Bosch Cordless Lawnmower CityMower Review

The assembly process for all of the cordless lawn mowers that I tested was pretty similar. However, putting together this Bosch mower felt like a much more fiddly task than the other mowers.

This began with the collection box. Since it’s a hard box, all you need to do is slot the pieces together. It took a couple of minutes to do so, which doesn’t seem long, but all of the other collection boxes that I’ve assembled were done in seconds rather than minutes.

Assembling the rest of the lawn mower was the same. From fitting together the handles to clipping back the cables, each stage was relatively simple but still took a minute or two longer than the other cordless lawn mowers I reviewed.

The final step was to insert the plastic key into the compartment that holds the batteries. I was happy to see that Bosch included a spare key in the box. If you plan on removing the key each time the lawn mower is in storage, then you’ll appreciate the backup should you ever lose the original!

All in all, assembling this lawn mower took about 15 minutes. This was a little longer than the amount of time required to assemble the other cordless mowers that I tested, but not significantly so.

When you first look at this lawn mower, it’s very evident that it has been made by Bosch. It sports the brand’s signature green, black, and red colour palette, perfectly in keeping with the rest of the Bosch product range.

That said, my initial opinion of this lawn mower was that it felt quite flimsy. From the base unit to the handles, this machine didn’t feel as sturdy or as robust as some of the other cordless lawn mowers out there, so I was hoping that this wouldn’t impact its performance.

Speaking of handles, the ones that come with this lawn mower are unlike any of the other lawn mowers that I tested. They’re known as Ergoflex handles, which basically means that they’re shaped in a way that reduces muscle strain on the back and arms when mowing. You don’t have to use them since there are also levers on the horizontal bar handle that enable you to push the lawn mower in a more conventional way, but I appreciate having the extra option!

The brushless motor that this lawn mower has been designed with is another highlight. Brushless motors are known for being energy-efficient. They’ll give you a much longer battery runtime than a brushed motor, making them worth seeking out.

The collection box that comes with this lawn mower has a 31-litre capacity, making it the smallest collection box of all of the cordless lawn mowers that I tested. Unfortunately, just like the rest of the machine, it also felt pretty flimsy, even though it was a hard box rather than a fabric basket.

This lawn mower runs on a single 18V battery. The battery is from the Power For All alliance, meaning that it’s interchangeable with most of the other 18V batteries from the rest of Bosch’s cordless range.

My lawn mower came with a 4aH battery, which took about two hours to charge. After this, it gave me a runtime of roughly 25 minutes, although this included me stopping several times to empty the collection box. When used continuously, its runtime would probably be around the 20 minute mark. 

Compared to the other cordless lawn mowers that I reviewed, this machine has one of the shortest runtimes. However, when you consider the fact that it only uses one 18V battery, 20 minutes is to be expected. If you own other Bosch tools and have a larger battery at your disposal or are able to swap them around once one runs flat, then this would obviously give you a longer total runtime.

I began by setting this lawn mower to its highest cutting height and then taking it over long grass. Unfortunately, it really struggled. It was able to take some of it down but it wasn’t powerful enough to work its way through the thicker areas of long grass. While most people who buy this lawn mower are probably dealing with a lawn that has already been maintained, it would still be good to have the option of tackling long grass if ever needed.

Although this lawn mower didn’t get off to a particularly impressive start, it did a great job on my shorter clover lawn. Since this area borders a field, the clover is very thick, but this machine neatly sliced its way through, leaving a clean finish behind. It didn’t clog up on the shadier areas of my lawn and managed to cut damp grass just as neatly as it did dry.

I have to admit that I found the small collection box quite frustrating as it needed to be emptied very often. However, if you have a small city garden, then this won’t be such an issue, especially if your compost bin is in close proximity!

When it comes to manoeuvrability, this lawn mower is fantastic. At 11.2kg, it’s very light, making it effortless to zip around sharp corners. The carry handle at the top of the base unit also makes it easy to lift the machine when it isn’t in use.

I was dubious about the Ergoflex handles to start with. It’s the first time that I’ve used a lawn mower with handles quite like these, so it took a little getting used to. It felt slightly awkward at the beginning but I soon realised how comfortable they actually were. I wouldn’t say that they helped with manoeuvrability, but they do put less strain on the arms. This is something that would be particularly appreciated by those with steeply sloped gardens.

In terms of features, this lawn mower provides almost everything that you would need to beautifully maintain a small garden. I say ‘almost’ because of its range of cutting heights. You can choose between 30-60mm, with 30mm leaving the grass a little longer than many people would like. If you’re hoping for a green lawn without any daisies or buttercups poking their way through, then this isn’t the lawn mower for you, as it will leave those flower heads intact.

Having said that, I appreciate that you only need to move one lever to adjust the cutting height for all four wheels. The lever moves smoothly too, making this easy.

With a 32cm cutting width, this lawn mower definitely offers quite a narrow cut. In fact, it’s the smallest cutting width of all of the lawn mowers that I tested. It may not be an issue for people with very small gardens, but a few extra centimetres would enable the job to get done a little faster.

Another feature promoted by Bosch is how this lawn mower cuts close to edges because of its grass combs. It allows the machine to slice through the fringes that conventional lawn mowers would have left behind. It’s a feature that works well, with the lawn mower leaving behind neat and short edges each time.

Bosch has done well when it comes to ensuring that this lawn mower is as safe as possible.

If you have small children around, you won’t need to worry about them accidentally turning the lawn mower on. Not only do the batteries need to be inserted, with the adjacent key turned on, but it also comes with a dead man’s switch, where you have to push the central button and pull the levers at the same time in order to turn the motor on.

The battery compartment is strong and sturdy too, so you won’t have to worry about the battery undergoing any damage while you work.

Bosch products often tend to be priced at the slightly higher end of the scale, and there are usually a few special features that justify this. Unfortunately, when it comes to this lawn mower, I would have to say that it’s priced a little too high.

There’s no denying that it works well on short grass, but you also have to consider its short runtime, inability to cut long grass, and the lowest cutting height being 30mm. There are less expensive lawn mowers out there that don’t have these downfalls. Sure, some cordless lawn mowers cost more than this one, but they have a few extra bells and whistles that make the higher price worthwhile.

Of course, if you already own cordless Bosch products and have a larger battery to hand, then this would overcome the short runtime issue, while also saving you a fair bit of money since you’ll be able to buy the machine without a battery.

Compared to many of the other cordless lawn mowers on the market, this one does have a few shortcomings. However, it certainly excels in certain areas too. It’s light, easy to use, and possibly the most comfortable lawn mower that I’ve worked with in a while. If you’re looking to maintain a small garden and these features appeal to you, then the Bosch CityMower would be worth considering.