For the past 10 years, consumers have been part of a vast social experiment to evaluate tool performance. This study focused not on objective testing or specs, but rather, tool color. Professor Jim Smallet of the Michigan Institute of Tool Technology (MiTT) led the study which tabulated over 657 trillion social media posts concerning power tools.
NOTE: This was an April Fool’s post from 2019
First, the study started with Instagram, Facebook, and Youtube survey data. Next, they added online forums. Finally, after intense database analysis and data correlation, the study revealed something unexpected. Tool color apparently affects performance—and in a big way.
Repeatedly, it was demonstrated online that simply by way of a tool’s colors being yellow and black, red, teal, blue, or even orange, they could supersede even objective performance specs from other tools. Which tools performed best by color? Data showed a huge correlation between yellow and black colors dramatically overriding any objective data. Red and Teal seemed to alternate back and forth depending on which released the latest tool. Blue dominated much of the concrete tool categories and Orange colors raised performance on those expressing a need for value-based tools.
“The correlations are undeniable. Tool color clearly has more to do with performance than objective data. There’s simply no other explanation. We’ve contacted PTI, UL, and NIST, but have yet to hear back regarding their take on our findings. They may, however, simply be on Spring Break.”
Jim Smallet, professor, Michigan Institute of Tool Technology (MiTT)
Editor’s Note: Based on these findings all future Pro Tool Reviews tool shootouts will be replaced with results derived from an in-house color wheel and a dartboard. Stay tuned for updated ratings!
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