I was particularly impressed with the mower’s ability to scale inclines. The play in its front-axle helps it roll over uneven surfaces, such as the steep transition from the sidewalk to my lawn in front of my house. That’s proven to be a near-insurmountable obstacle for many of the robot mowers I’ve tested, but the Mowrator S1 barely flinched. I also tested it on my neighbors’ yard, which has an even steeper slope, and it had no problem.

The Mowrator S1 Pro Remote Control 4WD Lawn Mower is unlike any lawn mower I’ve ever seen. It looks like it should be exploring the surface of Mars, not cutting my lawn. My first impression was how tough the mower looked. The S1 Pro’s 21″ mowing deck uses reinforced aluminum alloy, and a steel tub frame surrounds the mower.

In any case, the fact that I was cutting grass by controlling a hand device was a surreal yet fun experience. What’s more, the Mowrator was able to cut the grass in under 20 minutes — compared to my 40 minutes of manual labor.

The Mowrator S1 is a godsend for those with trickier terrain and could be a total game-changer for people with accessibility needs who want to take control of their lawns.

Earlier this month, I took the Mowrator out to a field to do the only thing I could think of: mow crop circles into an empty field. I was shocked both at how well it traversed the land, and how fun it was. You don't have to have a pasture, either. If you've got a substantial lawn or anything over 4,000 square feet of land, I could see how bumping up to a heftier model could be worthwhile.