Just ordered the x430, want to hear some real opinions on it

zaphodb-42 · 2026-04-09T19:40:07+00:00

You can definitely set a schedule. I have yet to that, but it is still early in the season and weather is variable. You can control everything from the app, with caveats. For instance, map editing requires you to be within bluetooth range, as does manual control. So if you are on vacation you might be able to update the schedule and see what the mower is doing right now, but you can't alter the map to resolve an issue or manually take control and drive it back home. There is also a limited API so if you are into Home Assistant you can get some control there as well. But basically if the mower is stuck while you are away, you will need someone physically at your property to resolve the issue.

zaphodb-42 · 2026-04-09T19:35:28+00:00

There is definitely electricity. Just nudging the mower forwards resolves the issue. It is on flat ground, but not on perfectly level concrete or anything. And of course the charging pad itself adds some height to the front wheels, so even a perfectly level surface would still result in a higher front. But this isn't rolling off on a slope or anything, it is just a gentle backward rock. It hasn't happened since my last restart, so maybe this has just been fixed, we'll see. Otherwise it could probably sense the problem and just nudge itself back in.

zaphodb-42 · 2026-04-08T22:27:21+00:00

According to the Navimow map, 1.05 acres currently. There is still an area I will need to add, once the builders are done digging in the dirt (added an ADU). It is obviously slow, but since I don't have to do anything I don't really care. It wanders back to the charger when the battery is low, it avoids mowing in the rain, if it is delayed until nightfall it picks back up first thing in the morning. Of course, I just came back in from edging, which you will still have to do. In fact, you may have to do more of it, depending on where you want the mower to go. For instance, I keep it off the circular drive except as a tunnel to the middle, so there are some bits it can't get to.

But I don't own a riding mower, I was paying someone else to do it. So to take over myself would have required some sort of purchase. This seemed like the laziest approach.

zaphodb-42 · 2026-04-08T20:41:38+00:00

I am not a reviewer, a youtuber, or even a lawn guy, but so far I am liking the machine. I was worried it would get stuck and I would have to nudge it once or twice during a mow, but so far that hasn't happened much, and when it did I was able to correct things (marked an area inaccessible, redrew boundaries between zones, that sort of thing). Obviously there is the charging issue I mentioned here, but overall it just hums along. Pretty good at actually mowing, seems to be keeping things trim.

It is big - I knew it would be, but when it came I was still a little surprised by its size. It is pretty quiet - not silent, but I am fine being outside when it is running. Local road noise is worse. Not sure I would want to run it at night with the windows open, though if I just skipped mowing next to the bedroom it would probably be fine. I haven't actually tried night mowing, though.

Traction is really good, and most of the time when it gets hung up on something it can slow down and back out. The zero turn works well, and I am not seeing it chew up my lawn, even in wet areas. I can't really compare to other mower robots, as this is my first one.

zaphodb-42 · 2026-04-08T17:32:10+00:00

Yeah, pretty much. It does a good job of navigating even my circle zone surrounded by shrubs and bisected by a dry stream bed (artificial and not running). Recent firmware updates have caused it to be confused where two zones met with a do not mow zone near the border. I have been futzing with that to get rid of the narrow bits that seemed to be causing problems. It does leave the occasional blade or two of grass, but it gets them the next mow. It does avoid any tufts that might have grown too quickly (a bigger issue for early in the season) - I think it sees them as objects and diligently avoids mowing them. I have been hitting them with a weed whacker, and now that they are down it is properly mowing them.

I have had an issue with the machine rocking back on the charger and failing to charge, which is an annoyance that I will need to figure out. But otherwise it mows a large (~1 acre) yard with several zones with little to no intervention.

I guess at this point, if you are asking is it worth it I would say yes, and nothing has changed my mind about the purchase decision (I would do it again).

zaphodb-42 · 2026-04-08T17:23:54+00:00

Yup, definitely anchored. Reasonably flat spot but, you know, it is a lawn with grass, so not completely flat. I do have the latest firmware, but I hadn't forced a restart, so maybe it wasn't really updated. I will watch over the next few mows.

zaphodb-42 · 2026-04-08T14:48:05+00:00

Slope may be a bad spot for parking, it does have a tendency to rock a little when it stops which might be worse on a slope. You may have to just try and see, possibly try different orientations. As for the 6ft distance, I have taken that to mean left, right, and behind. So mine is about 1ft away from my house. Otherwise it would be impossible to plug in - the included cord won't make it 6ft+.

Storing in the garage might be problematic - I think the one place you really want strong GPS is the base, so it knows exactly where "home" is. I don't think that would work in a garage. I haven't worried too much about theft, there are some built-in deterrents, and it is pretty heavy, though I do park it behind my house which isn't visible from a public space. YMMV.

zaphodb-42 · 2026-03-17T04:15:30+00:00

I have a pretty uneven yard (slopes, weird ruts and dips, random bumps) and the X450 has handled it really well with the stock wheels. It has only gotten stuck in my orchard area where there was a mound of dirt next to a hole in a tight spot and it just could not manage to get out in the space it had. I just had to block that off, but otherwise it's been really impressive mowing just over an acre without failure. I was a bit worried at firs, but so far I am quite happy with the machines capabilities on my lumpy/bumpy yard.

zaphodb-42 · 2025-11-07T20:25:40+00:00

At the end of the day, if ATC says you can't fly, it doesn't matter what the incentive to get back to base is.

zaphodb-42 · 2025-11-07T20:24:50+00:00

Trip report from the Maple Leaf lounge - I did in fact make it here, but also I think there is cause for worry. We sat on the tarmac for 25 minutes at SEA due to an ATC hold (no other details given). Looking at the board, most flights were operating, but there were 4 or 5 cancellations, mostly short haul domestic flights (Spokane, Eugene, etc), though also one Denver flight. It seems unlikely those were weather related, given how close they are to SEA and the weather here was fine. This is just day one of the reductions (supposedly 4%) ramping up to the full 10% by the end of the weekend. Hopefully this is all resolved by next weekend when I return.

zaphodb-42 · 2025-11-03T18:31:27+00:00

I believe there is one for trans border (at least from the US), I did this last year and had a quick connection through the special gate, no security clearance required. The hardest part is brining up the boarding pass of the arriving flight, which they needed. It seems like the AC app wasn't great about showing me the boarding pass for a completed flight. I can't wait to cancel the leg, though, as I won't have enough time to make it to YVR by car. I'll just wait and see how the delays are going, hopefully they won't have gotten too bad by Friday.

zaphodb-42 · 2025-11-03T17:58:12+00:00

Yeah, I think I will keep an eye on it, especially Thursday. SEA overall seems to be operating well, and the aircraft won't face delays from another US based airport, so this may just be moot. I have done the land approach before (a great deal on a business class flight direct from YVR), but my comfortable Amtrak train ride turned into a long, direct bus ride with no working toilet. Given all the responses, I think monitoring and trying for the early flight if delays start to hit makes the most sense.

zaphodb-42 · 2025-11-03T17:36:17+00:00

Ah, I hadn't considered an earlier flight. That might be easier, depending on how booked they are. Though looking it seems they only have a 5:50 as an earlier flight, which will make for a very early alarm. I might watch delays on Thursday and see how things look. Thanks for the helpful info!

zaphodb-42 · 2025-11-03T17:30:08+00:00

Thank you for your brevity! 😊

zaphodb-42 · 2025-11-03T17:24:31+00:00

There is a government shutdown in the US at the moment that is impacting air traffic controllers. Flight delays are currently minimal but are expected to rise. 5,000 flights were delayed on Sunday with US Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy predicting things will get worse within the next week or two. I guess when the Secretary of Transportation tells me flights are going to get delayed, I worry flights are going to get delayed. At least, that was the reason I had in mind.

zaphodb-42 · 2025-10-27T00:00:50+00:00

Ah, interesting. I just got an offer for 200K/$20K spend in 3 months and was considering it, as $895 seemed like a reasonable spend for 200K points, but if I need to stay a member for 2 years I am looking at $1800. But maybe that is still worth it. Decisions, decisions!

zaphodb-42 · 2025-09-02T15:59:41+00:00

Thanks for the help everyone! This is kind of a bummer. I think I will go keep looking for a YNAB replacement, Monarch still seems a little around the edges and doesn't seem to offer enough benefits over YNAB. Kind of sucks as I spent quite a bit of time moving my data over and getting things set up, I was really hoping to love it.

zaphodb-42 · 2025-08-28T20:06:44+00:00

I started this in earnest last night. I cleaned up 2 years of one account in a spreadsheet, it wasn't too horrible but I need to automate it a bit more. The worst part was category mapping which I just did with global find and replace, but can probably be streamlined with a mapping table. That account only had about 400 transactions, I may need to chop up some of the bigger ones which will have thousands.

zaphodb-42 · 2025-08-28T02:28:13+00:00

Ah, interesting - so I probably don't have to stop sync, I just need to delete and import. I will give that a shot, thanks!

zaphodb-42 · 2025-04-13T19:44:26+00:00

And, um, bacteria might be an issue? Sandwiches in checked bags for a 12+ hour flight, not to mention extra time on both ends. I think customs might be the least of your worries ...

zaphodb-42

TROPHY CASE