If you’re looking for an entry-level autonomous lawn mower, then the MowRo by Redback robot lawn mower lineup is worth taking a look at. These value-packed mowers take away the pain of mowing grass by tackling 99% of the maintenance of your lawn with an absolute minimum of fuss.
This article sets out to review three from the MowRo range to help you decide which is best for you and your lawn – MowRo RM18, MowRo RM24, and MowRo RM24A. For those in a hurry…
A quick summary of the MowRo RM18, RM24, and RM24A robot lawnmowers. These three mowers have powerful brushless motors that do a good job of mowing lawns sizes from 0.15 to 0.25 acres. At entry-level price points, they provide good value for homeowners looking for a budget-friendly robot mower.
Let’s first take a look at an overview of the product details, before we get into the product features and benefits.
MowRo RM18 | MowRo RM24 | MowRo RM24A | |
Amazon Alexa and Google Home Compatibility | No | No | No |
Mobile App | No | No | No |
GPS Tracking | No | No | No |
Yard Size | 0.15 acres (6534 square feet) | 0.25 acres (10,890 sq. feet) | 0.25 acres (10,890 sq. feet) |
Max Incline | 35% (20 degree Slopes) | 50% (30 degree Slopes) | 50% (30 Degrees) |
Cut Height | 0.8- 2.4 inches | 1 – 2.5 inches | 1 – 2.5 inches |
Check Latest Prices | Click Here for RM18 | Click Here for RM24 | Click Here for RM24A |
Before we get too deep into product descriptions, I do want to make note that the MowRo RM24 and RM24A are the same robot mower. There’s no difference between them. It seems as if MowRo decided to call it RM24 at one point and then added the A on later. MowRo uses both model names interchangeably themselves on the website.
MowRo Mower Features and Benefits
These mowers could all be considered entry level models. Each is a fully featured battery powered robotic lawn mower made for small and medium-sized yards.
Cutting Patterns and Modes
The MowRo RM18 and RM24/24A models use the “cut often and cut small” process for mowing a yard, like all robot mowers. Using this method they all produce grass clippings so small they are absorbed back into the lawn, acting as a natural fertilizer that helps promote further growth.
Using clever algorithms to ensure entire lawn coverage they ensure that the grass is always kept at the preset length. They’re programmed to mower every 48 hours.
Lawn Size and Cutting Deck
The MowRo RM18 model is capable of dealing with lawn sizes of 0.15 acres, while the RM24 / RM24A models can deal with larger yards of up to 0.25 acres.
The cutting deck on both models is a floating deck design, which allows for easy adjustment of varying terrain changes and cut heights as it moves. The term cutting deck refers to the size of the cutting area that the razor-sharp blades cover. The models differ in this aspect with the RM24 models having a cutting deck size of 9.5 inches, the RM18 has a 7-inch cutting deck.
Handling Different Types of Lawns – Flat, Slopes, Ditches
The models also differ with the steepness of slopes they can deal with. The MowRo RM18 is able to deal with slopes of 35% and the RM24 models can cope with up to 50% inclines.
There’re no camera sensors that’ll prevent it from going into ditches, ponds, and other obstacles, but they do use boundary / perimeter wires to keep the mowers safe.
They use a boundary wire to determine the area they are to cut, creating a perimeter the mowers need to stay in. This wire is also used to stop it from straying into obstacles like ditches and flower beds.
Setup and Installation
The setup and installation are identical for all three models in the MowRo family. The first step is to lay the boundary wire around the perimeter of your cutting area. It should also be used around features like bushes and flower beds. Common feedback from others also suggest that for an average lawn, this can take around 2-3 hrs.
Then it is simply a matter of positioning your charging station, attaching the boundary wires and a guide wire to it. The station should be positioned out of direct sunlight and somewhere you can get power to it.
Design and Build Quality
To give them their full title, these 40V cordless brushless self-propelled lawn mowers are designed to reside outdoors in all, but the most extreme of weather conditions.
These are designed with IPX4 standards, which certifies them as being dust and water resistant.
Battery Life and Power Source
The MowRo RM18 has a rechargeable 2Ah 28V lithium-ion battery and the RM24 and 24A have a 4Ah 28V battery.
The charging station should be placed within reach of a power outlet, so it can be plugged in. The distance from a power outlet is determined by the length of the supplied low-voltage power cable, but it can extended by a power cable. Do be careful that the connections are protected from rain and weather.
Unfortunately there is no information available regarding the charge times and run times of these devices, but most mowers will charge within an hour and mow for a little longer than this.
The battery is guaranteed for a year but feedback from users suggest that the average life of these batteries is between 2 to 4 years.
Mower Controls and Programming
Once you have set up your perimeter wire and the mower is ready to go, you have to program it with your mowing times, this is done through the onboard control panel.
By default the mower will mow your lawn every two days, the only further information that needs to be programmed in is the size of the yard and the preferred mowing times. The mow scheduling feature will have it mowing when you want.
Smart Technologies
Unfortunately, the MowRo RM18, RM24, and RM24A robotic lawn mowers don’t have any smart features and smart home integration.
Safety and Security
All models come with collision/obstacle, tilt, and lift sensors. The auto-stop safety feature activates with the first three sensors to keep you and others around it safe. Auto-stop is also good for saving battery life, so it’s not running and cutting in place when it’s stuck.
With the obstacle and collision sensor, the RM18, RM24, and 24A will stop and change directions if it touches any objects or obstacles. If they don’t find a new route within 3 seconds, the auto-stop safety system activates to stop the cutting motor, while it continues searching for a new path. If it can’t find a new route within 10 seconds, they’ll shut down. A manual restart will then be needed.
The lift sensor uses the gravity of the wheels to know when the mowers are lifted. If the robotic mower is lifted or if both wheels are in a hole, the auto-stop activates and the mower completely shuts down.
The tilt sensor is a 6-axle sensor that measures the tilt angle to know when the mower is on a dangerous slope and will stop the cutting motor. The cutting motors will stop when the tilt angle exceeds 20° on the RM18 and 30° on the RM24. If the mowers return to safe tilt angles within 10 seconds, the cutting will restart automatically. Otherwise, a manual restart is needed.
For security, the mowers utilize a PIN code that unlocks the mowers to begin cutting the lawn.
Noise Levels
These are very quiet devices, which allows them to operate at any time without disturbing the neighbors.
They operate at a low noise level at 65dB, which is the equivalent of a normal human conversation level.
Weather Protection
The MowRo RM18, RM24, and RM24A robot mowers are robustly designed to remain outside in most weather conditions. These all have integrated rain sensors.
The rain sensor will tell the MowRo mowers to return to the docking station if there’s heavy rain. The rain sensor activates when it’s wet and once it dries, the mower will return to mowing at the originally schedule time the next day.
When it’s not cutting season, it’s still best to bring your mower indoors somewhere, because it won’t be used for some time.
Maintenance and Cleaning
Under normal conditions, these are low-maintenance machines. However, it’s good to check them over once in a while and clean them the wheels and blades of anything that could cause issues. The blades will also need to be periodically changed.
Accessories
There are a number of accessories available for these models including a weather cover, extra boundary wire, spare blades, and line stakes.
Other Robot Lawn Mower Benefits
Like all mowers they are designed to take care of 99% of your lawn maintenance, and they do this well.
They are also eco-friendly gas emission-free, cheap to run, quiet and fantastic for giving you an all-year round fantastic looking lawn.
MowRo Mower Pros and Cons
MowRo by Redback Pros
- Easy to set up
- Great Price
- Quiet Operation
- Great for the health of your grass
MowRo by Redback Cons
- No smart technology integration
- Limited Features
MowRo RM18 vs RM24
The main differences between the MowRo RM18 and RM24 are the lawn sizes they can mow, the battery power, cutting deck size, and max incline slopes. The RM18 can mow lawns up to 0.15 acres and the RM24 up to 0.25 acres. The RM18 has a 28V 2Ah lithium ion battery, whereas the RM24 has a 28V lithium ion 4Ah battery. The RM18’s cutting deck is 7 inches to the RM24’s 9.5 inches. The RM18 climbs slopes up to 35% and the RMB24 climbs up to 50% .
MowRo RM24 vs RM24A
The MowRo RM24 and RM24A have the same features and specifications. There are no visible differences between these models, so it’s best to look for the best package deal.
MowRo RM18 vs RM24A
The main differences between the MowRo RM18 and RM24A are the max lawn sizes they can cut, the battery power, size of cutting decks, and max incline slopes. The max lawn size for the RM18 is 0.15 acres and 0.25 acres for the RM24. The RM18 has a 2Ah 28V lithium ion battery, while the RM24 has a 4Ah 28V lithium ion battery. The cutting deck on the RM18 is 7 inches and 9.5 inces for the RM24. The RM18’s max incline slope is 35% and the RMB24’s is 50% .
MowRo RM18, RM24, and RM24A Review Final Thoughts
These are all entry level models that perform automatic mowing and provide you with optimal mowing performance with minimal fuss. If you are looking to free up some of that precious free time, then one of these models isn’t a bad place to start.
The features between the models aren’t too different and in selecting one or the other, you’ll mainly want to consider the size of your yards.
The MowRo RM18 is good for those who have a small yard, under 0.15 acres.
The MowRo RM24 and MowRo RM24A are good for those with a yard up to 0.25 acres. It also has a slight edge over the RM18 in a number of features, so it’s the better overall robot mower.
Here’re other robot mower reviews for you to check out if none of the MowRo by Redback models are quite right for you: