iRobot brings LiDAR to its latest fleet of Roombas
iRobot Corp, the inventor of the robovacuum has been struggling to keep up with the wave of competition from rival companies like Dreame, Roborock and Ecovac. The floundering market leader has barely had a chance to catch a break since losing its $1.4 billion lifeline from Amazon. In what may be a final Hail Mary, iRobot has redesigned its entire lineup of robotic vacuum cleaners.
The new Roombas include two models in the budget 105 series: the 105 Vac, a vacuum-only model for $299, or the 105 Combo, a combination vacuum and mop model for $319. Both can be paired with an AutoEmpty Dock which costs an additional $150. For the mid-level 205 series, iRobot is introducing an onboard dust compactor that allows the robovacuums to hold more debris before requiring disposal. At the high end, the 405 and 505 Combo Robots feature a multi-purpose dock and dual-spinning mop pads, a first for the Roomba product line. Notably, the Matter-supported Roomba Plus 505 Combo Robot costs $999 with the auto-wash dock, undercutting the list price of last year's flagship Combo 10 Max by more than half a grand.
But iRobot's latest fleet offers more than an egregious naming scheme. The new models come with 7000Pa of suction power which is significantly lower than the 22,000Pa obtainable from Roborock's Saros 10 ($1599 on Amazon). However, in the words of Warren Fernandez, iRobot's Director of Product Management, "It is not all about suction power." The new Roombas all offer iRobot's SmartScrub feature as well as new perks such as carpet detection sensors and LiDAR mapping, which allows for superior accuracy than the camera-based VSLAM technology in the Roomba Combo 2 and even the Combo 10 Max which is now heavily discounted on Amazon.
An added benefit of LiDAR is that the upgraded iRobot app now displays real-time cleaning views. Obviously, this re-engineering makes the new Roombas quite similar to rival products such as the 2nd-gen Dreame L10s Ultra. With new accessories like mop pads and liDAR towers, iRobot is clearly playing to the gallery. The claimed reinvention of the company's R&D labs according to new CEO Gary Cohen is more than just a cosmetic overhaul, but a strategic attempt to stay competitive.
Only time will tell if iRobot's product redesign, rebranding and its new "Made for This" ad campaign will be enough to reclaim its throne at the top of the market. The company still faces stiff competition from familiar rivals. With presales beginning on March 18th, iRobot's fate now hinges on whether these innovations can rekindle consumer interest and restore its former glory.
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