WORX WG782 14-Inch 24-Volt Cordless Electric Lawn Mower Review
Overall, the Worx WG782 cordless electric mower presents one of those incredibly rare value propositions that some might mistakenly judge to be an unequivocal bust. The horizons for this model’s usefulness are far from what anyone would call “broad,” but inside of the admittedly narrow spotlight defined by both its uncommonly low MSRP and unimpressive pound-for-pound specs, it presents an easily overlooked bargain for property owners who want just enough mower to minimize the effort of neatly maintaining an especially small lawn. Unfortunately, those who would hold its dimensions and minimal power against it would likely also chastise a frog that couldn’t fly or perform calculus.
Key Features
- Weighs only 33 pounds
- IntelliCut technology gives extra power on demand
- Three clipping-disposal options in one mower: mulch with the included removable specialized blade attachment, bag or side-discharge
- Cordless push-button start
- Built-in battery and bag capacity indicators
- Up to 30 minutes on a single full battery charge – enough runtime to work nearly 10,000 square feet of turf
- IntelliCut system adapts to variances in grass length
Performance
Some lawn mowers are made to conquer lawns of any given set of dimensions or layout. The Worx WG782 is not one of them. That’s the underlying virtue that overrules fair many potential criticisms.
Yes, its deck only measures 14 inches across. It weighs barely over 30 pounds and rolls on four seemingly ill-sized small wheels. That’s because the Worx WG782 is built for owners who don’t want to break the bank on a mower that only has to clean up a fairly horizontal spread spanning not a great deal more than 1,000 square feet and rarely prone to thick grass and weeds growing to more than an average four to five inches tall during prime mowing months.
Let’s break this down logically. The Worx WG782 might cut swaths barely more than a foot wide, but it maneuvers tightly across narrow yards wherein a 20 to 24-inch deck handles clumsily in close quarters around obstacles and would feel like trying to navigate a tractor-trailer through a McDonald’s drive-thru when turning around at the end of a pass.
Even with a full charge, the Worx WG782 comes to a pretty sudden halt when the included removable battery depletes after a mere 30 minutes of work. Such a tight limit on available use makes the convenient charge indicator a distinctly welcome design choice and drives home the importance of strictly avoiding any inclination to overwork the 24V engine by traversing hills or tackling any landscape great than one-seventh of an acre. Then again, being built for energy-efficient speed and maneuverability instead of vast raw power, this mower easily can cover up to 6,000 square feet of more consistently trimmed grass before its battery demands a hasty recharge.
Besides, if your lawn is large and hilly enough that you worry the Worx WG782 lacks the cutting power, size or battery life to finish the job in under an hour, then you have a yard of significant enough size to warrant focusing on heavier mowers with more prominent engines and longer blades to maximize your landscaping efficiency.
Ease Of Use
The smaller and flatter the lawn, the easier the Worx WG782 is to use. To maintain its effectiveness, you’ll want to plan on mowing at least weekly to prevent the height and thickness of your grass from escalating beyond what this electric underdog was built to handle. Keep in mind, this is a mower built for speed and agility, not rough-and-tumble durability over expansive, uneven terrain. Its dainty body and compact wheels were consciously chosen to emphasize effortless, swift maneuverability over short, level distances. Once the push-button starter sparks the engine to life, the Worx WG782 is a virtually silent and emission-free pleasure to push from one corner of a yard to the last. When the job is done, the handle folds into a less obtrusive position ideal for sensible storage. Would that very powered walk-behind mower were so user-friendly in every way, the professional landscaping industry might slowly starve to death.
Cut Quality & Options
The Worx WG782 is capable of splendidly clean cutting, provided you quickly come to terms with the divide separating the intended benefits of the theoretically intuitive IntelliCut system and its somewhat disappointing realities.
This ambitious selling point would claim that its technology will independently ratchet up cutting power upon encountering increased resistance from patches of higher-density grass and taper it off to conserve power under more nominal conditions. It’s a fantastically advantageous notion, one that a number of competing mowers have quite successfully implemented with far more impressive results. The trouble is, the Worx WG782 often struggles with seemingly random sections of turf when IntelliCut operates in its initial gear. There isn’t much actual “benefit” to speak of when downshifting from a supposed higher-performance mode to its normal functionality amounts to an overall regression in quality and the purportedly elevated power setting is the only reliable gear available. Making matters more disappointing, multiple owners have complained that IntelliCut only behaves generally as promised when they diligently mowed every three days or so. Yikes. Even for a smaller lawn, that represents a serious time investment just to get your money’s worth from one supposed tentpole feature.
There’s no wrong choice for dispensing with the Worx WG782’s clippings. It side-discharges as smoothly as freshly churned butter and I certainly appreciated the handy onboard capacity indicator for the detachable bag. However, the specially designed removable mulching blade is tough to pass up using at every opportunity after trying it out just once and noting just how finely it minces shreds of grass into nutrient-rich fertilizer. Meanwhile, a range of easily changeable height settings between 1.8 and 33 inches may not sound impressive, but all six options hit that sweet spot of optimal healthy length without ever leaving behind disappointingly tall grass after a full grooming.
Maintenance
Some customers have reported owning this model for five years or more without a single sign of its imminent demise. After putting it through its pace, I’m buying into the hype. Do not sell the Worx WG782 short. It might feel like a Fisher-Price toy in your hands, but this thing is built to last. The handle strikes a much-needed balance between being stiff enough to tightly control the mower’s path and having enough mobility at its joints to fold down smoothly. The battery should last at least a few years before its performance and capacity drop off. The wheels secured firmly but exhibit no tendencies to stick or lock up. Just keep the blade sharp and consider dropping less than $90 for a spare battery to alternate mowing days with the manufacturer-provided unit.
Safety Features
The greatest safety assurance the Worx WG782 has to offer just might be its design. Its inconsequential weight means that no user of any age, gender or degree of physical ability should ever feel overwhelmed. As flawlessly as the motor starts and its few added features operate, it would be next to impossible for anyone to cause an accident while simply feeling out its controls. In the worst-case scenario, simply release the bailout lever to immediately kill the engine.
Cost-Effectiveness
I would describe the Worx WG782 as “deceptively inexpensive.” Together, its almost unthinkably paltry weight and price point under $200 build a convincing case for assuming a high likelihood of breakdown after, at most, a few months of use. The truth is, this little guy could outlast a number of bigger, higher-priced mowers with ease. As long as you don’t plan on extending its duties very far past grooming a modest, mostly level spread that is never allowed to grow to unruly heights or extending a little part-time assistance to a larger and heavier mower that costs three times as much, this model should provide years of dependable service long after it sufficiently pays for itself.
