For decades now, there has been a love affair between humans and robots.
Back in the 80s, you have a series called The Jetsons and if you were born in those days I’m sure you’re familiar with this show.
Fast forward to the 21st century and we have the closest thing to Rosie and one of them has a name!
To be more specific, we’ll be comparing the Bobsweep Bobi Pet and the Roomba 980.
Bobsweep Bobi Pet
Roomba 980
Both robotic vacuums are the latest from their manufacturers. And they both promise smart cleaning features that will help you keep your home clean – in the case of Bobi’s pet hair free.
Botsweep is one of the latest in a long list of brands that aims to challenge Roomba’s market dominance.
At first glance, it has some features that will give Roomba a run for its money but how can it stand in terms of overall performance and price.
This is what we will look at in this article. We will detail each feature of these robot cleaners and see who comes out on top in each aspect.
Table of Contents
top view
As you can see, these two blanks have chosen a simplistic approach to designing their products.
Roomba only has three buttons – home, clean, and location. Over the years, iRobot has simplified its interface and with the app capable of handling the scheduling feature, it has faced it in the simplest variants.
It does not have the striking features that other brands have. But she doesn’t really need it.
Roomba 980’s virtual cleaning cycle is more than enough to clean your home whether it is a single room or multiple rooms.
The only thing that separates Roomba 980 and Bobsweep is the smartphone app. It gives Roomba more usable functionality that can be accessed remotely.
Bobi Pet also chose a simple style and has three buttons – go, juice and waffle.
- Go – Default cleaning mode
- juice Directs the robot to dock and recharge
- Waffle Spot cleaning mode
View from the bottom
Bobsweep and Roomba have a similar design when you look under it.
Both have a side brush on the top left. The size of the motorized brush is approximately the same.
The biggest difference between these two is what they used for excitement.
Bobsweep uses a combination of two counter-rotating bristle brushes. It also comes with a rubber brush and squeegee that works well with the bristles at picking up pet hair.
The Roomba 980 uses the reversible rotary hoods that I first introduced with the 880.
As for the placement of the shelf sensors, wheels and dirt box, they all remain the same.
Mobility
Roomba’s departure from random cleaning mode
When Roomba first came out, it used a random algorithm that took a long time to clean the room despite its effectiveness.
This was the biggest problem consumers had with a very good cleaning robot, and iRobot finally listened.
With the Roomba 980, it has since revamped the old random algorithm and outfitted it with a more predictable Neato-style back-and-forth pattern.
Rather than using only infrared sensors, iRobot has added a camera to further help it avoid obstacles and track its location.
This camera also helps the 980 clean multiple rooms, something Bobsweep can’t do.
The downside of the camera is that it will limit the 980’s ability to clean in low-light situations because the camera needs lighting to function well.
For containment, the 980 comes with two virtual walls that keep the Roomba from areas you don’t want like the bathroom or the heavily soiled kitchen floor.
Even without a virtual beacon, the Roomba 980’s navigation system combined with the camera allows it to clean multiple rooms in the house – the biggest problem is emptying the dirt bin midway through the cleaning cycle, but the 980 is smart enough to remember where it left off and will return exactly to where it was cleaned preset when you turn it on again.
Bobby uses a random cleaning pattern
Compared to Roomba 980, it will not be as efficient as it lacks the advanced SLAM algorithm that iRobot uses.
This software helps Roomba to find the most efficient path and the camera on the board helps it locate it precisely and remember the areas it has cleaned.
It has 80 sensors, of which 5 are wall sensors that prevent it from hitting furniture. But if your furniture has chrome legs or is painted black, Bobby won’t be able to see it and a mess will occur.
The biggest downside to an infrared-based system is the lack of intelligence. It will just go in a random direction and won’t remember where it is.
For containment, Bobi uses the same technology as the 980.
They call it “Bobby Block”. It emits a signal that blocks the robot’s path to prevent it from entering an area you don’t want it to enter.
As with any robotic vacuum cleaner, you will need to prepare the area to be friendly to the robot.
This means removing toys, wires, and litter on the floor. You may also want to remove any chairs with narrow legs. As you saw in the video above, Bobi has a hard time navigating around areas like this.
The placement of the charging base is also important. You should have enough space on both sides and front to avoid any problems with docking and recharging.
winner: Roomba 980
Regulations
Roomba turns into WiFi
With the proliferation of smartphone companies, manufacturers are taking advantage of this technology and incorporating it into their products. Roomba has developed its own app (for both iOS and Android) which allows consumers to control the 980 with their smartphones.
The app basically allows you to schedule, start and stop the bot. It also notifies you when the robot needs any maintenance such as emptying the container or cleaning any of the brushes or extractors.
What I like about the app is that you can control the robot from anywhere that there is an internet connection.
So even if you are in your car, at work or inside a supermarket, you can tell the robot to clean your house in case you have any guests coming.
Bobsweep uses a disc-shaped controller
Bobi uses a uniquely designed control that allows you to schedule, start and clean cycles. It also allows you to control the robot like a remote control which is nice but not necessary.
You buy a robot vacuum because you want it to do the cleaning for you, not the other way around.
Roomba 980 and WiFi connection are a game changer. It has urged its competitors, Dyson and Neato, to add this feature to their products.
winner: Roomba 980
cleaning systems
From the Roomba 800 series onwards, iRobot moved away from the bristle brush system. And now I use two counter rotating straws that they claim are maintenance free. But in real-life tests, it’s not as maintenance-free as iRobot claims.
Long hair will still be wrapped around these extracts…
You’ll also need to pay attention to the sides as well because dust and hair will build up in this area.
Cleaning these hoods should be part of your maintenance routine to keep them in peak condition.
Bobsweep Bobi uses two bristle brushes with opposite rotation bristles
It also has another brush – a mop-type rubber beater applicator that looks like the Roomba 650. You can swap one brush with this one.
The bristle and squeegee combo works better in my opinion for picking up pet hair than the bristle brush setup.
It has two features that Roomba does not have – a mop and sterilizer. Whether or not the mop is effective depends on how dirty the floor is.
Ideal for wiping relatively clean surfaces
On a relatively clean tiled surface, it works great as a mop (just make sure the microfiber towel is wet with a quick-drying cleaning solution). It saves you time because you don’t need to scan separately.
Sterilizer is a kind of question mark. It uses ultraviolet rays that are supposed to kill bacteria. But I’m not sure about the real world efficacy.
To properly disinfect and clean exposed floors such as tile or hardwood, you will need a dedicated tile and hardwood cleaner designed specifically for the task.
While you can control how fast the Bobi moves, it doesn’t have a carpet booster system that increases suction power for better cleaning of deeper carpets.
This feature alone enables the 980 to be better equipped to handle dirty carpets while Bobi works better as a maintenance cleaner that prevents dirt build-up.
If you let Bobi loose on a soiled carpet, he won’t be able to finish the cleaning cycle because he can’t handle cleaning a large amount of dirt.
winner: Roomba 980
battery
Older generation Roombas use a heavy NiCad battery and have longevity issues.
The Roomba 980 now has a lithium-ion battery that extends runtime up to two hours. As the carpet increases, this number will decrease.
In terms of runtime, it is basically the same but gives a better linear power range which means it will maintain suction power throughout the charging cycle.
The Bobi pet vacuum cleaner still uses the old nickel-cadmium battery which will last about 1.5 hours.
winner: Roomba 980
Guarantee
As with all Roomba robot vacuums, it comes with a 1 year warranty on the robot and 6 months on the battery.
Bobsweep outperforms Roomba by backing their product with a 2-year warranty and a 60-day money-back guarantee.
winner: Popsweep Bobby
Purification
The Bobi and Roomba 980 both have a HEPA filter – their filters are washable.
winner: even in
price
If you buy the Roomba 980 on Amazon, expect it to be around $800. Buying online is actually cheaper than buying it retail.
Bobby is much cheaper. Depending on the variant, you’ll choose it’s going to cost less than $260 on Amazon. The Standard White Edition is no longer available on Amazon, only the “Pet Edition” that has a more powerful motor to handle pet hair better.
Both brands are eligible for free 2-day shipping if you join Prime. Amazon also sells extended warranties of up to 3 years if you want that extra peace of mind.
winner: Popsweep Bobby Pet
to finish
Roomba is a better performing robot with new and improved navigation, WiFi connectivity, better cleaning performance and the ability to clean multiple rooms.
Obviously, the biggest downside will be the price. The Roomba 980 costs about $800. It is easily one of the most expensive robot vacuums right now next to the Dyson 360 Eye.
If your home does not have carpeting, there is a cheaper option available – the Roomba 960. It has the same mobility as the 980 but with a smaller motor and shorter runtime.
Other options might be the Roomba 650 and 860. But these variants still use the old infrared navigation system which is less efficient.
If you appreciate high-end technology that uses your smartphone as the main controller and don’t mind spending that amount of money to get it, the 980 is a no-nonsense choice.
Bobsweep is a good cheap alternative and has additional features not found in Roomba. These features include ultraviolet disinfection and sterilization.
It won’t match the 980 in terms of power or cleaning performance but it costs a third of the price.
The mop attachment helps in terms of dry wiping of fine dust particles. UV sanitizer is a big question mark about whether or not it can really kill germs.
Another struggle for Bobsweep is climbing on plush carpets and hopping around in chairs. But in terms of cleaning performance, they will do a decent job of keeping your home clean.