Ecovacs Goat A1600 LiDAR Pro Review: Edges Without RTK

Ecovacs continues to renew its robot mower range with the Goat A1600 LiDAR Pro, and the headline change is what has been removed. This version abandons the RTK antenna in favour of navigation built on twin LiDAR units and a camera, and it is aimed at gardens of up to 1,600 m².

Several of the platform's core elements carry over. The mower uses a 32 V system, a twin cutting-disc arrangement and electronically adjustable cutting height across a 3 to 9 cm range. What is new is a dedicated edge-cutting system, branded TruEdge, which takes the form of a side-mounted module fitted with a cutting line.

The result is a machine positioned squarely at owners of large lawns who want to avoid both a buried perimeter cable and the awkwardness of siting an RTK antenna.

Out of the box the Goat A1600 LiDAR Pro is a substantial piece of equipment. It is wide and fairly bulky, and it follows the angular design language Ecovacs uses across the range. The white and grey bodywork is unlikely to stay pristine for long in a dusty garden.

The charging station is conventional. The robot docks nose-first and no RTK antenna needs to be positioned nearby, which is one of the main practical advantages of this version: installation is markedly less demanding than on an antenna-based setup.

Turning the machine over reveals the two cutting discs, slightly offset from one another and each carrying pivoting blades. That layout gives a generous 33 cm cutting width, which suits large open areas.

The edge-trimming module is supplied separately inside the box. Fitting it takes a few minutes, with screws to position and a brush to clip into place — nothing complicated.

Setting up runs through the Ecovacs Home app for iOS and Android. Pairing works by scanning the QR code on the robot and then connecting it to the home Wi-Fi network, with Bluetooth used during the mapping stages when the handset is close to the machine. The app also flags a handful of placement rules, including a clear area in front of the station and enough space at the sides, but there is no need to think about satellite reception or the orientation of an external antenna.

Mapping can be done manually by driving the robot from the app using a virtual joystick, which is the better approach for a garden that is anything other than a plain rectangle of grass because it keeps control in the operator's hands. Ecovacs also offers automatic mapping, which suits simple, clearly bounded plots; the app then asks for the robot to be placed at the lawn's edge before leaving it to work out the boundaries on its own.

The integrated control panel handles a few basic actions such as starting a mow, sending the robot back to its station or entering the PIN code. In practice it is there as a fallback. The segment display is not especially pleasant to read, and the app quickly becomes the preferred route for anything beyond the basics.

Map management is convincing. The editing tools are easy to reach, and it is possible to add a zone, create an access path, define low-avoidance areas or split the lawn into segments. Adding a new zone presented no real difficulty: the robot folded it into the existing map before allowing finer subdivision where needed. That is a genuine benefit for gardens that change over time, or for anyone who does not want to start the whole map again after a small correction.

As with other recent robot mowers, the app is the real command centre. It can start an automatic mow, target a specific zone, set the mowing direction and adjust the cutting height. Because that height is set electronically, there is no dial to fiddle with on the machine itself, which makes it easy to vary the cut between areas — leaving the grass a little longer in the parts of the garden that catch the most sun, for example.

Edges are where the app takes some learning. The Edge Mode menu offers two main options: configuring an adaptive boundary, and marking the cutting limits. The first designates the stretches where the robot may adjust its trajectory to follow the line between grass and non-grass more closely. The second sets out the sections where the edge trimmer is permitted to operate. The logic becomes clear after a few attempts, but it deserves a plainer explanation than the app currently provides.

By default the robot is allowed to trim all the defined boundaries. A more cautious approach is to leave the adaptive mode switched off in most places and reserve it for a flat border, such as the run alongside a terrace, where there is little scope for an unwelcome surprise. Around trees, shrubs and planted beds the robot sensibly keeps a margin, so the TruEdge module should not be expected to replace a hand-held trimmer in every corner of the garden.

Runtime is another limit worth bearing in mind. In use the Goat A1600 LiDAR Pro consumed roughly 70% of its battery to mow 140 m². It does return to its station automatically when the charge runs low and picks up where it left off afterwards, but on a plot approaching the quoted maximum area that means accepting several trips back to the base.

On the lawn itself the mower is effective. The twin discs cover a wide swathe and let it work quickly across open ground. The cut is even, the lines are tidy and the machine sticks closely to the map it has been given. In ordinary areas without any particular traps it works methodically and leaves a properly maintained lawn behind it.

It is also reasonably gentle with the ground. On grass there was no significant damage and no unduly aggressive turning; the wheels provide good traction and the machine does not appear to churn the lawn every time it changes direction. On loose soil, however, it can leave visible marks. That is no surprise for a robot of this size, but it is worth noting for gardens with sparsely grassed or recently worked patches.

LiDAR navigation is the standout. The robot goes everywhere without depending on a satellite signal, which is its principal advantage over antenna-based designs. It proved able to work under a trailer, to steer around more cluttered areas and to carry on mowing without ever appearing to hunt for a fix. That independence is a real convenience in gardens with trees, buildings, furniture or partially covered sections.

The TruEdge module is the most interesting idea here. In theory it should shrink the strip of uncut grass along boundaries. In practice the result depends heavily on the type of edge and on how the system has been configured. Left on the standard boundary settings, the robot does not come close enough to eliminate the finishing work altogether; it stays cautious, which avoids collisions but leaves grass behind. Along the edges of ground-mounted solar panels — a spot where water collects and growth is quick — it treated the grass as vegetation to be avoided.

Switching on the adaptive boundary along a flat border, such as the stretch beside a terrace, improves matters. The robot then follows the line between lawn and non-lawn more closely and the remaining strip narrows. It is not perfect, but it is better than what most robot mowers without a dedicated system manage. The Goat A1600 LiDAR Pro does not do away with a manual edge trimmer, but it can clearly reduce how often one is needed on suitable stretches.

It is also noticeably louder than ordinary mowing: the machine is discreet when cutting with its blades, but the side module changes the acoustic character of a pass considerably. It is nowhere near the racket of a petrol mower, but it is much more audible than the standard cut.

Around trees, shrubs and beds the picture is more mixed. The robot maintains its margin and the edge module does not finish neatly around plantings — an understandable trade-off, since an imperfect border is preferable to a young shrub shredded by a cutting line. Some contours will always need going over by hand, particularly in irregular corners and around the base of trees.

Obstacle recognition is satisfactory but not flawless. The Goat A1600 LiDAR Pro failed to detect a tennis ball, yet correctly avoided a football along with several beds and shrubs. It identifies most of the things that should not be mowed, or at least that are better driven around, but small items left lying on the lawn are still a weak spot.