The New Cordless Era
As you already know, Hitachi recently changed their name to HiKOKI and ran an expansive marketing and research campaign to go along with the rebranding.
Part of this campaign was to gauge just how popular cordless tools were in comparison to corded and get some general feedback on how people feel using them. The results are in and the findings seem to only point one way.
Out of a pool of 250 UK tradespeople, here are the findings:
- 84% would consider getting rid of their corded gear and going completely cordless
- Over 50% have more cordless than corded tools in their toolbox or van
- 82% turn to cordless tools to ‘get the job done – anywhere’
- Over 50% prefer cordless power tools because of the added safety they offer – with no cords or mains power onsite
- 13% had worked on “cordless only” sites where mains powered tools just are not allowed
Now, we have had our suspicions that cordless tools we’re becoming more popular but HiKOKI’s findings surpassed our expectations by a country mile.
“We have found that the superior experiences for professional users come from being able to ‘get the job done anywhere’ by using tools that are powerful, durable, and accurate,” says Yasushi Fukui, Managing Director of Koki Holdings Europe GmbH and Chief International Business Officer of Koki Holdings Co., Ltd.
“Powerful, Durable, and accurate” were the words of Mr Fukui and they certainly ring true for the cordless range of tools available today.
If we shift our focus from HiKOKI to DeWalt we can see the power, durability, and accuracy offered by their FlexVolt range is really the driving force behind the supposed cordless revolution. In fact, DeWalt even have the tagline “Power of corded, Freedom of cordless” attached to their FlexVolt range.
Almost every major brand has made some sort of venture into high power systems, you have Makita’s Twin 18v System, Milwaukee have their HD High Output batteries, HiKOKI with their MultiVolt range, and Metabo also have an impressive LiHD offering.
These advances in battery technology means that the future for cordless tools is looking very bright indeed. But where does that leave our corded companions?
It appears the only benefit that corded tools can offer us is that they do not need batteries, so you don’t have to worry about charging. Some people still believe that corded tools offer higher power but, as we’ve seen with FlexVolt, cordless tools are very quickly catching up to corded power if they have not caught up already.
Is that benefit really worth the hassle of working around a cord? Storing the bulky things, and having to worry about your site having a power supply? Personally, I’m not too sure but what do you think? Lets us know in the comments if you feel that corded tools are on their way out or if they’re here to stay!