ECOVACS GOAT O1000 LiDAR PRO

Should you buy the ECOVACS GOAT O1000 LiDAR PRO?

The ECOVACS GOAT O1000 LiDAR PRO is for someone with a quarter acre and trees, fences or a narrow side yard, who wants the A3000's navigation and edge trimmer at $999. It ranks #8 of 10 robot lawn mowers, though the score gap to #3 is only two points. Dual-LiDAR means no antenna, no wire and no sky view required, and it passes gaps as narrow as 31.5 inches. If your lawn is open and you want the better-proven mower at this price, the Segway Navimow i110N is $70 less. If you want to spend less still, the WORX Landroid Vision Cloud is $999.99.

Where it earns its score

• Features score 90. HoloScope 360-degree dual-LiDAR, AIVI 3D obstacle avoidance across 200-plus object types, and zones, schedules and no-go areas in the app.
• Built-in edge trimmer. The TruEdge border trimmer is the same idea as on the A3000, and no other sub-$1,000 mower here has one.
• Strong value. Value scores 86, third-best in the category.
• Handles slopes better than its price peers. 45 percent (24 degrees), versus 30 percent on the Segway i110N and WORX.

What to know first

• Warranty is the weakest ViperScore factor. Coverage scores 66, behind the 3-year Segway and WORX warranties.
• The trimmer is loud. Reported at 81 dB when trimming, though mowing runs at 61 dB.
• Reliability and Satisfaction are mid-pack. At 76 and 78, owners are less uniformly happy than with the i110N.
• Short runtime. About 90 minutes per charge, then 70 minutes to recharge.

Questions buyers ask