What’s the Difference Between Dewalt’s DCN690 and DCN692 20V Brushless Framing Nailers?

Vicente wrote in, asking about the differences between Dewalt’s two 20V Max brushless framing nailers, the DCN690 and DCN692:

Hi, it seems that no one is able to answer my question about the 2 Dewalt 20 volt nailers and what the difference is:

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The DCN690 and the DCN692.

I can see that one has a label that reads Dewalt XR Dual Speed and the other one reads Dewalt XR Brushless.

But the description is the same.

Is one an older model?

We previewed the Dewalt 20V DCN692 brushless framing nailer earlier this year, and the 20V DCN690 brushless framing nailer nearly a year ago.

The DCN692 and DCN690 are both cordless “XR” 20V Max brushless framing nailers, and they are nearly identical in design. The DCN690 was released in Europe in early-to-mid 2013, and the DCN692 will be released in the USA and probably overseas as well in early-to-mid 2014.

The DCN690 cordless framing nailer has a single speed, the DCN692 has two.

One of the DCN692’s speed settings is optimized for driving shorter nailers (2″ to 3″ long), while the other should be used when driving longer nails (3-1/4″ to 3-1/2″ long).

When used in the full-power and full-speed setting, the DCN692 will perform similarly to the DCN690 framing nailer.

When the DCN692 is used in its lower speed/power setting mode, users will benefit from lower vibration (and thus lower fatigue), increased application speed, and an increase in the number of nails that can be fired per battery charge.

Right now, the DCN690M1 kit is priced at $500, and the DCN690B bare tool is $400. When the DCN692 is released in the USA, the DCN692M1 kit will be priced at $500 and the DCN692B bare tool will be priced at $400.

If the DCN690 price remains the same, then the DCN692 offers more functionality for the same cost. If you only plan to use the nailer in its maximum power mode, performance *should* be comparable for both nailers. But the DCN692 has the lower power mode that some users might find appealing.

Once the DCN692 is released, DCN690 kit and bare tool pricing *might* be reduced a little bit. Otherwise there would be no incentive for anyone to select the DCN690 nailer over the DCN692.

You could think of the DCN692’s two speed settings as analogous to having two differently sized manual hammers, such as a 16 ounce claw hammer and a 22 ounce framing hammer. You could use the 22 ounce framing hammer to drive in small and large nails alike, but if you know you’re going to be driving in smaller nails, the smaller claw hammer will save your arm and reduce the amount of wasted energy. It might even increase application speed, as the DCN692’s lower speed setting is said to do.

Read More: Dewalt 20V DCN692 Cordless Framing Nailer