We all want to see our lawns in the best possible shape, but want an easier way to achieve that. There are plenty of Robots that can handle our daily chores inside the house and Robot Lawn Mowers that can help with outdoor chores.
In this article, we will go over all the Best Robot Lawn Mowers for 2021. Our Team of Experts have reviewed and summarized all of their Pros & Cons, benefits, features and important specifications to help you find the perfect one for any budget.
What is a Robotic Lawn Mower?
A robotic lawn mower is the kind of mower that is used to cut grass to an even height under the control of a robotic system. These mowers can be configured depending on your desired results.
With technology advancement, it is now possible to control a robotic mower on your smartphone via Wi-Fi. So right from your phone, you can give instructions to the mower based on the way you want it to mow your gardens.
The best robot mowers even have sensors that enable them maneuver from obstacles while mowing and also go to sleep when they sense that its likely to rain in the next few minutes. All these advancements are making the mowing process to be done faster and easier without damaging the equipment used.
Expert Reviews of the Best Robot Lawn Mowers for 2021
In this section you will find comprehensive reviews of the best-selling robot mowers available online and in-stores.
1. Worx WR140 Landroid “Best Overall Robot Mower”
This is a fully automated robotic lawn mower and a product of Worx that is designed to mow small grounds. Its maximum mowing capacity is ¼ of an Acre. It will not be effective mowing yards bigger than that.
This robo lawn mower also has an algorithm that is able to learn about your lawn mower movements and suggest a mowing schedule depending on the size of your field. It is also designed with a couple of other smart features like sensing rain and App control that make it so easy and safe to use.
Let’s now look at some of the key features of this robotic lawn mower
- This robotic lawn mower is powered by 4.0 AH 20 V Lithium-ion battery.
- This battery can be charged within 90 mins.
- The mower also has the ability to maneuver past obstacles and also has patented mowing “AIA” cutting technology that ensures it can pass through narrow paths with ease.
- It also has GPS support that will enable you to locate where the mower is at any point.
- Its noise level is at 63 db which is quite enough for mowing even in very quiet neighborhoods.
- The maximum slope of the grounds it can be used in is 20 degrees.
- The cutting heights of this mower range between 1.5 to 3.1 inches. So, you can vary this height in settings.
- It comes with 3 cutting blades that will you a maximum cutting width of 7 inches
Here is a list of the Pros and Cons for the Worx WR140 Robot Mower
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Final Thoughts: This robotic lawn mower has most of the features that will help you get most of your mowing work done without any challenges. Its ideally meant to mow relatively smaller lawns and it will give you good performance if used to mow lawns that are ¼ acre and below.
App and GPS support makes monitoring and controlling this mower seamless. It has no remote which makes controlling the mower remotely only possible via your smartphone. This mower doesn’t have it all but it will give you the best results if used under conditions it was designed for.
2. Husqvarna AutoMower 315X “Best Robot Mower for Large Lawns”
This is a smart and fully automated lawn mower. It’s the kind of lawn mower that is designed to mow even in the rainy days as long as the rains are not very heavy.
This robotic lawn mower is guided by GPS for proper monitoring and for security of the robotic mower itself. The Husqvarna robot mower comes with an app that gives you the option of controlling it right from your smartphone.
It also has the option of Alexa and google home device for voice commands. This is a great addition especially for people with disabilities.
Here are the key features of the Husqvarna Robot Mower 315x;
- It’s powered by a Lithium-ion battery that gives the robot up to 70 minutes of mowing on a single charge.
- This battery can be recharged to full capacity within 60 minutes.
- The robot can mow lawn in hilly grounds with a maximum slope of 22 degrees.
- It also has an LCD display that is used to display information about the mower activities to the user.
- It is suitable for mowing small yards that do not exceed 0.4 Acres in size.
Pros and Cons of the Husqvarna Automower 315x
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Final thoughts: This robot lawn mower is the best for anyone looking for smart lawn mowers that can get all the work done without any supervision from the owner.
All you need is to just give it a few commands and it will do the rest of the job on its own. It is also one of the few mowers that can be used even in the rains which makes it appropriate for people mowing grounds in rainy seasons.
Its low noise levels make it appropriate for mowing grounds that are in places that are highly inconvenienced by noise for example offices and residential areas. There are several cheaper options in the market but this robotic lawn mower has a couple of unique features that may give you a reason to spend the extra dollars.
3. Robomow RS630 “Quietest Robot Lawn Mower”
It’s another robotic mower from Robomow that was designed with efficiency and effectiveness in mind. Its best used in mowing large grounds thanks to the width of its cutting blades. It can cut up to ¾ Acre yards with maximum slope of 20 degrees.
It has a web app that can be in installed on your mobile phone which eases the whole process of starting and controlling the movements of the lawn mower. This mower also accepts voice commands via Alexa.
Some of the major features of this lawn mower include;
- It’s powered by a 26 volt 6 AH battery that be charged to full capacity within 90 minutes.
- This battery can support the mower for up to 100 minutes on a single charge.
- It has a dual blade cutting system that leads to 22 inches cutting width.
- The mower cuts grass to a height of up to 3.5 inch and a minimum of 1.25 inches.
- It also has a rain sensor embedded in its system. So, whenever it starts raining, the mower goes back to the charging station.
- It also has tilt and pick sensors that will automatically stop the mower when it’s picked from the ground or tilted.
- Finally, it also comes along with a wire that you install around the perimeters of the mowing area. So, you can set your mowing schedule and areas and then the mower will mow based on those inputs.
Below is a list of the Pros and Cons for the Robomow RS630
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Final Thoughts: The Robowmow RS630 is the best robot for mowing large yards. If your yard is smaller than ½ acre, then this is not the type of mower you should go for as it will be an expensive investment that will definitely not be used to full capacity.
This robot mower is also safe to operate since it has a couple of safety features like the tilt and lift sensor and the collision sensor. The mobile app and voice command control will give you a better experience while controlling this mower compared to many mowers in its price category.
4. Worx WR150 Landroid “Best Robot Mower for Hills”
The WR150 Landroid is another robot mower by Worx and a predecessor of the WR140. It is a fully automated robotic lawnmower that is very easy to install and set up.
It has the capacity to learn about your lawn and suggests a schedule based on your lawn size. This robot mower can handle large lawns of up to ½ acre which is twice what its predecessor handles. It has a mobile app and GPS support that makes monitoring and controlling the robot remotely easier.
Here is an explanation of the most notable features and benefits of the WR150:
- Its powered by a large 4.0 mah 20V Lithium-ion battery.
- The battery can be charged with in 90 minutes.
- This mower has a maximum cutting surface of ½ acre that is ideal for people with bigger yards and gardens.
- Includes 3 cutting blades that cut grass up to a width of 9 inches with a cutting height that ranges between 1.6” to 3.9”.
- It has a noise level of 63 db which makes it ideal for mowing in quiet neighborhoods.
- It also has a couple of sensors that makes it smarter in its operation like; the rain sensor that detects rain, collision sensors that helps the mower move past obstacles.
- Finally, it has an automatic charging system that directs the mower back to the charging dock when the battery is below a certain capacity
Below is a list of the Pros and Cons for the WR150 robot mower by Worx
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Final Thoughts: This model was mainly designed to address some of the drawbacks that the previous model (WR140) had.
Buying the WR150 will cost you a little more than the WR140 but there are several advantages that are really worth the upgrade. It has faster mowing speeds so you will be able have a large size of yard mowed in a shorter time.
With the mobile app and GPS, monitoring and controlling the mower can be done easily. Although like its predecessor, it doesn’t come along with a physical remote that most people would prefer having besides the mobile app
5. Flymo 1200 R Lithium-Ion Robotic Lawn Mower
History of Robot Mowers
Keeping the grass in our gardens in good shape for over the years has been done using manual and electric lawn mowers. These needed someone to direct them around the grass while mowing.
However, the problem with these mowers was mainly that the time it took to mow the gardens would entirely depend on the speed and the skills of the person controlling the machine.
Because of these limitations, the robotic lawn mowers were innovated and came into the market in the 1990s. However, robotic mowing technology was first innovated and patented in 1969, but due to limited computer processing power in those years, it was a little challenging to implement.
Over the years, the use of robotic lawn mowers has been growing at a very fast rate. In 2012 the number of robotic lawn mowers purchased was over 15 times that of the ordinary mowers.
This increase is mainly due to the fact that prices of robot mowers are going down as it is becoming cheaper to manufacture them. So, they are now more affordable than they used to be when they had just come into the market.
The cost of mowing robots is also affected by the fact that many players are getting into the manufacturing industry that has led to competition which in the end leads to more innovation and price wars.
On the consumers side, having many options to choose from is an advantage. But on the flip side, having many options to choose from can also be challenging especially if you have never bought one before.
Whether you are buying your first robotic lawn mower or you’re upgrading from the previous, knowing the features of the mower you need will save you a couple of dollars that you would likely waste if you bought a lawn mower that doesn’t suit your needs.
In this article we are going to share with you everything you need know in order to choose the right more that suits your needs.
Ultimate Robot Lawn Mower Buyer’s Guide
Robot mowers are a major purchase and our guide has been put together to help you find the best one. Our Team of Experts have put together the most important factors to look for when shopping for one online.
Below are the 15 factors that you should consider before buying a robotic lawn mower
Steepness of Your Lawn
Before you buy your robot mower, you need to know the gradient of your gardens. This will help you determine the size of motor you will need your robotic lawn mower to have.
The steeper the gradient the more the power required from the motor to overcome that steepness while mowing. Most of the lawn mowers in the market can overcome slopes that are 15 degrees of less but if the slope in your gardens is steeper than this, then you will have to choose yours carefully.
So, carefully study the slope of your gardens and then determine if you need to buy a normal robotic lawn mower or a high power one.
Power Source of the Robot Mower
The most common robotic lawn mowers are powered by Lithium-ion batteries. However, there are also those that are powered by solar and some have a hybrid kind of powers system.
The choice of the one you go with should entirely depend on the weather conditions of the area your gardens are located.
If you’re in area that doesn’t get enough sun, then buying a solar powered mower is something you shouldn’t consider.
The ideal scenario would be buying one with a hybrid powering system but of course you will have to pay more for that which is at times not worth it.
Battery of the Robot Mower
The battery size of the mower will determine how long the mower will do work before recharging it again. However, there are other factors that affect how the battery is consumed like the motor size and the nature of grounds being mowed.
A bigger motor will obviously be more power demanding than a smaller one. Also mowing grounds that are hilly requires more work from the motor that will eventually drain the battery faster.
So, as you go out there to buy your robotic lawn mower, think of all these factors. We recommend getting one with a battery that can more at least 600 square ft on a single charge.
Robot Mower Charging Time
If your mower uses a battery as its only source of power, then you will have to consider the amount of times it takes for its battery to be fully charged.
A mower battery that takes long to charge means the mower will spend a couple of hours idle.
We recommend getting a mower whose battery can be changed at most within 2 hours.
Charging Point Location
Robot Mowers that use batteries as their source of power always need to be charged when the battery drains. This will require the mower to be brought back to the charging station to give the battery more juice.
The best robot mowers have the ability of automatically returning themselves for charging.
For more efficient results, the point of charging should be located within an area of reach hence reducing the distance the mower has to move before it gets to the charging point. This will improve its effectiveness and reduce time wasted in non-productive movements.
Size of Your Lawn
The size of the lawn your robot mower will need to maintain will help you determine a couple of features that your lawn mower must have. Some of these will include;
- Battery life: If the gardens are big, then you will obviously need a mower with a bigger battery to avoid so many interruptions while mowing. If you have gardens of say 500 sq. meter, you will need a lawn mower of at least at least 4AH so as to mow that kind of ground in a single charge assuming the gardens are not hilly.
- Motor size: The motor will basically determine how fast the mowing process will take. With all other factors constant, a strong motor will always have an advantage compared to a weaker one when it comes to the speed of mowing. If you intend to mow in less time, you will obviously need a lawn mower with a strong motor.
Robot Mower Safety Features
Mowers will always encounter obstacles that may include people, pets, etc.
The Best Robotic Lawn Mowers are designed with sensors to detect these objects as they approach the obstacle.
When the robot mower senses an obstacle, it’s supposed to change direction and move past that obstacle. As you choose the robotic lawn mower to buy, you should always choose one that has high sensitivity to obstacles in order to avoid any chances of a robot causing an accident in the process of mowing.
Price of the Robot Mower
Of course, this is one of the major factors that you need to consider when choosing the robotic lawn mower to buy. The price will mainly be affected by the size of the lawn.
A bigger law lawn will require a bigger mower that is in most cases expensive. However, if you do not have the budget for the big mower, you can decide to go for the cheaper ones. But you most certainly make this decision at the expense of time.
Low capacity mowers will take more time to mow bigger gardens and may also need a couple of battery charges to get the job done
Ease of Use
You probably shouldn’t buy something that will need a lot of expertise to operate.
The perfect robot lawn mower should also be easy to assemble and if it’s not straightforward, then at least instructions for assembling should be easily understandable.
The robot should also be easy to program with an easy menu to configure.
Controls of the Robot Mower
Robotic lawn mowers always come with controls that allow you to change a couple of settings. Some of the settings that you can vary include; height of the blades, cutting days and hours, etc.
So, before the mowers gets to the gardens to start doing its work, you have to feed in all those parameters depending on the conditions of day.
The most advanced robotic lawn mowers have Wifi that enables controlling these settings on your smartphone using an App.
So, before you do the perchance make sure you properly check the controls that the mower you intend to buy has versus the ones you would need.
Obstacles in the Gardens
Before choosing a robot to mow your lawn, you have to consider the number and type of obstacles that are present in the gardens you intend to mow.
This will help determine the level of sensitivity to obstacles that the robotic lawn mower you need for your gardens should have.
A mower that cannot easily sense obstacles will likely get into unnecessary collisions that will lead to a lot of time wasted and damage in some cases
Weather Protection of the Robot Mower
Only the best robotic lawn mowers come with rain detectors that automatically will automatically turn off the mower when it starts raining in order to protect the blades from being damaged by water in a long run.
If your gardens are in an area that have a lot of rains, then you need to highly consider getting a mower that has the ability to sense rain so that it automatically stops mowing when its about to start raining.
Mowing during the rains or very cold weather conditions will not only give you poor results, but will also affect the lifetime of the mower in a long run.
Security of the Robotic Lawn Mower
Only the highest-end robotic lawn mowers come with pin codes that are used to unlock the mower before using it.
Some newer models have more advanced features like alarms and GPS trackers that are inbuilt onboard.
These features are mainly important if the gardens you intend to mow are not close and could easily be accessed by intruders that could possibly tamper with the mower.
So before buying a mower you need to establish the level of safety of the gardens you intend to mow so that you know the security features that you should make a priority while choosing which mower to buy.
Design and Build Quality
When searching for the best robotic mower, you need do some simple analysis of the strength of its components.
The emphasis should be put on the main components like the blades, motor, and the battery properties.
These should be made out of materials that can stand harsh weather conditions. The blades should be tough enough and able to work for some time before replacing them.
This will need doing some sort of homework about the different materials used to design the major components and their durability.
Terrain of the Lawn
A lawn that has a lot of bumps will be a bit more complex for the mower to navigate as compared to one that is flat with evenly distributes lawn.
Flat lawns also make it easier for the mower to cut the lawn evenly and at the same level. It is for this reason that most models come along with a guide wire that is installed in the gardens which makes it easier for the robot lawn mower to navigate your lawn and ensures that all areas are cut.
This guide wire is installed right from the base station then across the middle of the lawn and finally to the extreme end of the lawn. It helps the robot mower to sense the end of the gardens so as to stop it from mowing continuously after the end of the gardens.
So, buying a mower that has this feature that allows you to install this guide wire will be something you need to highly consider.
Conclusion
In recent years, robotic lawn mowers have become one of the most used robotic gadgets in our homes due to the way they make it easy to mow gardens.
If you are planning to buy a robotic lawn mower, then you clearly have to analyze your requirements and your budget so that you know the features of the mower that you need based on your needs.
The key feature that you need to give more attention are the motor strength, controls, ease of use and battery properties. If these and the rest of the factors that we have shared above are properly given attention, you will surely be able to get a robotic lawn mower that will suit your needs.
Avoid going for the cheaper option because in most cases price will compromise quality and durability.
Analyze your requirement based on the nature and size of your gardens and then determine the robotic lawn mower that will do the best job based on those requirements.
