Troubled robot vacuum-cleaner maker iRobot, abandoned by Amazon after regulators effectively doomed the web giant’s takeover offer, has warned investors it may not survive the next 12 months.

  • pHr34kY@lemmy.world
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    14 hours ago

    It would be great if more smart devices had a LAN-only control mode like my 3D printer, TV and AV receiver.

    I would be perfectly happy if my iRobot phone app only worked from inside my network.

      • aarch64@lemm.ee
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        9 hours ago

        Big +1 for Valetudo. I use it on a refurbished Roborock S7+ I got on eBay and it’s fantastic.

        • Toribor@corndog.social
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          3 hours ago

          How was your experience rooting it?

          I’ve been really wanting a Roborock for a while but I saw that changes starting on I think their S6 model made rooting it much more difficult and required a pretty extensive disassembly process.

          I’m pretty comfortable with electronics teardowns but the thought of having to fully disassemble my brand new device to root it made me decide to wait a little and see how things shake out. I haven’t looked into it seriously for maybe a year or so though so I don’t know what has changed.

          • Domi@lemmy.secnd.me
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            2 hours ago

            I rooted both of my Roborock S6.

            If you can solder and have an UART USB cable, it’s not really hard to do. Technically you can flash it by just holding your UART adapter against the solder pads but soldering them on definitely makes it easier.

            There’s a full video guide on how to dissassemble and root here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL9PoaNtZCJRZc61c792VCr_I6jQK_IdSb

            Firmware and everything else is here: https://builder.dontvacuum.me/_s6.html

            Also, if you don’t have a Roborock yet, the Dreame models are significantly easier to root. Don’t even have to disassemble most of them.

            • Toribor@corndog.social
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              1 hour ago

              Thank you. Funny enough it looks like I’ve already watched both of those videos last time I was looking into this. I’m comfortable soldering but it was yet another barrier to me actually making a purchase.

              I’ll check out Dreame, I have not heard much about them.

              I’ve had two Neato’s in the past and I really miss having one but I now live in a split-level house and the convenience factor drops down a lot when you have to carry it between floors all the time rather than just coming home to a freshly cleaned carpet.

              • Domi@lemmy.secnd.me
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                1 hour ago

                I’ll check out Dreame, I have not heard much about them.

                Roborock, Dreame and Xiaomi are functionally almost identical. Some of them even share the same parts.

                If you want to root them, get a Dreame or a Xiaomi. Most of them are rootable without disassembly, see the list linked above.

        • sugar_in_your_tea@sh.itjust.works
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          7 hours ago

          Make sure to read their disclaimers, they’re really not interested in expanding features, so make double sure it’s sufficient for what you want.

    • exu@feditown.com
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      10 hours ago

      I think it’s just using MQTT, so block network access and use HomeAssistant

    • Allero@lemmy.today
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      14 hours ago

      At that point, I wouldn’t trust ANY device that cannot be controlled locally, either natively or at least through some hacks.

      • aarch64@lemm.ee
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        9 hours ago

        It’s pretty common for newer 3D printers to have WiFi. Start/stop jobs, monitor cameras, or just to have a more capable UI than the built-in screen. Lots of people add this capability to older printers (or new ones with sucky interfaces) with OctoPrint.

        • anarchiddy@lemmy.dbzer0.com
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          7 hours ago

          And some brands of 3D printers have started placing those functionalities behind remote servers and paywalls

          cough cough Bambu Labs cough cough

    • Drasglaf@sh.itjust.works
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      12 hours ago

      My cheap Conga robot came with a remote controller. It stopped connecting to its server long ago, but I can still use it. The battery is getting worse and worse, though.