Even in my living room, though, there are more than two areas, like a cord tangle near the TV, that the Roomba just shouldn’t go near.
NEATO PARTS MANUAL
Its mapping capabilities, spot clean, and wall barriers are supposed to make it unnecessary, but there are still times manual control would be appreciated. Speaking of the Powerbot, I do wish the Roomba had a remote. It seems obvious, but Samsung’s Powerbot would start up and fling debris at me when I forgot to replace the dustbin. One error I appreciated was that the 980 wouldn’t run without the bin in place. Other times, it would tell me what was wrong, or I could just look at the bot and see its “bin full” lights were illuminated. Sometimes when there was a problem, a voice emanating from the Roomba would inform me there was an error, then tell me to look at the app.
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It’s not like the app doubles as a remote control for driving the robot around an obstruction. Maybe there are no notifications because there’s nothing you can do about it if you’re not home. I only realized my ‘bot was in danger (well, its bin was full) because I happened to keep the app open after starting it from work. Oddly, the app doesn’t notify you when the Roomba needs help. You can open the app and start cleaning from the first screen, even if it does take a few seconds before the bot starts up. It was all easy to walk through, and just like on the 980 itself, the clean button is front and center.
NEATO PARTS FULL
You can also schedule cleanings with the app up to once a day, view a full history of your robot’s vacuuming jobs, and get care tips for the Roomba. That’s where you’ll find options like carpet boost (for turning up the power when the bot detects it’s on carpet), number of cleaning passes (one is default, but you can up it to two), and edge clean (which runs the Roomba back along walls and furniture for a more thorough clean).
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It also has a “home” button (to send it back to the docking station) and a “spot” button (to clean an area about three feet in diameter. The big clean button on the ‘bot means you don’t have to whip out your phone to get the Roomba up and running.
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It’s not unlike adding other smart-home products to your Wi-Fi network. It walks you through each step, as does the robot - it gives you vocal cues - and you should be ready to clean in around five to ten minutes. Plug in the docking station, set up the Roomba so it’s charging, then download the iOS or Android app. Pull the Roomba out of the box, and it’s pretty much ready to go, though you do have some connecting to do. The clean button is front and center on the app, so it’s easy to start cleaning.