I’m a dad…and a tech nerd. I love my connected gadgets. We use an old iPad as a monitor for Alex’s bedroom. We have smart lighting and outlets in our home.
When my mother-in-law got my wife and I a Shark Ion robot vacuum for Christmas, I was pretty excited. Literally, a few weeks earlier, Ami and I watched a video and talked about how cool a vacuum like that would be.
It connects to your phone via wifi. So, you can start it from the couch. That’s my style. When you think about the Ion…think Roomba.
So – I got it set up and connect on Christmas day. I named it ‘Baby Shark Do Do Do Do.’ True story – and now that’s stuck in your head.
How well does it work when there’s a handsy three-year-old in the house? A lot. That doesn’t sound like an answer, right?
I’ll start here. Our floors are the cleanest they have ever been. Yes, it works fine…but Alex learned there’s a button on top that starts it. And start it he has.
In just six days…it has been used 43 times. 43. My wife and I have used it once per day. That leaves the other 37 in Alex’s hands. Just kidding. 36 in Alex’s hands…and one from our cat Jack’s paws.
The big problem with Alex starting it is when I get home from work I’ve hit a habit of putting my backpack in the same spot every night. It likes to try and eat my backpack straps.
So if you are keeping track, in the last six days, Alex has vacuumed more than I have in I think seven-years. My wife usually does the vacuuming. And before you start…I am in charge of kitchen cleaning. It’s fair.
He’s also trapped it in his playroom under his Hot Wheels table having an adventure like they were making an Iron Giant (or Big Hero 6 if you are too young to remember that) reboot.
So, Alex starting it aside…how does it do? Well…it actually does great. If you have a little one you know cleaning the floor is a thing. Over and over. If you don’t have a dog? Well…I couldn’t imagine it without a dog.
It’s a little zig zaggy…and sometimes watching it get back to its dock is like watching a blind person trying to park a bumper car…but it works pretty great. Another thing about it I love is how quiet it is. Once you get over the pure newby-ness of just watching it you’ll barely know it’s on.
I wish it worked with Siri. or HomeKit. That’s Apple’s version of a connected home. Trudging into an app like some first world burden seems so 2014. (oh, happy 2020!) It DOES work with Alexa and whatever Google is calling its connected home solution.
The dust/pretzel/cereal collection basket isn’t very big. With a little human, you’ll likely need to empty it every couple of days or so.
At around $200 on Amazon…I probably wouldn’t have bought it on my own…but after receiving it as a gift…I kind of love it.
I give it five spilled cups of pretzels out of seven.
christhedigitaldad.wordpress.com 
The Vacuum Cleaner Technological Innovation Through the Years:
The classic vacuum cleaner design that first graced the industry is the upright vacuum. It was a major breakthrough then. More versions of the upright vacuum style came pouring in ever since.
The iRobot Roomba then became known for two words: luxuriously expensive. Owning the robot vacuum today means a hands-free and relaxed house cleaning experience. Like a robot, the robot vacuum moves on its own to clean and suck dust in the both large and small areas in your house.
Identifying the perfect iRobot Roomba version for your needs is the buyer’s ultimate responsibility. Fortunately, we have laid all three versions herein not only to compare roomba models (for not one is obviously better than the other) but also to gain a professional analysis from the three.
Source: https://smartfloorcare.com/irobot-roomba-805-vs-860-vs-890-the-ultimate/
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