<p>Now, if you told me this thing also has a built in snack tray and beverage holder so i can just sit back and reach down for some chips and a drink everytime it wanders by, I’m on my way to COSTCO this afternoon! :p</p>
<p>I’m sure it “could” be retrofitted. You’ll need a detailed engineering drawing and just the right tools first, of course.</p>
<p>Sad to say, am old enough to watch Hazel. Poor Shirley Booth. Won acting awards galore for Come Back Little Sheeba, and then having to spend her life as … the maid.</p>
<p>Also sad to say, I met Hugh Grant about ten years ago and he is much better looking in person than in his movies. I know, you can’t believe it, but it’s true. Haven’t been able to stop thinking of his blue eyes for all these years. Sigh. D, too, though she was only ten.</p>
<p>Roomba sounds like a must. Stumped with name. (Oh Beulah was even worse than Hazel. Take the magnificently voiced Ethel Waters and make her a made.)</p>
<p>WashDad: So glad they finally made the hill a mountain. I laugh at the village of red-haired kids and cheer that everyone is so casual about it.</p>
<p>I love this thread. I bought a Roomba several years ago (my husband was seriously ill in CCU and I felt I was going to need all the help I could get so I went out and bought a new ride on lawn mower and a Roomba - comfort buying instead of comfort eating I guess).</p>
<p>After a few months my Roomba would only go for a few minutes at a time even though the battery said fully charged. After reading this thread I have decided to try a new battery and see if I can revive the old thing. never though of naming him before(yes I’ve decided my servant should be a boy). Maybe ‘HAL’ - or am I asking for trouble?</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>[iRobot</a> Corporation: iRobot Create Projects](<a href=“http://www.irobot.com/sp.cfm?pageid=296]iRobot”>http://www.irobot.com/sp.cfm?pageid=296)</p>
<p>Scroll down near the bottom of the page to “Fridgemate.”</p>
<p>Oh, I am sooooo getting this thing!</p>
<p>Pima speaking… I want robotmaid…I am so tired of picking up the kids clothing :p</p>
<p>Reporting in about my new toy, er, vacuum:</p>
<p>This is supposed to save me time by doing one task for me while I do another. However, I find that I hang out and watch while the roomba takes much longer to vacuum a room than I would! It really is quite entertaining. (I know, I need a life.) I imagine that the novelty will wear off.</p>
<p>dumb question since I haven’t researched the Roomba’s, and have only seen them advertised in print:</p>
<p>Where does all the dirt go (no bag, no container)? Our biggest problem is animal fur, and I cannot imagine that it could store enough after cleaning.</p>
<p>There is a filter and a receptacle for dirt. I have a black lab who is shredding profusely right now. This is really why I bought the contraption: swirling dog hair between major vacuumings. I have to empty the receptacle every 2 rooms or so.</p>
<p>Just dropping by the chime in. I used to work with a guy from iRobot, so I’ve had a Roomba (Burt) for quite some time and bought a Scooba (Trey) to join the family a little over a year ago. They’re both fantastic. </p>
<p>There’s a pet version of Roomba, but I didn’t have a need for that back when I got mine. That’s changed.</p>
<p>Pet reactions to Roombas very…I’ve seen video of a cat riding one, but CavDog (still a puppy) is terrified of the thing. He hit the start button by accident once and was first enchanted by the start up song, but then fled as the unit start to move. :)</p>
<p>Isn’t the “pet version” really designed for cleaning workshop and garage-type floors? Or am I confused?</p>
<p>How did I miss the pet version? I have one <em>very hairy</em> dog. The problem I have is not with the receptacle filling up, but the brushes needing to be “de-haired” so frequently.</p>
<p>There’s a version that’s specifically for workshops called [The</a> Dirt Dog](<a href=“http://irobot.com/sp.cfm?pageid=272]The”>http://irobot.com/sp.cfm?pageid=272), but there is also a pet version.</p>
<p>EDIT: Looks like the pet version is no longer available. The page for them had a big golden retriever on it posing with the Roomba. Oh well…the Roomba will do.</p>
<p>Holy molly! Dirt Dog! Exactly what I need for our deck!</p>
<p>Has anyone tried their gutter cleaning contraption, the Looj?</p>
<p>I actually like my Scooba better than the Roomba. The Roomba is nice, but it really doesn’t do much better than a vacuum (Dyson) – and as I have a long-haired dog, cleaning the fur out of the Roomba brush is a hassle. </p>
<p>On the other hand, I think that the Scooba really does a better job than a mop, and I always feel with a sponge mop that I am just spreading dirty water around. The only problem is that is doesn’t get corners & edges too well-- and the thing is rather noisy. But I definitely do think that of the two, it is the one that makes a bigger difference to overall housekeeping.</p>
<p>Okay, I’ve been gone from CC too long (this darn thing called work sure is a distraction) to not even notice there is now a Roomba thread. I am so in love with Mr. Belvedere, I may not notice if my H is gone. :)</p>
<p>How do I love thee, Mr. B? Let me count the ways:
- I set him up (using virtual walls, etc to keep him in a certain area), turn him on, and then take a nice, long shower, knowing that I’ll have clean floors when I’m done (yes, long shower). Or when I bake, cook, etc, other than vacuuming.
- I initially wanted a Scooba but Mr. Belvedere seems to be doing an awesome job in my tiled kitchen floor. After he is done, I take a damp paper towel to check the floor, and the towel is immaculate. (Theory: Mr. Belvedere swishes the embedded dirt on tile floor and inhales it. May be a wrong theory but works for me right now.)
- All my under-the-bed dust bunnies are now history.
- Takes away enormous stress knowing that “someone” else is doing the vacuuming AND (important) doing a great job. That 17-year old just doesn’t see the dirt that Mom sees.<br>
- My floors are getting cleaned more often - even the aforementioned 17-year old willingly pushes Mr. Belvedere’s clean button.</p>
<p>For the robotics inclined in the Roomba club, you may want to check out the book, “Hacking Roomba: Extreme Tech.” According to Amazon, this book wil teach you how to:</p>
<p>Build a serial interface tether.
Set up a Bluetooth® interface.
Drive Roomba.
Play with sensors.
Make it sing.
Create a Roomba artist.
Use your Roomba as a mouse.
Connect Roomba to the Net.
Wi-Fi your Roomba.
Replace Roomba’s brain.
Install Roomba-cam.
Put Linux® on Roomba.
Features a companion Web site. </p>
<p>It will still clean your floors and NOT affect the warranty. Unfortunately, I do better with a balance sheet than with wires (or with poetry).</p>
<p>Mountains, we’d only had Astro for only a few days when TallSon said, “Aw, dad, you always make me push the button!”</p>
<p>When they first came out Roombas had a big problem with oriental rug fringe, so we skipped them. Has that been resolved with newer models? I would love to have one.</p>
<p>I had a love/hate relationship with my Roomba. It did a great job vacuuming, but it took me more time to set up the room with the virtual walls, blocking what it would get stuck on, and cleaning the brushes than it did to vacuum myself. Plus it got gross after you’ve used it for a while to clean the brushes. Only three people and one short haired dog in the house, so I didn’t understand why the brushes needed to be cleaned so frequently for the Roomba to work properly. It was a sad day when I returned it at the end of the trial period. I still miss my Roomba.</p>