I -think- the $100 billion is a typo. I -think- it's suppose to be ~$100 million. Anyhow, I don't think its wrong to say (as the article does) that iRobot fail

I -think- the $100 billion is a typo. I -think- it's suppose to be ~$100 million. Anyhow, I don't think its wrong to say (as the article does) that iRobot failed to focus on its core market, but it's also really unfair to iRobot to say should not have attempted to compete in the new product categories (...you just need to look at the product websites for the competitors cited in the article to see that iRobot isn't alone in trying). Fundamentally, iRobot is competing in a commodity market. That's what home automation/electronics will be. I think you hit it right on the head - this is just another form of appliance.