My riding mower is about 25 years old, and works just fine. It’s on its second engine, the engine cover finally broke to the point of being unrepairable (so I trashed it). I recently fixed the oil leak and put new tires up front. I’ll get a few more years out of it.

Out and about yesterday, I saw one of the robot mowers cruising around a high-dollar yard. I’m more curious now.

If my mower died, I’d be in for about $2500 or more to replace it. I spent a few minutes on Husqvarna’s web site earlier today and found the entry price for robotic mowing is… about $2600.

So now I’m wondering: would I buy a robot mower next time? My yard is small — less than half-acre - so I can mow it in about 45 minutes. But I could just as easily spend 45 minutes doing something else, I figure… maybe even spend it enjoying a cool beverage and watching the mower do its thing.

I’ve said before, I love new technology but I’m often slow to adopt it. This, however, seems like a really neat thing! (Good thing I can get a few more years out of my current mower, right?)

Anybody got experience with these?

I recently saw a review for an electric mower that was rain-resistant, self-charging, and extremely quiet so it could mow at night. It required the user to mow the lawn first and it would simply maintain the height desired. If I had to maintain my own yard (thanks HOA), I would strongly consider it.

I've seen them, pricey, compared to what I paid for my Ryobi Whisper mower.
We've been through a few indoor vacs, I'd be concerned about longevity and/or user serviceability. Battery replacements mostly.

We have .5 acre with a pool, pretty much on the bubble between ZT & walk behind. I just don't have somewhere to store a ZT.

If I had a lawn, absolutely.

I would.

I have an eXmark ZTR, Lesco 80lb spreader, Shindaiwa 5 gallon backpack sprayer, Stihl string trimmer, etc.

Since we aren't here in the summer, I also have Juan. One year we came back from Michigan, I just kept paying Juan and I haven't replaced a spindle, broken belt, waited for the right sale to pick up 200lbs of fertilizer, dragged and stacked palm fronds at the street, picked up three pallets of mulch, etc. since.

Sounds ideal for a smallish lawn that's not steep. At least some are not so good on hills though.

If I had the cash I would have one of the automatic GPS ones for my cabin.
I could set that thing to mow a different acre of the property a day every two weeks and I would not have to travel the 2 hours once a month to mow. I could spend the time fishing and just removing brush.

Don't get me wrong, I absolutely love mowing it is so relaxing but its time consuming. With our kids sports I am lucky to get to the cabin once a month. I spend 3-4 hours mowing while they are fishing and I get to then fish with them for a short period of time after I am done.

If the GPS mower could handle it it would let me fish a lot more with my boys which out weighs the pleasure of mowing.

The same reason we have a robot vacuum. That little sucker is set to vacuum every single day at 1:00pm.
I just empty it's bin when I get home. Sometimes get it unstuck because it has pushed something under the couch my boys left out and it gets stuck.
Either way, a light daily vacuum saves us a ton of time and effort.

Nope. A robot vacuum is one thing, the worst it could probably do is grab hold of a sleeping cat's tail. But I can envision a robot lawn mower deciding to charge out into the street and cause a car/truck/bus to swerve to avoid it and run over a kid. Or maybe just chop off a kid's big toe or a curious dog's nose.

And no, I won't have a self driving car, either.

A robot mower would probably work well in my small fenced in back yard, but my lawn is so small that I use a corded electric mower and it only takes about 1/2 hour to do all of it.

Now, if I could get a robot weed wacker, that I'd like!

Have a couple of Segways (i210 AWD) and they maintain both the front and back yards (a little over a half acre actual grass, 1/4 front and back).  I've been using robot mowers for over 10 years - Worx, Husqvarna and Segway - and have settled on Segway for the best value/performance - and they make them for over an acre.  They will keep your yard immaculate, with some caveats.  In the case of Segway, you may need to set up a GPS antenna (they'll also work on Segway's 4G network for the right location/yard, but they provide an antenna just in case).  And they won't mow everything - you still need to trim (just as you would with a manual mower). And I have a John Deere tractor to mulch leaves and other yard work, so you'll likely still need some sort of manual mower.  And you'll need to set them up - map your yard (no wires needed, just drive it around), block out areas to avoid, create "channels" to cross barriers, separate zones if desired - but once set up they'll keep your yard pristine. The software allows you to program multiple schedules, mow at night (or not, but they have a light to keep off critters), keep track of progress or track the mower itself (anti-theft), send notifications (stuck or lifted mower), lots of other features.  Segway's software has been the most reliable and comprehensive I've used. Also has lots of safety features - a camera to avoid obstacles like borders, kids, pets or furniture - or areas with no grass. The blades are small (about 1") razors, set far inside the mower, and they swivel out of the way when they contact anything but grass, with only about 1/4" of the blade exposed. The mower stops when lifted and alarms. It can be programmed to stop (or mow) when raining or snowing, and can be controlled exclusively from the app or a panel on the mower. It recharges itself as needed and goes back to work or rest when finished. Mine cost less than $1k each on sale (less than my manual mowers), and they have higher and lower end models. Maintenance is basically changing the blades (5) and cleaning the camera/mower every 80 hours or so, and bringing the mower in during the Winter (batteries, so a good idea, although they're pretty much impervious to weather), and setting up the charging stations in the Spring.

Advantages:

- Autonomous - mostly. It can still get stuck (rarely with these - AWD). It can still slide off wet grass or muddy areas on a slope, outside the border or into the road (or pool/pond) - just like a manual mower.  Again, mapping and blocking areas is important, and leaving enough space to avoid that.  And I wouldn't leave them to mow my yard while I took a 2 week vacation - see above.  But in general,  it just mows your yard continuously, keeping your yard perfectly trimmed while you drink lemonade or go shopping. It just cuts the top 1/4" of the grass once it gets to the desired height, so keeps your yard healthier. It can go where a big, heavy mower can't (they weigh about 20-30 pounds) - under trees, over soft patches, around complex landscaping.  It mows all the time if you want - it doesn't get tired, it doesn't get hot (although you can set it to not mow when the weather is above a certain temperature to protect the lawn). I have mine set to mow about 10 hours a day, four days a week, not to mow when it gets over 95F, to stop when it rains and to continue 3 hours later, to knock off at 9 pm, and they keep my yard perfect.

- It's cheap - no $4/gal gas. The cost of recharging the batteries is negligible, not even noticeable on the electric bill. Blades are inexpensive and last for 80 hours or more. No tires to replace, no oil to change.

- It's quiet. You can mow in the middle of the night and your closest neighbor won't hear.

- It mows in patterns. These particular mowers (and others) can be set to pattern-mow: stripes, checks, even shapes, and can be set to vary them regularly in different directions or shapes for a professional look that would be tedious or impossible with a manual mower.

- They're safe.  Very little chance of injury to kids, pedestrians or pets.  The mower will not hit you, and if you are determined to aggravate IT, it's heavy for a small child to lift and impossible for a pet (unless you keep bears), and if you do lift it it stops. If you put your hand under it as it's moving, and your hand contacts the blades (which are specifically shielded to prevent that) you might get some 1/4" nicks.  The results from a moving blade on a manual mower would be catastrophically different.

Disadvantages:

- It's not completely autonomous (and neither is your manual mower). You'll still need a trimmer. You may need to get it out of a ditch, or the road (see above).  A non-issue for me with these mowers, but has happened in the past with others. And they still need the minimum maintenance mentioned.

- They're expensive pound-for-pound compared to manual mowers, but beside the convenience they actually do a better job.

- Unattended, they're easier to walk off with than a lawn tractor. But - they stop and set off a loud alarm when lifted. And they can't be started again without entering a code on the mower panel. They also have a built-in GPS that continuously tracks its location, even if the mower is off. So not much point in taking one if you have nefarious intent, and only the stupid ones will try it after the word gets out.

- It needs a power source for the charging station.  This might not seem much of an obstacle, but you need an outdoor outlet within a certain distance, that must also coincide with the best location for the station to receive a satellite signal (if you use GPS). The included transformer to station cord is low voltage, but the cord to the transformer is 120v, which you won't want to be running over your yard. So finding the exact spot for both station and outlet can be challenging, but doable with some advanced planning. The app has instructions and electronic aids using your phone to set up the mower and map your yard (essentially "telling" the mower the boundaries, obstacles, and where you want it to mow and not mow). It also shows available satellites visible to the station (GPS mowers work on satellite signals for precise positioning) - either the station or the mower need to be able to "see" at least one or two satellites (there are an amazing number floating in orbit). So even with heavy tree cover (which used to be prohibitive for robot mowers), if either the station or the mower has clear access the mower can continue (cloud cover is not an issue).

The results:

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Doc H.,

If i got one, it'd likely just be for my back yard, but I'd worry about it taking a dip in the pool
We have a ditch in the front with a concrete runner along the bottom, would be curious about running it out there

But, I also enjoy mowing, to an extent. Put my headphones in and just go.

Our old house, with a flat, fairly standard yard, it would probably have worked great

My next door neighbor has one. He has had it for about 2 years. He loves it. He programed it when he first got it and has done nothing with it since. It puts itself on the charger. The charger is under his deck, so it is out of the rain. He has it set up so that he starts it with his cell phone. He starts it when he gets home from work. When my mower dies, I am going to take a good look at one. I am also getting older and know that eventually I may not be able to cut the grass. I think the robot would be cheaper than paying someone to do it.

I’m thinking about a tracked skid steer with field mower.

Well, this one will do a fairway. Or two....

My yard is about as smooth as an artillery range, so a robot is out.

Thanks for the replies, everyone. As usual, I've got a lot more learning to do.
And for today, I'm glad my old JD will get me a couple more years.

I've got some tree cover in the yard, and would need to learn how a specific mower (Husqvarna, Segway, etc.) would handle that. And I've got some exposed tree roots to deal with, too.

I'm wondering if any of the makers (their dealers, more specifically) offer a "yard evaluation" to see how suitable a robot mower would be (slope, roots, tree cover, etc) before someone makes a purchase. I need to go to the county next door and visit the Husq dealer.

The docking station necessity gives me a little more traction on putting a storage building out back. I'd build the dock into a corner of that... maybe have sort of a doggie door arrangement?

I don't mind to mow, but sometimes I can't get to it before it gets to the "way too tall" stage. Having the robot mower would perhaps allow me to avoid that condition. Quiet enough to mow at night? Too cool! I'm just imagining the nosy neighbor: "his yard looks good but we never see him mowing!"

Lots more learning to do.

quote:

I'm wondering if any of the makers (their dealers, more specifically) offer a "yard evaluation" to see how suitable a robot mower would be (slope, roots, tree cover, etc) before someone makes a purchase. I need to go to the county next door and visit the Husq dealer.

That sounds like a great idea and it would be a nice service to offer a prospective buyer.

Good luck!

Love the Idea when the JD gives up the ghost or I do as far as mowing, which in the summer rain season the heat is unbearable and you have to mow just about every 5 days.

A consideration you have to make when getting one is the type of grass, we have St Augustine, it's thicker and must be mowed higher. Some of the basic models won't make the cut.

The Segway i210 looks like a great option but they said "no go for St Augustine" and would have to up to the higher level models which really push the price up.

Ecobots GOAT A 2000 looks to fill the bill and it has a line trimmer built in which will help reduce the amount of trimmer use I'd have to manually perform and at $1,399 it has a good price point....

https://www.ecovacs.com/us/sho...goat-a2000-lidar-pro

IIRC, my Ryobi Whisper mower was around $6-700
That Ecobots, for twice the price, looks like not a terrible deal.

But I would also wonder how it handles less than ideal yard conditions, exposed roots, ruts, ditches, etc.
Neat that it also has a edge trimmer, though.

I'd love one but I gotta ask what piece of home care equipment leads a harder life than a mower? Dirt and dust and slopes and bumpy terrain, all beating a mower up. A robot mower is one thing, holding up to a tough job is another.

I have a difficult yard to mow and use a Toro commercial mower. Pricey but fixable and worth fixing. Some years maintenance costs more than others but yeah, even a good mower takes a major pounding.