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Roomba 692 Review

Derek Hales

Written By: Derek Hales

Updated on:

The Roomba 692 is an Amazon-exclusive version of the Roomba 690. Based on our comparison of the specs and hardware, it appears to be identical to the 690 (with a slightly different face plate).

Follow along in this review as we break down the ins and outs of this robot.

Good Performance on a Budget

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Roomba 692

The Roomba 692 is designed for users on a budget who want good cleaning performance, but without the steep price tag. It has WiFi connectivity, scheduled cleanings, basic navigation, and good suction. As potential setbacks, it uses a bristle-style brushroll (which may clog) and lacks digital mapping. Despite the drawbacks, in our cleaning tests it was able to remove 94% of all debris we test against. This is an impressive scores, especially considering the price.Check Price

Pros

  • Great cleaning performance. Removed 94% of debris.
  • Wifi-enabled controls so you can control via your smartphone
  • 90-minute run time
  • Budget-friendly

Cons

  • Struggled with removing ultra fine debris (sugar) from high pile carpets
  • Bristle brushroll may mean more tangles of hair around the axel
  • Lacks the ability to digitally map spaces

Design

The design of the Roomba 692 is sleek and modern, from an aesthetic standpoint. It has an all-black body with a simple silver Roomba logo on the top and softened rounded edges.

Roomba 692 robot vacuum review

It’s compatible with smartphone controls when you pair a WiFi network to the iRobot Home app. You can also opt for voice controls when paired with AI devices like Amazon Alexa or Google Assistant.

Where are the controls?

Aside from digital controls, there are also a few physical controls located on the body of the vacuum itself. Control buttons on top of the 692 include:

  1. Auto Clean: On/Off
  2. Return to charger
  3. Spot clean

There is also a release button for the dust bin located on the top of the vacuum, below the cleaning controls.

What’s under the vacuum?

On the underside of the 692 looks identical to the original Roomba 690. It has two large navigational wheels and a 3-arm spinning side brush that sweeps debris into the cleaning path of the brushroll.

Roomba 690 / 692 underside

The brushroll itself uses a 2-part roller system. The main brushroll is a bristle roller that agitates flooring to improve suction and performance.

Roobma 690 / 692 brushrolls

The secondary roller uses a paddle design to continuously sweep debris off the floor and into the dust bin.

Charging contact pins at the front of the vacuum help the 692 to find the charger after a cleaning cycle and edge sensors on the perimeter of the vacuum keep it from getting off track.

How It Cleans

The Roomba 692 has a bit more basic navigation compared to digital mapping models like the Roborock e35 or the Roomba i3.

There is no memory mapping feature or the ability to store maps in any way. Instead of using an on-board camera for guided navigation, the Roomba 692 takes a “bump and continue” approach aka V-SLAM.

Roomba 692 cleaning
Roomba 692 cleaning

As it drives around the space, it will gently bump into walls, furniture, and other obstacles.

FACT: There is a bumper on the front of the vacuum to prevent damage to obstacles or the vacuum itself.

Once an obstacle is detected, the vacuum will back up and continue its route in a different direction.

Roomba 690 / 692 bumping navigation

As a note, due to the slightly more basic navigation, the Roomba 692 may accumulate a number of scratches or aesthetic imperfections as it bumps around, trying to figure out the floor plan.

In our experience, less advanced mapping does not always translate to poorer performance.

But it does mean that it might take longer to clean all of the spaces or if could miss areas.

Size & Dimensions

The Roomba 692 is pretty moderately sized for a typical Roomba. Exact dimensions are:

  • Width: 13″ diameter
  • Height: 3.6″ tall
  • Weight: 7.8 pounds
Roomba 690 size
Edge cleaning of the Roomba 692 robot vacuum

Accessories & Parts

The Roomba 692 comes with a pretty simple set of parts and accessories.

The complete list includes:

  1. Roomba 692 robot vacuum
  2. Charging station
  3. Battery (not shown)
  4. Spinning side brush (x2)
  5. Filter (x2)
  6. Dust bin

Charging Station

Roomba 690 / 692 charger

Dust Bin

Dust bin on the Roomba 690 / 692 robot vacuum

Spinning Brush

Spinning brush on the Roomba 690 / 692

Filter

Roomba 690 / 692 filter

One thing that’s missing from this list is a virtual wall barrier. Many other Roomba models include a virtual barrier than uses infrared light to block off areas or lines you don’t want the Roomba to cross.

While the Roomba 692 is compatible with the virtual wall barriers it does not include one. However, you can buy a standalone virtual wall barrier here.

RELATED – See more Roomba reviews here.

Cleaning Tests

As with any of our robot vacuums reviews, we strive to provide as many real-world testing scenarios as possible. Part of that testing coming in the form of cleaning performance.

For this section we test on three different floor types (hardwoods, low pile carpet, and high pile carpet) and against a variety of debris including:

  • Dry cereal
  • Rice
  • Kitty litter
  • Sugar
Cleaning performance test - dry debris
Cleaning performance test – dry debris

How well the Roomba 692 clean?

We have not yet tested the Roomba 692. However, we have tested the Roomba 690. The Roomba 690 is identical in terms of hardware, software, specs, and other performance criteria.

The only difference between the 690 and 692 is the faceplate. As a result, we have included our Roomba 690 testing data below.

Both the 690 and the 692 have the same:

  • Brushroll
  • Motor
  • Suction power
  • Navigation technology
  • Filter
  • Body shape and style

All of these simiarities lead us to the conclusion that these two models would likley be very similar in performance.

Let’s see how the Roomba 690 did:

Overall

94%

Hardwood

98%

Low Carpet

93%

High Carpet

91%

How do we test?

Each of the aforementioned debris was spread across our testing lane. 

The base surface of our testing lane is an engineered hardwood floor. For our carpet tests, we slide in a low pile and high pile carpet insert on top of the hardwood floor.

Our vacuum cleaning process strives to be as consistent, fair, and true to real world use as possible. Our tests utilize the following procedure:

  1. Measure the weight of the testing debris and the weight of the empty vacuum debris container.
  2. Spread the respective debris type evenly across the central portion of the testing lane.
  3. Run the vacuum cleaner over the testing lane.
  4. Measure the weight of the now filled container and take notes on the cleaning performance.

Hardwood Floor

The vast majority of all debris tested on hardwood floors was removed. It left 4% of the kitty litter and 5% of the sugar on the testing lane.

Furthermore, each debris field was sucked up within 7 minutes of starting the test, so cleaning was pretty quick.

Cereal

100%

Kitty Litter

96%

Rice

99%

Sugar

95%

irobot roomba 690 hardwood test

Low Pile Carpet

On low pile carpet, performance of cleaning cereal, kity litter, and rice was good. Sugar definitely struggled a bit, only capturing 72% of the debris.

Cereal

100%

Kitty Litter

98%

Rice

100%

Sugar

72%

irobot roomba 690 low carpet test

It’s been a bit of a trend that budget robot vacuums across the board tend to struggle with sugar on carpet so these results weren’t entirely surprising either.

High Pile Carpet

On high pile carpet, the performance continued in the same trajectory as low pile carpet. Cleaning performance of cereal, kitty litter, and rice was fantastic—99% performance across the board.

Cereal

99%

Kitty Litter

99%

Rice

99%

Sugar

66%

irobot roomba 690 high carpet test

The main struggle here is, again, the sugar. On high pile carpet performance dropped all the way down to 66%.

This poorer performance on carpet is likely a mix of not enough suction and the less efficient brushroll style.

Usability

Getting started with the Roomba 692 is quick and easy. The more basic navigation allows this vacuum to start cleaning right away.

Here’s the steps to getting started:

  1. Unbox the Roomba 692 and remove all original packaging.
  2. Make sure the filter, brushroll, and spinning brush are installed.
  3. Charge it up.
  4. Press CLEAN.

At this point an AUTO cycle will begin and the Roomba will get to cleaning. Most Roombas comes with a battery at least 75% of the way full so really you could go ahead and start a cleaning cycle right after unboxing.

Roomba 690 on the standard charging dock
Roomba 690 on the standard charging dock

That being said, I’ve usually found that the best performance happens after a full charge.

If you want advanced cleaning options, you can take a couple extra minutes and sync the robot vac to the iRobot app on your smartphone. Setup is easy and in-app prompts lead you through the process.

With the app, you can see additioanl features like:

  • Schedule a cleaning
  • View past cleanings
  • Start, pause, or resume a cleaning
  • Send the Roomba back to the charger

Maneuverability

The maneuverability of the Roomba 692 is fantastic, as most round robot vacuums are. This vac is low profile, pretty lightweight, and has a 360° turning radius.

Detail shot of the sheets on the Roomba 690 / 692 robot vacuum
Detail shot of the sheets on the Roomba 690 / 692 robot vacuum

In addition, the large navigational wheels do a great job of transitioning over different types of flooring and / or cords or other obstacles.

Maintenance

Proper maintenance is important to keep the Roomba 692 running smoothly.

Removing removing dust bin
Removing removing dust bin

Some of the most important tasks to keep the Roomba running smoothly include:

  • Emptying the dust bin: regularly empty the dust bin to ensure that debris does not clog the system
  • Checking the filter: clean the filter and replace as needed
  • Checking the brushroll: hair or other debris may wrap around the bristle brushroll so be sure to check this often and clip away any stuck debris

Is the Roomba 692 a good value?

Alright, here we are at value. Is the Roomba 692 worth the cost? A couple of the big factors we look at when considering the performance includes:

  • Cleaning performance
  • Run time
  • Navigation

The cleaning performance of the 690 was quite good so it is expected that the 692 would be equally as impressive as there are no major differences between the two models.

Brushrolls of the Roomba 690 / 692 robot vacuum
Brushrolls of the Roomba 690 / 692 robot vacuum

The run time of the Roomba 692 can extend up to 90 minutes before returning to the charger. Charging takes between 3-4 hours.

This 90 minute run time would likely be sufficient for most floor plans. The Roomba 692 does not have the Recharge + Resume feature, which allows the robot to charge in the middle of a cleaning cycle.

The navigation of the 692 is likely its biggest disadvantage. The navigation is pretty basic, with a bump-and-continue approach to cleaning. It navigates in a sporadic cleaning pattern, gently bumping into obstacles, furniture, and walls before randomly continuing in a different direction.

The Roomba 692 lacks the ability to digitally map a floor plan also.

The Verdict

With these three factors in mind (and many others) I would still say that the Roomba 692 is a solid value. The navigation is a bit random, but the cleaning performance is good.

As long as you’re not looking for a robot vacuum that leaves perfect straight lines across your carpet, you will likle ybe satisfied with the Roomba 692.

RELATED – If you do want straight lined cleaning see our Roomba S9+ review.

The other exception may be people with pets, as the bristle style brushroll may not perform as well as the Roombas with rubbersized brushroll (ie: Roomba e5, Roomba i3, Roomba 960).

Specifications

Below is a complete list of important specifications and features included on the iRobot Roomba 692 robot vacuum:

Specifications
TypeRobot
ManufactureriRobot
ModelRoomba 692
Diameter13"
Height3.6"
Weight7.8 lbs
Floor TypeAll (indoor)
Battery1,800 mAh
Dust Bin Capacity0.3 liter
CordlessYes
BaglessYes
ReturnsVaries by retailer
Warranty1-Year limited
PriceCheck Price

Should you buy the Roomba 692?

The Roomba 692 is a good entry-level robot vaccum for people who aren’t looking for too many fancy bells-and-whistles, but want good cleaning performance.

I would recommend the Roomba 692 if you’re looking for the following features in a robot vacuum.

  • Wifi connectivity and app control: This vacuum can be paired with the iRobot app which allows you to control the vacuum from your smartphone. You can schedule future cleaning cycles or view past reports. You can also use the WiFi to pair the vacuum with voice-control devices like Amazon Alexa or Google Assistant.
  • Easy usability: The Roomba 692 is easy to use, largely thanks to its lack of bells and whistles. Just plug in the charger and press CLEAN or setup an auto schedule via the app. The robot vac does the rest, cleaning the space and returning to the charger when the job is done.
  • Excellent value: The value of the 692 is another big win for this model. As mentioned above, the 692 is an Amazon-exclusive so it has some new looks that we haven’t previously seen on the 600 Series Roombas. The parts are readily available and it’s priced fairly considering everything you’re getting with this model.

For more information or to check the price on the Roomba 692 vacuum, click here.

Updates

  • November 2, 2020 – Initial version of the page was published. Please note, this is pre-test review. We have not yet personally tested this product. Our data and assumptions are based on our tests of the Roomba 690, which we have personally tested. The Roomba 692 is identical to the 690 in terms of functionality.
Amazon Exclusive Roomba 692
  • Design - 93%
    93%
  • Performance - 94%
    94%
  • Quality - 93%
    93%
  • Usability - 93%
    93%
  • Value - 97%
    97%
94%

Summary

The Roomba 692 is a budget-friendly robot vacuum. It offers a 90 minute run time and dual brushrolls. It performed well in our cleaning tests, removing 94% of debris. It’s greatest struggle during our test was removing fine debris (sugar) from carpet, especially high pile carpet. It uses the more basic V-SLAM (aka bump and continue) style navigation. While it lacks the bells and whistles of more higher end robots it’s hard to complain given the relative performance, smartphone connectivity, and hardware at this price point.

About Derek Hales

Derek HalesDerek Hales is the Founder and Editor-in-Chief of ModernCastle.com. He has been featured in Fast Company, Reader's Digest, Business Insider, Realtor.com, She Knows, and other major publications. Derek has a Bachelor's Degree in Business Administration from Kansas State University. Hales has been testing and reviewing products for the home since 2014.