Last edited by Oggyoggyoggy! on 2026-8-13 21:28
Full disclosure I received this unit for free to review and give my honest opinion on, both good and bad. I am not receiving any additional compensation.
With that out of the way, let’s get into it!
In this video I go over the unboxing, setup and first impressions of the mower (spoiler this machine is awesome!)
Here were the high level steps I took to set up my mower:
1. Unbox
2. Assemble and install the charging station on a flat spot with an accessible outlet. Luckily the cord is very long so there’s a good chance you can get away without using an extension cord.
3. Install the app, and connect the mower via the QR code, following the prompts to turn on the device and get it paired.
4. (Optional): Install an AirTag in the designated compartment for added security and peace of mind.
5. Map the yard as a whole rather than breaking it into separate maps. This involves mapping the boundary of your first yard space (e.g. backyard), then driving the mower to the front yard and mapping the boundary of it as a second zone under the same map. At this step I was left with multiple completed unconnected zones.
6. Add no-go zones and paths. I experimented with accessible zones for mowing around my low shrubs with mixed success. When it says it turns off obstacle avoidance, it means it! Next I will try adding no-go zones within the accessible zones hugging the bases of the bushes in hopes this will stop them from getting rammed. Prior to turning on the accessible zone, it worked well, but required a bit more manual trimming under the canopies.
7. In the settings tweak the mow height to 5, turn on the child lock, add lift notifications as well as human notifications.
8. Turn on the checkerboard setting so that the mow direction is switched up which is better for the lawn.
9. Tweak the obstacle avoidance settings for both the buffer left around the object and the height detection setting.
Finally I was ready to take it for a rip!
Pros:
- Once you have it mapped properly, it’s as simple as hitting start, or even easier, you can have it on a schedule. I did find it important to be detailed with the settings, setting no-go zones, accessible zones, and making sure the boundary hugs the exterior nicely.
- The build quality feels premium and I find the design very sleek. For something that is a permanent fixture in my yard, I want it to look nice and this fits the bill!
- It is way quieter than I thought it would be, I would have no issue running it at night or while relaxing outside.
- My dog wasn’t scared of it at all! There are lots of dogs that go for walks on the street in front of my house and it’s comforting knowing it shouldn’t bother them.
- The mow lines look fantastic and it makes my yard look like it was professionally done! 😍
- I love how easy it is to adjust the cut height. I never really bothered with my old mower, but I love the idea of being able to adjust it to account for seasonal changes and for times when I’m over-seeding.
- Patrol mode is a super fun feature and gives an extra way to check on my property when I am away.
- The anti-theft features are a huge perk. I understand more redundancy can be added using the 4g module, but between the human detection, lift notifications, air tags, child lock and flexible placement, it fits the bill for me.
- The app UI is very clean and intuitive and allows for a lot of remote customization.
Other considerations:
- This model will not replace the need for a line trimmer, and similar to using a lawn mower, you will most likely still need to clean up the edges around trees, fences and other garden features. My understanding is other Mova Lidax mowers do have an edge cut feature (ultra trim 1.0 edge cutting) that is able to cut even closer but at a fixed cut length.
- There was wheel slippage on slightly wet grass going up an incline (maybe 20 deg). I’ve learned my lesson and will be sticking to dry grass as recommended.
- Not shown in the video, out of curiosity, against the install instructions, I did try moving the base station about 6 inches away from the fence to avoid having a small patch of grass that wouldn’t be able to be maintained by the mower. When exiting the station, it would get stuck between the fence panels and would need to be rescued. There is a reason they recommend half a meter on either side of the unit. That being said, I have since placed it on an angle in the corner and have had no issues since. This does not follow the manufacturers recommended instructions so I won’t be mad if I do end up having to move it again.
- My lawn has roughly 325m^2 of mow space, under 0.1 acres. It is a good amount of lawn space, but definitely within the capacity of the robot lawn mower. The couple of times I’ve run it, it needed to charge a couple times in between to get the job done. This isn’t a huge deal as I’m able to leave it to do its thing, but it does increase the mow time accordingly.
- During the setup I did have a few hiccups with the base station location being sensed as being outside the mapped zone. It was an easy fix after lifting the mower and having it relocate itself. Once the map was completed it wasn’t an issue anymore. For a mower being setup for someone less tech savvy, they might benefit from a hand getting the mower mapped and setup.
I would love to know what other people’s experiences have been like with the Mova Lidax series mowers and if there are other aspects of the mower I should explore!
I plan on making an update review once I have had a chance to really put it to the test!
Happy Mowing! 🏡
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