I'M currently renovating my home and there is dust everywhere - which is why I decided to bring in the aid of a robot vacuum cleaner.
I've put the iRobot Roomba j5+ model to the test: read my review to see what 22 years of robot vacuum innovation gets you.
iRobot Roomba Combo j5+ Vacuum Cleaner, £849 £599
The Combo j5+ arrived on my doorstep for testing a few days after I started renovating my new house.
With building works going on and non-stop dust settling on every surface, I was eager to see if the robot vacuum could help me keep on top of the dirt (and my sanity).
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The iRobot brand was founded in the US in 1990 and launched its first Roomba robot vacuum in 2002.
Since then the company has sold over 40 million robots worldwide and the Roomba has become a household name in the UK.
Overall rating: 4/5
Pros:
- Cleans hard-to-reach places
- Can set schedules to fit into your lifestyle
- Avoids anything it considers to be a hazard, like pet mess
- Easy-to-use app
- Self-emptying function is fantastic
- Can set it to clean specific areas
Cons:
- Expensive
- Bumps into things quite forcefully when mapping
- Slightly annoying
- You'll still need an upright vacuum
- Very loud when emptying its bin
iRobot j5+ review: How we tested
I tested the robot vacuum for six weeks in four rooms on three different floor surfaces; two different types of carpet, and (horrible) vinyl flooring, which trust me, is getting replaced soon.
Some major work was going on at my house during the testing period, so I was able to evaluate how well it managed to deal with tiny bits of rubble and plenty of dust.
Additionally, I dog-sit twice a week so I was able to assess its ability to pick up dog hair (and their reactions to the vacuum).
iRobot Roomba j5+ review: At a glance
It took me a while to get used to having a robot vacuum and initially found it rather annoying, but once I'd figured out a cleaning schedule that suited my lifestyle, I was completely sold.
I'm a huge fan of the self-emptying function and how easy it is to manage the machine via the app. I also love that it cleans under furniture that would usually be a pain to get to.
I gave it 4 stars rather than 5 based on the £849 price point, which I think is really high. It's currently on sale at £599 though, which I think is much more reasonable.
It's an effective vacuum cleaner but won't completely replace your upright or stick vacuum, especially if you have stairs, but it will help you keep on top of the bulk of the dust and dirt.
iRobot Roomba j5+ combo review: First impressions
Unboxing
The iRobot Roomba j5+ arrived in two separate boxes. The first featured a pretty picture of the vacuum on the outside and contained the majority of the parts including:
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- the vacuum
- the charging dock and bin (with a bin bag)
- the instructions manuals and warranty
- a US charging cable
- the mop 'bin' and microfibre cloth
- a spare filter
- a spare edge sweeping brush
The second box was much smaller and simply included a UK charging cable.
Setup
Once unboxed, the Roomba (that I named Robort) was super-fast to set up.
All that was required was to position and plug in the charging station, download the app and add the vacuum - then you're good to go. It took less than 10 minutes all in all.
The app is available from both the Apple Store and Google Play Store, and it was very quick and easy to find and connect to the machine.
Once it was set up, I sent the robot vacuum on a mapping run. It arrived with around a third of its charge and managed 40 minutes of mapping before returning to its base to charge up.
For a more seamless setup, I would let the vacuum charge up fully before sending it off on a mapping run.
I was pretty impressed with the mapping. The vacuum created a map of my downstairs which seems pretty accurate and divided them into separate rooms, which you can then label on the app.
The only thing I wasn't super keen on was that it was bumping into things quite forcefully during the mapping process and knocked a couple of things over.
If you've got anything super-fragile lying around, clear them away for this part of the process.
iRobot Roomba Combo j5+ Vacuum Cleaner, £849 £599
Roomba j5+ review: Price and availability
The Roomba Combo j5+ Robot Vacuum and Mop costs £849 from the iRobot website. The brand regularly has sales, so it's worth keeping an eye out to see if you can get it for a slightly cheaper price.
It's also available from Amazon for £899, though at the time of writing, it's discounted to £599 with free delivery.
As someone who takes a very long time to think about and consider purchases that cost more than £300, I'm not sure whether I would ever pull the trigger on a vacuum that at full price costs almost triple that.
However, that doesn't necessarily mean it's not worth that, just that I would struggle to justify spending that much. If a clean house with minimum effort is something that is worth a lot to you, then you may feel differently about the price tag.
If you're on a tighter budget, you can get the j5 model without the self-emptying function for £449. Though, I have to mention that the function is probably my favourite thing about the j5+. Once it's set up, it literally requires nothing from you for around 2 months until you have to empty the bin.
The i5+ Roomba, tested by my colleague, is also self-emptying and is the cheapest combo model from iRobot at £649. It's missing the edge sweeper, the smart detection of hazards (like dog poo), and the 'Dirt Detect' function which vacuums extra dirty areas more, but if those are things you can live without, then it's a super option for £200 less. You can read our Roomba i5+ review here.
Not sure you need the mop function? The Roomba j9+, which usually costs £100 more than the j5+ at £949, is currently on sale for £769.
Like I say: the j9+ is a vacuum cleaner only but according to the website has extra suction power.
I haven't personally tested the j9+ so I'm unsure how the suction compares to the j5+. However, we've tested a different vacuum-only machine, read our Roomba j7+ review here.
iRobot Roomba Combo j5+ Vacuum Cleaner, £849 £599
Roomba iRobot j5+ review: Design and build
The iRobot and its charging station are quite aesthetically pleasing for a vacuum and a bin. They sit in the corner of the room, under a desk, and aren't as much of an eye sore as I first feared they might be.
The robot vacuum feels and looks well-made. It has a corner sweeper which seems pretty feeble compared to the rest of the build, but it does its job well. It has pretty hefty bumpers at the front that protect the vacuum when vacuuming and mapping, and inevitably bumping into things.
The vacuum has one button on the top which has a white circle around it when the vacuum is working as expected, and it will change colour to blue or red to indicate it's doing something, or that something's wrong, such as it has no internet.
It has a camera on the front that detects hazards, such as cables, pet mess, and anything left on the floor that isn't usually there.
iRobot j5+ review: Key features and performance
Vacuum function
I was a bit concerned about using the Roomba in the middle of a renovation, as the level of dust in the house had caused my stick vacuum to have a meltdown.
However, I eventually decided to give it a go and it's managed far better with the dust than my Dyson. It doesn't seem to be phased at the level of dust, nor the little bits of rubble around the house, although it does struggle to pick up any bits of rubble larger than a 5-pence piece.
I set the Roomba to vacuum three times a week, first thing in the morning before we get up, so it's not in our way. It leaves vacuum lines on the carpet, so you can always see where it's been, and the carpet always looks fresher.
Despite its seemingly foolproof mapping system, it occasionally seems to miss small areas. You can tell it's hoovered around the area, but a bit of fluff or dirt may have been missed.
Overall, I'm really happy with the vacuuming function. It's always nice to come down in the morning to freshly vacuumed flooring, without having to lift a finger.
Mop function
To be perfectly honest here, I don't feel like my house is currently set-up to give the mop function fair testing.
I only have one moppable room, and the flooring is 75-year-old vinyl, which is so stained and hideous that it's difficult to tell when it's clean.
When using the mop bin, you need to ensure that your vacuum is starting in a room you want to be mopped (otherwise you'll have wet carpets), and ensure you've set the app so it knows where the no-mop zones are. It's not complicated to set up but it did take me a little bit of time to figure out the first time I used it.
The j5+ vacuums and mops simultaneously, and whilst I can see where the mop has been due to the sheen on the floor and that dirt has been picked up on the mop pad, it's hard to tell the difference when looking at my unsightly tiles.
In the (hopefully) not-too-distant future I plan to change all my flooring downstairs to wood, which will make testing out this function a bit easier. I'll update the review when this happens to provide more balanced feedback.
Self-emptying function
The self-emptying function is possibly my favourite thing about the j5+. I've been testing the vacuum for six weeks and I'm yet to empty the bin and who wouldn't love that?
The self-emptying function means you can set the vacuum to clean the house and then completely forget about it.
The only negative thing about the self-emptying function is how loud it is. The first time I heard it, it scared the life out of me. It sounded like a plane was taking off in my living room.
Pet function
The j5+ is designed with pets in mind, and as I dog-sit a couple of times a week I was able to test out its ability to pick up dirt and dog hair, as well as the fluffy fella's reactions to my new pet robot.
Rufus loves to fling himself in every muddy puddle, and while this usually one of my least favourite of his traits, in this instance, I was pretty happy that I could test out the Roomba's mud-collecting abilities.
I set the robot vacuum to go and hoover the hallway, where Rufus had left me a nice pile of dirt (pictured above), and the Roomba made light work of it. It also picked up any hair with no issues.
Rufus wasn't too keen on the Roomba though. He followed it around barking at it for a while, and would run away whenever it came too close. He especially wasn't a fan when it emptied its bin, though, in his defense, I wasn't either the first time I heard it.
The other dog I had test the vacuum, Daisy, was completely unphased by the Roomba. She completely ignored it and I later found out that she has a Robot vacuum pal at home. So based on this, I'd like to think Rufus would get used to it eventually, but he's not over enough to test this theory.
We've all heard horror stories of robot vacuums tracking pet mess throughout the house, but the j5+ comes with a Pet Owner Official Promise (or P.O.O.P - very funny) and guarantees that the vacuum will avoid pet waste, T&Cs do apply though.
Fortunately for me, I haven't had the opportunity to test out this function. However, based on how it avoids chargers, slippers, and anything else left on the floor, I imagine it would also avoid any unpleasant surprises left by your pets too.
iRobot Roomba combo j5+ review: App
The iRobot app can be downloaded from both Google Play and the Apple Store. I have an iOS phone and it downloaded from the Apple Store in minutes.
Once connected to your robot, the app is the main way to 'communicate' with your vacuum, unless you prefer to use Alexa or Google Assistant. You can use it to set schedules, look at previous cleaning records (more useful than I expected), create maps of new areas, and get the vacuum to clean somewhere specific or empty its bin.
If there's an issue with the Roomba then the app will send you a notification too. Mine recently got stuck under the sofa, and the app let me know so I could go and set it free and resume its cleaning run.
You can't have more than one Roomba account connected to the same device, however, you can have multiple people logged in using the same account on different devices. This is handy as it means my husband can set the robot off when I'm out of the house, or visa versa.
My favourite thing about the app, is that it can be used from anywhere. I've set my vacuum to clean the kitchen whilst sipping cocktails in a pub garden.
iRobot Roomba Combo j5+ Vacuum Cleaner, £849 £599
Roomba combo j5+ review: Battery life
As I mentioned earlier, when the robot vacuum first arrived it managed around 40 minutes of mapping with around a third of its full charge before returning to base to charge for 1 hour and 24 minutes.
But apart from that, the vacuum hasn't needed to return to the base for charging during cleaning. It cleans around 30m² in around an hour, and once it's finished, it returns to base, empties its bin, and charges back up for the next clean.
I couldn't find anywhere on the website that it states its battery life or charging time, but based on how much battery life it has left when it returns to base, I would estimate that it could manage around two hours of cleaning before returning to base to charge.
iRobot Roomba j5+ review: Verdict
It took me a week or two to get used to the robot vacuum and work out a way for it to complement my lifestyle, rather than to be an irritant, but after initial teething issues, I can now say I'm a huge fan of the iRobot Roomba j5+ vacuum cleaner.
I love how hands-off it is, and coming downstairs in the morning to freshly vacuum flooring. It's helped me keep on top of a lot of construction dust which has been a godsend.
I'm not 100% convinced about the mop function yet (I may change my mind when I have new flooring), and if you don't have a lot of hard flooring, you may be able to save a few pennies by choosing a vacuum-only model rather than a combo machine.
The price tag is still quite a big factor for me to overcome. I don't think I could recommend it at £899: it's such a lot of money to spend on a gadget.
However, at its current sale price of £599, I think I would be tempted to pull the trigger.
If you have a large home with lots of hard flooring, and the price isn't a sticking point, then I think this could be the perfect robot vacuum for you.
iRobot Roomba Combo j5+ Vacuum Cleaner, £849 £599
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