Customer Reviews

HQRP APS Battery for iROBOT Roomba 500 Series Replacement plus HQRP Coaster

5 star:		(21)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

The original battery pack in my Roomba 550 was able to run the vacuum for about two hours initially. After the first year, its run time has dropped to about one hour. It deteriorated quickly during the next 6 months, to the point that the vacuum can only run for 3-4 minutes before the dreaded 'I-am-dying' beep. I tried everything to revive the battery, including removing the pack and deep-discharging/charging it manually. Finally, I concluded that the battery has developed high internal resistance and cannot be rescued. That's why I ordered this item (HQRP APS Battery for iROBOT Roomba 500 Series Replacement) last November.

There were several similar products that showed up when I searched for 'Roomba 500 replacement battery' on Amazon. This one is not the lowest-priced item, but I selected it mainly because the product description is more specific (it says the capacity is 3300mAh, which is 10% higher than the 3000mAh for original Roomba battery), and it comes with an 100-day warranty. In contrast, other cheaper battery packs (such as the iRobot R3 500 series APS Battery) don't even specify the capacity, but simply make vague claims such as "50 percent greater useful life than original Roomba batteries". Furthermore, their pictures show a plain battery pack without any brand names. So there's no telling what kind of generic battery you will receive.

I installed this HQRP battery pack upon its arrival, and my Roomba 550 powered up immediately. It was even able to run the vacuum for a few minutes before recharging. This is a good sign because it means the battery pack does not suffer from rapid-self-discharge problem like many other NiMH cells. After several charging/discharging cycles (which were necessary to bring the battery pack up to its full capacity ), my Roomba was then able to run for at least 2 hours, with the indicator light still at Orange (instead of Red). Therefore I believe the stated capacity of '3300mAh' to be accurate.

Of course, it is still too early to tell whether this replacement pack will last longer than 12 months in my Roomba. But so far, it has performed beautifully after more than 3 months, with no signs of slowing down - yet. I'll update this review if any problem turns up in the future.

[Update on Dec 5, 2010]:
Battery pack still going strong after 12 months. I just tested it by forcing my Roomba to run past the usual one hour cleaning sweep. At about 70 minutes the battery indicator turned orange. At about 100 minutes it turned red. So the replacement pack seems to be doing better than my original pack after one year. But I should point out that I used my Roomba about once per week in the past year, compared to 2-3 times per week when I first got it 2.5 years ago.

Failed after four recharge cycles.
Original 500 series NiMh battery lasted 200 full discharge cycles (cleaning two rooms once per week two years, always left on the charger between; resetting and long recharge did not revive it). This replacement charged and ran properly out of the box but for only four charges. There appears to be no warranty by the company, and after use may not be returnable to Amazon (still within 30 days and appears as refundable by Amazon, so will return it to them and see). (Was refunded -- Amazon is supplying the backup the suppliers don't do themselves, probably more efficient over-all for small items and all the shipping).
After failing does not hold a charge; the full charge light comes on after 15 minutes, and the Roomba is dead when turned on or runs 5 minutes. This is after being on the charger a week, starting with supposedly full charge. Same symptoms as with the original battery. But it worked well a few times, so the system seems intact -- the only variation is the battery.

For those a little scared to buy a 3rd party battery, as I was, this works as advertised and honestly seems to be even better than my original battery for my 570. Two months in and working fine...nice that Amazon fulfills for them - got it promptly and packaged well.

This battery worked as advertised in our Irobot 560. Hopefully it will last longer than the original which died after 8 months.

The HORP 3300 APS Battery for theRoomba 500 is great, It lets the Roomba 500 work for a longer time. As much as 30 minutes more than the original battery.

Like so many other roomba owners, the battery just would not hold the charge and run for more than 5 minutes. The unit is about 2 years old. I don't believe that just "resetting" the battery or spending time trying to drain and recharge the battery is worth the time involved. The battery needs to be replaced. I ordered this battery and received it in about 6 days. I left it in the charger for 18 hours and it works perfectly now. Good price, fast service and problem is solved. When you remove the old battery use this opportunity to give your robot a good cleaning and even replace the side brushes if worn. I used my regular vacuum with a brush attachment to thoroughly clean the unit.

Bought this battery to replace orginal. So far so good. This battery has allowed roomba to clean 4 rooms on one charge. Good battery. Would recommend!!

I'm very pleased - I bought this back in October 2009 to replace my failing original battery. It worked great from the start and five months later it's still going strong. I'm back here to order two more for my other two Roombas since their original batteries are finally giving up the ghost. I'm very pleased, especially for such a bargain over the price of an official Roomba battery.

Update 11/11/2010

All three batteries are still working great and all three Roombas run for their full hour handily. I'm very pleased with these replacements as they seem to be made to very high standards. I hope Amazon still offers them next time I need to replace the batteries, but I expect that'll be a while.

Update 19-Apr-11:
Still going strong. ~ 13 months.

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Update, 18-Jul-10: I've had it for 4 months and continue to think it's better than the original as described below.

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I've had the battery for only about a week.

Initial impressions are that it is better than the original battery from either of our Roombas; both 500 series.

I get about 1:10 in tile/hardwood time, which compares favorably to performance when the machine was new (45 minutes? Hard to recall).

I'll try to update my review in a few months.

The product is working fine for the last one month and hope it will last at least a year.