Gadronics Verdict
The Roomba Max 505 Combo is not short on ambition, but it feels like a product that arrived before iRobot had fully found its footing again. The design is modern, the dock delivers the kind of hands-off experience buyers expect at this price, mopping works well on hard floors, and obstacle avoidance removes a lot of day-to-day stress. The problem is that it still falls well behind key rivals, the app feels unfinished and unreliable, and noise levels are hard to ignore. This looks like part of a broader reset for iRobot, but it may be wiser to wait and see how that reset plays out before committing your money.
Decent hard floor cleaning
Proper self-cleaning dock
Effective edge mopping
Reliable obstacle avoidance
Weak carpet performance
Very loud at full power
Bulky height
App is chaotic
Introduction
It has been a rough couple of years for iRobot, a brand that once defined what a robot vacuum cleaner should be. Following a turbulent 2024 that included the departure of its founder and CEO, and the collapse of a planned Amazon acquisition, it was surprising to see eight new robot cleaners unveiled in March last year. One of those was the Roomba Max 505 Combo, which is the focus of this review.
These new models were clearly not business as usual. The designs were completely different from previous Roombas, and for the first time, the lineup adopted LiDAR navigation and mapping.
Behind the scenes, iRobot had moved to Picea’s Joint Design Manufacturing model, effectively handing over the design and production of its robot vacuums to a third party.
That partner, Picea, is also linked to manufacturing for brands such as SharkNinja, Eufy, and Wyze.
In December, that relationship went even further when iRobot entered a pre-packaged bankruptcy process, with Picea lined up as its buyer.
So the Max 505 Combo does not look like a traditional Roomba because it really is not one. That shift could ultimately be a good thing, but the 505 may be arriving a little too early to restore the brand’s reputation.
Read on for my full iRobot Roomba Max 505 Combo review.
Design and components
Along with the rest of the new range, the Max 505 Combo is one of the most polished-looking Roombas iRobot has released.
The circular shape remains familiar, but the finish is more refined, with layered textures across the top and just two physical buttons positioned neatly to the side. Power and home are the only controls you get, and that simplicity works in its favor.
It is available in black or white, which makes it easier to blend into different interiors.
At 10.6 cm tall due to its top-mounted LiDAR unit, this is not a low-profile robot. It will not slip under low furniture in the way slimmer models from Roborock or Dreame can, and visually it feels closer to robots those brands were shipping a couple of years ago.
It is also heavy at 4.3 kg, something you notice when carrying it between floors.
Underneath, iRobot has abandoned its long-standing dual rubber roller system. In its place is a single rubber main brush paired with a fixed side brush.
This feels more like a move to modern conventions than a downgrade, and in use it does a respectable job of sweeping debris toward the suction path, particularly along edges.
In the box you get four spinning mop pads, a spare dust bag for the dock, and the usual paperwork. The dual-rotating pads extend outward during cleaning, which becomes important once mopping comes into play.
The dock
The AutoWash dock is easily the strongest part of the Max 505 Combo package. It automatically empties the robot’s dustbin, washes the mop pads during and after cleaning, heat-dries them, and runs self-cleaning cycles to prevent grime building up inside the base.
iRobot claims the dust bag can last up to 75 days before needing replacement, with around four weeks of mopping and pad washing before the water tanks require attention.
Four status LEDs on the dock indicate charging, clean and dirty water levels, and waste capacity, lighting up when something needs dealing with.
Setting up and in use
Setup itself is painless. After pairing the robot in the redesigned Roomba Home app, the 505 heads out to map your home. My open-plan downstairs took around 15 minutes to map, after which rooms could be split, named, and customized.
No-mop and no-go zones are easy to add. I placed a no-mop zone over a living room rug, even though the robot is supposed to lift its pads automatically when it detects carpet.
That extra precaution turned out to be necessary. The Max 505 Combo has a habit of wetting thicker rugs and carpets even with the pads raised, and unlike more premium rivals such as the Dreame X50 Ultra Complete or Roborock Saros 10R and Saros 10, it does not leave its mop pads behind in the dock for vacuum-only runs.
The Max 505 Combo is the only model in the new lineup to feature dedicated obstacle avoidance. iRobot’s PrecisionVision system combines a forward-facing camera with LiDAR, and it performs reasonably well.
Cables, socks, and most household clutter were avoided without issue, though the occasional small toy still caused problems.
There are four cleaning modes available: vacuum only, mop only, vacuum and mop together, or vacuum first followed by mopping.
You also get four suction levels, repeat cleaning passes for high-traffic areas, and SmartScrub for more aggressive back-and-forth mopping.
The app
The app is easy enough to navigate, but it comes with a number of frustrating quirks. There are plenty of settings to adjust, including a robot health section that tracks the remaining life of filters, bags, brushes, and mop pads, with direct links to order replacements.
Cleaning jobs are oddly labeled as “Routines,” and while you can create custom ones, I was unable to reliably save them. It was also unclear how to configure different cleaning modes for different rooms within the same routine.
Status reporting is inconsistent. The app repeatedly showed the robot as “Connecting” when it was clearly online, or flagged that it “Needs help” while it was safely parked in its dock.
Stability is another weak point. On multiple occasions the app crashed during a cleaning run, losing live position tracking until it was force-closed and reopened. It always recovered, but it is not a good experience.
Voice control via Alexa, Google Assistant, and Siri is supported and works as expected. Matter support has reportedly been added in recent months, but I was unable to get the 505 to appear in Apple Home, which is supposed to be the first step in that process.
Performance
On hard floors, the Max 505 Combo performs better than its modest 7000Pa suction rating suggests. While that number looks underwhelming next to similarly priced competitors like the SwitchBot S20 or Xiaomi X20 Pro, real-world results are respectable.
Dust, crumbs, and everyday debris were picked up reliably in a single pass, and edge cleaning is noticeably improved compared to older Roombas thanks to better navigation and the fixed side brush.
Carpet performance tells a different story. Low-pile rugs are handled adequately, but thicker carpets quickly expose the limits of both suction power and mop pad lift height.
Homes with a lot of carpet would be better served by stepping up to the 705 model. For hard floors with rugs, the 505 does an acceptable job.
Noise is another clear downside. At maximum suction it is very loud, and the auto-empty cycle at the dock is particularly intrusive. This is not something you will want running while watching TV or taking calls nearby.
Mopping
Mopping is where the Max 505 Combo does most of its redeeming work. Instead of simple drag pads, it uses dual spinning mop heads rotating at 200RPM, combined with downward pressure and SmartScrub’s back-and-forth motion.
The PerfectEdge system extends one mop pad outward to clean closer to walls and corners, and it works well in kitchens and hallways. Light spills, dried footprints, and general grime were handled effectively, and the robot lifts its pads automatically when it detects carpet.
After a couple of weeks of regular mopping, the dirty water tank does start to smell, and emptying it is unpleasant. Adding a small amount of disinfectant helps.
The dock’s pad washing and heat drying keep the mop pads fresher than air-drying systems, although spare pads do not store neatly alongside the spare dust bag.
Final thoughts
The Roomba Max 505 Combo feels like the start of a reset for iRobot, but it is one that may be worth sitting out. This feels like an early Picea-era product, and early adopters are likely to encounter rough edges.
While it looks more modern than older Roombas, it does not compete well on headline specs and it does not outperform similarly priced mid-range rivals.
The dock is excellent, mopping is genuinely effective, obstacle avoidance is dependable, and the overall experience feels more current than any Roomba in years. Even so, it is best suited to homes dominated by hard floors, and the app needs more than minor refinement.
Roomba is still a big name, despite the turmoil behind the scenes, but for now there are better places to spend your money.
How we test
When we publish our reviews, you can rest assured that they are the result of “living with” long term tests.
Robot cleaners usually live within an ecosystem, or a range of products that – supposedly – all work in harmony. And they are designed to offer a range of different cleaning options. Therefore, it’s impossible to use a robo cleaner for a week and deliver a verdict.
Because we’re testing smart home kit all day, everyday, we know what matters and how a particular smart cleaning machine compares to alternatives that you might also be considering.
Our reviews are comprehensive, objective and fair and, of course, we are never paid directly to review a device.
Read our guide on how we test robot vacuum cleaners to learn more.
