this post was submitted on 02 Jul 2023
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Confusing how? I'm no expert, but the vast majority of their lineup is the 20v Max (Which is really 18v, but they had to rebrand to reduce confusion from their old 18v system). They also have an ultra-portable line of 12v, and some heavy-duty 60v stuff, but those are the exceptions.
A bigger concern are reports of declining Dewalt quality. Still fine for a DIYer, and likely better than Ryobi, but I'd think twice if I was using them professionally.
And I have to amend my previous statement - There are plenty of adapters out there if you're willing to do some 3d printing. There's nothing particularly special about Milwaukee vs Ryobi vs Dewalt 18v batteries, you just have to match specs and connectors. But Dewalt->Ryobi is the only one I could readily find pre-made.
Again, I am probably wrong as I haven't really looked at Dewalt with a lot of intent, but there seems to be a lot of different buzz words? Flex, XR, Atomic, Powerstack? Also there seems to be a few different voltages, or are they moving all of their 18v tools to 20v now.
I know Makita has a few lines as well, but here (in New Zealand), its basically 18V or 40V systems. But then obviously you've got some complexity with Makita as well, where you double up on batteries to make them 36V and 80V etc.
Oh is there quite a lot of talk around decrease in Dewalt quality? I've always considered them to be pretty top notch stuff.
I think most of that is the exception. From what I can see, Powerstack is a marketing name for their newer and "better" battery, and is completely compatible and replaceable with their standard 20V line. XR is a similar story. Since their "20V Max" is really 18v with a new coat of marketing (No, really), their lineup was already compatible. They just had to put a different connector on it. Atomic is a line of tools (smaller), and are also primarily the same 20v
As for the 12v, 60v, Flex, and whatever else - unless you need a very wide variety in your tool collection, you'll probably just be using the standard 20v line. Everything is labeled as 20v Max, which works quite well for ensuring compatibility.
As for quality, I'm not an expert on the subject. There are certainly still plenty of fans out there, and it seems to be one of the better brands regardless of any complaints. It's what I standardized on recently as a DIYer. But it may not be quite as professional-grade as it used to be.
Makita is also a good brand, and I wouldn't object to that either.
haha thats actually laughable how they rebranded the 18v to 20v. Thanks for that info, good to know👍