes "falling off without contact with anything" and that definitely the side brushes had been redesigned but no one in technical support was told how.

Here is what I think the new bumper is for:

We have 5 fireplaces in our house. All but one have a hearth extension height of 1/2" or less above the floor. The fifth one has 7/8" above the floor, where I have seen the 560 stalled, with it eventually disentangling itself (but with brushes soon thereafter falling off!).

I think the main purpose of the bumper extension is to sense a transition in this critical area (7/8") and be repelled by contact with the bumper extension. IRobot says that this is not its purpose. However, the instruction slip sheet specifically states to place part the extension below the existing vertical height of the bumper.

I will try to update this if and when I get:

1. My replacement side brushes and
2. My missing bumper extensions.

A few more observations ....

Customer service.

Hold times seem to be going up dramatically. I was on hold for 17 minutes and then disconnected. I then called sales (which answers immediately) and was eventually reconnected to customer service.

*** UPDATE 02-20-2007 (and another part also on "back order")

I received replacement brushes. Last week, I called to find out the status of the bumpers. Their records showed "closed". After going up 5 levels in customer service, they "found" one bumper extension. Still waiting the rest ..

Awesome just plug in and let it clean Its a little weird about certain throw rugs and watch the little drop off's by your sliding glass doors it will go off the side and get stuck but other than that its awesome

I first tried one of the older Roomba's a few years ago. After returning three of them with the first few weeks due to defects I just gave up and went back to my old canister vacuum. Then I came across some reviews for the new 560 a few weeks ago. It sounded like all the design flaws were gone so I thought, what the heck - I hate vacuuming - so let's see if this new roomba will do the trick. I made sure to buy it from a place that I could return it, just in case I had problems. Well, I've had it for two weeks now. Wow! I am impressed. It picks up cat hair like there's no tomorrow. I have it scheduled to come on every other day when I am at work. The house has never looked cleaner. I have carpet and tile floors and this little machine picks up everything. Even the cat isn't afraid of the machine. She will sit and watch it work and, if roomba gets a little too close to her, she will just move out of the away. When I take out the big vacuum the cat runs for her life so it's nice that I am not stressing out the cat any longer.

This machine really does work. If you haven't got one yet, get one. It's well worth the money.

Now, if it would only do the stairs....

I've had I-Robot Scheduler for over a year and really liked it. When the 560 was introduced it sounded they had addressed all of the design flaws of the older models. I have had the new one for two months and am very pleased. I run the unit immediately after my wife's maid service has come over and pick up lots of hair & dust they miss. I have had a couple of components break on the new one which the company has quickly replaced by mail. Terrific customer service. I highly recommend this product and company to everyone.

I bought the Roomba for my wife's birthday and she loves it. I was concerned that it was really worth the price - they're not cheap and you can buy a standard vacuum for similar dollars. I read the reviews and ratings in Consumer Reports and was surprised/pleased to see the Roomba 560 received a very good rating. We have three dogs, two of which are Great Danes that shed a fair amount of short hair. This little Roomba does a great job picking up the hair. And it didn't take long for the dogs to get used to it. So it's the real deal, not a toy and the wife is really pleased that she now has an 'employee' to help with the housework.

These new Roombas are amazing!! I had an older one, and it was ok for a single room with not much in it-as it would get mixed up on things and get stuck in one room if you were trying to do multiple rooms. The lighthouse is excellent!! After getting a dishwasher I could never go back to doing dishes manually-what a drag. The roomba is the same idea, once you set it-the thought of vacuuming is like that of washing and drying plates-something of the past.

It sometimes takes a while, but it does a great job, and its programmed to go when Im at work and the house is empty. It holds a lot of garbage in there too-its pretty neat! I love leaving the house, coming home and seeing how clean it is-and Roomba is back in his charging cradle.

This is the best purchase ever. Soon everyone will have one, just like the dishwasher.

i am in the process of buying the 560, i have a friend that totally loves it. Other than the fact that she has to make sure the kids toys and stuff are picked up before running it. I am planning on buying on Ebay. But, I am sure that everyone is aware that the local Linens n Things has the 560 for 349.99 - everyday and there are an overbundance of 20% off coupons offered every week by mail and in the paper. So, that brings it down locally (no ship costs) to $280.00 Plus your local tax. So, I am a little surprised that these are going close to $300.. I still plan to buy on Ebay, convenience is the key. But, I will not overpay, when i can drive over to the local store. Just my thoughts.

How many of you have said, man I wonder if those work and you wait until someone else buys it 1st to get their review? Well, I did the same thing. I heard from a friend of mine that she loved hers so I bought the 560 for myself last month on eBay.Now, here is your chance to listen to someone before buying yours.
I've had it just over a month now and I absolutely love it!
I have 3 young boys, 7, 8 & 10. Their rooms have to be "picked up" of little toys/garbage before "I-ro", our name for our vacuum, does it's job, however, this doesn't differ from a regular size vacuum either. I love that I can schedule it so that when we aren't even home it cleans the boys rooms & even under their beds. This is great especially since I have a 100 lb lab that loves to sleep under the beds. It's amazing how much cleaner my house is now because of the less dog hair I have. With the Roomba able to get under the beds/tables etc it's seriously amazing. Not to mention I can be downstairs folding clothes while it's cleaning upstairs.
I also have a huge throw rug & Pergo flooring in my dining room. It has no problem going from hard floors to throw rugs, to carpet.
The towers are amazing. Sometimes you just don't have enough doors to close to keep the little bugger locked in a room. The tower works in 2 ways. 1st it will block it from going past a point if you would like that, or you can switch the button to the opposite position which will "guide it" to the next tower you have. For example, I put one in the boys room & then one right in the door way of the next boys room and when it's done with one it goes to the next.
Average amount of time before needing a charge is about 1 hr 10 mins. I also suggest cleaning out the trays/brushes after each cleaning. It only takes seconds and it's really cool to see how much it cleaned. You'll be amazed.
The other awesome thing about Roomba is that if it's feeling low on battery life it finds its way back home to its charger & charges back up.
Pretty much every part of the Roomba can be replaced. There are numerous accessories available on eBay. For example if one of your brushes eventually become worn out, you can replace them.
The filter can also be rinsed out in your sink, dried & reused. Most of them come with an extra filter as well so if one if drying after a cleaning you can use the other one. However, they aren't that expensive to replace if you do need a new one down the line.
Well, what are you waiting for? Go get yours & amaze your friends, family as well as yourself.

This is a great time saving machine. My wife & I aren't the best housekeepers so this devise helps keep our carpets and wood & vinyl floors much cleaner than they otherwise would be. My only complaint is that the dirt capacity is much smaller than a regular vacuum cleaner so you have to empty the container frequently. Also, it does such a good job of cleaning our carpet (which is new) that it picks up all the little loose carpet fibers and it's necessary to clean the brushes frequently. However, that inconvenience is far outweighed by the benefits it offers us. I would definitely recommend it (especially if you have a pet!) and want to get all the pet hair picked up.

My husband and I love our new Roomba(Roomie). "He" does a wonderful job keeping our home cleaner than it as ever been. We have 2 large dogs,a 117 lb yellow lab and a 40 lb standard poodle. Shiloh and Greta have five sandy acres to run in and they constantly bring sand and other dirt in through the dog doors. Add 3 cats, who also use the dog doors and we have had quite a problem keeping the parquet floors comfortable to walk on. Our daughter in law bought one 2 years ago and loved hers and kept encouraging us to buy one. We run it once a day. It is easy to empty and runs for about 2hrs(I wish it would run longer without recharging) and then returns to its dock. We are always skeptical of new technology but Roomie is one of the best things that has ever come along. Now ,if it could only cook and fold clothes. Our daughterin law is now trying to get us to buy a Scooba. Maybe we will. The price was much better than what we had seen them in stores.

The product is excellent. Bought it because I thougt it was a neat gadget. Found out it does the job very well - better than my Oreck. It does deep cleaning (had no idea my carpet was that dirty - ouch). The Roomba has 6 side brushes to reach the corners (they work)!! but one broke off after 30 days owning the Roomba. I emailed Roomba about the warranty several days ago to get the side brush replaced - did one follow up email yesterday and still have not heard back. The product is better than the customer service.
No matter, even with 5 side brushes I am happy to have my Roomba-la-Boomba instead of pushing the Oreck. Trudy

I love my Roomba 560 that I recieved for Christmas! It runs daily & doesn't fall down our stairs. It does an excellent job & really impressed my skeptical husband. This is a great addition to our household because we have several pets & 2 kids who constantly drag debri & pet hair into the house. The Roomba does require emptying every other day (which only takes a few seconds) & it requires simple cleaning if it picks up long hairs or fibers as these can wrap around the brushes (like all vaccums). This is not an issue for me, I just love watching it do the cleaning instead of me! The Roomba 560 actually pivots around my dining chair legs to get all the hard to reach areas. It also carefully pivots in and around a 3 legged antique end table we have. It has a turning brush which gets dirt & crumbs out of corners and throws them into the vacuums path. ITS VERY COOL! The tires are hefty and it easily treads up onto our hearth which is an inch high off our carpet. It easily rolls over cords too. I am amazed that it actually finds its way back to its charging hardware & plugs itself back in to charge for tomorrow. It has cute R2D2 type robot sounds so it can communicate with you. I highly recommend the Roomba 560!

Can be really usefull if you do not have little kids who leave all their little toys on the carpet. I was amazed Roomba's ablity to clean under the tables, beds, bookcases etc. So generally if you do not have a little items all over the floor it can be a thing for you. Room looks much better after "vacuuming" by Roomba. Still you will need real vacuum cleaner at least one time a week. Great buy for bachelors.

I hate to vacuum, but I love to watch the iRobot Roomba take care of the job. This little powerhouse was easy to set up (I thought it would be confusing). It is easy to use and works great. I am amazed that it knows where the stairs are, that it doesn't get caught up in wires, that it is able to go where no vacuum has gone before - way way way under the sofa and the bed. I now vacuum twice a week which I consider a miracle! I recommend this product.

Ho comprato Roomba560 quasi due mesi fa ed è un prodotto davvero eccezionale.
L'ho comprato su eBay da un negozio americano e tutto è stato perfetto.
Dopo qualche settimana si è rotta la spazzolina laterale e cosi ho contattato il servizio clienti IRobot ed ho scoperto che:
1) la garanzia non è piu valida perchè il prodotto è stato utilizzato fuori dal territorio USA
2) l'assistenza italiana non risponde poichè la versione americana utilizza dei componenti non omologati per il mercato europeo.

a questo punto dico che il prodotto è molto valido, la spazzolina l'ho comprata a mie spese e non è stato un problema, però se dovessi avere qualche malfunzionamento non so proprio che cosa farò!

Era sicuramente meglio comprarlo in Italia e sfruttare la garanzia e l'assistenza italiana!! Tuttavia credo che IRobot ed i venditori eBay dovrebbero essere piu chiari ed aiutare meglio i propri clienti.

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I bought Roomba560 about 2 months ago and i think tha it's a great product.
I bought it trough ebay from an american shop and all was perfect
After two week The side brush was broken so I had contact Customer Care of Irobot and I had some big surprises:

1)My warranty is not valid because I use roomba outside USA
2)Italian assistance doesn't support me because the Roomba from Usa it's different than Italian version

So now I think that Roomba is very very cool I bought myself the new brush, but now I know that if my roomba will be broken I don't know who can repair it!
I also think that it was better for me buy Roomba in Italy, so I can use italian support and warranty, but it also clear that the Irobot and usa ebay-sellers must be more clear with customers about warranty and all these problems!

This is my 3rd Roomba and I have loved them all. I had an original which I used until 2 years ago when I bought the 400 series "Red" vac. I dropped Red on her head and this gave me a good excuse to try the new 500 series as Red's bottom sometimes falls off but she still runs great.
I have severe arthritis and am a senior citizen who is finding it harder and harder to do my cleaning. The Roombas have been life savers and have also saved me a lot of money since vacuuming is no long a problem and I do not have to hire someone I cannot afford.
The numbers can be confusing but basically any of the 500 series under 550 does not have scheduling ability. I like the black top 550 better than the 560 because her package comes with 3 extra filters and 4 C batteries for the wall lighthouses. The 560 does not have the extra filters or any batteries. I guess you pay more for a partial silver top.
I love the docking station which you can buy separately for the lower number models. When Roomba is finished she just heads home and redocks. You don't have to do anything but remember to empty her. Even though her bin is large, I like to clean the filter and empty it after each cleaning. I don't really use the automatic scheduling as I like to check the house first for objects on the floor that shouldn't be there and could get in her way. If you are worried about her cost, try the 400 series model. You can get it for a little over $100. so it is very inexpensive compared to the 500 series.
Now, why I would recommend the 500 series if you can afford it. It gets out of corners and traps easier and seldom gets stuck going over throw rugs or near cords. It is much, much quieter than the earlier model. It has a much improved larger and easier to clean dirt collection bin. The bushes also come out very easily although they do this in the 400 series which was a vast improvement over the original Roomba. I have not gotten the hang of positioning all of the lighthouses as I can just turn her loose and she will do 4 out of my 5 rooms without using any lighthouses.
It is so nice to be able to have clean floors all the time with next to no work. It really makes you feel good whether you can't get around good or you are exhausted after working all day.

I bought my fistrt Roomba because we have dogs and cats in our home (8 dogs)and I was literally sweeping and mopping multiple times a day. Now Roomba does the bulk of the work. I love the Roomba! I bought this one for my business. We have office cats, which leads to office cat hair.
The animals are not afraid of Roomba and the ignore it when it is doing its thing.

I bought the irobot about 2 months ago and I love how this products works. the only negative is the charge is not long enough for the entire upstairs, so I have to do about 3 separate sessions. but the cleaning is superb.

I really enjoy my iRobot! I have 2 big dogs and a long haired cat. They are all basically black haired animals and light colored tile floors and wood floors, well you can just imagine the hair! The iRobot does a great job of collecting the hair and the dust and dirt. I usually dump the waste bin and clean the brushes after each use. I'm 61 years old with a very bad back and work 50 hours a week and keeping up with the floors was painful so the iRobot is a back saver!

I can't belive how well this thing cleans the carpet. It picks up the cat hair on one pass and with the side brush it even gets dirt next to the wall. I like the fact that you can program it to start on it's own and when done, go back to the docking station and plug in and recharge. Amazing!

The iRobot is excellent for cleaning dust and dirt from hardwood floors.

When cleaning rugs and carpets the iRobot doesn't give the same deep cleaning that a full power vacuum can. It's sort of like a hair cut. Sometimes you just need a quick trim or cleanup - that's what the iRobot is great for. But if you are looking for something that will cause the carpet fibers to stand up you are still going to need a full power vacuum. The iRobot is really great when you have 15 things to do and running the vacuum is at the bottom of the list.

They said it was a demonstration model. Brushes were damaged and it was as dirty as it could be. Was not cleaned prior to shipping and I knew it was in someones home because I had pieces of info for a daycare centre & info on a special outing by the daycare for parents of daycare kids. Many scuff and scratches not consistent with demonstrating. A total ripoff, does not even work well, stopping all the time. Had I seen what I would have got I wouldn't have bought it, and that was before trying it. No instructions were with it only daycare info programs. This sale was a total scam. Do not buy from this seller! I phoned the manufacturer for missing parts and as usual they are out of parts!

This is a great gadget! I was really surprised at how well it works and it does a great job of keeping the floors looking nice between normal vacuuming. I did a test after I ran the Roomba through my house I took out my regular vacuum that has dirt sensors built in and to my surprise it didn't find any areas that were dirty. The only places I found where the dirt sensor turned on was under the edges of my area rugs (not surprised since the Roomba can't get under there). It also does a good job on hard surface floors.
The only problem I've found with the unit is it can trap itself in rooms by bumping doors and then it runs until it's dead (I've had to crawl under the bed a few times to retrieve it). Also the lighthouse functions on the walls don't really sop the Roomba often enough and it makes it past them before it has a chance to clean certain rooms, so I usually let it run using them as walls and manually move it from area to area.
Ensure you clean it between each session and really clean the rollers. Since I have 2 dogs and a wife with long hair it can get a lot of hair and it will actually bind the bearings if you don't keep it clean.
A must buy for anyone who likes clean floors and it's pretty much a set-up and forget device for cleaning.