I was one of the early 2023 Kickstarter group that waited until earlier this year to get the mower delivered (Mower version only). While there are many things I like about the Yarbo unit, I’m very frustrated that Florida Grass (St. Augustine + weeds) just doesn’t seem to cut well with the current version of the mower. Silly me, I guess that I thought razer blades should be enough to cut the grass.
The fact that the mower pushes the grass over, instead of trying to suck the blade of grass to meet the blade on the mower, doesn’t help with our grass here.
As such, I’m seriously considering replacing the mower module to the PRO version. Yet the relatively insignificant price reduction for us early adopters kind of soured me on purchasing the new mower module.
Suggestion to Yarbo:
Can you institute a M1 Mower Trade-In program? Perhaps with the core module, and the $200 savings you offered for the M1 Pro, it might make sense for me to open up my wallet and spend more.
If you don’t want the M1 module back (and truly, why would you?), then I suggest you need to offer something MUCH bigger and better to the early adopters who have been your beta testers and uploaded hours of data, ideas, and support to the engineers to resolve issues. I can freely state that spending another 1K on a mower that routinely loses GPS connectivity, breaks RTK antennas, get clogged two to three times every day in mowing due to FL grass…you get the idea. It’s hard to justify.
Setup a program whereby we can send in the M1 module to get upgraded to a M1 Pro for a low fee. We could do this in the winter timeframe, when the grass isn’t growing much.
I’m excited for the M1 Pro module and believe it will solve a great deal. I’ve had a Robomow for years, and their solid mulching blades were much superior to the M1 setup. Their motor were much easier to replace too. I believe (hope??) that the M1 Pro will get us closer to that 6 year old Robomow design.
Thank you so much for being one of our early Kickstarter backers and for taking the time to share such honest and thoughtful feedback. We truly appreciate your support, the time you’ve invested in using Yarbo, and the valuable insights you’ve provided along the way.
When preparing to launch the M1 Pro, we carefully considered how to express our appreciation to existing users, especially early adopters like yourself. After thorough internal discussions, we decided to offer a $200 discount to all current users as a consistent and fair way to say thank you.
At this time, we do not have plans for additional trade-in or upgrade programs beyond this offer.
We really hope the M1 Pro gives you the performance you’ve been hoping for — we’re glad you’re part of the Yarbo community.
Earlier Kickstarter owner here also. Paid extra for the 2024 model, now there’s a “Pro” mower for an extra $2500. NO THANK YOU.
My charging pad hasn’t worked since spring. It pops my GFCI plug even with nothing else on it. The GPS is spotty even though it has access to the sky, it’s just mowing the side of the house and it stops due to lack of GPS. Sometimes it works fine.
First, regarding the Pro mower, it is designed for more complex lawn environments, so we’re sorry, but there is no upgrade plan for it at this time.
Regarding the docking station issue, I’ve checked your support ticket and would like to help resolve this for you. Just to confirm, are you still using the 2023 version of the docking station? And do you have the 2024 version? I’ve asked our tech expert about your case, and if you’re using the 2024 version, it should work fine with the GFCI plug. If you don’t have the 2024 version, you can contact our support team to request it.
As for the GPS issue, we are continuously working on improving it.
We really appreciate your support as an early Kickstarter backer!
Your response to our concerns about the m1 vs pro mower attachment is clearly inadequate for those early adopters who have taken the risk of putting significant money down on your prototype product. Paying an extra $1000 for what is essentially 2 larger mower motors and metal blades (based on your description) leads us to believe we are being taken for fools. You are undervaluing the contributions that have been made by your unpaid testers.
On the basis of that response as well as your policy of making outrageous mark ups on items like shear pins for the snow blower, mower blades and the fragile mower disk not to mention the future cost of battery replacement make me very reluctant to ever recommend the Yarbo to anyone.
Sorry, but your 200$ offer is just a ridiculous joke for us 2023 kickstarter supporters, especially for those of us who had to pay for the upgrade to 2024 core to take part in your little beta field-test here… first delay after delay, now unfishid software, endless gps problems, mediocre mowing results on slopes.
I also contacted pre-sales support about this. I haven’t had the mower for 3 months and its been constant issues. Still, I was hopefull that there would be a trade in program for the M pro. Yarbo could test and refurbish trade in mower modules and sell them, while offering a significant discount towards the pro. NO ONE NEEDS TWO MOWERS FOR ONE CORE. Very dissapointed in Yarbo.
Hello, no offense intended, but marketing the M1 vs the Pro as an “additional option for users who have different needs or terrain types” is flat out disingenuous. It’s a 100% made up excuse to avoid having to support the current users.
If the M1 had performed adequately in the initial user’s yards, there would have been no need for a Pro model.
Suggesting that the Pro model is just another option is a slap to the face of the early users. As an engineer, I am well aware that when you have a design flaw, you FIX it, and then work with all instances in the field to get that flaw fixed. This is the only way you will build trust with the community.
The M1 didn’t work as you intended it to. Suggesting otherwise is not being frank with your end users.
I still stand by that there needs to be a return or update program. Our investment to fix these issues should be $200 or something reasonable, not a $200 off coupon.
But again, this really goes back to standing by your earlier customers and not leaving them with a product that doesn’t do what you initially designed it to do.
Following up on your response to my initial post. I will NOT be purchasing the Pro version at the current price point for the initial users. You’ve missed the point, and your internal conversations at the $200 price point missed truly taking care of your initial customers. You are in a business, who’s job is to make money and increase customers. If you fail to take care of the initial users by making them want to be part of this journey, then how can you expect to have more long-term customers?
I don’t think I need the pro. My lawn isn’t a golf course and its not a jungle. It does have some slight ups and downs. Some areas are better than others as far as the amount of FOD. I’m working of “de-FOD-ing”.
What I do need is the M1 to work as advertised. Which sadly today it isn’t.
Haha, that additional option stuff again, for people who want more…
We are the people that were promised the go-to mower, we that supported you on kickstarter, we that waited for you to get your stuff together for more than 2 years, we that gave you another chance by throwing even more money at the 2024 upgrade! We are the ones that are ironing out all software deficiencies…
Had the option been announced when I purchased, I might have waited, not sure. The cut of the standard M1 is on the lower end of acceptable, but still a better option than me doing it for 3 hours multiple times per week. I’m certainly not upgrading until I hear how the condensing-vaporware performs in the real world. The $200 credit isn’t much of an incentive either.
The line, “High-Margin Product with Recurring Upgrade Potential” got me. Recurring Upgrade potential is exactly what Yarbo is doing by not fixing the M1 and instead trying to get people to switch to the Pro module.
For the current M1, we are continuously working to improve its performance, whether through new design features like the high-mount RTK antenna or software improvements, such as exploring new fusion positioning technology. We’re also developing new cutting discs for the M1. All of these efforts are aimed at enhancing the user experience with the M1. We truly appreciate your ongoing support for Yarbo, and we will continue to be here to support your experience.
