Folks that had relegated and their sweeping, mopping and vacuuming to iRobot’s Roomba and Braava robots a long time ago are likely squealing at the announcement of iRobot’s Terra.
This is iRobot’s first-ever robot lawn mower, joining a growing army of competitors from the likes of LG, Worx and more. However, the company touts that it brings 17 years of automated robotics experience to a product that’s been in development for a decade, the company told TechCrunch.
The Terra uses iRobot’s Imprint smart mapping technology found in its latest Roomba vacuums – paired with an array of smart beacons – to navigate lawns the way a human would, creating a tidy pattern of cut lines across your lawn.
Of course, this lawn mower has no bag on the end, but rather is a mulching lawn mower that leaves clippings behind it, and takes two hours to charge. Also like the latest Roomba models, the Terra will automatically return to its charging dock when it runs low on battery and will resume the task once charged.
The Terra robot mower was designed for ruggedness, able to resist water and other elements while navigating uneven terrain. This is especially convenient considering you can control every aspect of the Terra from the iRobot app, even starting a mowing job from behind your windows.
A careful launch from iRobot
The folks at iRobot are revealing neither the pricing nor the availability of its gadget beyond that it will first launch in Germany as a normal product and in the US in a beta program in 2019.
iRobot has yet to detail what this beta program will look like for hopeful US owners. So, why such a staggered release?
The company tells TechCrunch that it looks to tweak the mowing system over this time, likely so that it can enjoy a release in its most important market with as few issues as possible. This is good, then, as we have some questions, like how will spotty Wi-Fi signals be managed, and what about anti-theft measures?
Stay tuned for updates on iRobot's Terra beta test, as we know we will – we’re too lazy not to.
- We’ve been hands-on with iRobot Roomba i7+
