Over in the UK, Makita has come out with a new 18V line that separates itself from the professional LXT 18V line. Makita calls this new cordless power tool line the G series.
Makita G Series:
The G-series range from Makita is a different lithium-ion battery platform to the Makita LXT range of professional cordless power tools, and is powered exclusively by the G-Series battery and DC18WA charger.
Produced to a quality far exceeding that of DIY products, the G-series range offers a comprehensive catalogue of tools at an attractive market price.
The G-Series battery is identifiable by the white or grey top section, and offers a 1.3 amp hour battery capacity in both 14.4v and 18v platforms. A 60-minute charge time is achieved with the G-Series DC18WA battery charger.
*G-Series batteries are not compatible with the Makita LXT range of cordless tools or chargers.
So these new Makita G series 18V power tools are a step down from their pro LXT line but are a big step up from current DIY entry level 18V products. I would classify their new G series products as midrange 18V power tools as they offer performance similar to pro 18V power tools from only a few years ago. I’d say that about 3-4 years ago they’d pass for pro level with the Makita G series 18V drill coming in at 42Nm (371.73 in-lbs) torque and their Makita G series 18V impact driver at 140Nm (1239.10 in-lbs) torque. These are very respectable numbers even for today, although pro level 18V power tools have far exceeded these numbers.
Also if you take a look at the dimensions of their G series drills and impact driver, they’re much larger and longer in length than today’s best of the best 18V power tools. With rapid improvements in technology, today’s tools are getting more powerful while getting smaller and lighter at the same time meaning these are a step down from today’s best pro level 18V tools.
The new Makita G series 18V power tools use their own battery which may look very similar to LXT 18V Makita batteries, but is different enough that G series power tools and batteries are incompatible with regular Makita 18V LXT power tools.
Currently the Makita 18V G series cordless power tool line includes 7 cordless power tools with a drill/driver, hammer drill, impact driver, jigsaw, stick vacuum, hedge trimmer, and string trimmer. Also part of the Makita G series is a separate 14.4V line which uses 14.4V batteries.
One thing to note is that the G series batteries are only 1.3ah at the moment which means you’re stuck with only low capacity compact batteries. In my opinion this handicaps the system because it prevents the user from taking advantage of longer runtime from larger batteries. And other cordless diy and mid-range level 18v brands do give users options for higher capacity batteries up to 4.0ah for additional runtime.
Another thing I noticed is that many G series tools look very similar in design and quality as current Makita products. This makes me wonder why the need of an additional line. Why not go the route that Dewalt did by adding low capacity batteries, slow chargers, and mid range spec tools like they did with the Dewalt DCD771 to their 18/20V system without the need of fragmenting their cordless line?
I am assuming these new Makita G series cordless power tools will no doubt be much more affordable than their Pro LXT counterparts which is good for those of who want the Makita brand but without the premium price. Unfortunately for those of us here in the USA, there is no word on when or if these new Makita G series cordless power tools will ever make their way stateside.
Why didn’t they do a circular saw in the g-series.