I used to dread mowing my lawn in colder months, but this clever robot mower means I now have one less job to worry about

There are plenty of garden jobs I actually enjoy, including mowing the lawn. That is, however, until it starts getting cold. But, as a very busy mum of three kids who use the garden all year round, it's not a job I can ignore. Until now.

I'm always looking for ways to take jobs off my never-ending to-do list, and have been thinking about a robot lawn mower for a while now. So when the chance to try the Mammotion Yuka Mini 2 came up, I jumped at it.

Now, instead of finding the time and braving the weather to mow the lawn myself, this clever gadget does it for me – and I don't even need to be at home. With the robot mapped to my garden, I simply press start on the Mammotion app and off it goes. It can even be scheduled to cut automatically, meaning I can come home to a freshly mown lawn without having had to lift a finger.

But it's not perfect - there are a couple of things you still need to do yourself. But when it comes to tackling one of my unpleasant cold weather jobs, it's been a game-changer.

How easy is it to use?

The biggest appeal of this robot mower is just how little I have to do - it's so easy to use. To start, I simply downloaded the Mammotion app, then selected a zone, which I then manually drove the robot around my lawn to map the area. Think remote control car - you simply guide it round the outside of your lawn in a loop using simple controls on the app, and that's it. You can opt for the robot to do the mapping itself, however it only really works if you have really clear lawn boundaries.

Once you have mapped a lawn (zone), simply press start and off it goes. You can map up to five zones, which is particularly useful if, like me, your lawn isn't one simple rectangle.

You also have the option to control it remotely, which I have to say is very satisfying. It means if there's a patch missed or needs going over again, you can whizz it back out again just over that area.

It has six cutting options, which you can manually adjust to take the cutting height from 20 mm to 60 mm with a 190 mm cutting width. I have used both the longest and shortest cutting setting and have been really impressed at just how effective this machine is, particularly when tackling really long, thick grass.

The battery says it lasts for up to two hours. My main lawn takes around 35 minutes to cut, and so wouldn't expect to have - and haven't - any issues with the battery. A single charge covers multiple uses - mine has never run out but I tend to plug it in after the third or fourth use.

It's bulky, but surprisingly light, which makes it easier to move if needed, however the the off-road-style back wheels handle uneven ground really well. My lawn is very uneven, with various bumps and holes, none of which cause it much trouble.

The sensors and obstacle avoidance is another big plus, particularly in a family garden where it is surrounded by children and pets. It does a really good job of avoiding things in its path, rather than blindly mowing straight into them, which means I don't have to worry too much about risk of injury. It stops and goes around objects it detects, and if it gets stuck, shuts down within seconds, which is an excellent safety feature.

Scheduling is probably the thing I appreciate the most – I can set it to mow at a particular time, get on with the rest of my day and come home to a freshly cut lawn. That's particularly appealing in colder weather. Rather than waiting for a rare dry weekend and forcing myself outside with a mower, the robot can get on with the job while I'm doing something (hopefully) much more enjoyable.

What you should know before buying

As much as this ingenious gadget has taken the bulk of work out of my basic garden maintenance, it isn't completely hands-off.

It cuts the lawn, but it doesn't collect it. So I'm left with a lot of grass clippings all over the lawn, which isn't ideal, especially if it's particularly long. I do have to go over the lawn with a rake after to stop half the garden coming back in the house on the kids shoes.

That said, not having to empty the mower and take the clippings to the bin or tip is something that brings me more joy than it probably should. Plus, the mower mulches the clippings to make them easier to decompose and return nutrients to the soil, so if you don't have an army of kids potentially running them back in your house, it saves even more time and is really good for lawn health too.

Otherwise I have found it can miss the odd spot, and so have to manually go over a couple of patches. Which is very low lift but worth noting it might not hit every blade of grass perfectly.

And while its bulky design makes it great for navigating uneven lawns, it also limits spaces it can get into and reach. So you may still need a strimmer to tidy up any awkward or tight areas around borders and edges.

Who is it for?

If you have a large lawn that needs constant maintenance, and, like me, don't always have the time (or inclination) to do so, particularly now the temperature has dropped, I can't recommend this robot lawn mower enough.

It's not about the fancy tech, and everything about it just automatically ticking off one of my tasks from a very long to-do list.

There are compromises - you need to get your head around the app and mapping the zones (which is super easy), you may still need to strim edges, it can occasionally miss patches and leaves grass clippings on the lawn. But none of these outweigh the convenience of having the lawn cut regularly without me having to lift a finger.

As a mum of three, having one less job to find time for makes a surprisingly big difference. And when the alternative is putting on a coat on and heading outside in the cold to mow the lawn? I'll happily let the robot do it.