Bosch Power Tools Drill Driver Kit DDB181-02 - 18V Cordless Drill/Driver Tool Set with 2 Lithium Ion Batteries, 18 Volt Charger, & Soft Carry Contractor Bag

I have been using a very heavy porter cable drill, with 14v battery, for years until the last battery finally died. If you know anything about battery operated tools you know a new battery usually costs more than a new tool. When I started looking for a new drill it had to meet a few criteria:1) It had to be lightweight. I’m tired of having my hands twisted off at the wrist.2) It had to have two batteries. No waiting for a battery to charge and an included battery is cheaper than buying a separate battery.3) It had to be Bosch. I learned long ago “You buy a good tool once. You buy a cheap tool twice.” I own a few Dewalt and Porter Cable tools but Bosch has always been my favorite when I could afford it.The DDB181-02 is perfect for my use. I can’t believe how light-weight it is! I don’t have to hold it with both hands to keep it from getting away from me. The rubber-coated grip fits my wimpy little hand easily. I can remove and replace the battery without help. It is compatible with all 18v Bosch Lithium batteries. The two-speed transmission is easy to operate. Attaching the bits is a snap. One double-ended Phillips bit included. There is an LED work light. How cool is that? You get the BC660 charging battery pack. It has one light; blinking for fast charging, steady for charged.The soft-sided case is fine for my use. It has a Velcro strap to hold the drill and a mesh pouch to hold instructions etc. There is a belt clip included which can be attached on either side of the drill, for right or left hand.Bosch makes an almost identical model,DDB182-02 I think, which is brush- less but I think that might be over-kill for a DIY’r.Made in Malaysia. One year warranty.

My original review is below, but, as you can see, I have changed it, giving this Bosch drill, and the Bosch company, the five stars they deserve!! Let me catch you up: I was disappointed that the drill stripped out, because my husband loved this drill, and used it a LOT. He is a project, DIY kind of guy. He told me this was the best drill he had ever owned, and he has owned about every name-brand drill there is, both rechargeable, and corded. So, whe it stripped out, just a little over a year out, and the warranty here on Amazon had expired, I was really disappointed. BUT - let me give Amazon props here - I applied for, and got, the Amazon Visa, and got a $70.00 gift card, with which I paid the majority of buying another Bosch drill, just like this one...so, it only cost me around $20.00. THEN, my husband, Mr. DIY - Persistent kind of guy - called the Bosch company direct, and they paid for us to ship the broken drill to them, repaired the drill, and shipped it back, at $0 cost to us! (I know, right?) So, my hubby now has TWO wonderful Bosch drills, at a cost of $20.00 out of pocket! (I paid the Amazon Chase card off, right away, to avoid interest.)Original review:(Only giving two stars, because, even though this is a five star drill while it works, it stripped out internally after owning it for one year, three and a half months...just past the warranty date of one year. A drill that costs this much should last longer than a little over a year. My husband absolutely loved this drill. So disappointed!)

Initial impressions. Will update later as required. I have owned a Bosch 18 volt drill/driver for a few years. It has been awesome. I also have a Bosch 18 volt, handheld vacuum, and a reciprocating saw. Figured I needed some more batteries. A fat pack would have been nice, but this was too good to pass up. Two more slim packs, another drill/driver and charger, essentially; for free. I had asked the question of the people; "have they improved the chuck?" The chuck is not great on the older one. The response was, paraphrasing: "seems fine to me". It would appear to me as well, that the chuck is MUCH improved. This is a great drill. Not sure why everyone doesn't do this, but having the light down on the base works great! No shadows as others have pointed out. Seriously, others... a light on the body behind the chuck is useless. A few observations though. This is even more compact than the older version. I don't have the specs on the old one, but if will be interesting to see if as powerful (the old one is a beast, given the size). The motor is much smaller. Second, the two batteries are 1.5 amp, with no fuel gauge. They have no label that my old eyes can read, maybe 611's? My old one also has 1.5 amp BAT610Gs, with fuel gauge. I think the more expensive, newer versions come with 2.0 amp batteries. Still a good deal. But know what you're getting. Pic is of the old (left) next to the new.

These observations are based on only a short period of usage. Long term battery life etc to be determined. First off, weight wise it is similar to my 12 volt dewalt even though it is 18 volt. The Driver itself feels good in my hand, seems to be sturdily constructed. The forward reverse switch is a slider just like my dewalt. Being left handed this occasionally causes problems as my forfinger tends to bump it. Haven't had a chance yet to drive more than a few screws and drill some small pilot holes. However it performed both these tasks without problems. I do like the fact that its overall size is smaller than my other drill and the soft sided case holds all the parts nicely. Additionally, there is a inside screen flap that holds my assortment of screw driver bits, and pilot drill bits.

I love this drill. The batteries hold a charge for a very long time and there is a lot of power available. It comes with two batteries, a charger and one bit which is a double ended crosspoint. The charger is fast when you need it, which isn't very often since they hold a charge for a long time.The drill itself has plenty of power and it's compact which is a bonus for getting into tight places. It has a light that shines right on the spot you're aiming at and if you put a little pressure on the trigger, it lights up the space or screw head, you're trying to find.It has a nice soft sided case which is convenient but doesn't offer much protection for the drill itself. All in all, I couldn't imagine a better drill!