Navimow i110 robot lawn mower review: easy to setup and a breeze to operate

Digital Trends

15-05-2025

Navimow i110 robot lawn mower review: easy to setup and a breeze to operate
MSRP
$1,299.00
Score Details 'The key to setting up the Navimow robot lawn mower is an excellent smartphone app that walks you through the entire process.'
Pros Easy setup and operation
Wire-free navigation
Continuously improves mowing efficiency
Quiet operation
Cons Costs more than wire-guided alternatives
I could not have started reviewing robot lawn mowers with a better choice than the Segway Navimow i110. I began testing the Navimow i110 with significant concerns about my tree-bound lot. I also wondered if I could correctly set up the antenna, docking station, and mower to work together to mow my raggedy lawn.
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Based on my experience with the Navimow i110, I'm convinced it is up to the task. When I test new products, I typically but unintentionally make every mistake possible, some of them twice. This is one of those cases when the aphorism fits: If I can do it, anyone can.
Robot lawn mowers set up and operate like robot vacuum cleaners.
You may not be ready for a robot lawn mower, but don't let fears of set-up complexity or operational difficulty stop you: with the Navimow i110, it's simple and easy.
Navimow model lines: lawn coverage areas
Segway's two entry-level Navimow i100 robot lawn mower series models are the i105 and i110, which are recommended for mowing areas of 0.125 acre and 0.25 acre, respectively. The higher-capacity X3 series includes four lawn models from 0.5 to 2.5 acres.
I tested the Navimow i110 with two adjacent sections of my lawn that total approximately 0.20 acres, so that model was the correct choice. I also tested a Naviow X350 rated for 1.5 acres on the 0.75 section of my lawn, which is much more rugged with soft mossy spots, steep inclines, and thick tree roots. I'll review the Navimow 350 separately because it differs from the i110 in more than just battery capacity.
The Navimow i110 measures 21.4 inches by 15.1 inches by 11.2 inches and weighs 24 pounds. It has three cutting blades with a combined cutting width of 7.1 inches. The mower's 5.1-amp-hour battery takes about 120 minutes to charge at its docking station fully and can mow for up to two hours at a maximum speed of 1.6 feet per second.
Creating the boundary areas will go faster if you have good virtual joystick skills — which, sadly, I do not.
Robot lawn mowers set up and operate like robot vacuum cleaners. The significant difference is that the mower is connected to GPS satellites. When they run low on power, robot mowers automatically return to their docking station to recharge. After recharging, the Navimow i110 returns to where it stopped and resumes mowing, repeating the charging and mowing sequences until the job is done.
Navimow i110: setting it up
The key to setting up the Navimow robot lawn mower was an excellent smartphone app that walks you through the entire process via a Bluetooth connection with the mower.
As mentioned above, I was concerned about where to position the docking station and the satellite antenna. Both components need clear access to open sky to detect satellites and can't be closer than six feet to buildings or trees. I planned to test the Navimow i110 in our back and side yards, with many pine and oak trees. I had plenty of doubts, but with the help of the app, finding the necessary satellites was not a problem.
The app also guides you through connecting to your home Wi-Fi. There are three connections to set up: Bluetooth, GPS satellites, and Wi-Fi. If you are in an area where satellite connections are particularly difficult, you can also purchase an Access+ 4G option for the Navimow i110, which aids position navigation and adds clever security features—more on those below.
Segway sent the Access+ option so I could check out the security features, but I didn't use it for the initial setup, mapping, or navigation with the i110 because it wasn't necessary.
Navimow i110: navigation
If you have a robot vacuum cleaner, you can let it roam around the house without setting up specific zones, but you don't want to do that with a robot lawn mower because it would undoubtedly end up in the street, a neighbor's yard, or just gone.
With robot mowers, you create boundaries with virtually enclosed areas where the robot will mow the grass. You don't have to bury wires as with electric dog fencing (and some earlier robot mowers). You create maps with the Navimow i110 using a joystick-like feature in the Navimow app to direct the mower around the boundaries of the area you want mowed.
I found it very easy to create the maps, mainly because the Navimow app does most of the work. Creating the boundary areas will go faster if you have good virtual joystick skills — which, sadly, I do not.
Once you create mapped areas for the robot to mow, the next step is to identify any areas you don't want it to mow, such as landscaped areas o flower gardens. The Navimow i110 detects more than 150 object classes to avoid, such as pets and children. If you have an unfenced flower garden, for example, you'll want to create boundary around it as a no-mow zone. This again is a simple process and good joystick skills help.
While creating mapped areas to mow and not mow, the Navimow app can also help you create channels, or pathways, to connect mapped areas to control where the robot will enter and exit when moving between areas.
Navimow i110: operation
The Navimow i110 has a round dial on the top of the mower to select the cutting height from 2.0 to 3.6 inches manually. Typically, you would start mowing with the device fully charged and sitting on the docking station. You can start one-time mowing by selecting Mow from the app's opening screen and then choosing one of the defined mowing areas you set up previously. If the mower and antenna can detect sufficient satellites for navigation, the app's Mow Now button darkens and is ready to be tapped.
The robotic lawn mower moves slowly at first, learning the specifics of the area. I didn't time mowing jobs in the two areas where I used this model, but it was obvious that it finished the mowing jobs faster with more practice in a specific area. The mower changes mowing patterns and learns as it goes.
One of the mapped areas in our yard has moderately thick tree roots on the surface in small sections. It was interesting to watch the mower work around those minor obstacles. It certainly appears to be learning and usually moves through such sections much more easily in subsequent mowing sessions.
For example, the first time the i110 mowed our fenced lawn area, it had to go back to the docking station to recharge twice. By the fourth time, the Navimow was able to complete the mowing without needing to recharge even once.
Once you are comfortable with the Navimow's operations, you may want to take advantage of its smart home compatibility. You can use Alexa or Google Home Assistant to control the Navimow's basic functions with voice commands.
Navimow i110: smart features
If you want to take advantage of the Navimow's systematic mowing capabilities, you can combine and schedule multiple zones by selecting from previously mapped areas using the Navimow app. The device checks the weather forecast online every 10 minutes and, depending on your preferred settings, can adapt the schedule when it detects rain, snow, hot weather, frost, or strong winds. You can also choose whether the Navimow will mow the lawn at night.
If you install the $149 Access+ 4G option for the i110, you also gain smart security features, including a mower-lifted alarm with owner notifications, geofencing to define geographic boundaries, and a Find My Mower feature that uses GPS satellites to precisely locate the mower anywhere in the world.
Navimow i110: upkeep and maintenance
The Navimow series robotic lawn mowers are IP66-rated dustproof and waterproof, simplifying maintenance and cleaning. The mower ships with extra cutting blades and bolts for periodic replacement. Navimow recommends replacing the blades after 80 hours of use. Replacement blades, including replacement bolts, are sold in sets of 12 for $20.
There is no required maintenance besides keeping the mower clean and replacing blades. Navimow includes information for winter storage and spring startup procedures, which basically comprise charging to 85% and packing and storing the mower safely.
Our take
Segway's Navinow i100 series is an unqualified winner for smaller lawns. The average lawn in the U.S is a bit under 0.25 acre, which is the right size for the Navimow i110. The Navimow i105 is rated for lawns up to 0.125 acre, which makes it right for many lawns in urban areas, which tend to be smaller. The Navimow i105 lists for $999, and the i110 sells for $1,299. Other robotic lawn mowers rated for up to 1/4 acre cost less than the Navimow i110, such as the $999.99 Greenworks Optimow 25H High Cut Robotic Lawn Mower. Still, the Optimow requires burying boundary wires, and the Navimow i110 is wire-free.