Ryobi ONE+ drills, any good?

[John Hunter]

I have the ryobi ONE+ 18 volt drill/driver and the right angle drill. Love them and I especially like the price of the 18 volt batteries! Two pack for $39.97

[Hoyden]

I have used my ryobi to build 3 decks alongside porter cable and dewalt. I love my ryobi. Worked all day alongside both PC and Dewalt, my batteries lasted longer.

Them that has Ryobi love Ryobi, them that has Dewalt loves Dewalt etc.

Personally though the price comparison says buy Ryobi.

[maxparot]

The Ryobi One+ drill is made well enough that it is worth what they sell for. The real advantage of the Ryobi One+ system is the number of different tools that use the same batteries. Yes there are other brands that may have sets that will give you all the tools you need. But the Ryobi system allows you to purchase the tools you need as you need them at a fair price. The other advantage and it is a big one is the price of replacement batteries. At $24 each or 2 for $40 Ryobi 18v One+ batteries are a bargain!

[Tree Farmer]

I have a couple of Ryobi 18v drill/drivers, and they've done fine by me. Now, if I were a professional tradesman, that experience would perhaps change. I've used (borrowed or used intermittently) a lot of different brands of drills/drivers with excellent performance and with pro-level price tags: PC, Makita, DeWalt, Hitachi, Milwaukee, Bosch. I've also had or used a couple of real dogs: Skil and "old" Craftsman. The Ryobi really knocked my socks off, as it performs nearly as well (or as well) as the pro tools, but at about 1/2 or 1/3 the price. As a DIYer, you really can't go wrong with them.

Now....some drills I've never tried that I'd like to test-drive: the Panasonic, the new Makita and Milwaukee lithiums, and those weird-looking German-made Festool thingies that Richard Trethewy and Tom Silva are so fond of...you figure they have to be good for those guys to use them.