Husqvarna Aspire LC34-P4A

Introduction

This undoubtably handsome mower makes up part of Husqvarna’s innovative Aspire range of garden tools. The Husqvarna Aspire LC34-P4A is a brilliant mower for anyone who lacks storage space but still needs a proper lawn mower, but those with more space and larger lawn may want to look elsewhere.

Design and features

• Lightweight at less than 12 kg
• Four cutting heights

Coming pre-assembled, the Husqvarna Aspire LC34-P4A requires no setup before you can charge up the battery and get to mowing. Unlocking and extending the handles is intuitive thanks to bright orange moving parts and they allow you to adjust the handle to suit your height.

Like the rest of the Aspire range, Husqvarna’s choice of dark greys and oranges are contemporary and stylish. Compared with the garish colours found in a lot of garden equipment, the LC34-P4A feels quite grown up.

Priced at £259.99 without a battery, it’s well priced, especially if you happen to have any of the compatible batteries already.

With 16cm diameter wheels on the back and 14cm ones on the front, this 18v battery-powered mower is small and compact but offers a good level of power in a small package. Selecting between the four cutting heights, ranging from 30mm to 65 mm, is done via a joystick-style handle with a satisfying clunk. It’s not the biggest range of cuts, but it’s fine for most domestic lawns.

You can mow in two different ways- either use the 30-litre fabric collection bag or insert the orange mulching plug to let the grass clippings fall back into the lawn. There’s no option for side discharge, as with the Stihl RMA 248.3.

Using the helpfully orange coloured components, retracting and folding the handle can be done one-handed. You simply undo the two sleeves on the handles and turn the dials at the base of the handle to unlock, and off you go.

Once neatly folded up, the small mower has become even more compact. You can even remove the grass collection bag from the rear of the mower and clip it neatly to the top of the machine for storage.

When it comes to putting the mower to bed after a mowing session, the real innovations come to life. Other mowers like the DeWalt DCMWP134 can sit up on their back wheels for easy storage, but Husqvarna have taken this idea much further.

Like the rest of the tools in the Aspire range, you can hang them on the wall. Using the included two-pronged hook, you can screw it straight into the shed wall. Or if you have a collection of Aspire tools, there’s an elegant storage rail to show off these good-looking bits of kit.

The only way that the LC34-P4A can get away with being hung on the wall is by being particularly lightweight. Weighing in at less than 12 kg without a battery, it’s marvellously easy to carry around and store.

Husqvarna has joined the grandly titled Power for All Alliance. This means that batteries can be used in products from well-known tool and garden brands including Bosch, Flymo, and Gardena amongst others.

It’s partnerships like this that genuinely save users time and money. The only thing I don’t like about these batteries is the lack of a charge level indicator. It’s nice to be able to see how much juice is left without plugging it into the machine and using the digital display.

It’s always good to see a safety key on a mower too. Hidden away in the sprung battery compartment, you can remove the orange key between mows to keep it out of the reach of anyone that should really know better.

Even with the key in place, there’s an additional safety mechanism, with a thumb-switch that has to be pressed before the handle can be squeezed to bring the lawn mower to life.

Performance

• Plenty of power in a small package
• Very easy to move around
• Slightly disappointing runtime

I tested this mower out in a couple of small gardens, typical to terraced houses. Measuring about 30m² and mainly flat with some dips and bumps, it was ideal for the job. Tackling the first mows of spring, it breezed through long grass, leaving a satisfying finish.

Something that this mower has over almost any other mower I’ve tested out is the performance to weight ratio. Where some ultra-light mowers like the Bosch Easy Mower 18V-32-200 compromise on power, the Husqvarna can mow through thick tufts of grass without complaining, ably capturing grass in its bin.

The thing that would put me off mowing an odd shape lawn or one that’s got stairs and different levels is lugging around a heavy lawnmower or one that’s awkward to carry. Here, that’s no problem and the LC34-P4A is light enough and the big carry handle allowed me to carry it one handed.

Thanks to the smaller wheels, the mower does a good job on the flat but struggled a bit through long grass. I would position this mower as a maintenance device for regular mowing rather than a full-sized beast for clearing overgrown jungle in a back garden though.

Rated for just 87 dB, I didn’t find this mower to be too loud. It’s not whisper quiet, but anything less than 90 dB isn’t uncomfortable to use for extended periods.

What does slow the LC34-P4A down is the battery life. The one I tested came bundled with a 4.0Ah battery. It’s good for just under 30 minutes of mowing time, which is ideal for small gardens, as is the 36cm cutting width, but not really enough for medium- to large-sized pieces of lawn.

Should you buy it?