What to expect from the iRobot Roomba 205 DustCompactor Vac
The iRobot Roomba 205 DustCompactor Vac is a vacuum-only Roomba without an emptying dock: a DustCompactor in the robot keeps crushing the debris in its own bin, so that iRobot says it can clean for up to 60 days before the bin needs emptying, with no bags and no bulky base. The lidar sits hidden inside the body instead of in a turret on top, it offers four suction levels, and iRobot rates the battery at over three hours. It works with Alexa, Siri and Google Assistant.
On paper it is the answer for a home without room for a station: nothing needs emptying for weeks, and the lidar still maps the home so the robot cleans in neat rows, even in the dark. TechRadar tested the 205 DustCompactor Combo, the version with a mop pad, and was disappointed, above all by undependable navigation and unrefined maps. Those results do not automatically apply to the Vac, but they are worth reading on the Combo's page.
None of our test sources has measured this model, so how well it vacuums, how the compacting bin copes with pet hair and whether its navigation does better than the Combo's is still unknown. Our specifications list no suction figure or bin size. Anyone for whom the missing station is not the point can look at the Roborock Q7 M5+, a tested lidar robot with a self-emptying dock.
Based on the maker's specifications and our price data; none of our test sources has tested this model.