Ryobi One+

It is not common that I comment or recommend power or garden tools. But this time I think it is worth highlighting how Ryobi has done it right. They've created a large and fast growing family of cordless electric tools. Something the previously leading brands like Bosch or DeWalt or Makita had not done. Now many are following but Ryobi seems comfortable maintaining the lead.

In any electric product batteries are the major cost component. They also require dedicated chargers and have limited life span. So it was such a waste when every tool was coming with its own dedicated battery and charger. Perhaps that was the business model: sell more incompatible batteries, but that was destined to fail at some point. That point was when a successful brand took an opposite strategy: admit you probably need one or two batteries for the whole range of tools - from drills to trimmers to vacuum cleaners. And one universal charger.

Ryobi now has over 300 compatible "ONE+" power tools and some of them are nothing short of wonderful. The notable part of the family are the "HP" (High Performance) ones, which feature brushless motors and higher power output (while still using the same swappable batteries). 

My recent favorite has been the one-handed pruning chainsaw. I had traditional gasoline chainsaws in the past but they all required two-handed operation. Even the smallest ones. Also starting and stopping them was not just a touch of a button. Then I had a reciprocating saw. Small and light, but slow when doing the job of cutting small trees and branches. The Ryobi pruning chainsaw has solved these issues. It is fully one-handed, so allows me to do jobs I could not do alone in the past (needed a helper to hold the wood). And it is as fast as a traditional chainsaw. And the best part is - I've already had batteries and a charger, so the price point of the tool itself was unbeatable. Plus no wasted storage room nor power outlets to charge a dedicated battery.