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46 of 47 found the following review helpful:
 A very useful little tool May 15, 2007
By J. Horwitz
I was in the market for a new cordless drill and I walked into Louis Williams Hardware (makitadirect.com) and was tempted by the owner to take a peek at the new Makita. I was amazed at the power of the tiny device but was not sure how it would fit into my needs. I left, but went back and bought one and set to work installing 4 new replacement windows in my basement. Here is what I learned:
1. This is a single speed, impact tool. The impact feature allows the driver to turn long and stubborn screws in hard material using a smaller motor and light weight battery, while also being very easy on your wrist. It does ALL the work.
2. As I said, it IS single speed, giving you somewhat less control for delicate work; it takes some getting used to.
3. As a trade off for its ability to drive stubborn screws, it does make slower, and slower progress as screws get more stubborn. You can screw in screws faster with a standard driver. But, like the Energizer Bunny, this thing keeps going, and going, until it gets there.
4. You are much less likely to strip the head with this tool.
5. Battery life is incredible and recharging is fast with the Lithium Ion system.
6. If you are going to be drilling, you will want to get special drills with a built in impact fitting. It does drill nicely, BUT, there is only one speed making starting a hole tricky in hard materials.
7. It has a nice LED work light.
8. The forward/reverse switches have a definite handedness to them. A lefty might not like it.
9. It is inexpensive. At $99, it is a great, reliable tool.
10. I enjoyed installing the windows, and used the tool for all aspects except drilling into the masonary. For that, I used a corded drill.
11. It comes with a nice little holster.
12. Consider buying the Makita impact accesory kit. It is a bargain way to get the drills and quick change bit holder.
13. In summary, a nice accessory with a thousand uses, but it will not replace your cordless drill.
30 of 33 found the following review helpful:
Makita takes the lead !!!! Mar 03, 2007
By Thomas Whitmore
I recently went to a woodworkers show at one of our local retailers, (Jackson Saw and Knife, Rochester NY...little plug for a local business). My intentions were to look at, and possibly buy, a new table saw, and dovetail jig to assist in building new kitchen cabinets for my own house remodel, since things have slowed up some. Having just bought a new Delta mortiser on Amazon(another plug for our host site guys) along with a Grizzly tenon jig I needed to finish out my shopping list. As I made my way down the gaunlet isles past many of the vendors hawking their wares I happened to glance at the Makita table and saw the rep driving a 3" deck screw into a piece of pressure treated wood with ease with this cordless white screwdriver that looked like an overgrown hotdog. Actually it is very much like the other companies red cordless screwdriver whose company also starts with an M but thats where the similarities end. My partner has the red one and it has been fine so far...until today. Step aside let the BIG DOG eat. This tool is amazing. Let me first start by saying that it IS NOT just a screwdriver...it is a screwdriver impact driver. Less effort and strain on the battery to do the job and more torque. Can anybody say BIG BLOCK motor vs small block? One outstanding feature is the built in led lite up front that allows you to light up the area where you are screwing. In total darkness you can use it as a flashlight to get to your area if need be. The light has a lockout switch to prevent depressing button while in your tool pouch/bag killing battery. The rep had to further convince a couple of guys by showing them that if in a dire strait need to drill a hole thru a 2x with a spade bit to run a 14-2 or 12-2 wire this tool could do it. He chucked in 1 7/16 spade bit and bored thru. It took longer than with a corded drill or 18V cordless, understandably so, IT'S 7.2 VOLT. The fact that it is a impact driver screwdriver is what gives it it's balls...sorry ladies. The unit I bought (there is only one model) came in a very nice deluxe zipper case with: charger, belt holster, TWO batteries, the screw gun, and three drive bits, and a hexdrive 1/8" drill bit. There is additional room in the zipper case for other items. Overall I think Makita has raised the bar so to speak coming out with this tool. I see this tool particularly attractive to electricians and cabinet makers/installers. I only gave it four stars as I have not used all the ones on the market and so it would not be fair to the rest of the field, plus since mine is so new I don't have enough run time on it. Will give an update later.
Bottom line: one of the best/handiest tools for $99 that I have in my repertoire. Thanks for your time I hope that I helped you...Whit
16 of 16 found the following review helpful:
 Its useful with some good points but also its limited. Aug 19, 2010
By John H
I have now had this screwdriver for 2 years and found it a mixed bag, its good for removing screws and fast disassembly work such as removing screws from door hinges that have been painted over. A few moments of the impact action is strong enough to crack the paint but not so strong that it splits the screw head. As for putting new screws in, its not so good as the impact action kicks in very early. As well as being noisy this takes its toll by putting heavy wear on the screwdriver bit, it will drive the screw in ok but it takes a long time to do so. Also if a 50mm no2 pozi screw has been driven firmly into a brown plug on a solid red brick wall, such as often found when removing old kitchens units. It often won't shift them where my dewalt 7.2v screwdriver will. To summerize it earns its place in the tool box for removing painted over screws from door and window hinges, also its very light with its lithium batterys that holds their charge well and are always ready, but I find I use the dewalt a lot more.
15 of 16 found the following review helpful:
Almost perfect Jan 30, 2008
By T. Moore
As has been mentioned, this a powerful tool for the size and works well as an impact driver. It is a snap to use and comes with everything you need to get started including driver bits, charger and a nice storage case. The bits are nice enough that I use them with my more powerful LXT drill as well. I actually bought this tool for my wife to use because she wanted a smaller and lighter driver to use in the house.
The biggest drawback is that it doesn't have variable speed. So its either full speed or nothing. That can be a pain if you want a little more control in certain situations, like starting a screw in a tight space. The other small drawback that my wife didn't like is that it looks dingy quickly because of the white exterior. But that doesn't have any effect on the quality of the drill, so its a minor quibble. Overall powerful drill for the size.
11 of 12 found the following review helpful:
 1 speed....not good for me. Jan 02, 2009
By E. Nelson
I have had a couple of cordless screwdrivers in the past. They were always great for small household projects....like fixing toys, installing electrical plates when doing painting projects, etc. My last one died and I asked for a new one for X-mas. When I received this tool (Makita which I normally like) I assumed it would exceed the performance of those other devices. It absolutely did, but it comes at a cost. This thing is too much tool for what I had in mind and I am going to return it and replace with something a little smaller. It has no variable speed which makes it kind of overkill for the kind of tool I had in mind. I am afraid I would break more things than I would fix if I tried to use this and I already have 2 or 3 drills in my workshop. So....don't shy away from this if you need something in lieu of a good drill, but if you already have one this might be redundant...and since it has only 1 speed it might even not be preferable.
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