Dewalt’s new DCR015 12V/20V radio charger is a much-awaited addition to their 20V cordless product lineup. We know how much readers have been eager for feedback about the new radio, so we reached out to Coptool, who had a chance to preview a pre-production unit at a recent trade show.
Jay, the editor behind Coptool and associate of Ohio Power Tool, snapped a few photos after demoing the new 20V jobsite radio at STAFDA. We asked Jay for his quick impression and he kindly provided us with the following:
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It was a very nice radio that gives you all the benefits you are looking for from a jobsite stereo including multi-platform battery charging, a variety of media inputs and power outlets to run other tools and chargers. It does it all in a very light weight portable package which will be very handy on the jobsite.
In terms of loudness it seemed to do the job but head to head I’d like to see it up against the Bosch Power Box [on sale via OPT]. Even without the added subwoofer of the Bosch I think it will still hold up pretty nicely.
As expected the jobsite radio has a beefy-looking roll cage and what appears to be added vibration dampening.
2x 120V power outlets that supply your tools and separate chargers when the radio is plugged into an AC power outlet.
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Robust carrying handle and what appears to be a water- and dust-tight multimedia compartment. A USB port charges your mobile devices, while an aux audio port connects to players’ headphone outputs.
The battery charging compartment is enclosed, at the rear of the radio. The radio can be powered by Dewalt’s 12V or 20V Li-ion battery packs, and it can also charge both types of batteries as well.
It is unclear whether the battery charging and media compartments are dust-proof or weather-sealed, but the unit as a whole is not. Scroll back up and you’ll see the exposed AC power outlets. A spring-loaded door to protect the unused outlets, similar to those on the Bosch Power Box 360 we reviewed favorably, would have been a welcome touch.
Additional photos from STAFDA can be found on CopTool’s Facebook page. Jay talks about some of these new products in his What’s New at 2012 STAFDA report, so be sure to check that out as well.
MSRP is $179, and the unit will be available at Dewalt dealers starting April 1st, 2013.
This post was first published on November 17, 2012, and edited on March 20, 2013.
Derrick
I don’t see a charging port for 18v, so will this just be a 20v/12v radio and not support the post style batteries?
Stuart
The model is strictly 12V/20V li-ion compatible.
Jason Offret
You could easily plug an 18v post-style charger into one of the 120v receptacles, you could probably zip tie or hot glue the charger onto the radio 🙂
Stuart
My wife is aghast at your suggestion to hot-glue or zip-tie an 18V charger to the radio.
If the 18V charger has keyhole slots on the back, why not add two screws somewhere on the radio? That way you can “wall mount” the 18V charger to the radio.
joe
ahahaha…i like to hack things to benefit my work. i would probably open the radio up…solder the 18v charger cables from the inside to the outlet and the cut the 18v charger in half (to get rid of ecces plastic) and peregrinate it to the radio somewhere…lol
Jan Erik Hansen
Well…. New batteries is slide on type … so i don´t think they´ll have 2 types of charging , when it´ll demand 2 types of bays.
Jason
Well dewalts plan is to slowly phase out the old post style batteries. I have to say I’m a little underwhelmed between the wait of radio and Dewalts release of the 20v line no company makes a radio even close to the features of the Bosch Job Box radio. Would have been nice if they had bluetooth connectivity as it is the era of smart phones.
Blair
It seems like a whole lot of angst over a radio, I have to agree to some extent with Fred’s comments in an earlier post on this unit. Rarely do we have a radio on a job site, (sometimes I will take one if working alone, or we will be outside, and something important is going on), but to subject clients to our music seems un-professional to me.
It may be a generational thing, but when I worked commercial, there were occasions where there were numerous radios, all tuned to different stations, and cranked to the maximum. You couldn’t really hear anything but noise, and combined with the chop saws, screw guns, delivery trucks, and assorted site related noise, made the job harder(it was difficult to communicate), and unsafe on some levels.
That said, this seems to have a pretty good evaluation, and if I were looking for a radio/charger combo, I would consider this one, especially as most of us have DeWalt tools.
But for now, I will get by with the small radio from the shop when I want it, and my phone will be in my pocket, for the times someone needs to contact me. or I need to make a call.
Rafael Mena
Me gusta la radio DewaltMe
jeth
realy nice radio ! i just wish they are gone to do a battery charger like the DC022 for the 12v-20v line , dual port ,flash light and outlet ,that thing rocks !
Dave
How long will this radio run using either the 12 volt battery or the 20 volt battery?
Jim Farmer
I bought one of these radios and after 18 months the charger quit working, very poor quality product do not pay the extra money for this
Mike
What is the watch battery for? Also, what does the “S” with a square around it mean?
Stuart
If you bought the radio, did you check the manual? I don’t know about the S, but the battery could be to save time and radio preset settings when unplugged.
Benny Wyatt
This products radio (reason I purchased) is far inferior to other radios I currently/have owned. Very disappointed, so much so I have yet to check out other functions. Does DeWalt have a fix for this other than trashing?
Rus
does it matter on the AH on battery. will a 20v 5ah work also in radio
Stuart
That battery should work perfectly.
Forest
How about a Flexvolt battery?
Stuart
I doubt it. This model radio predates FlexVolt by several years.