Husqvarna introduces pricey solar powered Automower

Robotic lawn mowers have been keeping yards tidy for their masters for a good while now, but Husqvarna is looking to teach an old robot new tricks with its Automower. As expected, the grass muncher is ultra-quiet and outputs zero emissions, and you can even program it to take off and get to work whenever you please. Reportedly, a fully charged battery can get about 40 minutes of cutting done, and best of all, the unit will automatically return to its charging base to juice back up if the sun isn't out. Still, with a price tag of around £2,000 ($3,971), you may just be better off paying that punk kid down the street to handle your mowing needs.

[Via Pocket-lint, video at Megawhat]

[James Cameron @ Mar 6th 2008 4:47PM]

Looks like a coffin right out of Star Trek.

[blueeyesm @ Mar 6th 2008 4:51PM]

Who do you thinks actually cutting the grass? ;)

"I canna go fasterr, I need more powerr!"

[david @ Mar 6th 2008 5:11PM]

Didn't they just stick them in an empty photon torpedo casing?

[Dorz @ Mar 6th 2008 6:20PM]

Yes they do which is strange considering Starfleet and the Federation is all about love, tranquility, peace and respect, so sticking their dead into something that reminds everyone of war, hostility and generally the opposite of all the good things I pointed out previously is something I have always found strange since I saw ST3 for the first time.

Meh, these kinds of things are completely pointless if your able bodied, they just make the human race lazier and lazier.

[Jeff @ Mar 6th 2008 7:20PM]

It's Roomba for your lawn~

[Adam G. @ Mar 7th 2008 11:21PM]

If only they also had a roomba for cleaning up dog doo.

[Jerod Dunn @ Mar 6th 2008 7:07PM]

I want one...

[nec @ Mar 6th 2008 4:49PM]

"Still, with a price tag of around £2,000 ($3,971), you may just be better off paying that punk kid down the street to handle your mowing needs."

Correction: "Still, with a price tag of around £2,000 ($3,971), you may just be better off buying 10 iPhones."

[Djunior80 @ Mar 6th 2008 4:51PM]

What in the hell does an iphone and this mower have to do in the same sentence?

[david @ Mar 6th 2008 5:11PM]

Now, let's have an article about whether it makes more sense from a TCO standopint to buy one of these, or an iPhone. Does Husqvarna have rollover minutes? Hmmm...

[silverblackvoid @ Mar 7th 2008 10:08AM]

dude you've achieved the impossible:
speaking of an automated lawnmower and a iphone in the same sentence!

[I LOVE THE CAPS LOCK KEY @ May 29th 2008 5:56PM]

Consider that many riding lawn mowers cost around $4,000 and you still have to do work, this may not be such a bad deal after all.

[stardash @ Mar 6th 2008 4:53PM]

I for one welcome our solar powered lawn mowing overlords!

[makishima @ Mar 6th 2008 4:59PM]

I for one can not wait for people to STOP saying "I for one welcome our robot overlords" or some variant thereof. Its over. Its done. We get it. Skynet, etc yes we all saw the damn movies. Enough.

[stitifier @ Mar 6th 2008 5:05PM]

I thought it was referencing the Simpsons. But at any rate: Yes.

[Miguel @ Mar 6th 2008 5:12PM]

@makishima

Agreed, the phrase was old a week after it first popped into the cultural consciousness. But, no, you clearly don't get it,, because it's not about Skynet, etc. It's from the Simpsons:

"Danyel Fisher wrote in with the original Simpsons quote (from Deep Space Homer) in context:

"News announcer Kent Brockman mistakes a floating ant in a space shuttle experiment floating close to the camera for a giant space ant:

'Ladies and gentlemen, uh, we've just lost the picture, but what we've seen speaks for itself. The Corvair spacecraft has apparently been taken over -- 'conquered' if you will -- by a master race of giant space ants. It's difficult to tell from this vantage point whether they will consume the captive earth men or merely enslave them. One thing is for certain: there is no stopping them; the ants will soon be here. And I for one welcome our new insect overlords. I'd like to remind them that as a trusted TV personality, I can be helpful in rounding up others to toil in their underground sugar caves.'"

[makishima @ Mar 6th 2008 5:23PM]

@Miguel actually, before you launch into your little elitist recreation of the Simpsons, I do get it. I was merely saying that that comment and everything like it (ie: "Omg its Skynet! Robots take over the world in 3...2...1" , "Can it blend", "Will it play Doom?" ) ALL need to die. Way to jump down someones throat that you agree with. I will however give you that I didn't explain myself well in my original comment, so I apologize for any confusion. Now please climb down off your epeen.

[m @ Mar 6th 2008 9:55PM]

be that as it may, i'd still love to see engadget review a blender.

[Craig B. @ Mar 6th 2008 4:54PM]

How do these things know where to mow - do they have GPS and you establish the perimeters of your lawn or something? Or is there a nasty little elf inside driving the machine?

[Bax @ Mar 6th 2008 5:06PM]

it's probably like the roomba, it detects walls, and remembers where it went? so walls = fence? sidewalk? idk.

sounds cool, but way too much, punk kids are looking more and more useful

[iKrolm @ Mar 6th 2008 7:46PM]

robo-lawn mowers follow a wire in the ground (which means you have to dig up the lawn in order to place a wire)

i would like one that you just program the course into...

[Oddish @ Mar 7th 2008 7:22AM]

Digging up the lawn? Stop talking out of your ass since you obviously don't have a clue about this product.

[Arkaris @ Mar 13th 2008 11:06AM]

You do not have to dig up anything. The wire can be placed on top of the ground and tacked down with stakes. The wire will naturally bury itself over the course of a month or two. Just like if you take a quarter and put it in your yard. Come back a week latter and it's gone (in my little world punk kids don't come by and steal the quarter) dig a little hold and you find your quarter. Same concept, the wire and pegs go under the ground. Now if you would like to bury the wire you can, but that really is too much work.

[AlexP @ Mar 6th 2008 5:09PM]

"Still, with a price tag of around £2,000 ($3,971), you may just be better off paying that punk kid down the street to handle your mowing needs."

Eh, depends where you live. A tractor to mow our yard + the regular lawn mower + whipe would cost me more than this little thing.

Not to mention all the time wasted not being in the pool (or doing other, more productive things (I spend two hours doing this every week of the Summer). :v

Now if only they could make a robot snow-blower, we have about 6ft of snow stacked up in our front lawn damn it. D:

[Bax @ Mar 6th 2008 5:14PM]

I wonder if has some security or alarm. Pretty easy thing to snatch, if you're leaving out on the front lawn. someone could just run by turn it off an take it home, now thye got $3000 they can sell on ebay.

[Chris @ Mar 6th 2008 8:00PM]

I'm sure the hacking community will come up with a method of turning it into a sentry to protect your property. You would just have to carry a key fob or something so that it would know who not to attack. Imagine a potential theif being chased away by an angry lawnmower!

[Ghen @ Mar 7th 2008 9:07AM]

Thing probably has failsafes to turn the blade off if you touch it.. I'm sure its easy to steal.

Plus, people who spend $4k on a lawnmower aren't into the hacking community me thinks.

[Bax @ Mar 7th 2008 7:09PM]

no pun intended?

[BlowURmindBowel @ May 29th 2008 6:19PM]

I'm sure that the only people buying this thing live in areas where they don't have to worry about ANYTHING disappearing from their yard.

Plus I wouldn't be surprised if this thing weighed ~100lbs, yeah you could move it, but would you really want to have to carry it down the street (or further) in order to get away with it...

[wesg @ Mar 6th 2008 5:29PM]

Hey, I was that punk kid! This thing is way cooler than the lawn mower I used, though.

[applefreak @ Mar 6th 2008 5:30PM]

am I the only one who thinks that it looks like a very small roof-top carrier for your car with a solar pannel on the top?

[cliff @ Mar 6th 2008 5:39PM]

I'm calling this a "Mow-Bot" hehehehe..

[skulldriveshaft @ Mar 6th 2008 6:45PM]

Husqvarna is known for chainsaws, so...

And that punk kid ain't gonna be mowing your lawn either.

Grab yourself a riding mower with dual/triple/quad bags and be done with it.

Hell, why not just get a sheep or goat to graze over your estate lawns, plus they automatically dispense fertilizer.

[ScooterDe @ Mar 6th 2008 7:47PM]

how about dragging out the push-mower and doing a little sweat and toil? Saves buying bigger trousers every year.

[skulldriveshaft @ Mar 7th 2008 12:24AM]

@ScooterDe: Didn't I just say estate lawns?

For those people that are landlocked with neighbours 20 feet or less away, sure grab the push mower.

For those people that have 100 feet of frontage, it's probably going to be a acre lot, and a bunch of gas for sure.

I still like the idea of a couple of sheep or goats grazing.

[required @ Mar 6th 2008 6:55PM]

I'm guessing that panel is just for show, otherwise it would be incorporated into its charging base.

[BlowURmindBowel @ May 29th 2008 6:22PM]

Except wouldn't you want to put the charging base in your garage or under your deck (or at least next to your house i.e. partially shaded) where it was at least partially sheltered from the elements? And attaching a solar panel to a device that is probably going to be placed in one of those areas doesn't make a whole lot of sense in retrospect does it?

Common sense FTW!

[DCGaymer @ Mar 8th 2008 7:22AM]

When I was a punk kid...I couldn't get the people in my neighborhood to cough up anything for yardwork. Damnable old people.

[jjunkers @ Mar 6th 2008 8:06PM]

I wonder how many of these will be loaded into pickup trucks while the owner is sitting on his ass inside the house.

[adamcpennington @ Mar 6th 2008 8:51PM]

Looks like it would make a great companion to the roomba vacuum indoors. Sorta like the cat stays in and the dog stays out. That's one huge unfordable price tag though. OUCH. http://adamcpennington.googlepages.com

[chillwill @ Mar 6th 2008 10:19PM]

ok you smart nerds, why don't you apply this same technology to cars. Solar panel roofs for cars. Roofs are exposed to the sun all day. The cars solar panel roof would supplement the "hybrid" feature of cars reducing the strain on the batteries. does that make sense to you nerds. Do it already, I'm tired of paying the middle east for gas.

[Danger mouse @ Mar 6th 2008 10:46PM]

[off-topic...]

I believe solar roof panels have already been demo'd on concept cars (electric and hybrid) and there are companies out there that will fit one on your hybrid aftermarket.
See http://www.solarelectricalvehicles.com/

Also I think Mercedes for a while offered a system where solar roof panels would run an a/c unit while your car was parked keeping the interior cool.

[david @ Mar 7th 2008 12:49PM]

It would represent a pretty wicked ROI. Even if the total incident solar irradiance were converted to electricity, it would only be about 80W. Now, take into account that solar panels are at most 10% efficient, and that the sun isn't at high noon all day, and you'd be in trouble as far as a noticeable difference. It would probably be offset by the extra weight that you'd have to pay for to haul it around. Sorry to rain on the parade.

[CB @ Mar 6th 2008 10:51PM]

I could use one of those!

[CB @ Mar 6th 2008 10:51PM]

I could use one of those!

[lgs @ Mar 7th 2008 12:55AM]

These mowers from Husqvarna have been around for a while, longer than Roomba for sure. I've seen them used in city parks and such. I seem to remember something about a perimeter alarm if someone tries to snatch them.

[dervheid @ Mar 7th 2008 3:02AM]

You'd be cheaper with a sheep! It's not reliant on good weather, relatively maintenance free, and at the end of it's service life, can be recycled into Mutton Pies.

[Dave @ May 1st 2008 9:57AM]

I have had the 220AC Model, non solar powered model, for about two years now, works great. I have about one acre and it does it no problem. I don't know why I never got one sooner, I love it. I haven't mowed my lawn in 2 years, and my lawn looks better than it ever has! Never had a problem, and Excellent Customer Support. Virtually maintenece free. What a great product, well worth the investment. 5 Stars!!!!!

[Cory @ May 30th 2008 4:51AM]

Hey Dave, whats your address?

[Cory @ May 30th 2008 4:49AM]

I'f I ever saw someone buying one of these I would follow them home and wait in my car for as long as necessary till they let the thing out to mow then I'd jack it and flip it on Ebay.