<p>I’m a long-time Roomba lover. I’m on my second one, both named Rosie! I wore the first one out. She just spun in circles for a minute, then gave a sad little groan and shut off, never to power on again. Rosie #2 has a better design. She doesn’t get tangled or stuck as much as the original. She’s easier to clean. She even cleans under my sofa! With 2 dogs and 2 cats that makes her worth her weight in gold!</p>
<p>I couldn’t resist jumping on the bandwagon. Stopped at Costco today and am just waiting for old Bessie to charge up.</p>
<p>I showed my H this thread, and said I wanted a Roomba. I’d never even heard of them before. He said he looked at them, and I would have gotten one if we hadn’t decided to go to Disney for Christmas instead of exchanging presents.</p>
<p>binx, how was Disney?</p>
<p>I love the way the roomba goes under furniture. First time I let it loose in the bedroom, it went under the bed and came out with a big trail of fuzz and dog hair coming out of the back. Removed that, and let her go again. Same thing. After a few iterations, we now have the cleanest underbed around.</p>
<p>Roomba question:</p>
<p>Is this contraption a robotic sweeper, or is it also a vacuum, i.e., it “sucks?”</p>
<p>(no, I am not making a pun!)</p>
<p>At Costco yesterday, I looked longingly at the Roomba. However, S wants a PS3 (playstation 3), and that is costly. Ended up with neither.</p>
<p>WashDad, You deserve a commission. By the way, what is Dremel kit?</p>
<p>OK, that was lazy of me (#65). I just Googled the roomba. irobot is touting it’s latest-generation models, all with model numbers beginning with 5 (e.g., 580). Which generation are you folks using? Do I need to pay the upcharge for the latest and greatest?</p>
<p>You guys need to check out [Roomba</a> Review - Roomba & Scooba Reviews, News, Coupons & More!](<a href=“http://www.roombareview.com/]Roomba”>http://www.roombareview.com/)! Besides some excellent discount info, there’s a user forum, tips and tricks, reviews and news. I didn’t want a Roomba till I started reading this thread, and now the website makes me want one even more!</p>
<p>bookworm, a Dremel tool is a high-speed rotary hand-held tool that takes a really wide variety of bits for precise cutting, sanding, finishing, etc.</p>
<p>How’d I do, handy people?</p>
<p>Disney Report:
doubleplay, thanks for asking. Disney was, well, Disney. Something for everyone, as long as you can stop thinking about how much it all is costing per minute. 
The best part for me was having all 5 of us together for a few days. We all had different favorite parks - We did Epcot, Magic Kingdom, and MGM. I really liked MGM the best. Kids and H seemed to prefer Epcot, for the calmer, more adult atmosphere. (Epcot was spoiled a bit for me because I made the mistake of going on the “spinning” side of the Space Mission to Mars, and struggled to stay upright the rest of the day. It ain’t easy, bein’ green.) But we all agreed we also needed to do Magic Kingdom simply because it doesn’t seem like Disney without it. </p>
<p>I like the live shows best. However, my middle kid needed to grab his IPod and listen to some atonal music for awhile immediately following Magic Kingdom. Too much happy music, he said. Kids all prefer the roller coasters. Best surprise was the “Four for a Dollar” acapella group that did a brief show before the also well-done “Beauty and the Beast” at MGM. Saw some super light shows - especially the fireworks at Epcot, the Fastasma show at MGM, and MGM’s street of lights. My H and sons especially liked the Motor stunt show at MGM.</p>
<p>Could have skipped a few things - Making of Narnia (simply a commercial), Pirates of the Carribean (long line with pushy people), and a few of the “mechanical” shows, like the bear jamboree thingy.</p>
<p>Weather was beautiful. We got there pretty early every day, and got to enjoy at least a bit without crowds. Even with the crowds, Fast Passes helped, and most lines weren’t terribly long anyway.</p>
<p>I’m glad we did it; I doubt we’d repeat. There are too many other places to go, things to do, people to see.</p>
<p>mafool, you did fine. DH swears by the dremel, which I never use even though I do know what it is. The most interesting use we had was using it to remove an ink tag left on an article of clothing that we bought. Got it home and discovered the clerk had left the tag on. Rather than drive 45 minutes back to a shop with a removal tool I did a google search. Found specific directions on removing it using a dremel.
Ten minutes later, good to go!</p>
<p>cool, ebeeeee. I know that our vet uses a dremel to trim our dog’s toe nails!</p>
<p>mafool: nice description. I also use a Dremel (this one: [Amazon.com:</a> dremel mini](<a href=“http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/search-handle-url/index=blended&field-keywords=dremel%20mini&results-process=default&dispatch=search/ref=pd_sl_aw_tops-1_blended_26838285_2&results-process=default]Amazon.com:”>http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/search-handle-url/index=blended&field-keywords=dremel%20mini&results-process=default&dispatch=search/ref=pd_sl_aw_tops-1_blended_26838285_2&results-process=default) )
on my dogs’ nails. Way easier than clipping and they don’t have sharp edges.</p>
<p>dmd77, which cutting tool do you use for the nails? I am terible with the nail clippers (I wince when the dog winces, and she’s also quite strong, so her winces are significant), and the vet charges. I could pay for this tool in the space of 3 nail cuttings!</p>
<p>OK, now you’ve got me looking at Roombas, too, since I haven’t gotten anything for Hanukkah, our anniversary or my birthday yet (and I am foolish enough to have all three fall within days of each other in most years). ;)</p>
<p>Mr. Belvedere got stuck today under a piece of furniture. There was just enough clearance for him to go under and he somehow managed to get in. I really thought there was no way for him to get in, but he managed when left on his own. No big deal though; just put something to block it. </p>
<p>mafool, I got the 560 from Linens N’ Things with a 20% coupon. I did a comparison of the different models on irobot’s website and I liked the 560’s features.</p>
<p>Loving this roomba more each day. :)</p>
<p>We found our roomba’s ‘achilles’ heel’… he couldn’t handle getting stuck in an odd angle corner. Took him to mom’s house where there are weird angles- one corner was very narrow- something like 45 degrees. It got caught up in there, and didn’t know what the heck to do. Kept bouncing around, turning, trying to figure it out. Totally confused.
Fortunately we don’t have 45 degree angles at OUR house. I LOVE my roomba, and I only have a 530. I can’t program it to do multiple rooms, although it does turn itself off in a room after it’s done (more than enough for me!). There is NOTHING like having something vacuum under beds and couches. I have pets, and live in Florida (dusty, sandy), so vacuuming is a daily chore. This is the new love of my life.</p>
<p>re Binx Disney report (gift):
I’m with you sister on the ‘room rides’ (that’s what I call them- you get in a little room- they bounce and jumble you around with a movie in front of you). They are little more than vomitoriums. That’s what Body Wars and Back the the Future are, and the space ride at Epcot is really just a big centrifuge with a movie screen in front of you (that’s why everyone gets sick- DO NOT, I repeat, do not ever take your eyes off that screen for a moment). You were literally spinning around the whole time. </p>
<p>Give me a good old fashioned roller coaster. I’m fine as long as I’m moving forward, feel the wind on my face, fresh air, and can see where I’m going. My favorite- Millenium Force, Cedar Point. Awesome ride.</p>
<p>The Dremel description up there is perfect. I used mine with the cutoff wheel to cut some robot parts to size. It’s not actually much easier than a hacksaw, but it sure is more fun.</p>
<p>WashMom renamed her Roomba 530 to “Astro” today, and the pronoun went from “her” to “him.” I think WashMom likes that better. </p>
<p>From what I’ve heard from owners of older Roombas, the 500-series is a lot better, and since you can get one for $200-250, the extra price isn’t that bad. I can’t say from experience about the other models, but our 530 works fine.</p>
<p>I could see ultimately having several programmable Roombas (like the 560), each setup to handle part of the house automatically. But that would be getting carried away…</p>
<p>and what, exactly, is wrong with getting carried away?</p>