Segway Navimow i205 AWD review

Segway Navimow i205 AWD: Introduction

• Type: AWD robot lawn mower
• Navigation system: Cloud RTK

Smaller gardens may be thought of as simpler to deal with for robot lawn mowers, but many of them are bumpy, muddy and cause basic robots to get stuck. The answer is an All Wheel Drive (AWD) mower,such as the Segway Navimow i205 AWD.

Able to control all of its three wheels, it’s better able to push over bumps and dips, avoiding the issues that have been a big issue for other robots. It does all this for under £1000, making it great value, especially since it doesn’t need a reference station. So, is it the best robot for your small garden? Read the review to find out.

Design and components

• Built-in 4G
• No need for a reference station
• Excellent app

I’ve reviewed a lot of robot lawn mowers, and one literal sticking point is that they often get stuck when riding over anything other than perfectly flat ground.

AWD changes that, with each wheel individually controlled for better traction. It was impressive technology when i saw it in the Mammottion Lub Mini AWD 800, but the i205 AWD has similar tech for less.

Actually, there are two models in the range. The i205 AWD reviewed here is rated for lawns up to 500m², while the i208 goes up to 800m². Otherwise, the features are the same.

Visually, the i205 AWD is similar to the earlier Navimow i105E, one of my favourite robot mowers. The key change is the drivetrain. The AWD system improves traction and supports Xero-Turn, which lets the mower pivot neatly by controlling each wheel separately.

When you think of AWD, you probably think of something with four wheels, but Segway has gone for a three-wheel layout, with the front wheel powered too. Many robot mowers use a shopping-trolley-style front wheel; here, it’s a proper grippy one.

Otherwise, the underside is similar to previous Segway mowers: three blades on a cutting disc and an 18cm cutting width. That’s not huge, but this is a mower built for smaller gardens.

Segway was one of the first companies to introduce a robot that uses the GPS-based RTK system. Typically, RTK requires a separate reference station, as detailed in our guide on how robot lawn mowers work.

However, in common with newer robots, the Segway Navimow i205 AWD uses network RTK. While the robot has a GPS receiver, the reference data it needs for accurate positioning is sent over the cloud.

Wi-Fi is built in and is the primary method, but there’s also integrated 4G, so cloud RTK keeps working even if your network connection is patchy. There’s no subscription fee either, which is always welcome.

That 4G connection also enables the app’s geofence feature. If the mower is removed, it can sound an alarm, lock itself and send you its location. Should you have trouble with network RTK, Segway includes a reference station in the box.

Setup is pleasingly simple. In fact, this is one of the quickest robot mowers I’ve set up. Only the LawnMaster OcuMow 18 Autocharging Vision Robot Mower was faster, and that’s really because it doesn’t have an app or store a map.

Here, the process is straightforward: place the base station, connect it to power and switch the mower on. The app then walks you through Wi-Fi setup and satellite checks. A few minutes later, after a firmware update, it was ready to mow.

Because this is a smart mower, it needs a map of the garden. You can let it create one automatically or do it manually. Automatic mapping works best when the boundaries are obvious. Manual mapping is better if they aren’t, or if you want to avoid certain areas, say leaving some grass longer for biodiversity.

It’s easy enough to do: I simply drove the mower around the edge of the lawn and the map was done.

Once that’s sorted, the mower is ready. Height adjustment is handled by a dial on top, with a range from 2cm to 6cm. It’s simple, though app-based adjustment via an electronic cutting deck would be nicer for seasonal tweaks.

You can send the Segway Navimow i205 AWD out manually, in which case it will mow until the area is covered and then return to dock. Or you can set a schedule. That’s easy too, and by default it heads home once the area has been cut. There’s also an option to keep cutting continuously within the time window.

Performance

• Moves over uneven ground
• Excellent coverage
• Strong obstacle avoidance

I ran the Segway Navimow i205 AWD on a slightly uneven lawn for a few weeks, and it didn’t take long to show its strengths. There’s a patch of my garden where the cats have dug up the soil, but the i205 powered straight through it without getting stuck once.

The front-mounted VisionFence camera recognises more than 150 obstacles, including furniture, animals, people and toys, and it deals with them very well. I scattered a selection of objects across the lawn and the mower calmly worked around them while continuing to cut.

A clear lawn will always give the neatest finish, but the important point is that leaving things out doesn’t throw it off course.

There’s also an Animal Friendly mode in the app, which makes the mower keep an eye out for small animals such as hedgehogs. It gives obstacles a wider berth, which means some areas may be skipped on one pass, but the mower should catch them later.

Cutting performance is very good. So long as the lawn is trimmed to 6cm or less before the first run, coverage is excellent. Depending on grass height, and whether parts of it have been flattened, it can take a few passes to fully sort everything out. But after about a week, the i205 had completely covered my garden, leaving it neat and springy underfoot.

Edge cutting is fine, although you’ll still need a trimmer to tidy the borders properly.

I also like the way it returns to dock once the area has been covered. It means the mower is only out for as long as it needs to be.

Final thoughts

For smaller gardens that aren’t perfectly even, the Segway Navimow i205 AWD is a very strong option. It’s smart, confident over rough ground and excellent at avoiding obstacles, and in many areas it doesn’t even need a reference station. If you can live without app-based cutting-height control and don’t need something for a bigger lawn, it’s a very easy mower to recommend.

How we test

When we publish our reviews, you can rest assured that they are the result of “living with” long term tests.

Robot mowers usually live within an ecosystem, or a range of products that – supposedly – all work in harmony. And they are designed to offer a range of different cleaning options. Therefore, it’s impossible to use a robo mower for a few weeks and deliver a verdict.

Because we’re testing smart home kit all day, everyday, we know what matters and how a particular smart mower compares to alternatives that you might also be considering.

Our reviews are comprehensive, objective and fair and, of course, we are never paid directly to review a device.

Full product name: Specifications