The Robomow RX12u robotic lawn mower was reviewed over 3 years ago (updated 2020), more than 8 months after its launch. Robomow seemed very excited to launch a very small robotic mower for cutting small lawns… but what are people saying about the Robomow RX12u automower after purchasing it? Is this a good mower of just a neat little robot?
You should ask yourself the following questions before purchasing this mower:
- Is this robotic mower suitable for your lawn size and type?
- Is it worth spending your hard-earned money on?
- Are there better options out there for a similar price?
We will discuss those and the important features of the Robomow RX12u automower so that you can make an informed decision after this review. I will also give you my personal opinion of this and other similar robotic mowers at the end of this review.
Product: Robomow RX12u
Company: Robomow
Model: RX12u
General Market Price: USD 600.00 -700
Guarantee: 1 Year full warranty
Ratings/Stars from C-ELMR results:
Specs:
Robomow RX12u Review Overview
Robomow RX12u Review
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Power
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Design
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Performance
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Efficiency
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Ease of use
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Durability
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Ease of locating replacements for wearable parts
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Value
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Customer service support from company
Summary
Very neat little robotic mower. Cute to look at but not very effective unless your lawn is very smooth, uncomplicated, and well kept. Even then, some people have reported having some minor problems. Read the full review to find out more about the problems, VALUE, and practical/applicable use of this mower, as well as why each rating was given for each aspect above.
Pros
– Cheap compared to other mowers
– Great customer service from the company
Cons
– It hardly finds its charging station on its own
– It spends a lot of time running without mowing
– It gets confused often and just stops in the middle of the lawn for no apparent reason
– It absolutely does not handle lawn well unless the lawn is flat and was immaculately kept.
– It does not handle slopes up to 8.5 Degrees as well as you think it would.
– It crosses the guidewire frequently.
– It takes too long to charge (16-20hrs!) compared to the work time (90 – 130 minutes).
– Limited cutting heights
– Limited safety features
What is the Robomow RX12u and how will it work to cut your lawn?
The Robomow RX12u is the most basic robotic mower I have reviewed so far. It works in the same general manner as other robotic mowers to cut your lawn but it lacks many important features. It works within the boundaries of a low voltage guide wire to cut within the boundaries you set.
All you need to do is set up the guide wires around the boundaries of your lawn, set up the charging station, connect it to a power outlet and press start and the mower will be off to do its job. The mower gets a signal from the guide wires that interacts with the user interface to keep the mower within the set boundaries of the guide-wire.
The areas mentioned below are the most important features you should look at when considering to buy a cordless electric mower. If you assess all the components of each of these properly, you will not go wrong so this is what we always do for you.
This Robomow RX12u review will cover:
Design
Power
Performance
Efficiency and Ease of Use
Durability
Ease of locating replacement parts
Customer service from the company
Design
So, let me just start out by saying there is absolutely nothing about the design of this mower that was impressive. It was on levels between “this is okay” to “why did they leave this feature out?”.
Height of grass cut
Very limited. Between 0.5 and 1.7 inches. Therefore, you would need to groom your lawn so that the grass is not higher than 1.7 inches before letting this mower loose on your lawn. It does not have smart cut features to detect when the grass is likely to be growing faster and make adjustments to accommodate this. Therefore, you might end up with an overgrown lawn and a very stressed out, under-performing robotic mower in the rainy seasons. Other robotic mowers have this feature.
Size and Weight
As seen in the specs above, this is a small automower. The smallest that I have seen so far is this one. It is also the lightest mower I have seen so far but when compared to the heavier ones, you can see why. This is a very simple mower.
User interface
Well, this user interface has nothing to be greatly coveted by other robotic mower owners. It has a manual “start” and “stop” option but it has the intelligence to return to the charging station when it is dying. Does it usually make it to the charging station? This is another story and will be discussed in the Performance and Efficiency section.
Safety Features
A robotic mower gives the impression that it can function independently. You will not be supervising it all the time so it should be able to perform without causing chaos.
So is this robotic mower pet safe?
Well, not 100 percent.
- Bad – It could run over your dog’s tail, ripping it viciously so keep your pets with tails away.
- Good – It will stop and turn if it hits any hard abject, pets included.
What happens if it is lifted, tilted, or topples over?
Interesting thing happened when I attempted to get answers on Amazon for this question. Take a look at the first answer I got.
Very alarming reply from this disappointed buyer warning me not to buy the product and labeling it as “substandard.” I would have preferred if he elaborated a bit.
To answer my original question though, no it does not contain tilt or lift sensors. So if it is tilted or lifted while running, the blades could do some real damage.
Does Robomow RX12u contain an anti-theft alarm system?
Nope, no it doesn’t. These mowers are very attractive to the eyes and will be stolen if the wrong person gets an eye on it. So if your property is not completely secure, you might want to think twice before buying this Robomow robotic mower.
Does Robomow RX12u have a rain sensor?
Well no, and it will get wet if you do not get a house for it. It is not weather-proof so you will need to take this into consideration.
Ease of use – The Installation Process
This is a relatively hassle-free process. The manual outlines the steps perfectly. There is no additional programming required for the mower to work. All you need to do is lay the guide wires, set up the charging station, and press the red power option on the mower. When you need the mower to stop working, press the power button to turn it off. They also provided a YouTube video to assist with the installation process.
YouTube Video Showing how to set up the guide wires and charging station
This mower would have been easier to use if it had a WiFi or Bluetooth option to connect to your phone. That way, it could be monitored and powered up or down from inside your house if you do not wish to go outside. This has become a very popular and appreciated feature of recent robotic mowers.
Power, Performance, and Efficiency
Robomow was very excited to see this little mower on the market. They claim that it is the smallest, most affordable mower on the market and this is all good and well but I was not impressed with the power, performance, and efficiency.
This is what the Robomow company says about the Robomow RX12u on YouTube.
According to customers who purchased the Robomow RX12u, these were the major problems with power, performance, and efficiency:
- It hardly finds its charging station on its own
- It spends a lot of time running without mowing
- It gets confused often and just stops in the middle of the lawn for no apparent reason
- It absolutely does not handle the lawn well unless the lawn is flat and was immaculately kept, to begin with.
- It does not handle slopes up to 8.5 Degrees as well as you think it would.
- It crosses the guide-wire frequently.
- It takes too long to charge (16-20hrs!) compared to the work time (90 – 130 minutes).
YouTube Video by Reviewer who said it spends half the time spinning and not cutting
Durability and Ease of locating replacement parts
The mower was described by one customer as having very sturdy material. The blades are said to last up to a year after which they must be replaced. There is a 1-year warranty on the entire mower so if anything happens to it within this time, it will be fixed by the company for you. Replacement blades can be found for you on their Website as well as on Amazon and eBay.
Customer service from the company
Even though customers rated this mower poorly, they were always very happy with the support from the company.
Who would I recommend this mower for?
I would not buy this mower unless I had a flat, well kept, slow-growing lawn, under 2000 sq meters.
Value – My Final Thoughts
For the cost, it is a reasonable purchase. If you have a more complicated lawn with slopes up to 20 Degrees and have rapidly growing grass, if you can add USD $300 to your robotic mower budget, I would recommend getting the WORX WG794 28-volt Landroid Robotic Lawn Mower instead. It is slightly bigger but has a world of improvements when compared to this mower.
Where to buy Robot mowers online
Robot mowers can be purchased safely online from Amazon at good prices.
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I have spent some time reading your robo mower reviews and I have to say this one is certainly priced right, but I don’t know if it’s the right one for me. Some of the big issues that pop up are its inability to find the charging station and the fact that it might run over my dog! I have to laugh at the video, the mower looks like it really doesn’t have any idea where to go next. Well, it’s good for a laugh anyway. Thanks for this review, but I might just have to keep on shopping and check out your other recommendations.
I laughed at that video too. I hope you find something soon. If you are having problems finding one, remember to send us an email at mowers@cordlesselectricmowersreviews.com or Just sign up one of the request sheets on the “Contact C-ELMR” page and we’ll send you comparison tables of mowers within your budget that fit your lawn size and type.
This is a great thorough review, of what seems to be a below average product. Form what you and others have said the obomow-rx12u is OK you have a small, flat lawn that you want to keep in blowing green condition and mow it every 2 days. That is not my lawn! After 2 weeks I may get round to cutting it. So thanks for an honest review and I will look at other alternatives.
Thanks Alan
You are absolutely correct. This mower is not for you. You can take a look at the WORX or Husqvarna line of mowers. Some were reviewed here already so you can take a look at those.
You can also visit our ”contact us” page and you will see some request forms that you can fill out with information about your lawn and your budget and we will provide you with some suggestions.
Thanks for interacting on our Website. We appreciate the support
Thanks for this great, comprehensive review. I found it very helpful – although this robo mower appears to have its limitations it was really helpful that you specifically described the type of lawn that it does work for and good to know that the company provides good after sale support – so important.
You’re welcome Fleur and thanks for your kind remarks. I hope you find something suitable for your lawn soon. Don’t hesitate to contact us if you need any help finding or choosing a mower for your lawn
I have heard great things about this mower and wanted to try it out, but it seems the charging time is going to make me let it go.
Is there any other mower that works just as good but with a lesser charging time?
Or is there something I could do to get it to charge it faster or generally be more efficient?
Sadly there is nothing you can do to it. We do not usually recommend doing any alterations or modifications to the mowers as this may cause loss of rights to your warranty.
If you tell me more about your lawn and your budget, I can give you some good options with shorter charging time. You can also take a look at all the robotic mower reviews done here so far. They generally take 45 minutes to 120 minutes to charge. You can reply here or if you prefer a private interaction you can use the request form on the “Contact C-ELMR” page.