In brief: iRobot's new Roomba i7+ solves a pain point that has plagued its product lines for years - having to manually empty its dust bin on a regular basis. With the new Clean Base dirt disposal system, you can now truly forget about vacuuming for weeks at a time.
Robotic vacuums like the Roomba automate one of life's less enjoyable chores but even still, you're tasked with manually emptying its dust bin every other run to maintain optimal performance. This was perhaps my primary complaint when I owned a Roomba years ago and one that iRobot has finally addressed with its latest offering.
On Thursday, the robotics specialist announced the Roomba i7+ robot vacuum with Clean Base Automatic Dirt Disposal. When the i7+ finishes cleaning, it returns to the Clean Base where its onboard dust bin is emptied into a larger container - one that can hold 30 bins of dust and debris - thus allowing you to forget about vacuuming-related chores for weeks at a time.
Yeah, it's essentially a vacuum for your vacuum.
The Clean Base transfers the contents of the dust bin into an enclosed dirt disposal bag. Once it's full, simply toss it and replace it with a new bag (a pack of three will run you $15). Sure, it's an extra and ongoing expense but not having to manually empty the Roomba's dust bin every other run is certainly appealing, as is not having to deal with the dust cloud that manual emptying can create.
The Roomba i7+ also features Imprint Smart Mapping technology, allowing the robot to learn your home's floor plan. You can even clean specific rooms by name using voice commands (when paired with an Alexa-enable device or the Google Assistant) or through the Roomba app. It can store up to 10 floor plans so you can use it on multiple stories or even at other houses.
The Roomba i7+ robot vacuum with Clean Base Automatic Dirt Disposal is available to pre-order from today starting at $949. The first units head out to buyers on September 12 ahead of a retail rollout scheduled for October. Optionally, you can get the Roomba i7 robot without the Clean Base for $699 and pick up the base separately for $299.