Return Roomba under ACL?

LXeKToReX on 02/09/2019 - 11:13

Hi Guys,

I've owned a iRobot Roomba 670 for 5 months now and have found it nothing short of useless.

I'm wondering what my options are for returning it as I don't believe it's fit for purpose, it's designed to be remotely controlled and return to it's home base at the end of a job which is very very rarely manages to do in any location… I find myself going hunting for it when it's dead almost every day I use it/schedule it to run.

My house isn't a maze and I can actually see it on CCTV just cruising around a couple of meters away from it's base with no idea what it's doing until it dies and I have to go and manually place it back on to charge when I get home.

I e-mailed their support but was just told to buy virtual walls to limit it's work area which I already have to by using real walls and doors, not their $100 addon..

I'm pefectly happy with how it cleans, just that I may as well get the Dyson handstick out and do the small area myself instead of searching for it every day.

Thoughts? Do I have a valid case?

Cheers!

Electrical & Electronics iRobot Robotic Vacuum Cleaner

Comments

  • HighAndDry on 02/09/2019 - 11:26

    Thoughts? Do I have a valid case?

    Depends. Is it actually broken or is it working as designed and intended, but your home, while not a maze, is just not suitable for a robot vacuum and/or the base station just in a place that's not suitable?

    I agree with you - I had a robot vacuum for a while but even though it worked as advertised, I found it easier to do a once-over with a Dyson stick vacuum instead. But that's on me for buying something that wasn't appropriate (and/or that I didn't like using), and not any fault of the vacuum itself.

    • XeKToReX on 02/09/2019 - 12:30

      I think it's working as designed, thats why I am saying not fit for purpose instead of faulty. It's a dining room leading into a living room, It couldn't really be simpler.

      I think half it's issue is that it hits its own base on the way past and moves it.. I have tried 4 locations and it is always the same!

      • HighAndDry on 02/09/2019 - 12:33

        Hmm. Give Roomba a call first and see if they'll agree to accept the return. Otherwise it'll come down to if it's the robot vacuum that's not fit for purpose, or your room that's not suitable for the robot vacuum.

        I think half it's issue is that it hits its own base on the way past and moves it..

        Though this is really weird. When I had one, I found I had best results with the base station basically out by itself against only one wall and far away from anything else.

        • XeKToReX on 02/09/2019 - 16:40
          +1

          I've emailed them a more detailed response and another demand for refund just now so we'll see what they say.

          If I haven't heard anything by Thursday, I'll just take it back into HN and demand a refund on it then.

          Maybe I'll try a roborock instead and hope it's mapping works well…

      • kelad on 02/09/2019 - 20:25
        +1

        The Roomba should never hit its home base. The halo it puts out should keep it away unless docking. A faulty dock may explain it.

  • ESEMCE on 02/09/2019 - 12:18

    Did you buy it from Australia?
    If not then ACL doesn't apply.

    I have found that the Xiaomi V1 robotic vacuum (both my Mum's and my in-law's) gets lost if there is poor WiFi signal strength (remember that robovacs are 5cm from the ground, so just cause you get decent signal at human level, the robovac may get poor signal).
    Possibly your base station is also in a poor WiFi location?

    Our Xiaomi V2 has no issues, but our house has WiFi access points at both ends (and I still get messages of poor signal quality).. I've even taken it out to the shed to do a vacuum, then returned it to the back door and told it to return home and it happily found its way!

    • XeKToReX on 02/09/2019 - 12:31

      Yeah, purchased from Harvey Norman in April. I feel I've given it every chance to do it's job and it still can't!

      I don't think WiFi signal is an issue, I have a ceiling mounted UniFi UAP AC central in the house and we have great connectivity through the entire place.

      Thanks!

      • ESEMCE on 02/09/2019 - 13:23

        A centrally located AP is still prone to signal attenuation due to distance and physical blocking (especially by large appliances Fridge/Oven/Dishwasher/Washing Machine/Dryer, Filing Cabinets, or Mattress springs).
        And most of these things are not in the way at waist height (or higher) where you typically would be doing signal tests.

        As I said, I have 2 AP's (both wall mounted at ceiling height) and our house is pretty typical size (certainly not a McMansion) but our robovac still complains about poor signal, there's simply more stuff in the way down there!

        If the problems exhibit themselves in poor signal areas, it's a fairly easy fix with a couple of Powerline Ethernet or MESH WiFi extenders.

        Of course, if it's getting lost immediately under the AP (or even in direct line of sight to the AP), then it's safe to assume signal strength is not a problem.

        • knk on 02/09/2019 - 13:44

          Logically these things would create a map of the house in memory and should not need constant communication to get back to the base station you'd think. I know my xiaomi one still runs without wifi connectivity (obviously can't administer it).

          Also with the unifi APs if you pair another one and move it to somewhere else in the house it'll auto switch to relay / repeater mode if not plugged in to ethernet. No need to bother with another mesh system, but the powerline might be a better option if this isn't suitable.

          • ESEMCE on 02/09/2019 - 14:24

            @knk: The Xiaomi V1 still doesn't remember maps between cleans, (the V2 didn't ship with it either, it had map remembering added by firmware update) so on a new clean it's mapping everything live.
            I have no idea how they work, but it wouldn't surprise me if they're sending back mapping data to a server to match to a location so the server can calculate a route rather than have to calculate on board.

            What I do know is that both my Mum and in-laws have the modem at one end of the house and at the most distant point to the modem is the ONLY place they get lost, and they routinely get lost in the same vicinity. It's rare that they will successfully clean that room without significant encouragement!
            From that observation I have hypothesised that WiFi signal strength is important.

            • knk on 02/09/2019 - 14:29

              @ESEMCE: Yeah i've got the V1, still going strong after 2 years. It doesn't remember maps but it creates the map on the actual device, it doesn't require internet for it. It'd be silly to require wifi through the whole process or you'd end up with a lot of houses not being cleaned.

              Source: I didn't have mine connected for 3 months when I changed my SSID. Didn't realize until I went to change something on the vacuum. Scheduled cleans etc still work.

              • ESEMCE on 02/09/2019 - 15:01

                @knk: Cool, I know my Mum flat out never uses the app, so I might try this to see if it resolves her issues!

        • XeKToReX on 02/09/2019 - 16:28
          +1

          I'm 100% sure it's not WiFi, it never goes further than 10m from the AP and usually only ever through 1 wall at most.

          Got my receipt etc might just see what HN say.

          Will report back!

  • kelad on 03/09/2019 - 05:46
    +1

    It getting lost has nothing to do with wifi. It does not use this to navigate.

  • XeKToReX on 17/10/2019 - 09:58

    Posting here in case this happens to make it into Google search results.

    I fought and fought with Harvey Norman and IXL Home on this.

    IXL basically told Harvey Norman "No fault found" so they won't be refunding.

    Harvey Norman knew I wouldn't accept that so the team member called me quoting some terribly hidden FAQ about how the unit wouldn't work in dark areas or on dark carpets.

    I went in to collect the unit and requested a discussion with the store manager who was helpful but to my surprise hadn't been informed about the problem even though I had previously told the team member that I have opened a Consumer Affairs Victoria case and was prepared to take this to VCAT.

    Going over my evidence, app screenshots and the poor response from the manufacturer the store Manager has decided that in the interest of keeping me happy they will refund the purchase.

    I am buying a Xiaomi vac ASAP.

    All's well that ends well when you find the right person.

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