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Can your robot lawnmower run Doom? This one can
The iconic computer game Doom is launching for the Husqvarna Automower NERA robot lawnmower. You’ll be able to play it this April, right on the control panel.
California could ban gas-powered generators and mowers by 2024
Some leaf blowers and pressure washers will be affected too.
iRobot suspends plans to launch its robotic lawn mower
iRobot suspends plans for its robotic lawn mower, Terra, due to COVID-19.
Hills can't stop this all-wheel-drive robot lawn mower
Robotic lawn mowers aren't a recent development, but they're still far from common, at least in the US. This week at MWC, Husqvarna announced its first all-wheel drive (AWD) option with the 435X. In addition to some other unique features, this new Automower works with Amazon's Alexa and Google Home to fit in with the rest of your smart home devices. And yes, the integration with virtual assistants means you can control the robotic landscaper with your voice.
Honda's Miimo robotic lawn mower beats the heat, won't pour your lemonade
If you're looking to plan ahead for next summer's grueling yard chores, Honda has something that will help you sweat a bit less. The company has unveiled Miimo, a robotic lawn mower that trims 2-3mm of grass in several shifts during the course of a week. The green-thumbed robot navigates with a combination of controls, timers and sensors while working inside the constraints of a buried boundary wire. As you might expect, you'll be able to ditch the gas can as well thanks to a lithium-ion battery and docking station (similar to a Roomba). If you're worried about adjustments, cutting height can be set between 20mm (0.79 inches) and 60mm (2.36 inches) with three operation modes will suite the size of each job. When the unit arrives in Europe in early 2013, 300 and 500 models will be available sporting monikers that indicate their respective maximum cut perimeter in meters (about 328 yard for the former and 547 yards for the latter). For a few more details, head on past the break for the full PR.
McConnel's Robocut mower verges on obscene (video)
Woe betide any Appalachian tiger swallowtails who get caught up in this ungodly four-foot flailhead. Moving to higher ground won't save them either, because Robocut's 40hp Isuzu diesel engine and high grip tracks can chew up 55-degree slopes without ever pausing to contemplate. The bargain price? £40,000 ($60,000) plus extra for antihistamines. Apocalyptic video after the break.
Husqvarna lawnmower remote for iOS: a lot less fun than we'd hoped
Sure, we've been living in a series of safe houses and seedy motels since 1968, but that doesn't mean that you can't have nice things. A two-car garage, white picket fence, and a healthy lawn: that's the American Dream, right there. But with all that middle class comfort comes responsibility -- and how are you going to find the time to keep the grass under control when you're working three jobs to keep up with the mortgage on your McMansion? Friends, that's where Husqvarna's My Automower app comes in. That's right: rather than sending SMS messages to your GPS-enabled Automower, all of its functions (starting, stopping, tracking the thing's progress via GPS) can now be handled from the safety of your iOS device. What it will not do, however, is transform your robot lawnmower into a semi-autonomous, blade-wielding backyard defender (hopefully the company addresses that in a software update). PR after the break.
Husqvarna's Panthera Leo is the mower of the future for your lawn of today
Concept cars are a dime a dozen around these parts -- but concept lawnmowers? A little more rare, and the latest from Husqvarna looks to be about as closely related to that rusty John Deere in your shed as Lewis Hamilton's Mercedes McLaren F1 car is to your boss's E-Class. It has paddles on the wheel for adjusting three independent mowing blades, a "sophisticated" LCD display that displays speed and obstacle proximity, and a rechargeable lithium-phosphate battery with enough staying power to trim your yard for two hours straight, all shown in a soothing and thoroughly rendered promo video after the break. The one thing it can't do, apparently, is tame the wild locks of Swedish male models.
Husqvarna's SMS-enabled Automower 260 ACX: ur lawnz mowed kk?
Good news for unmanned lawnmower enthusiasts (we know there are at least two of you out there). Husqvarna's latest, the Automower 260 ACX, can be programmed to send you an SMS text message if something should interrupt the mow job -- because sometimes looking outside to see if your robot is still tending to the lawn is just too much to ask. This bad boy gets an hour on a single charge -- which should be plenty of time to take down about half an acre of lawn -- and upon returning to its docking station, the battery is recharged in roughly forty minutes. Recommended retail price: €4,000 (that's over $5,200). No word yet on a stateside release.[Via News Market]
Casmobot lawnmower is a slave to the flick of a Wiimote
Most of the time we see a Wii mote controlling something tangible, it's more for entertainment value like an airsoft gun or Rovio. The Casmobot lawnmower, developed by scientists from the University of Southern Denmark, is actually quite useful if you loathe outdoor chores. It can be steered into grass-cutting action via the tilt of the controller synced with Bluetooth. Alternatively, you can drive it for a lap around the border of the yard and then put it on autopilot to mow inside the designated zone. We wouldn't run in front of it while its in motion, though, it's probably not as forgiving of interruption as a roomba. Researcher Kjeld Jensen also suggested applying the same technology to your grandmother's wheelchair, but we really don't think she'd appreciate that. See it for yourself in the video after the break.[Via Switched]
SmartMow mows the lawn but won't accept a glass of lemonade
The unmanned lawnmower is nothing new, but we still think there's something downright iffy about arming a Roomba with sharp metal blades. That said, if you've been dying to get in on the action, SmartMow might be worth checking out. Set to hit the stores in Spring '09 for $749 (much cheaper than some other robo-mowers), the thing weighs 17 pounds, features three cutting blades, will cut around a sixth of an acre on a single charge (about 2-3 hours), and is auto-docking. As far as knowing where to mow, SmartMow eschews sci-fi grass detection algorithms and rudimentary artificial intelligence in favor of the tried but true method of marking off your mowable yard with an edge wire. The best thing about the bot, however, may be its educational value -- not only will it teach your kids about robotics, it will also show them how people with money can buy their way out of doing chores. Video after the break.[Via Robot Stock News]
Gas-powered lawn mower gone solar via 3-step mod
With the price of gas these days, it's no wonder people are skittish when it comes to mowing lawns. What's more, gas-powered mowers have been shown to pollute up to 7 times as much as vehicles. Sure, you could go get a manual mower and get some exercise, but why do that when you can convert your gas-powered mower into an electric one? This modification takes you through three steps to do just that, including: removing the engine and installing an electric replacement, converting the engine to one powered by solar panels, and installing the solar panel. Expect conversion costs to run around $1,500. Of course, you could always just buy a Huskvarna and skip all this tomfoolery.
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]
iRobot cooking up lawn mower bot
First Roomba, then came Scooba, next up: an iRobot lawnbot? Well, according to a Forbes profile of everybody's favorite domestic-botmaker, iRobot's working on a bomb sniffer to round out its compliment of functional droids, as well as "a robot lawn mower." Yep, another one of those things. So, what shall it be named, we wonder? We'd put our cash on Lawnie, but we'll still hit up the 5:1 on Lawnba. Just be sure and stay away from the 10:1 on Yardba, though, that one's definitely not gonna happen.[Via GoRobotics]
