In one look
Expert rating
Benefits
- Mow well
- Smart and useful features
- Guide rope with three starting points
The inconvenients
- Wi-Fi kit costs extra
- No obstacle detection
- Professional boundary wire installation recommended
Our opinion
The Husqvarna Automower 310 Mark II is a truly capable robot mower. It requires an initial investment to set up and it lacks frills but its basic functions are excellent. Recommended.
Best Prices Today: Automower 310 Mark II
$2,199.99
While this year’s hottest trend in gardening technology is robotic lawn mowers that don’t require boundary wires, traditional models will be around for a long time. The ability to control exactly where your machine will and will not go is simply much better when using a boundary wire. Or in my case, when you hire an installer to do it for you.
But if you’re looking for a robot lawn mower that doesn’t require boundary wires, read our review of the excellent Segway Navimow.
Setting up Automower 310 Mark II
- Uses Perimeter Wires
- Optional guide wire
- Bluetooth connectivity
With the right machine and a detail-oriented installer, you set the stage for trouble-free mowing – instead of spending your time looking for cable breaks.
Mikael Lindkvist
Husqvarna’s 310 series (now Mark II) is, according to the brand, the best seller in its product catalog and I can see why. It offers many great features while being specified for lawns up to 1000 square meters. The basic version communicates with the app via Bluetooth but can be controlled via Wi-Fi and 4G if you purchase a “Connect kit”. I start by testing the mower in the simplest version, but I plan to update it for remote control later this summer and will update the review then.
Husqvarna’s little workhorse is impressive when it comes to getting around
I enlisted the help of an installer to install the mower on a plot of just over 1,000 square meters which presents various challenges. There are flat surfaces and mossy outcroppings, pits, slopes and various obstacles, as well as a one-meter narrow passage between two sections of the garden.
The Automower 310 supports a guide wire, which will help it find its way home, and you can also use it to create several different starting points on your lawn, to achieve full coverage.
This is done by marking different distances along the cable as alternate starting points. You then choose what percentage of the mowing time should start from each starting point. This way you can ensure that the whole plot is covered even if you have remote areas. Clever!
The mower also has many other great features. For example, you can wire up an additional area and transport the machine there to mow. Or spot mowing areas with very tall grass, something I’ve tested and works surprisingly well.
There’s also a weather timer (which adjusts schedules based on how fast the grass grows), frost protection, and the ability to create different profiles with custom settings for multiple zones.
You can tell Husqvarna has been doing this for a while and puts basic mowing features before add-ons. But you have the option of connecting the machine to IFTTT applets or using Google Assistant to control it.
Connectivity and obstacle avoidance
- No obstacle detection
- Connection kit requires professional installation
Without the Connect kit, the phone and app communicate with Automower 310 via Bluetooth. It works well, but after a few weeks I felt like upgrading the machine. Installing a Connect kit requires opening the machine, which must be done in a workshop as the mower then needs to be closed.
It would be better from a user’s perspective if you could just plug in an add-on yourself. However, I guess the current solution minimizes support calls, so the decision is understandable.
Mikael Lindkvist
The Husqvarna Automower 310 does not have radar or ultrasonic obstacle detection. It simply runs towards things it encounters, then turns around when stopped by an obstacle. It won’t damage tree trunks, but remember to remove toys and other objects from the yard while it’s running.
Traction and handling
How well does the mower move when the ground is rough? Even though it’s only rear wheel drive (you can buy four wheel drive mowers), the traction and handling are really good. One area of the lawn had a number of pits made by wild animals and the 310 never got stuck. It’s pretty clever when you have to get out of a difficult situation. The only times the machine got stuck at first was when it was rolling over roots, I hadn’t put a boundary wire around it.
The trimmer has a lot of cool features. There’s a weather timer, frost protection, and the ability to create different profiles with custom settings.
There’s always a learning curve with a new robot mower, but Husqvarna’s little workhorse is seriously impressive when it comes to getting around. And he never had a problem with the narrow passage between two parts of the garden.
Husqvarna
Price and availability
The Husqvarna Automower 310 Mark II is far from a budget purchase. But we think for its price it represents good value and excellent quality.
In the United States, you can buy it from a number of retailers, including Amazon and Beaconsfield Mowers. Prices tend to vary, so it’s a good idea to shop around.
Prices also vary in the UK, but we’ve spotted it at less than the RRP from retailers, including Garden Machinery Direct. But the best price at the time of writing is from FR Jones & Son.
Verdict
I’ve tested cheaper machines from competitors in the same class as the Husqvarna Automower 310 and there really is a difference between investing in a quality machine like this and a cheap competitor from a less experienced player in the domain.
We’ll continue to test new models as they appear, but at the time of writing this is the most economical and well thought out robot mower I’ve tested for this size of plot. Recommended!
This article was originally published on M3.se and has been translated.
Specifications
Maker: Husqvarna
Cutting area: Up to 1,000 square meters
Maximum inclination: 40 degrees
cutting height: 20-50 mm
Anti-theft protection: PIN code and alarm
protection class: IPX5
Connectivity:Bluetooth
Obstacle detection: No
lester: 9.4kg/ 20.7lbs
Dimensions: 43x25x57cm
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