The iRobot Genius software is one of the guiding features behind why Roombas work so well. The latest update is live today and includes Imprint Smart Mapping for the Roomba i3 series, Siri commands, and clothing and towel detection for the Roomba j7 series.
The new Imprint Smart Mapping for Roomba i3 and i3+ allows users to make customizable Smart Maps of their homes. This means users can now ask Roomba to clean specific spaces within the home or set up schedules for specific rooms. The most impressive part isn’t the room-specific cleaning, though; it’s the ability to set up Room-Specific Cleaning Preferences.
For example, if one room tends to be dirtier than others (like the foyer and entryway versus an office), you can set the Roomba to focus on deeper cleans in those areas. The same applies to the Braava jet, too — you can ask it to dispense more cleaning solution in certain rooms, like the kitchen or bathroom, versus the hallway.
The inclusion of Siri is also newsworthy, as this is the first time that Siri has worked with Roomba. There are more than 600 Alexa and Google Assistant commands, but the Siri command library is still on the smaller side. That said, it has Siri Shortcut Integration.
Other features include a Child and Pet Lock to prevent roving toddlers from accidentally pressing the start button atop the Roomba. Once this feature is activated, you’ll only be able to start the Roomba through the app until you deactivate the lock.
In addition, Genius 4.0 includes a Do Not Disturb mode that disables the Roomba and prevents it from running during specific windows of time. This means you never have to worry about it starting up while you’re asleep or in the middle of a meeting.
Finally, the last addition is increased object recognition. While the Roomba j7 and j7+ can already detect shoes, socks, headphones, and pet waste, Genius 4.0 adds two more items: Towels and clothing. The robot vacuum will avoid these items and clean around them. If you forget to tidy up ahead of time, you can rest assured the Roomba will still do a good job of cleaning, even if it misses a few spots because of things on the floor.