On the hunt for new tools from Ryobi? These battery-powered options bring refinement and innovation to some potentially unexpected product categories.
Many power tool brands, including Ryobi, rely heavily on lithium-ion batteries. However, not everyone likes this material so much to name a whole line of tools after it. We’re talking about the Ryobi USB-Lithium tools — which, despite what the name might imply, are not the toolmaker’s only lithium battery-powered products. Even though some users think of it as nothing more than an affordable alternative to truly premium brands, Ryobi has a long history of mechanical innovations and savvy marketing decisions. That’s why whenever this toolmaker prepares to launch a score of new tools, we all pay attention. You’ll notice that, while most of the tools named in this article were released recently, they already have reviews and professional coverage. That said, if you’re not sure if a product is the right fit for you, you might want to wait until there are enough reviews to make a consensus.
Like any other brand that makes new tools, Ryobi products develop in two kinds of ways: iterative and innovative. Toolmakers are constantly reinventing their classic tools for new lines of products, integrating new technologies, or changing the design to be more ergonomic. Rare is the case where we see a whole new type of tool, or an ingenious adaptation of shapes and technologies that already exist, made into something wholly new. Snap-On’s strangest tools are great examples of this kind of innovation, but as we’ll see shortly, the more modest brands are plenty capable of creating something new, too.USB Lithium HP Compact Hand Vacuum
This hand vacuum kit seems to be the first Ryobi USB Lithium tool to be included in the prestigious HP line. HP, in the world of Ryobi tools, means that the tool is equipped with a „High Performance“ brushless motor, while USB Lithium are a line of small, USB-powered batteries made by Ryobi to use for some of its smallest and cheapest tools. The USB Lithium HP Compact Hand Vacuum is also one of the few tools to use two USB Lithium batteries instead of just one, which hopefully indicates it will be more powerful than other products in the same line. It might not be one of the most powerful cordless vacuum cleaners ever made, but it’s a promising start.
Will Ryobi’s affordable compact vacuum be more powerful than the most popular handheld car vacuum on Amazon, the Black+Decker DustBuster QuickClean? It’s hard to say, since every vacuum cleaner seems to use different stats to show its strength, but the Ryobi is certainly a lot more expensive, being sold at $99.99 in a kit with two 2Ah mini batteries. The bundle includes a few more things: a single filter, two attachments, and a charging station. This last one is more useful than you might realize, since the batteries themselves don’t come with a charger but plug directly into a USB cable. Removing the batteries from the tool every time they have to be charged gets old soon, making a charging station more than welcome.18V ONE+ HP Brushless ½-Inch Drill/Driver
Wait, didn’t Ryobi already have a brushless ½-inch drill/driver in its HP line? It sure did, but this is the new and improved Gen 2, even though it doesn’t say that on the tool itself. You might expect an update of a popular tool to be more expensive than the original, but this whole kit is just $159.00. That’s quite affordable for a bundle that includes the 18V ONE+ HP Brushless ½-Inch Drill/Driver, a High Performance 18V/4Ah battery and a charger, and a soft bag to hold it all. However, even if this whole package was downright cheap, that doesn’t explain why there is a second version of an existing tool.
That’s easy to explain. It’s because the updated tool is significantly more powerful than the older model, so much so that it seems to have replaced it entirely. The old one is hard to find on Ryobi’s website, and it’s only sold by some online stores. The PBLDD02K1, the next gen drill/driver kit, can reach speeds of up to 2,150 rpm — significantly higher than the 1,700 of the previous generation. However, max torque is where the difference between the two becomes clear. While the old PSBDD02B has a maximum torque of just 450 in-lb, the PBLDD02K1 more than doubles it, with 850 in-lb. Both tools have a brushless motor and both are part of Ryobi’s HP line, but only one carries the name „High Performance“ effortlessly.USB Lithium Telescoping Power Scrubber
Most Ryobi power scrubbers are worth it, at east according to the owners. They’re more expensive than most unbranded scrubbers without interchangeable accessories and batteries, but at around $70, they’re among the cheapest made by a major power tool brand. That’s probably reason enough to consider the new USB Lithium Telescoping Power Scrubber. However, the titular USB Lithium, Ryobi’s smallest battery technology that powers the brand’s weakest tools, almost demands we approach this product with some skepticism. Power scrubbers are usually powerful, after all.
