I have had a recommendation from three of my friends who have a Roomba that they are well worth the money and work great. I finally broke down and bought one at our local Menards. I got a basic model — no base unit and one "wall." I charged the unit overnight, and set it up to clean the living room first thing in the morning.
First, I made sure there were no weird things on the floor — like power cords. Then, I blocked the area I wanted it to clean. At that time, I found out that the "wall" needed two "D" batteries (which I didn’t have). So I found the rechargable "D" batteries and made blockades with boxes and other large things.
I did find that the stairs were an issue. It got hung up on the steps that lead to the foyer. So I set up another blockage for the stairs. I think I will need two more "walls" for my house. What I did like, was that it fits under my buffet! The buffet is very large and heavy, and really hasn’t been cleaned under in a long while because of the difficulty in moving it. It also has little brushes that helps get it close to the wall.
I really didn’t time how long it took to clean the room. I was anxious to empty the bin to see how much dirt it picked up. Wow, was I amazed! It really did the job!
I will now recommend, along with my other friends, the Roomba — that I have affectionally named "Rosy."