One of my favorite product-centric quotes is attributable to Paul Niemann of MarketLaunchers.com “The world doesn’t want a product that’s 15 years ahead of its time, the world wants a product that’s 15 minutes ahead of its time. Here’s another one: “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” OK, now that’s an expression you hear a lot. These two quotes illustrate the fact that sometimes innovation is a very tricky endeavor. You have to make sure that what you’re innovating is truly advanced enough, or helpful enough, to warrant a change, but not so advanced as to be rejected by the very people you are trying to reach. The new 12V 909 (pronounced “Nine Zero Nine”) T124 Touch Drill and T12ID4 Impact Driver ride this line in a way no one has before. We took it upon ourselves to check out these new tools and render our opinion on whether they are advanced in a helpful way—or just over-engineered.
Features: Theory vs Practice
Variable Speed Pressure Switches
The big deal about 909’s new 12V Touch tools is that they use a variable speed touch-based control (really “pressure-sensitive” control would be more accurate) to allow the tool to engage in forward or reverse simply by applying pressure to either the top or bottom pads which serve as a trigger. It’s very similar to what you might have experienced in some corded tools that have rocker switches—but requiring less pressure. You press both buttons to “wake up” the tool, and then you simply grip it as you would any other drill or driver.
When you apply pressure to the top button, the tool drives in forward gear, gradually picking up speed as you slowly apply more pressure—or going full tilt if you lay into it. To switch to reverse, you simply press the bottom button with your middle finger while easing off the top with your index. It’s very natural and intuitive. Compared to a drill or driver with a traditional trigger, I found the tool to offer less gradual speed control. It has less “finesse” than most traditional triggers I’ve used. But, I have to admit, I rarely need such finesse in the ways that I typically use a drill or impact driver. I was still able to slow down the chuck enough to start my screws or fasteners, and jumping through the range of speed didn’t require a huge learning curve. 909 claims that this system actually makes the tool 30% faster to use in forward and reverse because you no longer have to flip your thumb up to switch modes. It is indeed faster, but I’ve never been in that much of a hurry to go from forward to reverse to appreciate it.
One thing I did run into was that, when changing bits on the 909 Touch Impact Driver, I kept activating the tool with my hand as I held it. I’m used to placing my hand underneath the chuck and changing bits with the tool facing outward. Doing this with the 909 will, more often than not, land you with your pinky engaging the forward trigger button. If the tool isn’t in sleep mode, that will spin up the chuck on you while you’re trying to flip out the bit—not a great experience. I quickly learned to work around this but felt it was worth noting.
Verdict: Successful innovation that’s not something users are clamoring for, but generally doesn’t get in the way of working the way you’re used to.
4 Ah Battery Pack
Including a 4 Ah lithium-ion battery pack is a stroke of genius for 909. Right out of the gate they get to take advantage of increased run-time and the additional power density of the newer cells. They even released a 2.0 Ah pack for when you simply want a lighter-weight tool and don’t need all of the run-time of the fat pack. This is a real win and there’s not much you can ding on the choice. I also liked the form factor of the batteries. The squared-off shape lets you stand the tool up, though it’s a bit top-heavy. Compared to in-handle solutions, though, you do get a much more stable tool that looks like a reduced-calorie version of an 18V tool.
Verdict: The perfect battery form factor and an innovation that more manufacturers need to get on board with.
2-Speed Side Action Gearbox
The side-mounted gearbox is actually quite nice. It allows you to swing your thumb up (if you’re right-handed, anyway) and change gearbox between low (0-440 RPM) and high (0-1450 RPM) speeds. I found it to be very easy to use and I rather liked the positioning compared to the traditional top-mounted gearboxes I’m used to. This feature makes the 909 T124 Drill/Driver a true one-handed tool since every drilling and driving feature (save bit changes) can be done with just one hand. If you’re left-handed you won’t fare as well, but that’s a reasonable compromise in my opinion (which is easy for me to say since I’m right-handed).
Verdict: A brilliant and new ergonomic design that we’d like to see on more cordless 12V tools. It takes sides with right-handers, but a dual-sided switch could potentially take care of that issue.
Ergonomics
I don’t know too many people who would take or leave a drill based on how it feels in the hand, but it’s nice to note that the 909 0Touch is very comfortable to use. It has a nice thin rubberized handle that is smaller than 12V tools whose handles also store the stem of a battery pack. Since these drills use standard slide packs, the handles are free to be sculpted, and Nine Zero Nine did just that. In addition to comfort, the tool feels like you can lay it down without having to worry about anything snapping off on you. There’s also an included belt clip that screws onto either side of the tool and lets you sling up the 909 Touch drill or impact driver to your belt. Lastly, there’s a wrist strap attached to the base of the tool, just above the battery which is a nice feature when working high off the ground. As someone who has dropped a tool or two in my time, this is a nice feature not to overlook.
Verdict: Comfortable and the LED delay is a welcome feature I wish more drills had.
Everything Else
Both the 909 Touch Pro Drill/Driver and the Touch Pro Impact Driver use a brushed motor rather than the newer brushless technology. At $199 each, that makes them rather expensive for what is a conventional tool with a fancy trigger mechanism. It’s a bit unfortunate that 909 didn’t also advance its motors, but the performance certainly doesn’t seem to suffer—they simply could have potentially garnered additional torque or run-time.
The tool comes with a charger that will completely charge a 4 Ah battery in 60 minutes or the 2 Ah slim pack in 30 minutes. That’s not super-fast in our book, but it is quick. In fact, it’s on par with the time it takes most 3.0 Ah batteries to charge in the 12V category. We also love that the tool has an on-board LED light that tells you the battery charge status. Green means its got at least 75% charge, Yellow indicates less than that and Red means it’s about time to charge your battery pack.
When you activate the tool, and indeed anytime you operate it after that, the LED lights up for about 5 seconds. That lets you use the drill as an impromptu flashlight if you need to locate a fastener or even just find something in a dimly lit area.
The 1/2-inch keyless chuck on the 909 Touch Drill/Driver is unusual, and Milwaukee Electric’s new 12V Fuel line is about the only other brand whose 12V tools have chucks of that capacity. The 17-position locking clutch lets you dial in fasteners and torque exactly how you need to, and you can really get into a groove when doing serial fastening applications.
Specifications
- Voltage: 12V
- Battery: 4.0 Ah lithium-ion
- Motor: Brushed
- Charge time: 1 hour (30 minutes for optional 2.0 Ah pack)
- Speed (drill/driver): 0-440 / 0-1450 RPM
- Speed (impact driver): 2300 RPM
- IPM (impact driver): 3000
- Clutch control (drill): 17 positions
- Torque (drill): 282 in-lbs. (322 in-lbs. measured)
- Torque (impact driver): 885 in-lbs.
- Chuck (drill): 1/2 in keyless
- Weight (drill): 4 lbs.
- Weight (impact driver): 7.1 lbs.
- Warranty: 909 days
In-the-Field Testing
I tested the Nine Zero Nine Touch Pro Drill and Impact Drivers by driving in a series of screws and lags into pressure treated 4x4s. The run-time on this tool is above average, but it also has a battery with twice the amp-hour rating of other drills we tested. While our testing ended up being a bit skewed as a result, the 909 Touch Pro Impact Driver sank over 200 2″ course thread drywall screws into our test material before the battery ran out. As for lags, the impact driver sank the test 5/16″ x 4″ bolt to a depth of 82%, making it about average in our testing.
On both the 909 Touch Drill, and the 909 Touch Impact Driver, speed was measured at within 5% of manufacturers specs, and the drill actually measured 322 in-lbs of torque (about 14% more torque than what it is rated). There was a bit of “wobble” on the impact driver bit—something we see with a lot of 12V tools, actually—but it settled down once the bit was seated in the fastener and allowed for smooth bit driving or removal.
I like the compact nature of these tools, and the short length of the 909 T124 Drill allowed me to insert it down into the engine compartment of a Jeep in order to drill out a new whole to replace a temperature sensor. I would not have been able to do that with any of my 18V tools.
Pricing
- 909 12-Volt 4Ah Touch Pro Impact Driver kit (T12ID4) – $199 Buy online
- 909 12-Volt 4Ah Touch Pro Drill Drivers with 1/2 in. Chuck kit (T124) – $199 Buy online
- 909 12-Volt 4 ah Lithium-Ion Touch Pro Battery (TB124A) – $100
- 909 12-Volt 2 ah Lithium-Ion Touch Pro Battery (TB122A) – $70
After using both tools for a time I gained some additional thoughts about both the drill and impact driver and, in particular, about the new Touch system itself. Overall, I found that I had to apply more pressure to the buttons on the 909 Touch Pro series drivers in order to keep them running at top speed. That means more hand fatigue. While a standard trigger has a longer throw, they don’t require a lot of effort to keep them in the ‘On’ position. The constant pressure required to keep the 909’s running is a definite trade-off for the technology. These buttons are dependent upon constant pressure—and a considerable amount of it compared to a standard trigger. Without having used a trigger pull gauge or other force measurement tool, I’d say the force required is at least twice as much. Over time, that could cause some issues for some who may be doing serial drilling or fastening applications. For the casual or occasional user it won’t be an issue.
Conclusion
At $199 per tool, Nine Zero Nine’s Touch Pro Impact Driver and Drill aren’t cheap new entries to the market. In fact, they are among the most expensive 12V tools you can buy. The big question is, will consumers (you) pay that much to get into a platform that only has a couple tools at present and offers a brand new dynamic for how the tool is used? That remains to be seen. The performance of both tools is impressive in terms of torque and speed. The 1/2″ chuck on the 909 T124 isn’t just for show, it really can drive larger drill bits and fasteners and the steady performance of the 909 T12ID4 put that tool right on par with other models we’ve tested.
