
A Roomba smeared dog poop. There's an economic lesson here - ArtDev
http://www.vox.com/2016/5/17/11683718/roomba-irobot-robots-disappointment
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t0mbstone
Here's an idea: Add more sensors to the robot vacuums. Improve their
navigation abilities so they don't run over toys. Implement sensors that
detect dog poop and vomit, or puddles on the floor, and have the vacuum avoid
them.

These are all problems that can be solved with basic engineering solutions.

The only lesson to be learned here is that there is a ton of room for
improvement with the current set of robot household helpers.

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berberous
Not everyone thinks Neato is better. I tried both, and the Neato got stuck
every time in certain areas of my home so that it was totally unusable. The
Roomba, although it has issues in other areas of the house, at least works
pretty well. Also, despite the Roomba's "chaotic" approach to navigating, it
works. The Wirecutter, for example, thinks it's a better navigation system,
and if you look at a light painting done with a Roomba you can see it covers
an area pretty well: [http://lightpaintingphotography.com/wp-
content/uploads/2011/...](http://lightpaintingphotography.com/wp-
content/uploads/2011/08/IBROOMBA3.jpg)

Finally, I have an older model, but the new Roomba 980 includes a camera so
they are working on new navigation tech, albeit slowly and at crazy high
prices.

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andybak
Isn't this a technological lesson? The Roomba is at the novelty stage rather
than being a mature tech? I can't predict how long it will take for a mature
equivalent to arrive but I certainly wouldn't rule out all home automation
because the Roomba is lacking in many areas.

Unless something thinks there's a huge technological gap to cross?

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ursus_bonum
The only problem I have with my Roomba is guests always freak out "Isn't it
going to fall down the stairs?!?"

Other than that it works quite well.

