Roborock is getting into the robotic lawnmower game
It may be known for its robot vacuums, but Roborock wants to cut the grass of the other robot lawnmower companies.
As I get older, I have less desire to spend time mowing my lawn. I think some people go the other way and really lean in to making their grass look great. But I just have no desire to spend my time trimming grass.
So I'm the perfect candidate for a robot lawnmower, right. I really enjoyed the Worx Landroid Vision when I tested it, but it's definitely a market ripe for competition.
Enter Roborock. At IFA the robot vacuum company announced three new mowers under two different product lines: the RockMow and the RockNeo.
The flagship is the RockMow Z1, which boasts an All Wheel Drive (AWD) approach to movement, with every wheel having an independent in-wheel motor to enable powerful movement.
Roborock claims the Z1 can cut to within 3cm of walls, and uses a combination of Real-Time Kinematics (RTK) navigation and visual Simultaneous Localiaation and Mapping (vSLAM) move about your yard.
It can cut up to 5,000 square metres in 24 hours, making it overkill for most Australian blocks, though the fact it can handle slopes of up to 39º may appeal to some users.
If you don't need all the bells and whistles, the RockMow S1 is a cut down version, capable of mowing up to 1,000 square metres in 24 hours and tackling slopes up to 24º. It can also navigate between gaps as narrow as 70 cm, which is more noteworthy than you might expect for a robot lawnmower.
The last model in the lineup is the RockNeo Q1, and it's designed more for maintenance. It has smart AI mapping and can cut within 3cm of edges as well.
At this point, there's no word which models are coming to Australia or what they'll cost, but fingers crossed we'll hear more about this in the lead up to Summer so I can review them all and avoid mowing the lawns myself for the rest of the year.
BTTR relies on support from readers like you to keep going. If you'd like to support our work, consider a one-time donation. Every little bit helps us to cover costs and stay independent. 100% of donations go directly to authors. Thanks for your support!
Nick Broughall
Nick Broughall
