iRobot’s latest Roomba is great news for pet owners

iRobot just launched its ninth new robot vacuum of the year. That’s a record number for the company, which is struggling to dig itself out of the giant financial hole it was left in after Amazon’s bid to buy it fell through.

The new Roomba Max 705 has the same design and lidar navigation as the rest of the new lineup, and comes with an auto-empty dock and 13,000Pa suction power — the highest advertised on a Roomba. The 705 costs $899.99 (€699) and is available to order now at iRobot.com.

Most exciting for pet owners, the 705 brings back Roomba’s excellent dual rubber roller brushes, which are absent from the rest of the new bots. These were a staple of iRobot’s previous range of mid-to-high-end robots, such as the Roomba j9 and the Roomba i5. I have recommended Roombas for pet owners specifically because of these brushes.

The nubby rubber rollers, which iRobot claims are anti-tangle and which move in opposite directions, do the best job of any bot I’ve tested at picking up stubborn pet hair from carpet and hard floors. Hopefully, they will be as effective on this redesigned Roomba as they are on the current models.

Also good news for pet families: the 705 features iRobot’s excellent AI-powered obstacle detection, which uses an onboard camera to recognize and navigate around objects such as cords and socks, as well as any unfortunate pet accidents. A dirt-detect feature also uses the camera to identify messy areas it should pay more attention to.

The 705 doesn’t have a mop, though, so it can’t tackle muddy paw prints in the same way the Combo 10 Max does. However, based on iRobot’s history, it’s likely we’ll see a combo version of the 705 with a mopping element at some point.

Whether that will be dual spinning mop pads like those on the new Roomba 405 and 505, or a retractable mop like the Combo Max 10, or maybe even a roller mop (which are starting to appear on higher-end robot combos), we’ll have to wait and see.

iRobot says the 705 will work with the new Roomba Home app for scheduling, mapping, and control, including features such as room or zone-specific cleaning, four levels of suction power, and repeated cleaning passes. The company says the robot vacuum will be Matter-certified and compatible with the Apple Home app later this year. It also works with Amazon Alexa and Google Home for voice and smart home control options.