ANTHBOT M9 Pro review — Compact, intelligent, wire-free robot mower

Anthbot is already a well-known brand in the market for its fully wire-free robot mowers that keep the lawn trimmed without much fuss.

After testing the Anthbot Genie 800, we now had the opportunity to test the Chinese brand’s latest robot mower — the Anthbot M9 Pro.

Here is everything you need to know about this new range and product, along with our verdict on this new intelligent mower.

ANTHBOT M9 Pro Review — Never worry about mowing the lawn again

Wire-free robot mowers have moved beyond being an expensive niche product to become a genuine alternative for the domestic garden.

ANTHBOT has been establishing itself in this segment with products that combine advanced navigation technology with straightforward installation, and the M9 Pro is the most capable proposition in the line — designed for gardens of up to 1,000 square metres.

The ANTHBOT M9 Pro stands out for its HoloSense Quad-Fusion positioning system, which combines 360-degree LiDAR with RTK, NetRTK, and AI vision through two HDR cameras to achieve positioning accuracy of up to 1 cm in any scenario.

There is no need to install a physical RTK station or boundary wire, and the initial setup can be completed in under three minutes with automatic one-touch mapping in the app. The system detects over 1,000 types of obstacle, trims lawn edges with the EdgeWiz feature, schedules mowing sessions autonomously, and can operate on slopes of up to 24 degrees.

Cutting height is adjustable between 3 and 7 cm through the ANTHBOT app, and noise levels do not exceed 58 dB.

The 5Ah battery, IPX6 certification, and rain sensor with automatic return to base complete a proposition designed to operate with minimal user intervention.

As for the price, it is available for €1,299 with the garage included.

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Design and build quality

The Anthbot M9 Pro brings a very significant design change compared to the other models in the Chinese brand’s range.

This new robot is more compact and lower-profile, with a sportier, more aggressive look. For those with limited storage space, it is an ideal solution for fitting into tighter spots.

To reduce size, the top display has been removed, with all control now handled through physical buttons and status LEDs.

There is a button to start mowing, another to switch off/confirm, and another to send the robot home.

Above these sits a visual battery level indicator along with the rain sensor.

The tower at the front is the LiDAR radar sensor that continuously scans the surrounding area, complemented by two AI-powered front cameras.

Underneath sits the cutting disc with 5 blades, along with a carry handle for picking the robot up without damaging anything.

The Anthbot M9 Pro measures 49.8 x 39.2 x 27.8 cm and weighs around 10 kg.

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The charging base is very simple — black and minimalist — and serves solely as a platform for the robot to drive onto and charge via a connector that resembles a large plug socket.

The RTK module is the same as in previous generations, although the support pole is shorter and no longer allows the cable to run hidden through the centre down to the ground — it must instead be wrapped along the outside of the pole.

Anthbot M9 Pro vs Anthbot Genie 800

ANTHBOT has two lines of wire-free robot mowers, and the choice between the Genie 800 and the M9 Pro depends essentially on the type of garden and the level of navigation precision required.

The Genie 800 uses GPS RTK with 155 satellites and four AI cameras for navigation, without LiDAR. It is simpler to install — set up in around 10 minutes — covers gardens up to 1,500 square metres, and costs €1,099.

Its broader satellite coverage ensures good reception even in partially shaded areas, and the 300-degree field of view detects over 1,000 types of obstacle. It is the most suitable choice for open, regular gardens with good satellite visibility.

The Anthbot M9 Pro goes further in navigation technology with the HoloSense Quad-Fusion system combining 360-degree LiDAR with RTK, NetRTK, and AI vision through two HDR cameras, achieving positioning accuracy of up to 1 cm. Although it has fewer cameras, it compensates with the versatility and range of the LiDAR system.

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This combination makes it more capable in challenging scenarios such as areas with dense shade, narrow passages, hidden corners, or gardens with complex geometry. It covers up to 1,000 square metres and costs €1,299.

The Genie 800 is the more accessible option and sufficient for most standard domestic gardens. The Anthbot M9 Pro justifies the additional €200 for more complex gardens — with many obstacles, narrow passages, or areas with satellite coverage affected by trees or structures.

Assembly and setup

Assembly of the Anthbot M9 Pro is very simple and completed in just a few minutes.

To begin, the charging base needs to be positioned. The brand recommends placing it on the lawn, but it can also be placed on a hard surface — as was the case for us — as long as the robot can travel from there to the grass area.

If positioned on the lawn, plastic pegs are included in the box to fix it in place. On a hard surface, it is worth finding a way to secure it — leaving it free-standing is fine, but it will shift slightly every time the robot docks.

With the base in position, the power cable is connected. This plugs into the base via a weatherproof connector, and the cable is generously long to allow connection to a socket at some distance.

The only remaining step is to connect the RTK antenna for GPS reception. The box includes a support pole of around 1.40 m to mount the antenna at the top, with a three-pronged fork stake at the base to secure it in the ground.

Finally, connect the RTK to the base by cable and it is ready to go.

Since this robot supports NetRTK, it is also possible to set it up and run it without installing the RTK antenna at all.

Mapping and zone management

One of this robot mower’s biggest selling points is that it requires no boundary wires to define the cutting area.

Instead, it uses HoloSense Quad-Fusion technology — combining two cameras, a 360° LiDAR sensor, and GPS — to navigate and position itself.

This means that the first time the Anthbot M9 Pro is switched on, you can guide it to the lawn area and press the Auto button for it to automatically recognise the space to be mown and build a virtual map without any further user input.

The map can be edited afterwards to adjust areas or designate zones the robot cannot access.

If you have multiple lawn areas, a map can be created defining each grass zone to be mown and the transition paths between them — where the M9 Pro will disable its blades and simply travel through without cutting.

This allows the robot to be adapted to the layout of your property, defining how and when each lawn zone will be mown, since each zone can have its own individual cutting settings.

ANTHBOT app

To control the Anthbot M9 Pro, the brand provides the ANTHBOT app, available on the Play Store and App Store.

The app can be used without internet via Bluetooth when close to the robot, via Wi-Fi if available, or via a 4G connection that is included free for the first year and costs €39.99 per year thereafter.

In the app you can view and edit the map, track the robot’s position in real time during a mowing session, or access the operation history.

You can also create schedules, activate the perimeter mowing option, control the robot remotely (Bluetooth only), and manage options such as rain mode, visual inspection sensitivity, voice volume, or the anti-theft mode that triggers an alert if the robot moves more than 50 metres away.

Navigation, wireless RTK positioning, and obstacle detection

The Anthbot M9 Pro’s navigation technology has been upgraded to HoloSense Quad-Fusion, a new feature debuting in these Pro models.

Rather than relying solely on cameras for navigation, this new robot now combines camera-based navigation with RTK, NetRTK, and a 360° LiDAR sensor that continuously records the entire surrounding area.

Below, we used an infrared camera to capture the LiDAR system’s laser in action.

On the camera side, instead of the four cameras (two front, two side) on the Genie 800, the M9 Pro features just two HDR cameras at the front, supported by AI for obstacle identification, with the LiDAR covering the rest of the surrounding space.

From our experience, this is a system that works well but is not yet fully on par with the previous model.

Detection of frontal objects and obstacles works better than the Genie 800, with the robot anticipating their presence well in advance. However, lateral recognition still needs improvement — something ANTHBOT confirmed to us is already being worked on.

In our case, we had a soil moisture sensor around 10 cm tall on the lawn — the robot detected it and went around it, but when passing alongside it, made contact, knocked it over, and drove over it.

After reporting this to the brand, the Anthbot M9 Pro received a number of firmware updates and has since improved considerably in recognising objects, particularly lateral ones. ANTHBOT confirmed that this remains the primary focus of development and optimisation in the coming months.

Apart from that episode, the M9 Pro consistently recognised hoses, irrigation boxes, and other obstacles, avoiding and navigating around them without further incident.

One of this robot’s key new features is support for NetRTK — a technology that allows it to operate using only the robot’s onboard GPS, giving users the choice of whether or not to install the RTK antenna.

NetRTK precision is not as exact as RTK with an antenna, but for open cutting areas without significant shade or overhead cover, it should be more than sufficient for full operation.

Mowing performance

In terms of mowing, the Anthbot M9 Pro maintains the same experience we had with the Genie 800.

You can define how many passes you want it to make, set the cutting height between 30 and 70 mm, and choose the cutting direction.

To keep the lawn consistently trimmed, we scheduled the robot for daily sessions so it maintains the grass at the defined height every day.

Since there is no collection of clippings, the lawn should not be allowed to grow too long. If the cut removes only a few millimetres, those tiny clippings act as organic matter for the soil. However, if the grass is left to grow significantly, larger clippings will accumulate and dry out on the surface.

When mowing, the Anthbot M9 Pro moves in a U-shaped pattern, cutting from one end to the other and alternating direction each pass — leaving that striped effect you see on football pitches. The cutting width per pass is approximately 20 cm.

Cutting is very effective with the entire area coming out uniform, meaning you never have to worry about mowing the main body of the lawn again.

Corners depend more on the terrain type. Next to walls or raised areas, the Anthbot M9 Pro will always leave a safety margin that needs to be finished with a manual lawn edger.

On the other hand, where the robot can drive up to the edge, it will cut all the way to the boundary.

Mowing a 110 m² area takes approximately 40 minutes with one pass.

The Anthbot M9 Pro can handle slopes of up to 24 degrees, meaning whether the terrain is inclined or the robot needs to go up a ramp to reach another area, this presents no problem for the compact mower.

Battery life and charging

The Anthbot M9 Pro has a 5Ah battery ready to handle sizeable gardens. With around 110 m² of lawn, the robot uses approximately 25–30% of the battery — a full charge can cover over 300 m².

When the battery runs low, the robot automatically returns to its base to charge and resumes once it has sufficient power.

A full charge takes around 90 minutes.

Who is the Anthbot M9 Pro for?

The ANTHBOT M9 Pro is aimed at those with a garden of up to 1,000 square metres that has some complexity in its geometry or navigation conditions that make simple GPS systems less reliable.

It is the natural choice for gardens with areas of dense shade, narrow passages, many fixed obstacles, or irregular layouts where the HoloSense Quad-Fusion system’s up-to-1 cm positioning accuracy makes a real difference over camera and GPS-only solutions.

For those who already have the Genie 800 and are happy with the results, switching to the M9 Pro is only worth considering if the garden has characteristics the Genie cannot manage well. If the space is open, regular, and has good satellite visibility, the Genie 800 remains the more balanced proposition in terms of price and capability.

The M9 Pro is also suitable for those who prefer a more compact robot that is easier to store, given its shorter, sportier design compared to the brand’s previous models. The NetRTK option — allowing operation without installing a physical RTK antenna — is an additional argument for those who want an even simpler installation in gardens without major obstacles to satellite coverage.

For gardens with many corners next to walls or elevated structures, it is worth bearing in mind that the robot will always leave a safety margin in those areas that needs to be finished with a manual edger.

Verdict on the Anthbot M9 Pro

The ANTHBOT M9 Pro is a technically more advanced robot mower than the Genie 800, with the HoloSense Quad-Fusion system genuinely capable in more demanding navigation scenarios. The combination of 360-degree LiDAR with RTK, NetRTK, and AI vision results in a positioning precision that shows in the uniform cutting and the striped pattern it leaves on the lawn.

The more compact design is a welcome improvement for those with limited storage space, and the option to operate without a physical RTK antenna via NetRTK simplifies installation for gardens with good satellite coverage.

The point that deserves most attention is lateral obstacle recognition, which in our experience fell short of what the Genie 800 offers with its four cameras. The episode with the soil moisture sensor showed that low, lateral objects may not be detected with the necessary anticipation.

ANTHBOT acknowledged the issue and released firmware updates that have improved performance, and the brand has committed to continuing work on this in the coming months. It is a real limitation worth bearing in mind, especially in gardens with many small objects scattered across the lawn.

Battery life is generous — a full charge covers over 300 square metres — and charging in 90 minutes is fast for the segment. Mowing 110 square metres in around 40 minutes per pass is a solid result for daily use.

At €1,299, the ANTHBOT M9 Pro is a proposition that justifies itself for those who need more precise navigation than the Genie 800 provides. For simple, open gardens, the additional €200 over the Genie 800 does not bring proportional benefit. For complex gardens, the technology difference is felt.

Techbit thanks Anthbot for providing the Anthbot M9 Pro for review.

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