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You might have noticed a trend here at DigitalReviews.net: This time of year we focus a lot on cordless outdoor power equipment. Anything that will keep your garden trimmed and neat. So we reviewed trimmers, blowers, chainsaws and mowers.
From 18V lightweight stuff to 82V big boys gear.

Some of the tools were very impressive but none as awesome as the EGO POWER+ 52cm Self-Propelled Mower.

And here’s why.

Let’s back up a bit.

Every garden tool is going cordless these days.
And there are very good reasons for that: they are very q u i e t…. No stinking fuel mess, no hard to start engines and expensive maintenance. Don’t even talk about fuel that goes stale over winter…

There was only one edge the petrol machines had over cordless counterparts: they were generally more powerful. But not anymore. At least not for general and even professional use.
And that’s because the battery powered motors now can produce the same power, torque and endurance of similar priced petrol equivalents.

Like the EGO POWER+ 52cm Self-Propelled Mower.

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If you read our previous review of the Victa 82V mower you would know that we were already impressed with that unit and the other units in that 82V ecosystem. Like all the other mowers it is made for suburbia grass yet we put it through knee-high bracken and rubbish grass mixed with weeds and it performed superbly.

We noticed only a few points of improvement and one of them was that it would be nice to use a bit of that electric power to drive the machine forward as well. Particularly because my yard is quite hilly.

The key feature of this EGO mower is the self-propulsion. It’s optional to use and you can set the speed that’s most comfortable to use for the terrain (or your age!). For me, as a 72 year old youngster with a pacemaker, this was the ultimate pacesetter!

Features

So what are the other good features that make this machine so awesome?

The EGO website highlights just 4 things under the title WHY THIS LAWN MOWER IS AWESOME.
And I think they are selling their product short…

They mention:
1. High efficiency brushless motor
2. Push button start
3. Up to 50 minutes run time
4. Weather resistant.

All these are indeed great features but the first two are claimed by all mower manufacturers.
The 50 minutes run time is a standout feature, thanks to the massive 7,5Ah battery. Surprising about the intelligent charger is also that it will juice it back up to full in under an hour. So theoretically you can go non-stop with just 2 batteries…

FEATURES+

Let me add my list of must-have features to look for in a mower.

We’ve already mentioned the self-propulsion. In hilly terrain it’s a godsend. Like the motorised turbo brush on a vacuum cleaner, mowing becomes effortless.

The very clever way of folding up the side rail handles is so ingenious that storage in the tiniest shed is never a problem. The handles on the last reviewed mower do not fold up easily at all so I don’t bother but the thing takes up 3 times as much room as the EGO.

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Finally, let me mention the headlights. I love lights that illuminate the workspace on all my tools. My vacuums have them, my power tools, my ride-on mower and also this EGO mower. I’ll probably never use them cause I can do all my mowing in the daytime. But other folks rush home and might do some mowing in the dark. These quiet machines wouldn’t bother the neighbours either.

On another note: Ever wonder how long you can use the headlights as an emergency floodlight on those massive batteries? I don’t have the patience to try it out but it’s a handy standby light to wheel out when the power is out…

Unboxing

Even though it’s a heavy duty but fairly lightweight machine and very easy to manoeuvre, the big box it comes in weighs nearly 40kgs so it’s advisable to have some extra hands on deck to get the box out of your car. The mower itself with battery is about 31kgs.

The battery needs to be fully charged which takes about an hour and that time is well spent when you have a quick look through the manual.
The charger indicates the level of charge it’s at but the battery itself only indicates with a big green light when the charge is above 15%. Red below that.
Might have been handy if levels are also indicated on the mower with the customary 4 LEDs or a percentage level.

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After unpacking, stand back and admire the style and workmanship of this machine.
It has a stance that means business. Small details, like protection for the control cables, give away the attention to detail and quality. The inside of the underside is very smooth so that grass won’t stick so easily.

 

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The green controls indicate exactly how to operate the machine and where to fold the side rails.

  

If you find a plug (like below) tucked in with the manuals, this is where it goes… It’s the safety key.

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Testing

On our large property we have no lack of grass. Rubbish grass mainly with weeds, sticks, nuts and bracken thrown in for good measure. The large paddocks we slash, smaller areas we do with the ride-on and the rest around the house is now EGO territory!

First thing we try out is the yard where the grass is very high. We tried it first on a medium height setting for a couple of minutes but that was no challenge. We lowered it to the minimum height and the turbo didn’t even have to kick in much. (It’s got a sensor to give it some extra oompf when the going is tough).

Next was the hilly, sandy patch of what’s supposed to be our front lawn. Bit of bracken, gumtree bark strewn all over that area and rough as guts.
I hated to do this hilly, slippery section with the ride-on or push mower. The EGO excelled in pulling me back up the hill whilst mulching the area. I reckon that self-propulsion will be a feature on more mowers of this calibre…
If you run out of battery juice at the 15% level and the blade stops, you can use the remainder of the battery to propel you up the hill back home!

The mower has a mulching plug but also comes with a sturdy bag to collect the grass. 70 litres of it. I’m a fan of mulching as it feeds the clippings back into the lawn, rather than having to dump them in a corner of the garden or in the green waste bin. And it makes the mower lighter and more compact with fewer interruptions to empty the bag.

After the test runs I give it a quick clean with the blower so that we can put the EGO back in the shed. Followed by a quick flick of the side rails and handles to fold them back over the mower’s footprint.

Man, I love that feature! The 82V Victa we reviewed earlier, capable as it was, is a space hogger. The very clever way of folding away the handles and putting the EGO in an upright position takes just a few seconds. You try doing that with a petrol mower… Yesterday I changed the chain on my 82V chainsaw and had to put the unit on its side: and oil dripped everywhere!

Conclusion

The 52cm Self-Propelled 56V Cordless Mower is the top-of-the-wozza of all the mowers in the 56V POWER+ range of EGO. It retails for $1099. It is backed by a massive 5 year warranty (3 years on the battery).

The price, while totally justified by value, power and endurance as well as ease of use, may not be within reach of everyone. And that’s OK as EGO has a range of mowers, including the new 47cm unit.

Have a look at their website here.

On the site you’ll also find a store locator to see which shop is closest to you.

Our conclusion, having tested the EGO POWER+ 52cm Self-Propelled Mower under the harshest and toughest conditions, is that this is arguably the best cordless electric mower you can buy at the moment.
I found mowing with this unit actually fun again! Can’t wait for the grass to grow some more… which is something I would never have said before!

That’s why we have no hesitation to award the EGO POWER+ 52cm Self-Propelled Mower our highest acclamation:

the Editor’s Choice Award!

 DR editorschoice

 

 

 

Just one more thing:

We talked briefly about the value for money aspect. The value goes up dramatically if you invest in the EGO ecosystem by getting other tools that use the same battery. And since these batteries are the most important and expensive component of these tools you can power a whole range of equipment with just a couple of batteries.

In one of the next reviews we’ll hope to test a couple of other tools in the EGO POWER+ range.