Worx WG730E review: A mighty, compact cordless mower
A cracking compact mower for small gardens even if it’s short on stamina
Pros
- Easy to push and easy to carry
- Plenty of power for smaller plots
- Good value
Cons
- Inconvenient cutting height adjustment
- Short battery life
The Worx WG730E is a cordless mower for small gardens with a compact 30cm deck and a single 20V, 4.0A battery. It’s smaller and lighter than its stablemate, the popular WG779E.2 – another of our favourite lawn mowers for small gardens – making it even easier to push around and stow.
However, it’s also not as powerful and it makes a few other compromises. Are these enough to make you regret that you didn’t go bigger on your cordless mower?
Worx WG730E review: What do you get for the money?
This is a compact mower for small gardens. It’s only 33cm wide and around 1.2m long when fully assembled with the handle attached. It’s powered by a single 20V, 4.0A battery, which might lead you to suspect that it’s going to be a weedy effort that will choke up at its first bite of grass. However, Worx has used an energy-efficient brushless motor, which should – theoretically – increase both its cutting power and runtime.
A 2A charger is supplied along with a 30-litre collection box, a two-part plastic effort rather than the bag of the WG779E.2. Meanwhile, the mower has a choice of just three cutting heights: 30mm, 50mm and 70mm.
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Worx WG730E review: Is it difficult to use?
The first thing that hits you about the WG730E is that it feels a lot lighter and easier to lug around than its larger sibling, but the overall design and build quality is every bit as good. I can comfortably pick it up and carry it one-handed, yet the plastics feel tough, there’s little wobble in the two-part handle, and the collection box – though a pain to assemble – fits to the body of the mower nice and snugly.
It doesn’t fold down as neatly as the Flymo EasiStor 340R Li, or at least not without removing the lower part of the handle from the unit, but it’s still an easy mower to fit into a crowded shed or garage. It’s also nearly effortless to push around, even on rough ground or a sloping area. I can’t say the same for some other small mowers I’ve encountered.
If there’s any good reason to grumble, it’s that there’s no way to adjust the cutting height without switching the mower off, turning it upside down and using an odd, spring-loaded mechanism on the front wheels. It isn’t all that hard or fiddly a process but it’s unintuitive and a bit of a hassle. Plus, you only have the three cutting heights to choose from, and those who like to really crop their lawns close might think 3cm isn’t short enough.
Worx WG730E review: How well does it mow the lawn?
The 30cm cutting width isn’t huge, so this mower is at its best on smaller lawns and preferably well-treated flat ones, as a lot of lumps and divots can affect the regularity of the cut.
I expected it to panic when it came to longer grass or wilder patches but the WG730E surprised me by making headway through all but the roughest or wettest stuff. What’s more, there are some advantages to its size, as I was able to get closer to hard surfaces such as fences or house walls, or move it into spaces near to shrubs where it’s normally hard to fit a larger mower.
The only serious issue is the mower’s stamina. I got around 20 minutes of mowing out of it before the battery ran out of puff. On smaller lawns this isn’t going to be a huge problem but, if you like to mow front and back in a single session, then you might want to invest in a second battery, or get ready for a two- to three-hour wait while your only battery charges up again.
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Worx WG730E review: Should I buy it?
It’s tempting to say you should go for the more powerful Worx WG779E.2 instead but that’s also slightly more expensive and not quite as easy to lug and push around as the WG730E and, while it isn’t quite as good as Bosch’s excellent CityMower 18, the Worx WG730E is a whole lot better value.
In short, if you have a small patch of garden, there’s no better way to keep it in trim than this compact Worx. It’s the best small garden cordless you can find for around £200.
