Will iRobot’s reinvention of the Roomba be at the expense of its history of innovation?

When I saw the announcement of the latest aerobot vacuum this week, my first thinking was, “They don’t look like Rombs. They look like robores, ecovics, and dreams of dreams. Of course, the original robot vacuum manufacturer, who is a Aerobot, has been aerobot, but aerobot, but aerobot, but aerobot, but aerobot, but aerobot, but aerobot, but aerobot, but aerobot, but a Aerobot, aerobot. Keeps them separate from the crowd.

With these new models, the company has the uniformity of the current vacuum crop, sacrificing many of its signature features, and moves from the high end to the middle path in search of occupying a large piece of market.

Home robotics has long been known for its innovation, marketing its new line as a “brake throw new product” to its new line. But so far I have only made a notable innovation to become dust compacting on a ship. The rest of the market is a hot summer in the market today.

Then, one day after the launch of eight new robots vacuums – the largest product launch in its history – Irobot warned that it was in severe financial problems that could be closed in 12 months. Suddenly, all of this became clear.

They do not look like Romebas because they are not roommates about which I know about and recommend it for years. According to Irobot’s financial reports appeared This week, the company has reorganized its supply chain in a bid for profit. It is Transferred out of production to the same manufacturerFor, for, for,. Shenzhen Picky RoboticsResident in a Chinese Odm It creates a gap for different brands, including it, Name 3irobotix. Basically, Irobot is fully making a new room. But this change is not about innovation – it is about cutting and survival.

Gary Cohen, CEO of Aerobot, says new products Will promote profit compared to its legacy products. But, in this process, they take the risk of sacrificing the individuality that separates Romas.

Once the market leader, Arubot has struggled between intense competition and the acquisition of Amazon for $ 1.7 billion. Last year, regulators decided that an aerobot -powered room behind it could become 800 pounds in the room and terminated the deal. He left the company without his vision CEO and Cofounder Colin AngleForced to force more than half of the staff and the mountain of debt.

In response, and primarily to survive, the company is developing a product that looks like every other boat on the block and adopts a number of new features found on these models. They include Leather navigationRotating mop pads, and white robots. (I can understand the first two, but don’t buy a white robot vacuum unless you really enjoy cleaning your robot vacuum.)

Consumers have been asking for these features for years, and their lack has forced many people to choose their competitors more than Romeba – the company saw 44 % decrease in revenue The last quarter than the same time last year. But in this process, and based on these latest boats, it seems that it has abandoned most of the things-its excellent dual rubber roller brush, well-developed and reliable. vslam navigationInspired Retractable MOP System, and stylish auto empty posts.

I asked Arubot to comment why the new RomBas meet so closely in the Chinese competition. It pointed out that Irobot set the design standard for consumer robots, so, in fact, this is the competition that is copying it.

“Robot vacuums and moping solutions in the industry have not yet developed a new, a new, change element,” said Anason Hong, an industrial design director of Irobot, an industrial design director of Irobot, Annon Hong, said, “Robot vacuums and moping solutions in the industry have not yet developed a new, change.” Although this may be true five years ago, most of the new features of Romba were in competition before coming to the room.

Adding leather and spinning moping pads to Roombas can be well popular, it can reduce the price, and robotic vacuums (what we will not know unless we can test them). But I am skeptical.

How often has a company fully reproduced its products so that the development of the development is significantly cheaper and eliminates something better than that? But it looks like aerobot is trying to do here.

Of the company Annual Report Its operational reorganization plans “is designed to align our cost structures more closely with the purpose of better profit with the expectations of a close -term revenue. Taking advantage of a new asset light model, we have begun to work on our partners and contracts for the launch of the contracting manufacturers.

The company says it plans to continue investing in “software intelligence, high -value robotics, computer vision, (and) machine learning.” But it is difficult to do with very little workforce, Slashed R&D budgetAnd some engineering is offshore in “lower -cost regions”.

Software is an area in which the Irobot dominates. Its app has been traditionally clear, easy to use and more reliable than its rivals. Its AI -powered barrier is a leader in the industry, and has developed several other machine learning technologies that make his robot a better cleaner, such as Detect the dirtWhich recognizes dirty areas and focuses on more time.

Hopefully, the software will be a strong suit of roobot and there will be a way to make a difference. It has already added AI detection to a new model, which helps the robot avoid the destruction of pet waste and prevent it from ending its mission because you have left a sock in the room.

With new products, the company announced a new app. However, the new Roma Home App will only work with its latest models. All the rest will continue to use the Irobot app. It is a disturbing sign that the company is surpassing its heritage products. (In terms of development, Aerobot told me that he had no plans to stop supporting any of his current products.)

Although all of this may be the right step for a company considering its current financial condition, I am sorry to see this shift away from the fact that Romba has been made “Romba”. This is the company that essentially invented the robot vacuum over 20 years ago-and invented the idea of ​​the “brain” of the robot vacuum, the floor moping robot, and the robot vacuum.

There is no doubt that Aerobot has made memories over the past years. It should have jumped on a trend in two soon. It took a long time to produce a multi -fennel dock, and when engineering is surprised, the retreating MOP solution does not actually do your floor very effectively. (But the spinning moping pad is also a thing of the previous year. The new innovation is roller mops.)

I do not agree that irobot should have turned into a leather soon – its VSlam navigation may be slow, but it is more reliable. And I don’t think it failed to invent. I am positive that there are prototypes at the aerobot headquarters in Bedford, Massachusetts, which have rear removable roller mops, camera -based more modern navigation, and arms and toe to climb your home.

But the company moved very slowly. It was left behind by Chinese companies such as Roburk, Dreams, and Ecovics and their non -stop Innovation, and on the other hand the name of the commodity number was left behind by Bots, which you can buy on Amazon for less than $ 200.

It was a moment a year or so when Arubut could position himself as a high -end leader in the Smart Home Robotics House cleaner. With the power of Amazon behind it, it is amazing to think where his innovation can go. But losing this agreement and its insights led to the echo of it, and now it is bouncing between its past and its future, and is trying to find where it fits today.