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The Roomba 980 is the latest and smartest robot vacuum cleaner produced by iRobot, one of the most reputable companies on the market today. While it is one of the most expensive robot vacuum cleaners you can buy, it is also one of the best and most high-tech. It comes with WiFi connection, iOS and Android app control, a very sophisticated mapping technology and it practically works by itself, with minimal help and intervention from you.
Roomba 980 is the most premium robot vacuum model from iRobot, and the most expensive one, too. iRobot is an American company founded in 1990 in Massachusetts. iRobot specializes in practical robots and so far, it has built robots for space exploration, tactical mobile ones (including a model that investigated the areas of the World Trade Center after 9/11), ground robots used by US Forces and more. However, they are mostly renowned for their Roomba machines, the first practical home robots. The first Roomba model was released in 2002 and since then, iRobot came up with amazing technological improvements.
The Roomba 980 is one of the most intelligent, popular and best-selling robot vacuum cleaners on the market today.
Specifications:
Dimensions: Diameter: 13.8 inches; Height: 3.6 inches
Weight: 8.7 lbs
The robot vacuum comes with WiFi connectivity and app control (iOS and Android compatible) and very high-tech features. It can also be controlled through Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant. The robot has 3 buttons: Home, Clean and Spot Clean.
The Clean button is pretty self-explanatory: once pushed, Roomba starts its cleaning cycle.
The Home button automatically sends the robot back to its charging station like a well behaved pet sent back to its den. Other circumstances in which the robot will return to the charging station are when its bin is full or when the battery is almost empty.
The Spot Clean button is meant to preserve battery life. When you press it, the Roomba 980 will only clean the dirtier areas, thus saving more energy.
The Roomba 980 is very easy to set up and control and it is one of the most self-reliant vacuums you can find. It can’t be stopped by any obstacles, be they piece of furniture or any other objects in its path. Most robot vacuums are really confused by obstacles in their cleaning path and stop working or need human intervention in order to resume their cleaning cycle. That is not the case with Roomba, which overcomes them all and keeps on going until it runs out of battery. How does it do it, you ask? Roomba has a top camera and a floor sensor and uses the vSLAM (visual simultaneous localization and mapping) technology to avoid any obstacles and locate landmarks in order to know where it’s already cleaned.
Regarding its battery life, you can expect the Roomba 980 to run for approx. 2 hours continuously. It uses lithium batteries and it needs to be charged once every few days, regardless if you use it or not.
One thing you will notice if you’ve ever owned a previous Roomba model is the increased weight of the 980. Smarter in this case also means heavier. In fact, it is the heaviest robotic vacuum we’ve tested. On the other hand, it can be carried with one hand and it has a handle that makes the job even easier for you.
Some of the worth mentioning features of the Roomba 980 are: the HEPA filters, the app support, the history of the cleaning sessions it’s performed, the scheduling feature that allows you to program the vacuum to clean at a specific time and more.
The robot can be used with or without WiFi connectivity. In the app you can see the results of its cleaning cycles.
As for the cleaning abilities of the Roomba 980, we were impressed by its results on both hard floors and carpets, especially the latter. When it gets to carpeted areas, the vacuum boosts its power by 10x to make sure it gets out every speckle of dust from your rugs. On hard floors the Roomba 980 is silent but on carpets it does make quite some noise.
The suction of the vacuum is among the best; there are however some competitors that are able to pick up more debris, such as the Neato Botvac Connected and the Samsung PowerBot and can also reach easier into tight spaces.
Another thing you might find a bit tricky but only at the first use, is to figure out how to take out the bin, brushes and filter.
You can find the Roomba 980 on the official iRobot website for $899.
When you purchase the Roomba 980, you also receive the home base charging station, one line cord, one extra filter and side brush and 2 dual mode virtual wall barriers (batteries included). The product comes with a 2 year warranty, which is a plus, given that most competitors only offer one year.
Phone: 1-877-855-8593
Monday – Friday: 9 am – 9 pm EST
Saturday and Sunday: 9 am – 6 pm EST
E-mail: https://homesupport.irobot.com/app/ask
Social media: Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, LinkedIn, Instagram
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/irobot/
iRobot has a top-notch customer support. You can reach them via live chat, e-mail or phone, during their working hours. Their website is also very helpful. There’s a useful Support section where you can find answers to questions on various topics (care and maintenance, errors, general info, battery and charging, etc.), product resources, information on returns and warranties and more.
Our editorial staff evaluates products and services independently, but Best Review Guide may earn money when you click on links. Read our advertising disclosure.
By: Kurtis | Last updated January 23, 2021 
