6 New Dewalt Atomic Compact Series 20V Cordless Power Tools

Last month Dewalt announced 6 new compact cordless 20V power tools with a new Atomic branding. The new Dewalt ATOMIC Compact Series tools are said to combine performance and durability in a compact format. They are said to be optimized for tight spaces, overhead work, and for long periods of use. For general contractors, remodelers, electricians, mechanical and HVAC tradespeople, plumbers, cabinetry and furniture builders, these tools serve users in a wide variety of applications. These six new cordless tools include a compact drill/driver and compact impact driver that will both be available this spring 2019, a compact hammer drill, compact circular saw and compact oscillating multitool that will be available in fall 2019 and in early 2020 there will be a compact reciprocating saw.

My thoughts:

While Dewalt’s 12V tools are still kicking, it’s no surprise that their smaller 12V tools are not as popular and widespread as other brands like Makita, Bosch and Milwaukee and the Atomic tools might be Dewalt’s way of bringing more smaller more portable cordless tools onto the jobsite under their brand. This is a similar move to what Makita did with their black bodied sub compact tools part of the 18V system that offer the size and weight convenience of 12V tools but without having to actually go 12 volt, however Makita has a thriving 12V system with lots of options and continued support.

Looking at Dewalt’s Atomic drill/driver, it’s at an extremely compact 6.3 inches in length a nd 2.8 lbs (with battery) which puts it into 12 volt size and weight territory but all while utilizing Dewalt’s more popular 20V batteries.

Performance (on paper) appears to be above what you’d see on the higher performance end of 12 volt with 340 UWO of performance on their drill/driver and 1,700 in-lbs of torque for their atomic impact. UWO is Dewalt’s personal choice for measuring performance on their drills however it is not exactly compatible with standard torque ratings meaning you can’t directly compare UWO versus torque ratings while window shopping but I have tried their DCD771 drill which is rated at 300 UWO and I’d say it’s easily more powerful than a 12V drill that has 350 in-lbs torque. I’d say the DCD771 probably has at least 400 in-lbs torque if not more and the Dewalt Atomic drill/driver is rated at 340 UWO making it a bit stronger than the DCD771. Looking at the Dewalt Atomic impact driver, it has a much higher torque rating than even the best 12V impacts on the market, 1,700 on the Atomic versus 1,300 in-lbs torque of the best 12V impact drivers today.

Looking at the atomic compact circular saw and reciprocating saw, they too look like 12V models adapted for 20V batteries. The compact circular saw uses a tiny 4-1/2″ blade and appears to be good for one handed operation although it might be a bit long to comfortably use one handed but it does incorporate a second handle for use with the left hand. I’m surprised they didn’t go with a larger 5-3/8″ blade like Milwaukee did with their 12V model but at least Dewalt’s compact circular saw is said to have enough cut capacity to cut through a 2×4 in one pass. Their atomic reciprocating saw looks like it’s based on Milwaukee’s hackzall design making it a one handed recip saw. While they do offer an atomic compact oscillating multitool, it’s hard to tell how much smaller it is than their current cordless 20V model.

So far most if not all of the Atomic models have brushless motors which is a step in the right direction as they can offer the most performance in a small package.

Available Spring 2019

• 20V MAX* Compact Drill/Driver
  • Kitted with two compact batteries: $159 MSRP (DCD708C2)
  • Bare (without batteries): $119 MSRP (DCD708B)

• 20V MAX* Compact Impact Driver
  • Kitted with two compact batteries: $159 MSRP (DCF809C2)
  • Bare (without batteries): $119 (DCF809B)

Available Fall 2019

• 20V MAX* Compact Hammer Drill/Driver
  • Kitted with two compact batteries: $179 MSRP (DCD709C2)
  • Bare (without batteries): $129 (DCD709B)

• 20V MAX* Compact Circular Saw
  • Kitted with one 5.0Ah battery: $269 MSRP (DCS571P1)
  • Bare (without batteries): $149 MSRP (DCS571B)

• 20V MAX* Compact Oscillating Multi-Tool
  • Bare (without batteries): $129 MSRP (DCS354B)

Available Early 2020

• 20V MAX* Compact Reciprocating Saw
  • Pricing to be determined for the DCS369

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