iRobot Vacuum and Mop Combo Review

IRobot's latest Combo J7+ is the company's first combination vacuum and mop robot. It looks like the Roomba and is equipped with similar rug-avoiding capabilities. However the mop can be used with a wider variety of cleaning products and can self-fill.

When you ask it to mop using the iRobot Home voice assistant or app, a tiny robot arm will rise out from the base. The robot only deploys mop arms when it senses the presence of a hard surface. They are not able to drag over rugs and carpet.

Features

A robot vacuum mop combo can be a useful device to keep floors clean, without having to rely on a broom or a Swiffer. It removes sticky messes and helps keep grime at bay, so you don't have to fret about the mess that can build up in high-traffic areas like kitchens or mudrooms. It can also do a better job cleaning hard floors with an air-tight vacuum than a regular vacuum alone.

The majority of irobot roomba vacuum irobots vacuum cleaner/mop combos can be used on carpet and hard floors, so they're an excellent choice if your home has multiple flooring types. The best models have features that let you determine how often and how powerfully the robot cleans. Some also have automatic emptying and can be controlled via voice.

The J7 Combo+ is one of Irobot Roomba Price's most popular robot vacuum and mop. It can be converted into a fully-featured robot cleaner by pressing one button. It has the same advanced obstacle-avoidance technology that is used in the j7, plus the latest onboard acoustic sensors to determine the type of flooring. When in mop mode, the mop only activates when it detects flooring that is hard like tile or wood and never over area rugs or carpeting. I tried several times to trick the j7 Combo+ into going over a rug but it would always back up and then returned to where it left off.

It's slow to take up fine particles of dust that a vacuum might miss, but it is great at removing dried milk staining. It also comes with a handy mopping pad that's easy to refill.

The j7 Combo+ is less expensive than other robot mop and vacuum combos, but it's expensive for a basic appliance. It has a limited battery life and water tank, so it will need to return to its dock to recharge between every cleaning session. You'll also need to manually move it to a different room for every cleaning session, and its small size and absence of a scheduling function mean it can only clean up 200 square feet at one time.

Design

irobot has created an app for its robots. It lets you schedule and track cleaning jobs, as well as set up "clean zones" or "keep out zones." The robots can be controlled via the app or voice activation using the smart speaker you prefer. Many robots come with multiple power modes, and some can detect obstacles to navigate.

The Combo J9+ is a fantastic mop and vacuum. It does a great job in both. It can remove dirt, crumbs, and fur. It also uses SmartScrub which scrubs the floor using constant pressure and back and forth motions to remove difficult messes such as coffee and grime. Dirt Detective, a feature that learns from past cleaning efforts will prioritize rooms with the most dirt to ensure they are thoroughly cleaned.

In addition to the features found on iRobot's regular robotic vacuum, such as an extension telescopic and dual rubber brushes, the Combo j7+ has an intelligent mopping system that raises the pad when it encounters carpet or area rug. This makes it less likely to get the rug wet and facilitates faster cleanup. It is the first robot combination that can be used for both vacuuming and mopping all types of floors, making it an excellent option for those who have floors that are a mix of hard and soft floors.

The Combo j7+ looks similar to the regular Roomba J7 robot vacuum. It has a sleek black plastic body and a brushed aluminum circular top piece bearing the iRobot logo. The reservoir for water is in the back, and the mop pad is tacked to the bottom of the unit. The app allows you to see when the tank is empty or needs to be filled.

The Combo j9+ can be connected to your home's Wi-Fi network. It features onboard sensors to help navigate and avoid obstacles. It tracks usage data, such as how often it moves around the house as well as mapping and image data, but does not use the data to sell or share it with third parties without your consent. The company's Privacy Principles are available on its website.

Cleaning Performance

A quality robot vacuum and mop combo can save you a significant amount of time, keeping your floors in a fairly clean state most of the time. It's still necessary to pull out a traditional mop when you have tough stains or extra-dirty spots however this is much less frequently than you would otherwise need to do with a standalone vacuum cleaner or a basic bucket of water and a brush. It's an excellent solution for areas that are prone to traffic or that are particularly filthy, such as bathrooms, kitchens and the mudrooms.

If you require more advanced cleaning capabilities, consider a dedicated mopping robot. They typically employ an ultra-fine microfiber pad, a water reservoir filled with clean water and a scrub-like motion to clean dirt away, leaving your floors cleaner than a regular vacuum. Some of them models, like our upgraded pick, Braava Jet M6, even squirts detergent into the pad to give it a deeper clean.

The biggest disadvantage of a robot that just mops is that it can't take care of carpets or area rug. If a robot encounters these surfaces in vacuum and mop mode, it will lower the pad to prevent getting them wet. This also means that it will not be able to navigate around them, unless you have set up 'clean zones ' and zones to keep out of the application.

Combination robots are superior in this. Our top pick is the irobot vacuum cleaner and mop J7+ combo. It works much like a regular j7 vacuum, but it has a built-in wet mop that it uses when it spots hard flooring. It's a bit more aggressive than other combo robots when it comes to crossing rugs and thresholds, however, it backs up when it comes across them, instead of trying to mop over them.

If you want to be hands-free for the duration of your stay, you will need a robot vacuum cleaner that can learn the layout of your home and move between rooms on its own (our upgrade pick is the iRobot Jet M6) or a combination cleaner which uses a navigation system using lidar (like the Roborock S5 Max). It is possible to set up a 'clean zone and a 'keep-out zone within the app to ensure that it can determine where the furniture is.

Cost

A robot vacuum that can also function as a mop can be a excellent way to keep your floors. However it's more expensive than a standalone vacuum cleaner or a dedicated mop robot. Costs vary based on whether or not you're looking for a premium model with mapping technology that lets it understand the design of your home and then clean every room without running out of battery power. This feature is a must-have if you have rugs and carpets in your home and the more recent Ecovacs Deebot X2 Omni or Roborock S8 Pro Ultra are the top models that have this capability.

Another thing to think about is the size of your floors as well as how many rooms you must vacuum and mop. Smaller rooms will require a smaller robot, but you may be able to get by with a simpler robot that mops or vacuums, but does not have both capabilities. For instance, iRobot's Combo j7+ is an upgrade choice which bundles a mop machine with its most rated Roomba vacuum, and it costs less than the cost of a standalone mop like the Braava Jet M6.

The Combo j7 Plus includes iRobot’s Clean Station which automatically empties the soiled mop-water out of the cleaning tank once it's full. The base isn't included in the standard j7 model and must be purchased separately, which partially is the reason for the combo robot's eye-watering $1,099 price tag.

The design of the j7+ is modern and sleek and looks nearly exactly like the popular Roomba i7 vacuum. This is what makes it an appealing choice for vacuum and mop hybrids. It does not have the features other mop-only robots have. For one, it doesn't have the same powerful suction of 8,300Pa that irobot roomba vacuum's vacuums offer. It does not come with the automatic mop pad cleaning feature, which is becoming more commonplace in premium mop robots. However, you can purchase an add-on for the j7+ that will wash the mop pad even when you're not using it. This will stop the pads from drying out and becoming messy. Aside from that, the J7+ is a fantastic value and is among the best robots for cleaning your floors.