Smart Update Leaves Roombas “Dumb”

If your Roomba has been acting stupid or seemingly “drunk” as of late, yours isn’t the only one.

A recent firmware update from manufacturer iRobot has left many of its robotic vacuum cleaners – particularly those of the i7 and s9 range of models – behaving in such a way that it resembles an intoxicated person.

For example, the robots have been seen spinning around, banging into furniture and other obstacles, moving in unusual patterns, have trouble recharging, and getting stuck in the middle of an open room. As a consequence, many Roomba owners have complained that they are taking longer than usual to clean a room.

The manufacturer acknowledged that the late January update was an attempt to fix bugs with its product, while adding new features – to “only make it smart and stronger”, according to some unaffected users, while frightening those who have been affected.

In a statement released last week, iRobot said: “We’ve worked with impacted customers to roll their robot’s software back. We are also implementing an update to ensure any similar issues are avoided moving forward.”

They added: “This update is being deployed to all customers over the course of the next several weeks.”