Robot Lawnmowers Are Much Improved but Still Need Human Supervision

A hands-on summer test of five robot lawnmowers — from Segway, Roborock, Dreame, Husqvarna, and Mammotion — was conducted on a three-quarter-acre property in coastal South Carolina. Key improvements this year include network RTK satellite navigation, fallback systems using lidar or vSLAM, and better all-wheel-drive, which largely eliminated the getting-stuck problems seen in prior testing. The consistent daily mowing produced noticeably healthier grass and eliminated the need for a riding mower for over a month. However, the machines are not fully autonomous yet, as incidents included a mower silently destroying a lawn patch for three days, severed extension cords, and attempts to climb a small tree. Obstacle detection has improved across all models but remains a significant limitation, meaning owners must still actively monitor these devices.