The best affordable robot vacuums of 2018

The Roomba 690 replaces the 650 as the entry-level offering from iRobot, one of the best-known names in the world of home robotics. On sale for as low as $299, it adds Wi-Fi connectivity and remote control with a smartphone app. That means it's the most affordable connected robot vac from a major manufacturer. Well, it still has a few flaws. For instance, it's based on the iRobot 650, which is rough on furniture, hitting table and chair legs with 3.3 pounds of force in our tests.