Most home handypersons – and even the less handy – would agree that a drill is the most useful power tool to own. So our experts put cordless drills to the test, driving screws and drilling holes by the hundred into soft and hard timber, to find the ones that have the best drilling performance, torque and ease of use.
Our expert testers
CHOICE maintains a highly professional NATA-accredited laboratory and the vast majority of our product testing is done in-house. Our cordless drill test is no exception.
Many of our product test methods are based on Australian technical standards, but for products like drills, where there aren’t any particular official performance standards, we devise a test method based on practical tests to cover how the product is typically used by people.
How we choose what we test
We test cordless drills/drivers as these are the most popular type of drill for home users. Our aim is to test popular consumer-grade and entry-level professional equipment which is readily available at major retailers like Bunnings and Mitre 10.
We survey manufacturers to find out about their range of products, we check market sales information, and we also check for any member requests to test specific brands or models. From this information we put together a final list that goes to our buyers.
They then head out to the retailers and purchase each product, just as a regular consumer would. We do this so we can be sure the products are the same as any consumer would find them and not ‘tweaked’ in any way.
This is based on the time taken to drill 10 holes with a 13mm spade bit through 45mm hardwood (we use spotted gum). The faster the time, the better the score.
Torque score
This is based on screwing TEK screws of two different sizes (14G 50mm and 14G 75mm, 25 of each) into treated pine (96mm deep). The more screws screwed in (fully flush with the wood), the higher the score.
Ease of use
The drills are assessed for weight and balance, as well as grip comfort.
How we score cordless drills
The overall score is made up of:
ease of use (40%)
drilling performance (30%)
torque (30%).
We recommend cordless drill models with a CHOICE Expert Rating of 80% or more.
In my current role I manage a range of product review projects for CHOICE. Most product reviews are done here in the CHOICE labs, but my focus is on those projects where we partner with external labs or data sources.
For some product types, CHOICE doesn't have the facilities to perform testing, and usually it wouldn't be practical or economic for us to build them. So we partner with other expert labs for some tests, including solar panels, electric heaters, air purifiers and detergents. For some other projects we make use of government energy registry data, including air conditioners and heat pump hot water systems.
I also manage our testing services through our commercial arm, Test Research, and I'm CHOICE's NATA Authorised Representative for all matters relating to to our lab's formal accreditations. I'm involved with the standards committee for air conditioners. I often liaise with government and industry in areas such as product safety and regulation.
In over 20 years at CHOICE, I've had a variety of positions, writing content and managing lab teams for a wide range of products, including children's products, kitchen appliances, laundry appliances, garden power tools and more.
My background is in science and technology. I have a science degree from the University of Sydney and I had a 15-year career in IT before joining CHOICE in 2004. CHOICE lets me exercise both sides of my brain; there's nothing I like better than diving into a stack of technical data and turning it into useful, consumer-friendly info for you, our members. (Though sampling pizza and scones from our oven testing is pretty nice, too.)
You can find me on Twitter (X) and LinkedIn.
In my current role I manage a range of product review projects for CHOICE. Most product reviews are done here in the CHOICE labs, but my focus is on those projects where we partner with external labs or data sources.
For some product types, CHOICE doesn't have the facilities to perform testing, and usually it wouldn't be practical or economic for us to build them. So we partner with other expert labs for some tests, including solar panels, electric heaters, air purifiers and detergents. For some other projects we make use of government energy registry data, including air conditioners and heat pump hot water systems.
I also manage our testing services through our commercial arm, Test Research, and I'm CHOICE's NATA Authorised Representative for all matters relating to to our lab's formal accreditations. I'm involved with the standards committee for air conditioners. I often liaise with government and industry in areas such as product safety and regulation.
In over 20 years at CHOICE, I've had a variety of positions, writing content and managing lab teams for a wide range of products, including children's products, kitchen appliances, laundry appliances, garden power tools and more.
My background is in science and technology. I have a science degree from the University of Sydney and I had a 15-year career in IT before joining CHOICE in 2004. CHOICE lets me exercise both sides of my brain; there's nothing I like better than diving into a stack of technical data and turning it into useful, consumer-friendly info for you, our members. (Though sampling pizza and scones from our oven testing is pretty nice, too.)
You can find me on Twitter (X) and LinkedIn.
