Yesterday we talked a little about Dewalt’s next-generation 20V Max brushless impact driver, model DCF887. It turns out that this isn’t the only next-gen brushless power tool that Dewalt is coming out with, they’re also launching a new compact brushless drill and a hammer drill.
The new Dewalt 20V Max drill, model DCD791, and hammer drill, model DCD796, are looking to be replacements for the brand’s DCD790 compact drill and DCD795 hammer drill.
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These are compact models, and so you won’t see them equipped with an auxiliary handle or 3-speed modes as with Dewalt’s premium brushless drill and hammer drill.
Dewalt says that these are the most compact and best performing brushless drills and impact drivers they’ve ever designed.
The Dewalt DCD791 drill measures 6.9″ long, making it indeed more compact than the previous model, which measured 7.2″ long. It weighs 3.4 lbs, presumably with a compact battery.
But more powerful? According to Dewalt’s introductory video, the new drill and hammer drill deliver 460 UWO (unit watts out) of power, which is indeed more than their previous compact brushless drills. But Dewalt’s premium drills deliver more power even.
Dewalt says that the new brushless drills will deliver up to 30% faster application speeds, and that it can handle tasks too demanding for their last generation compact drill.
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There’s also a brighter led light. Scroll back at the top to look at the profile view of the Dewalt DCD791 drill. The LED juts out a bit, probably because it requires a heatsink for thermal dissipation.
The drill’s worklight is rated at 60 lumens, which is pretty bight. A few years ago, tactical flashlights delivered 80 lumens of high powered illumination. 100-200 lumens and up seems to be norm these days, but don’t get caught up by numbers, 60 lumens is incredibly bright.
Need to use another tool in a dark space? These new Dewalt brushless drills can be run in spotlight mode as task lights, with up to 20 minutes of runtime.
I don’t think 20 minutes is the battery depletion runtime – I think that’s more what the tool can handle in terms of thermal dissipation and duty cycle.
Dewalt’s 20V Max LED spotlight that I recently reviewed throws 1,000 lumens of light for up to 4 hours. A compact battery pack could surely drive a 60 lumen LED for far longer. But since the emitter is encapsulated within the drill/driver as more of a convenience function, 20 minutes is of spotlight mode probably going to be dependent on engineering constraints.
I’m sure that more information with be forthcoming. In the meantime, what do you think of Dewalt’s next-generation compact brushless drills?
Here’s Dewalt’s promo video introducing the new tools:
I found it interesting that Dewalt describes the new brushless drills and impacts as the best they’ve ever designed. Isn’t that always the case for every manufacturer? Each generation of tool is supposed to be better than the last!
A good voiceover can make anything sound epic, but I’m more interested in hearing and seeing how these compare with other brands’ offerings, such as Milwaukee’s M18 compact brushless drill and impact driver.
From the specs, Milwaukee’s compact brushless drill might be ever so slightly more compact, and Dewalt’s new brushless impact driver might be the teeniest bit shorter. I say might because Dewalt uses decimal measurements and Milwaukee fractions. The numbers are so close that how the brands round up or down could change things.
Buy Now(DCD791 Drill Driver via Amazon)
Buy Now(DCD796 Hammer Drill via Amazon)
Thanks to Chaz, Rami, and Steffi for the heads-up!
red92s
Thread title says “10V Max”. Should be 20V, right?
AngryDrumGuy
My first thought- Another battery platform?!?!?! Haha
Honest mistake. All of the photos are marked 20V.
Stuart
Oops, thanks!
That’ll teach me to wake up early and finish a post at 6am.
Nathan
curious – it mentions using the tool in spotlight mode as you use another tool – is it feasible that the LED will remain lit without the attached battery?
IE – charged up super cap or whatever – run light for 20 minutes, no drill use – no battery attached.
if so that’s a major departure from the norm and a neat feature – maybe not a necessary feature but still
Would like to see the speeds come into play though – like with the impactor shown in the family.
Stuart
No.
I’m sure they meant with a battery attached. Otherwise how would the tool stand upright?
Yours is an interesting idea, but as you said it’s too far a departure for a power tool brand. In addition to Dewalt wanting users to buy more batteries and tools, would users who have spare Li-ion batteries be willing to spend more for a supercap-powered LED worklight that they might only take advantage of on rare occasion if ever?
Andy
It may be possible, but realistically low probability that the light may work without the battery. I only say this because I have the brushless multi tool (dcs355). If I remove the 20v battery and press the trigger the light comes on for about a second. Implying, there is a small auxiliary power source that runs the light separately. My guess is that’s a software glitch when the tool does not lockout the light immediately after the 20v pack is removed, but I still think there is a small battery/capacitor that runs the light separately which probably recharges from the 20v slide pack. It would not surprise me if all of Dewalts tools that have lights have this.
Nathan
it was an odd thought – I have many.
but forgot about it standing up right.
Kevin
is there an ETA on these? Will it be out during the holiday sales?
Stuart
I’m waiting for more info.
While Dewalt ran a promo video introducing the tools, the brand hasn’t sent out any press releases or anything of the sort yet.
Ken
Yes, they will
Garrick
The video is almost annoying to watch. Looking for information in it takes patience.
“Up to 30% more power” without clarifying when you get 30% more, or when you get less has little meaning. And “more” obviously means nothing at all unless it tells us what it’s being compared to. It could mean more than a 5 year girl with an eggbeater drill.
Stuart
I think they mean 30% more application speed than their previous generation tool.
I agree about how some of these tool intro and promo videos can be really annoying. They need to be short, so they focus on grabbing your attention. I think the point is to get you wanting to learn more, or to put a brand or tool at the top of your mind. Then, when you look for more info, that’s where they seal the deal.
John
With all the updates, Im hoping the rest of the lines come soon. Man if they’d only update the DW920K to being lithium and maybe even brushless with a variable trigger speed instead of the only other Dewalt alternative DCF680N2 with the gyroscope controls 🙁
will
oh another new drill you might be interested in stuart is the Festool 12V TXS. doesn’t seem to be brushless though oh and they have a limited edition centrotec 89 piece systainer kit for the low low price of $299.They also have a new syslite 2 coming out this winter.
Chris
I found some info online and its saying the drills have 70nm of torque, that’s 695 in lbs which is fantastic for a compact drill
will
I found 619 which is still great for a compact drill. I think the fullsize is 80nm for 708 in lbs so its not far off when you factor in size
Stuart
I saw the same, on a Dewalt Australia support page – 70 Nm hard torque, which is nearly 620 in-lbs.
That sounds a little suspect, as I would think such high torque would surely require an auxiliary handle to meet UL guidelines (https://14cyiuhvcgv.com/drill-handle-torque-guidelines/%3C/a%3E%29. If that’s even a roughly accurate figure, nice……
Jerry
Is it just me, or are some of these compact 20V tools getting to be smaller than the 12V from not too long ago? Not that that is a bad thing, but it may be part of the reason why DeWalt doesn’t seem to be developing a lot of new tools for the 12V line. If you can make an 18 or 20V drill as compact and light as a 12V drill, why make multiple voltage platforms? With NiCad batteries it made sense to have more than one platform, due to the sheer weight of the extra cells required for the extra voltage. However, my seat of the pants impression of the Lithium batteries tells me that there is hardly any difference in weight between a compact 20V, and full size 12V, and not a lot of size difference, either. So instead of trying to push the 12V platform to e limits, maybe they are instead trying to shrink the 20V down to as close to the size of the 12V units, so one platform can be a good choice for more users? A contractor could use the full size unit for production, and the compact one in tight places, and get by with one battery platform.
John L
Hope they fixed the wobbly chucks that a lot of people including myself complained about on the dcd795. I proceeded to buy team Red’s compact brushless drill as most of my tools are Milwaukee anyway. Now the dcd795 just sits.
Peter
Hi John. Am curious – did Red’s drill have a wobbly chuck; if no, what was the model ?
A few months ago, I purchased the M18 Fuel, but returned it due to its wobbly chuck. Soon after, I tried the then new M18 compact brushless. Same wobbliness. When returning it to HD, there was a Red representative there. I inquired about the wobbly chuck. The rep. did not understand the issue. Browsing online, it seems that many of the cordless drills have the same issue. I’ve simply given up searching and use an old corded Bosch.
Chris
And many have complained of failed chucks on fuel powered drills and have had to have them replaced with better units by themselves…
Pablo
When will dewalt quit with the UWO crap?
Stuart
Maybe wen the quit it with the “20V Max” battery size marketing?
Pablo
20v Max doesn’t bother me as much, because it’s a known value, everyone past the new-to-cordless-tools purchaser knows what it is.
Thankfully, in the EU, all the trade rules require that they adhere to a semi-standardized form of testing, and you can find the equivalent numbers you want there. It still miffs me that they’re intentionally trying to hide the performance of their equipment though; makes you wonder what else they’re hiding.
e.g.
http://www.dewalt.co.uk/powertools/productdetails/catno/DCD995P2/info/specifications/
Stuart
You would be surprised as to how many people think that 20V Max > 18V.
Chris
In reality, is been days before uwo out unit watts out is a better measure of a power tools power in the way it is measured and not by torque in which it can be measured different ways and can slew numbers
Liam
Bet my Makita DTD148Z will still be more compact 🙂
Travis
These are out for sale now at Amazon, Acme Tool, and HD.com!
Bob
Looking for a new Drill and I spent weeks researching this. I originally was thinking about getting a hammer drill but I was quickly talked out of it by a contractor who told me ” a high quality drill will do anything a hammer drill will do. The only difference is it may save you a few seconds but how busy are you” The other thing he said was ” why would you want to work with a heavier bulkier drill if 95% of the time, you will never use the hammer option. Plus you are paying more for the hammer drill”
From there, my choice was the DCD790D2 until they came out with the DCD791D2 which is a little smaller and lighter but more powerful and has a much brighter LED light. The 790 gets 5 stars all around no matter where you go for the reviews but not a lot from the 791. Maybe because it is a new model.
I will say that having that LED on the handle is so much better that behind the chuck. The light works great just until the bit goes onto the screw, which is when you really need the light. The shadow of the chuck completely blocks everything making the light basically useless. With the light in the handle, the light lands where you need it…
If anyone has any first hand experience with the DCD791D2, I would love to hear about it.