I love avoiding household jobs, and I love robots. So I’m all about the Automower 305, Husqvarna’s cheapest robotic lawnmower yet. But by cheap, I mean $2000. That’s a chunk of change, though certainly more realistic than $3000+ for their other models. The 305 is designed for gardens 500m² or less, and uses a rechargeable battery that provides a 50 minute mow time on 2.5 hours of charge.
It works by shaving millimetres of grass on each pass, and sends cuts back into the lawn to act as greening fertilizer. And if you’re super trusting and let it roam on the front yard, it has a PIN-based anti-theft kill switch.
Though the 305 weighs 7kg, it’s designed not flatten grass as it shuffles around within the boundary you’ve set using wires in a one off setup (as shown in the video below). You’ll start seeing the Automower 305 at Husqvarna authorised dealers in October. You can find ‘em at: [Husqvarna Australia]
Andreas
Wednesday, August 10, 2011 at 2:17 PMEven with the anti-theft thingy, I can still see these being nicked if left in the front-yard to do their thing. Especially with a price tag of $2000.
Marie
Wednesday, August 10, 2011 at 3:52 PMYou need to secure the base in a safe place. Each automower is linked to its own docking base (the one it comes with) – so you can’t mix and match them. It simply won’t work.
Jim Mathies
Thursday, August 11, 2011 at 10:27 AMHi Andreas.
Anything you leave outside can be stolen, even your car worth $20,00 – $30,000. To date there has been no Auto Mowers reported stolen out of any yard in Australia.
Ryan
Wednesday, August 10, 2011 at 3:19 PMThat is brilliant. I have a vacuum cleaner for inside the house. This would be perfect outside. Pitty the video did not show a little more close up detail of the cutting though.
Love the idea. I know what is on my Christmas list now.
David Shears
Wednesday, August 10, 2011 at 4:20 PMAll I could think when watching the video was. “Awww man! I have to put wire around my entire yard?”
Oh, what a lazy, lazy man I have become…
Meanwhile, is it strange I cant get the theme to beyond 2000 out of my head
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KPpYP3_nyHY
Matt
Wednesday, August 10, 2011 at 9:54 PMI thought this as well. My entire backyard is sunken, so there is a wall for it to bump into on all four sides. Whats with needing to connect the boundary wire to the base station though….couldn’t they have stuck a solar panel to the dock?
Jim
Thursday, August 11, 2011 at 12:23 PMMatt.
We can do just about anything you want but I am sure you will appreciate that adding solar for power and recharge would make the mower substantially dearer than the $1999 that it will sell for. Solar also does not allow the mower to be versitle 24/7 either, No light No Go!
logical
Wednesday, August 10, 2011 at 4:40 PMor, you can pay someone to do the job well.
$50 every 2 months
= 6.5 years worth of mowing.
your warranty lasts how long?
David
Thursday, December 15, 2011 at 2:06 PMYou only mow every two months? I mow weekly in spring and summer, maybe monthly in winter.
Joe
Wednesday, August 10, 2011 at 6:49 PMAnd what is wrong with my little 450 dollar honda ?
Its fired up every time since i got it 9 years ago, needed one spark plug in its life and 3 oil changes (4 stroke)
And I get exercise too boot, 2000m2 yard
Make it less then 1000 dollars use GPS to stay in the yard, and can do more then 50 minutes on a charge and watch the sales go nuts
Justin
Thursday, August 11, 2011 at 2:45 AMWhat an absolutely brilliant idea, this could free up so much time on the weekend. We spend so much time at work, any little gadget to free up time andspend more time with the family is a brilliant idea of believe. It’s Definitely on my list of things to get.