iRobot Roomba S9 Vacuum Review

The iRobot S9 is very well-built. Its D-shaped body, similar in profile to that of the Neato Botvac D7, is made of high-grade plastic, accented with a matte-finish copper lid. Its dirt compartment feels mostly sturdy, though its bottom does feel somewhat flimsy and could potentially break if it's dropped. It comes out of the box ready to use, with no assembly required except for setting up its dock station.

This vacuum is quite demanding in terms of maintenance, with quite a few parts that need to be serviced regularly. Thankfully, they're quite easy to access.

• Dirt Compartment: The dirt compartment is found under the copper bin lid. It features a built-in carrying handle and a release button to open the bottom of the compartment and drop any stored debris. Aside from releasing debris, you can clean it by tapping it against the side of a garbage bin or washing under water. You need to remove the filter before doing so since it isn't washable.
• Filter: The filter is located inside the vacuum's dirt compartment. You can tap it against your garbage bin to dislodge any stuck-on debris, though this component isn't washable and shouldn't be cleaned with water. Like most other parts here, it needs to be cleaned once or twice a month, depending on if you're a pet owner.
• Brushrolls: The brushrolls are accessed by removing the brush guard under the vacuum. You can clear stuck debris or hair wraps by hand once or twice a month, depending on use. It can be a little hard to reinsert the brushroll since it needs to be precisely aligned.
• Side Brush: You need a screwdriver to remove the side brush. You should clean it by removing tangled hairs once or twice a month, depending on whether or not you have pets.
• Wheel: You can pull the wheel out of its cavity and push it out of the socket to clear any tangled hair or stuck-on debris. It should be cleaned every two weeks.

Any part that's washed in water should dry for 24 hours before use again.

This vacuum has quite a few sources of recurring costs that can add up over time.

• HEPA filter: The HEPA filter needs to be replaced every two months.
• Rubber brushrolls: The rubber multi-surface brushrolls should be replaced every 12 months.
• Side brush: The side brush can be removed and replaced every three months.
• Rear caster wheel: The wheel should be removed and replaced every 12 months.

If you don't want to buy these parts individually, the manufacturer sells a 'Replenishment Kit' that includes three side brushes, multi-floor rubber brushrolls, and three HEPA filters.

This vacuum has outstanding storage capabilities. It's quite small and comes with a low-profile charging station with a nook to store any excess length of power cable.

This vacuum has an okay dirt compartment. It's fairly sturdy, though its bottom feels like it could potentially break if dropped. It features sensors to let you know once it's full, either via an in-app notification or with the indicator light on top of the vacuum turning from white to solid red.

• iRobot Roomba S9 robot vacuum
• Charging dock
• Charging cable
• 2x HEPA filter
• 2x multi-surface rubber brushrolls with bearings
• 2x side brush (one already inside the vacuum)
• Dirt compartment
• User guide

This vacuum's range is limited only by remaining battery life, though it can't climb up or down staircases.

The iRobot S9's portability is mediocre. It's a little heavy and lacks a carrying handle to help you carry it from room to room or up and down flights of stairs.

The iRobot Roomba S9 has remarkable battery performance. It automatically adjusts to different surface types, though you can manually adjust its power setting through three levels: 'Lower', 'Balanced', which is the default, and 'Exceptional'. Even in its strongest suction mode, it supplies just under 50 minutes of continuous runtime. Used more conservatively, its continuous battery life extends to over two and a half hours, which is fantastic. The LED light on top of its body notifies you of the current charge status, with the light going from white to red when its battery level is low.

This robot vacuum has a couple of different quality of life features. It features a dirt sensor to detect high concentrations of debris and focus its power in those areas. It also has three power levels and an auto-adjusting vacuum head to suit different floor types.

The iRobot S9 comes with two multi-floor rubber brushrolls. Unlike the more common three-armed side brush used by other vacuums in the manufacturer's lineup such as the iRobot Roomba i7+, it comes with a five-armed side brush.

The iRobot S9 is a robot vacuum with no alternative configurations.

The iRobot S9's performance on bare floors is excellent. It clears pet hair and small debris like rice without an issue, with no noticeable drop in suction power as the dirt compartment fills up. While it sucks up larger debris quite easily with an empty dirt compartment, it struggles more when the dirt compartment is filled. If you want a robot vacuum that does a better job clearing bulky debris even as its dirt compartment fills up, take a look at the iRobot Roomba 981.

The iRobot S9 is great on low-pile carpet. It clears pet hair without an issue and doesn't have too much trouble dealing with coarse material, such as sand. However, it may take a couple of extra passes to fully clear finer debris on this kind of surface, like baking soda spills.

The iRobot S9 delivers good performance on high-pile carpet. Unlike the ONSON GOOVI F007 Robot Vacuum, the S9 picks up pet hair easily and clears quite a bit of coarse and fine debris on its first go-around. However, it may take a couple of extra passes to clean up everything.

This robot vacuum has amazing maneuverability. Like the iRobot Roomba i7+, it uses the iAdapt 3.0 navigation system to create an efficient cleaning route and maneuver around obstructions. It also goes over spots that it deems in need of additional cleaning. The vacuum itself isn't very tall, so it shouldn't get stuck under tables or couches. While it can get stuck on rug tassels, it doesn't get tangled on obstructions like power cables, though it may push them around.

The iRobot Roomba S9's automation features are passable. During setup with the iRobot Home companion app, it uses its navigation system to create a virtual map of the layout of your home. This allows you to schedule cleaning times for individual rooms and set up virtual boundary markers. The app also shows your previous cleaning history and remaining battery life. One convenience is that if the vacuum runs out of battery while cleaning a room, it will remember the incomplete job and return once it's been recharged.

You can purchase a charging station/dirt bin separately or as part of a more expensive S9 variant, called the S9 Plus, which gives the vacuum a standalone dirt compartment built into its charging dock to automatically empty itself of debris and continue cleaning.