I will say that while cameras may the "big negative" now, they will very quickly trump LiDAR-based units in the years to come as the neural network evolves. There's simply much more usable information from a camera that while not easy to process (as demonstrated in the video), would certainly be more beneficial to a robot moving in the real world. That's where I think iRobot has made the correct decision for their products, which I believe are probably more future-proof.
Have you considered if an all white test environment affects the pathing of vslam/ camera based robots? It seems to me that the lack of patterns on the walls may affect the ability of camera based systems to function correctly. An all white (floor /walls/ceiling) with minimal texture may reduce information and may confuse these robots. It is worth testing at least.
ABYSMAL product, abysmal service - 1000 Euros spent, pieces started falling off almost immediately, cheap plastic pieces like from a water pistol made in China. iRobot repair centre kept the roomba for months, signed a statement saying they had fixed and tested it, and just sent it back broken in exactly the same way i had sent it to them. From the vendor & iRobot the feedback was 'oh, we're so sorry ... bla bla bla'
I will say that while cameras may the "big negative" now, they will very quickly trump LiDAR-based units in the years to come as the neural network evolves. There's simply much more usable information from a camera that while not easy to process (as demonstrated in the video), would certainly be more beneficial to a robot moving in the real world. That's where I think iRobot has made the correct decision for their products, which I believe are probably more future-proof.
Have you considered if an all white test environment affects the pathing of vslam/ camera based robots? It seems to me that the lack of patterns on the walls may affect the ability of camera based systems to function correctly. An all white (floor /walls/ceiling) with minimal texture may reduce information and may confuse these robots. It is worth testing at least.
So it mops great, has poop detection and cost less that premium models. Sounds like a winner to me.
I thought the "PLUS" in J7+ meant that is also mops. Looks like what you were comparing was the standard J7 and the J7+.
The + just means that it comes with an emptying station versus just a charging station.
Roomba seem quite behind now days, half of the running time and 50% less efficient makes it significantly less effective for a medium to a large home.
Technology from the past for a tomorrows price ...
ABYSMAL product, abysmal service - 1000 Euros spent, pieces started falling off almost immediately, cheap plastic pieces like from a water pistol made in China. iRobot repair centre kept the roomba for months, signed a statement saying they had fixed and tested it, and just sent it back broken in exactly the same way i had sent it to them. From the vendor & iRobot the feedback was 'oh, we're so sorry ... bla bla bla'