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Moen's smart sprinkler system automatically changes your lawn watering schedule
Moen has unveiled a smart sprinkler controller that changes your lawn watering on the fly, including when the weather changes.
Craftsman aims to pimp your lawnmower with digital dash, traction control and more
At this week's North American International Auto Show, Craftsman unveiled its 2012 CTX tractor line to the car-loving masses, and let's just get this out there -- this is not your father's lawnmower. Propelled by a 30-horsepower Briggs & Stratton motor, this grass-assassin can hit forward speeds of 8MPH and, for those Jason Statham-style chase scenes, 3MPH in reverse. The tractor is equipped with automatic traction control, an electronic fuel management system that removes the need for a carburetor, electronic cutting height adjustment and a 54-inch mowing plain with "quick deck removal." Couple that with cruise control, digital instruments, a cup holder and 12-volt power adapter (have to have some suds and songs while you mow, right?) and you have yourself quite the package. The CTX will be available this February at Sears stores nationwide and will be priced between $3000 and $6500.
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 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]
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]
World of WarCrafts: Garden art
Every Thursday, Shelbi Roach of The Bronze Kettle guides you in creating WoW-inspired crafts using real world mats with World of WarCrafts.If you're looking to enhance your home away from Northrend, you might find these WoW-themed glass and brass garden sculptures to be right up your alley! Constructed with solid brass, these stakes are said to be wind and water proof. FeralGlass offers a variety of punctuation, including yellow, gold and blue question and exclamation marks.
Cyber-Rain XCI gives you wireless control of your sprinkler system
Frustrated with that exorbitantly high water bill stemming from all the H20 wastefully spewed out from that non-intelligent sprinkler system? Enter the Cyber-Rain XCI, which gives owners wireless control of up to eight watering zones. After hooking up the controller(s) and plugging a wireless access point into your PC via USB, users can look forward to the solution automatically tweaking their irrigation system based on weather conditions, seasons, etc. It'll even log water savings and chuck out a graph to prove its value. C'mon, you know it's worth $349 to make your thumb look way greener than it actually is (and save some water, too).[Via Unplggd]
