Where to Buy

The hardware stores sell many power tools that include cordless drill and such. You will find popular brands of cordless tools at True Value Hardware, Ace Hardware, Orchard Supply Hardware, Sears, Target, Home Depot, Lowe's, and even Walmart. Specialty tools stores like Woodcraft and Rockler also have them.

When you have narrowed your likely buying choices down to a few, you may want to take advantage of the convenience of online shopping: it allows you to do price comparison of a product by several vendors, without having to go physically from one store to another. Both Ebay.com and Amazon.com give you this option of direct online product search. Simply go to their websites and enter the brand or model name in the seach box, for example bosch 14.4v cordless drill, and see the result right away.

Amazon.com provides a customer review section, when available, in the product sales page. This invaluable information come from real buyers. Their experience can clearly qualify the worthiness of the product. You can buy a product either new or used at Amazon and Ebay. Great bargains may be found in the used ones such as auction items or refurbished units. If you are interested in auction items, be prepared wait through the listing period, which can take days, and be alert on the last few minutes because a lot of bidding action may take place at that time.

Which One is the Best Buy?

Everybody loves to get the best deal for his money. Where can you get the cheapest price? Which tool has the best quality? Will the tool handle whichever kind of work we throw at it? Will it last long? Is there a combo deal that saves extra money? When is the next big sale?

Here lies the trouble of seeking out a best deal. Shopping is almost like an investigative research for information. It's easy to get lost while searching for a best buy because there are numerous choices and so much information to sort through. Thus it's great if you come across a best deal by luck. If you don't want to depend on luck, it's better to have a strategy to help with making a buying decision.

Strategy

• Set a budget for the tool based on your overall budget.
  • small budget: simple home projects, arts/crafts, small repair.
  • medium budget: kitchen, bath, yard, shed, furniture, storage shelf.
  • large budget: professional construction, remodelling projects.
  • gift budget: holidays and anniversaries. This budget is dependent upon who that person is to you. In general, the cordless drill tool is a great present for men. Ladies also like cordless tools, as many of them are taking on the Do-It-Yourself jobs themselves. Many guys may have a tool collection that already includes a cordless drill. In that case, get a cordless screwdriver or an impact driver for them instead. For ladies, a compact cordless drill or pocket driver are quite suitable.
• Get the highest-priced item within the your budget.
  • Cost is a reflection of quality. Getting the highest-price item means you are getting the best quality in that price range. Going for the top quality is a fine mindset. But take care to avoid getting overboard and over budget. On the other hand, beware of the temptation of getting the cheapest one, thinking that it will be adequate. It usually isn't in the long run. As for deciding on a brand it's probably not that significant. Brand-name cordless drills are of similar quality given a similar price range. If you discover a model that's slightly above your budget, but has outstandingly good features, then it may not be a bad idea to adjust your budget. You will be happier with a higher quality tool as time goes by, as the hidden virtues of the tool slowly reveal themselves. And the resale price of the tool will be greater when you want to upgrade. You can also give it to someone else to continue making a good use of it.
• Save money by shopping auction item, refurbished unit, or used item.
  • Used cordless tools often still work very well, with or without cosmetic defects. Popular brands such as Makita or Panasonic or Dewalt build their tools to last. The battery is what matters. It needs replaced eventually and is very pricey. If you can be certain that the battery is working like new, then an used tool can be a real bargain.
  • Refurbished, or reconditioned, products are like-new products. The maker gets return products for one reason or another. Many of the returned products have no functional problem at all. So the company tests, re-packages, and puts them back to sell at a reduced price. I have bought many refurbished items. They look and work like new but are a lot cheaper. I haven't run into trouble with them and don't imagine them to be any more risky than the new ones. As long as the refurbished product comes with a warranty, it's a great deal.
• Wait for clearance or holiday sale to get big discounts.
  • Big holidays are shoppers' workout days. But on Labor Day or Father's Day, deep discounts for tool items are not often seen. The better bet may be the inventory clearance sale. For that you can check with the store directly to find out when that may be.