iRobot Rebuilds Its Scooba Robot Mop With 3x the Power

LAS VEGAS -- iRobot’s line of robotic home cleaning assistants continues to grow, and the latest addition is an update to its Scooba Floor Mop called the Scooba 450. This new intelligent mop is slightly heavier and larger than its previous incarnation, the Scooba 390. According to iRobot, it's also three times more effective at clearing dirty floors than the last model; Scooba's internal components, including the motors, brushes and fans, have all been replaced.

Why iRobot's CEO Welcomes Our New Google Robot Overlords


Roomba 880 Has More Sucking Power, Trouble With Obstacles

The Roomba, the automated robot vacuum, is more than just a great idea -- it's an inevitable one. As technology progresses, it just makes too much sense to relegate simple, menial tasks to automatons. I have no doubt that one day, most homes will have robot cleaners of various shapes and sizes performing all the thankless tasks that go hand-in-hand with maintaining a home.

Military Robots Will Patrol World Cup

Even non-soccer fans know how hooliganism can quickly turn a harmless match into a veritable war zone, full of riots, stabbings, even death. To help keep the peace at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, FIFA has decided to go high-tech by enlisting military robots for security.

iRobot Mirra Tackles Pool Muck

Unless you're a five-year-old kid, there's nothing fun about dirt. It builds up everywhere and nobody really wants to clean it up. iRobot knows this. That's why it keeps spitting out fresh new robots to do all the dirt-ridden jobs we struggle to avoid. The Massachusetts-based company started with robot vacuums for our dirty floors and moved onto robotic mops and even a tiny Scooba that will roll behind the toilet so you don't have to.

Robot Hand Picks Up Nyan Cat, What Else is Possible?

Humans take their hands for granted. We’re just as quick to make an obscene gesture with them as we are to paint the next Mona Lisa. For those building robots, however, dexterous hands are a never--ending conundrum. Building them is tough and expensive. Roomba manufacturer iRobot is working on innovating its way around at least a few of these major obstacles to build effective, affordable, and maybe even intuitive digits.

This Is How a Throwable Robot Sees My Office


iRobot Gobbles up Evolution Robotics for $74M

Guess what Roomba got for its 10th birthday? A nice, shiny new company to play with. iRobot, the company that makes the Roomba robotic vacuum will acquire competitor Evolution Robotics for $74 million in cash, according to a joint announcement. Though iRobot went public in 2005 and Evolution Robotics remains a privately-held company, the two companies have otherwise followed a somewhat similar trajectory for the last decade.

Roomba Celebrates 10 Years of Cleaning Up After You

Roomba, the world’s first multi-million unit-selling home-helper robot, turns 10 today. iRobot has cooked up a self-congratulatory infographic filled with a collection of interesting and, occasionally bizarre facts to mark the occasion. A decade ago, I tested and wrote about the first Roomba robotic home vacuum. Back then, I described it as looking like “an oversized CD-player” (remember those?).

This iRobot Has its Mind in the Gutter

Best known for its Roomba vacuum cleaner robot, iRobot has reportedly sold 8 million consumer robots over the last 10 years, but not all of them are Roombas. Along with the vacuum cleaners, garage clearing Dirt Dogs and intelligent floor mops is the gutter-cleaning Looj. If that sounds like a joke, it’s not. Sure gutter cleaners get no respect, but this robot is about to get a major upgrade with the Looj 330.

iRobot Releases Smartest Roomba Yet

iRobot announced on Tuesday the latest vacuum cleaning robot in its Roomba lineup, boasting a wireless command center that schedules cleanings and allows users to control the device from anywhere in the house. The new Roomba 790 -- available now for $699.99 -- gives users more flexibility in cleaning. By using the Wireless Command Center remote control, it's possible to steer the Roomba to any spot in the house and schedule it to routinely clean during certain hours, even when no one is home.

YouTube Sensation Does the Robot in $10 Million Roomba Campaign [VIDEO]

Dubstep master and YouTube sensation Marquese Scott is back with another jaw-dropping routine. His 2011 YouTube dance video gained more than 43 million views. This time, he is promoting the Roomba robotic vacuum cleaner. iRobot Corporation -- behind the Roomba and Scooba automated cleaners -- is making moves with a robust $10 million ad campaign, appealing to fans on T.V. and online. Scott appears in the T.V.


Who is ultimately responsible for the behavior of autonomous robots? That's the central question that a new conference on robots aims to tackle. Why ask the question? Well, imagine that today's robot vacuums and floor washers (like the recently upgraded Scooba) eventually spawn cousins who mow lawns and trim hedges. Now imagine that robot hedge trimmer chopping off your neighbor's arm.

Scooba Robot Floor Scrubber Gets an Upgrade, Still Not Quite Skynet

The Roomba robot vacuum is world-famous, but it's cousin, the Scooba floor washer, not as much. Will the new Scooba 390 change that? iRobot, the company behind both, hopes so. If you found the old Scooba difficult to use, iRobot says the 390 has been upgraded for better performance and 30% longer battery life over its predecessor, the 380.

iRobot's Roomba Revenge Attacks Virtual Dust Bunnies

Ever since iRobot launched Roomba, the disc-shaped robotic floor vacuum, it's been hard to ignore the sometimes comic possibilities. SNL once famously parodied the product, which has sold millions of units since 2002, in a memorable fake commercial for the "Woomba" feminine hygiene robot. iRobot, laughed quietly in the background, but was never really in on any of the jokes. Until now.

