The Roomba j7+ costs three times the 675 — you're paying for smarts, not suction

These two Roombas sit at opposite ends of iRobot’s lineup, and they’re not really competing for the same buyer. The 675 is the budget option — around $280, basic navigation, no self-emptying, no frills. It vacuums. It does a fine job on predictable floor plans. You empty the bin yourself, and you learn to live with it bumping into furniture because it doesn’t have camera-based navigation.

The j7+ costs roughly $600 and brings the party tricks: pet waste detection (they call it P.O.O.P., and yes, that’s the official name), a self-emptying base so you don’t touch dirt for weeks, and camera navigation that actually recognizes cables and shoes instead of just ramming into them. It also knows the difference between a phone charger and actual pet waste, which is non-trivial.

The price gap looks enormous — and it is — but you’re not paying for better vacuuming. You’re paying for the autonomy piece. The j7+ is closer to a home appliance that takes care of itself. The 675 is a tool you manage.