In a recent Popular Mechanics news feature on its annual Yard & Garden Awards, Test Editor Bradley Ford, who worked on a farm when growing up, reported that he and the Popular Mechanics team tested products from dozens of brands and selected the best new models. While the awards were presented to nearly 30 companies and their products across 4 major categories, Rural Lifestyle Dealer is listing below those products which are most commonly carried by rural equipment dealers and utilized by small farms and large property owners.
Popular Mechanics 2025 New Product Awards for New Yard Equipment included:
- Best lawn striping mower: Echo 21-in Self Propelled Mower
- Easiest to use: DeWalt 60V MAX 21 in. Cordless RWD Self-Propelled Mower
- Easiest mowers for straight lines: Ryobi 40V HP 21-in Self-Propelled mower
- Best wide cut: Dewalt 28-in. RWD Self-Propelled Mower
- Best bagging mower: Stihl Self Propelled Variable Speed 21" Cordless Mower
- Best robot mower: Mammotion Robot Lawn Mower
- Best battery run time: Echo X-Series 56V Backpack Blower
- Best hand held blower: Bosch Profactor Professional Blower
- Best new string trimmer: Stihl Battery Powered String Trimmer (tool only)
- Best gas string trimmer: Echo Gas String Trimmer
- Best pruning saw: Echo Battery Powered Handheld Pruning Saw
- Most powerful battery backpack blower: Stihl Battery Powered Backpack Blower
In 12 product segments noted above, Echo scored wins in 4, Stihl in 3, and Dewalt 2, with Ryobi, Bosch and Mammotion each securing individual awards.
In commenting on its robotic mower winning selection, Mammotion’s Robot Lawn Mower, the report offered this summary, in part:
“Robot mowers have been gaining traction, with more and more brands entering the market. Mammotion’s Yuka caught our attention this year, with three models — 1000, 2000, and 3000 — capable of mowing ¼, ½, and ¾ of an acre respectively. Simple-to-follow instructions guided us through the process and we had it set up in about a half hour. Once the mower is paired with Mammotion’s app, mowing areas boundaries can be set by using your phone as remote control to drive the mower around the perimeter. Or you can let it automatically map your lawn, up to ¾ of an acre… you can tell the Yuka to start mowing or set up a mowing schedule. It will figure out the most efficient way to mow the area and passes back and forth methodically to be sure it is completely mowed. It uses GPS, a reference station, a camera, and AI to navigate. If or when the battery runs low, it returns to the base to recharge, then continues.”
Detailing the winning elements of Stihl’s Battery Powered Backpack Blower, the report stated, “Stihl has had some of the most powerful gas backpack blowers for years. That can also be said of their battery powered blowers with the release of the BRA 600…The BRA 600 uses two of Stihl’s AP 500 S batteries and has an approximate run time of 20 minutes in boost mode. You’ll get much more blowing time than that though, as you typically won’t keep it in boost mode continuously — it has three other power modes: eco, mid-power, and full-power. The BRA 600 sports a very comfortable backpack harness, and the blower itself is well balanced…”
