Pecunia non olet.

Obviously it depends on your point of view. That entire region (India, Pakistan and Afghanistan) still has a lot of work to do.

Some ideas in Gas Town are quite similar to how the Q3A bots are implemented - their layered system is desribed here: https://youtu.be/NeLkxuzCssA?si=i9PlXDQvb2WiHdix&t=2065

But have you actually thoroughly checked the documentation it generated? My experience suggests it can often be subtly wrong.

I too have a Roomba with a camera (the 980) and I am mostly satisfied with it (after ten years I guess I got used to its quirks).

I have also recently set-up the LIDAR-equipped 705 for my parents and let me tell you, there is no comparison.

The navigation speed is greatly improved which means cleaning tasks take a lot less time. Furthermore, it works in complete darkness with no problems! The camera-equipped model just bumps into stuff randomly and then gives up when it's too dark.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tz6U9QkXn5I Check this for a short overview of the available robovac mop technologies - modern roller mop equipped units have ultrasonic carpet sensors and will actually cover the entire mop to avoid getting carpets wet.

The newer models are much more quiet compared to the older ones. In my case, the 980 vs 705 vac; the 980 can at times sound like a jet plane taking off. :)

That's not entirely true. Roombas nowadays do come equipped with LIDAR. iRobot scrapped most of their in-house designs and instead chose to use generic OEM parts to build modern robots in 2025. And they are quite good.

It's a little too late now, no?

I wonder if they fell into a sunk cost fallacy with their camera-based approach.

Probably yes, but time will tell.

Right now, their chinese OEM bought them and seems to be committed to keeping their robovacs alive.

It is my understanding that US availability of the top models (such as 705 combo) may be limited, so here is a german youtube channel that has a lot of reviews of their newer units and compares them to the old ones (usually the S9 or 980, as those are the best units when it comes to vacuuming): https://www.youtube.com/@frickhelm/videos

I'm guessing that the Chinese OEM bought them partially for the name itself, but mostly for their patents.

    how worn out or well maintained your brush head i

This. Especially if you try different suplliers, the quality can vary wildly.