Will iRobot’s reinvention of the Roomba be at the expense of its history of innovation?

When I saw iRobot’s latest robot vacuums announced this week, my first thought was, “These don’t look like Roombas; they look like midrange models from Roborock, Ecovacs, and Dreame.” Of course, as the original robot vacuum manufacturer, iRobot’s products likely inspired the design of most of its competitors. But Roombas have always had a uniqueness that sets them apart from the crowd.

With these new models, the company is capitulating to the homogeneity of the current crop of vacuums, sacrificing many of its signature features and moving…