Portable Electric Tools That Are Better Uncorded

The advent of portable electric tools has revolutionized both the home improvement industry and the heavy construction industry. While there is still a trade-off between power and maneuverability, the cordless power tool is great for many home and construction applications. Here's a list of power tools that have greater flexibility in their cordless versions.

Power Screwdriver

The power screwdriver is a must-have for every home. Anyone who has risked repetitive stress injury while doing a large project with a manual screwdriver can attest to this. Most power screwdrivers don’t even have an optional cord, and there’s a reason for this. While sometimes you might wish for more “oomph” while trying to get a long screw into hardwood, much of the charm of the power screwdriver is in its complete maneuverability. For example, you often need to finish a job by slowly tightening the screw manually. A power screwdriver is great for this even with the power off, since its large grip gives great comfort and ease of turning. Think how a power cord would interfere with hand-turning the driver, becoming twisted on itself and around the user’s hand.

Power Drill

Sometimes you’ll need all the power that a corded drill offers, but most of the time, a cordless drill is enough. Cordless drills are great when you’re moving around a lot, like when installing anchors and screws to hang several pictures at once, or when building a swing set that requires a lot of pre-drilling in multiple sides of the project. Outside, of course, the cordless drill is especially useful, since without it there’s no escaping the large, cumbersome outdoor extension cord.

Grinder, Impact Wrench, Reciprocating Saw

The cordless versions of these tools all share the same advantages and disadvantages of the power drill. On construction sites, the more cordage, the greater chance of accident, be it in the form of tripping, inadvertently cutting a cord, or overloading the site’s electrical circuits. Cordless construction tools promote greater productivity by saving energy and current for the tools that really need it.

Rotary Tool

The very nature of the rotary tool is to get into tight spots and do delicate work. With a rotary tool, the corded/uncorded debate centers around endurance than power. Unfortunately, uncorded rotary tools don’t get a lot done on a battery charge, and they can take several hours to recharge.

Luckily, if you choose the right tool, you can minimize your downtime. Some rotary tools, like the otherwise magnificent Dremel, come with a large base that plugs into a wall recharger, which means when it runs out of juice, the entire tool is down for the count. In contrast, the Black & Decker Wizard runs on B&D’s VersaPak batteries. When the power runs out, you can just snap in a new battery and keep going. The batteries still take a few hours to recharge, but if you have a few charging stations on hand, you’ll always have a fresh battery. There are several brands of rotary tools on the market with attachments and accessories that are largely interchangeable.

Lawn Mower

While not a portable tool in the same sense as the above items, the cordless electric mower is a great option for the urban homeowner. The power is “clean” and cheaper than gas, while providing much more “get up and go” than the traditional manual push mower. The corded mower has surely been responsible for more extension cords thrown in the trash than any other outdoor tool, so the cordless version is a sure-fire saver of frazzled nerves and tool budgets. The downside to the cordless mower is that, once again, inadequate battery life for those with larger lawns. Also, people who don’t have outside electricity need to drag it somewhere else to charge it. Aside from these shortcomings, the cordless mower is a welcome innovation.