The Roomba j7+ is a smarter and swifter robotic vacuum than ever before

iRobot has become a leader in the automatic vacuum market with their revolutionary line of Roomba automatic vacuum cleaners.

They have proved time and again that Roomba’s are more than just an expensive toy and are an invaluable tool in home cleaning.

The j7 is the newest and most advanced of the line, incorporating some serious upgrades and sharing some of the advanced features seen in the i7 and S9.

There are two versions – the standard j7 and the j7+ – with the plus denoting the inclusion on the Clean Base.

In what has become a tradition in my home when I review a Roomba, I give it a fancy name; the j7 was named Belvedere.

The j7 doesn’t deviate much from the standard circular shape of most robotic vacuum cleaners, and coming in at 13.3 inches wide x 3.4 inches high its low profile means it can fit under some furniture, getting to the hard to reach places.

It’s also easy to lift if you need to take it up or downstairs or get it out of trouble, weighing only 3.3Kg.

The already minimal layout has been even further streamlined by reducing the interface to a single button, and a noticeable camera placed on the front of the unit also helps with navigation.

The j7 sports a smart black and silver design and while looking less cosy than the i3 ’s textured look, the j7 leans more into a more premium and utilitarian appearance.

The front of the device has that signature springy bumper to protect it from collisions and to tell the robot when to stop, although the new SightTouch technology means the j7 is more careful than previous models, slowing down for impacts; it definitely had fewer bumps and scrapes that the previous models I’ve used.

The internal bin is easy to manually remove and empty, but one of the stands out features of the Plus models is the ability to empty themselves via the Clean Base.

The Clean Base is not only a charging station but also where the vacuum unloads all dirt, dust and debris, eliminating a lot of the mess that is inevitably created when you need to empty a vacuum.

This system’s Dirt Disposal bags hold up to 60 days of dirt and debris, but this will obviously vary depending on the home.

The Clean Base itself has seen a welcome redesign, most noticeably changing it from vertical to horizontal, making it much easier to store out of the way.

The j7’s Clean Base is the same capacity as the i3, i7 and s9’s as they use the same bags, but there is also additional storage of a few extra bags within the base.

The iRobot app is more essential for using the device than on previous models due to the minimal interface on the device.

It’s very simple to use and allows you to control multiple Roombas, if you have them, or if you own the Braava jet m6 robot.

You can set it to immediately clean, see if it’s cleaning currently and it’s level of charge. You can also set a repeating schedule which is handy if you are always out of the house at a particular time.

The app also allows you to see its past jobs and displays a map of all the areas it’s cleaned which helps you identify problems, such as if your dining room chairs are too close together and aren’t giving the J7 space to get through.

This map contains pictures of any obstacles, allowing you to say if they are permanent obstacles it needs to avoid or if they were only temporary, such as a rogue child’s toy in its path.

You can also set keep out zones you want the model to avoid which was really helpful when I wanted to avoid my son’s room when he has all his toys out or was sleeping, or when I wanted it not to waste time trying to get into blocked areas.

It’s this level of feedback that is really what sets the j7+ far above not only other robot vacuums but others Roombas.

The app even suggests more frequent cleaning when the pollen count is high or during pet moulting season, which helps take the edge off if you have bad allergies. It also includes recommendation messages to remind you to replace your filter, too.

The spot clean button has been removed but within the app, you can create Clean Zones; small areas for the j7 to do targeted cleans.

You don’t even need to find your phone or even touch the Roomba j7+ to start cleaning as it is compatible with voice assistants, like Alexa or Google.

I did expect battery life to be a little better; it lasted 85 mins which is less than some models, but I assume this is due to its more advanced navigation system including light and camera that’s constantly in use.

Like most Roombas when the battery is low or the bin is full on the unit, it will make its way back to the Clean Base and empty itself, recharge then continue its job when done.

This means you don’t have to worry about it conking out in the middle of the living room or becoming full while you’re out and waiting for you to return home to empty it, so it can resume the job.

This level of smart automation means you can have the j7+ clean your home while you’re out and you’ll seldom need to worry about it.

Navigation has seen somewhat of an overhaul with the j7 featuring a front-facing camera to aid in its navigation as well as having the ability to recognise certain objects, instead of only using a floor tracking sensor like on some previous models the j7 detects objects in its cleaning path and avoids them.

The new system is called Precision Vision navigation and addresses criticism of previous models. I’ve tested this several times being a tech nerd with many leads, controller cables and components lying around and I was impressed that Belvedere knew to avoid cables and stopped devouring my socks.

The j7 promises to detect and avoid animal poop, it also gives you a notification through the app thus alerting you and saving you the nightmare of having to clean up the mess which is a massive advantage to pet owners.

Even better, the j7s ability to recognize obstacles is updated by iRobot which will further improve its performance over time.

The new Quiet drive surprised me; this mode will turn off the vacuum motor and brushes when the Roomba is transitioning from room to room, making it much quieter and less disruptive.

It was incredibly quiet that is until you empty the j7 at its Clean Base which was very noisy, but no louder than a standard vacuum cleaner and only running for around 10 seconds.

The j7 uses a 3-Stage cleaning system including its edge cleaning brush, which helps it sweep debris out of corners and along walls. It also has a knack for picking up long hairs, but it does keep them from the internals, so it’ll require slightly more attention than the rest of the vacuum.

The j7 features impressive suction and while it’s not at the same level as the top model the S9, it is 10 times more powerful than the Roomba 600 models.

I tested it on sand, dust, soil, sugar, and rice and it made short work of them picking up the debris and moving less around than previous models.

It features two large green Multi-Surface Rubber Brushes that do a great job of picking up dirt and they flex slightly to help it traverse different floor types and don’t get tangled with pet hair.

It did a great job traversing and cleaning hard floors as well as carpeted and thick rugs.

The Dirt Detect technology makes the j7 focus on the dirtier spots of your home and I saw this in effect with Belvedere concentrating on doorways, the bin and especially where my son eats.

Being the most advanced model does make it more expensive than previous models. The j7 alone retails at £699.99 and the j7+ which includes the Clean Base is currently £819 with free shipping.

The j7 can even work in tandem with the m6 mop robot to achieve an even deeper clean.

You still need to create space for the vacuum to move around and clear larger objects out of the way, but this isn’t really an issue as I’d be doing the same thing with a regular manual vacuum.

Verdict

The j7’s navigation and advanced mapping are fantastic, creating a much swifter and more agile unit; the level of feedback and information as well as the improved Clean Base are brilliant additions.

The battery life was slightly lacking, and I wish there were more user-configurable options to turn certain modes on or off but the streamlined interface was effortless to use.

Its already great performance on pet hair and the added ability to avoid waste make this a no brainer for pet owners.

The Roomba j7+ takes the already impressive features of some of the recent Roomba models and significantly improves upon them.

It truly feels like iRobot has listened to owner’s issues with older models and tried to create and much better and user-friendly experience and this is a viable upgrade from even advanced models like the S9+and i7+.

The Roomba j7+ is out now and is available from the iRobot website for £ 819.00