Roomba 690 Review:When iRobot first came out on the market with the Roomba 980 and Roomba 960, it was a dream come true for those who always wanted to control their Roombas, even if they were not at home.Read on for a full Roomba 690 review(s)

Then it was quite difficult to think of another function that would exceed this specific function. The Roomba 690 and the Roomba 890 are perhaps the best Roombas that has been launched in recent years.

Update  for special holiday prices: the Roomba 690 has recently been reduced in price and is available for a 27% discount today. This is a record low price for this model, and the steepest discount for a Roomba with WiFi functionality.

Let’s look at the Roomba 690 Review.

Contents (Jump to) [hide]

• 1 Roomba 690 Review
  • 1.1 A closer look at the Roomba 690’s features
  • 1.2 What’s in the box?
  • 1.3 What you would like about the Roomba 690
  • 1.4 What could be better
  • 1.5 My Final Verdict for the Roomba 690 Review

Roomba 690 Review(s)

With the Roomba 690 you can remotely clean your home with the help of the mobile app. It has the iAdapt navigation technology that ensures it finds its way into your home and cleans the under furniture, while avoiding stairs and steep falls.

You can also tell it to start cleaning with a simple voice command because of compatibility with Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa. However, the best news about the Roomba 690 is that you can get it all  other features for just $ 375 (checkout for the latest prices and discounts here).

A closer look at the functions of the Roomba 690 Review

iAdapt technology. The Roomba 690 has advanced software and a number of sensors that allow it to find its way into your room and cover the entire floor space. It gives your floor several steps to make sure it is clean, while it goes under furniture and avoid obstacles.

The Roomba 690 can also clean along the edges and corners and clean all floor types, such as laminate floors, hardwood, tiles and carpeting.

Three-stage cleaning system. Like all Roombas, the Roomba 690 offers the cleaning in three stages. In the 690s, counter-rotating brushes, a side brush and AeroVac technology are used for more thorough cleaning.

The main brush can remove dirt, dust and debris from the floor, while the side brushes can sweep dust away from the edges of the walls to the center. This makes it easier for the vacuum to suck everything in.

The AeroVac extraction technology has an optimized air flow that better picks up the dust and dirt collected by the brushes compared to other suction taps found on other vacuum cleaners.

Wi-Fi connectivity. Just like the Roomba 980 and 960, the Roomba 690 has a mobile app that you can download on your smartphone. You can use the iRobot Home app to make your 690 cleaned even when you are not at home. You can also use the mobile app to schedule cleaning.

Compatible with Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant. Your Roomba 690 can be cleaned in different ways. You can use the mobile app to clean remotely, you can create a clean schedule or you can press the START button on the device itself.

In addition, you can actually tell your Roomba 690 to begin cleaning by using voice commands when you use Google Assistant or Amazon Alexa. Just say ‘Alexa open Roomba’ if you have Amazon Alexa devices like Amazon Echo, Echo Show or Echo Dot.

If you have Google Assistant, you can simply say “Ok Google, say Roomba to start cleaning up” and see how the Roomba 690 comes into effect.

Using other commands, you can ask your Roomba 690 to pause or resume cleaning or to return to the home base. You can also check the status and location of your robot vacuum.

Automatic reload. Unlike most Roomba Series like the  600 models with nickel-metal hydride batteries, the Roomba 690 has a lithium-ion battery. Lithium-ion lasts longer and ensures that your vacuum lasts longer.

When the battery is low, Roomba 690 finds its way back to the charging base to charge automatically. You can also link it manually by using the link button on the robot vacuum or by executing the correct voice command.

Spot cleaning. If there are areas that are dirty or if you have spilled something on the floor, you can ask your Roomba 690 to perform stain cleaning on that specific area. The 690 cleans a stain of about three feet in diameter.

A quick look at the functions of the Roomba 690 Review:

Roomba 690 Review:What’s in the box?

• Roomba 690
• Home Base® charging station
• Dual-mode Virtual Wall® barrier with two AA batteries
• Line cable
• Extra AeroVac filter
• Tools for flat cleaning
• User manual

What you would like about the Roomba 690 Review

The Roomba 690 is the most affordable Roomba model with Wi-Fi connectivity and can be operated with Amazon Alexa devices or Google Assistant. It gives your floors a thorough cleaning and it has a durable battery that gives enough power to clean a medium sized room.

The physical dimensions of the 690 make it smaller than most Roombas. It is only 13 inches in diameter, while the Roomba Series 900 models are 13.8 inches and the 800 Series is about 13.9 inches. This means that the 690 can come into tighter spaces and corners.

Additional Resource: 

• Roomba 690 vs 650:Which Brand Will You Buy?

What could be better for Roomba 690 Review

The Roomba 690 is based on acoustic sensors instead of the optical sensors found in Series 700 and 800 Roombas. It also does not have the cameras you find on the Roomba 960 and 980.

In detecting dirty areas of the tiles or floor, the Roomba 690 seems to have some limitations as it does not achieve a thorough cleaning as compared to other Roombas out there.
In addition, while it can be self-charged, you must restart the Roomba 690 manually to resume and complete the cleaning.

In addition, because the Roomba 690 uses a brush, it is also  prone to tangles and malfunctions, on top of the fact that it needs to be cleaned and maintained more than the older Roombas with the brush-free nozzle cleaner.

Also, due to the smaller diameter of the 690, it may take longer to complete the cleaning of a room. It is also larger with 0.1 inch or 2.54 mm compared to previous Roombas. This may not be too much of a problem, but it can get stuck under furniture with a lower vertical clearance.

Moreover, the lower price tag means that the Roomba 690 is not equipped with the most new cleaning and navigation technologies from the recent Roombas.

In essence, it is a Series 600 Roomba with Wi-Fi compatibility and controllability with voice commands. However, you are still working with cleaning and navigation technologies that are at least five years old.

For example, it uses AeroVac technology instead of the AeroForce or AeroVac 2 technology, which offers anywhere from five to ten times more suction power.

For Roomba 690 review,the 690 also uses an AeroVac filter instead of the HEPA filters that you see on Roombas at a higher level. This means that the filter used by the Roomba 690 will release more dust and dirt back into the air compared to the HEPA filter.

Some features of  Series 700, 800 or 900 Roombas that you will miss when buying a Roomba 690 are:

Auto resume. The Roomba 980 and 960 can be automatically resumed after charging.

Carpet boost mode. With this function you can increase the suction power to ensure a cleaner carpet.

Edge cleaning mode. Although all Roomba models have side brushes that can be cleaned along the edges and corners, the Roomba 980 and 960 have a special edge cleaning mode that removes even the most stubborn dirt and debris along the edges of the wall. This function effectively delays the robot vacuum to ensure better and more thorough cleaning.

Full bin indicator and full input of the bin. Series Roomba models from the Series 700 and higher tell you when the bin is full and needs to be emptied. This handy feature is missing in the Roomba 690.

Furthermore, you can not specify what you want the Roomba 690 to do when the bin is full. With the Roomba 980 and 960 you know when the bin is almost full and you can tell the robot vacuum cleaner to continue cleaning until it is ready, or to pause immediately, so that you can empty the bucket first.

Cleaning passes through control. With this function you can request the robot vacuum to go twice over the same areas, which is perfect for the first time cleaning or when you have not cleaned for a long time.

My Final Verdict for the Roomba 690 Review

The Roomba 690 is the answer of iRobot to two trends that form in the vacuum space of the robot.

1. It imitates the Alexa capabilities of the Samsung Powerbot VR7000, which also comes with a mobile app that you can use to operate it. However, the Roomba 690 is cheaper than the $ 1,000 price of the Powerbot VR7000.
2. It goes against the budget robot vacuum cleaners that you can operate with a mobile app. Wi-Fi connected robot vacuum cleaners like the Rollibot LE-601 and Ecovacs Deebot which are both less than $ 400. However, for $ 375 (checkout for the latest prices and discounts here), the Roomba 690 also offers Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant compatibility.

The Roomba 690 is a powerful robot vacuum cleaner that ensures efficient cleaning. It is also a Roomba that you can operate via your voice or via your smartphone.

However, if you want a more powerful and better cleaning vacuum cleaner with these functions, you can purchase the Roomba 980 or the Roomba 960.

These models, however, have more expensive price tags, with the (checkout for the latest prices and discounts here) for $ 900 and the Roomba 960 for $ 700 (checkout for the latest prices and discounts here).

Another option, however, is to go for the Roomba 890, which will also have the same cleaning technology as the other Series 800 models. Chcekout the price listings and other details for the Roomba 890 Here