Milwaukee M12 seems to be the largest – and most popular – 12V-class cordless power tool system (definitely in the USA), but it wasn’t the first of its kind.
Most pro cordless power tool brands launched their 12V platforms many years ago, and the order was difficult to dig up.
Luckily, I did the research a few years ago in a post that sought to explain how Dewalt’s 20V Max wasn’t the first cordless power system to adopt “max” voltage nomenclature rather than simply going with 18V.
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See: Dewalt 20V Max vs 18V – a Simple Answer & History Lesson
Following is the approximate launch order with high certainty, sourced from press releases, investor announcements, and at some point ToolGuyd news posts and email conversations.
2006 May: Bosch announced 10.8V PS20 Pocket Driver
2007 October: Milwaukee announced a “12-Volt Sub-Compact driver” (2401-22)
2008 July: Bosch switches to 12V Max terminology
2008 July: Makita announces first 10.8V tools
2008 October: Milwaukee announced M12 Hackzall (2420-22)
2010 June: Dewalt announces 12V Max cordless power tool system
2010 November: Makita switches to 12V Max terminology
2011 June: Dewalt announces 20V Max cordless power tool system
By brand rather than chronological order:
Bosch 12V Max (10.8V): 2006
Milwaukee M12: 2007
Makita 12V Max (10.8V, stem design): 2008
Dewalt 12V Max: 2010
Makita 12V Max CXT (form factor change): 2015
Dewalt 12V Max Xtreme (brushless refresh): 2019
Bosch and Makita started off with 10.8V nomenclature, which is the nominal voltage for 12V Max battery packs, in the same way that 18V represents the nominal voltage of 20V Max batteries.
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Bosch quickly pivoted to 12V Max labeling following the launch of Milwaukee’s M12 tools, and then Makita did the same once Dewalt’s 12V Max system entered the market.
While you’re here, let’s talk a little more about 12V-class cordless power tool systems.
Bosch, Milwaukee, and Makita (initially) went with stem-style battery packs.
Dewalt and Makita (later, in 2015) went with slide-style battery packs.
Most other modern 12V cordless power tool systems also have slide-style batteries.
Hilti 12V tools, for example, have a similar form factor.
The same is trye for Metabo, Metabo HPT (formerly Hitachi), and others.
Ingersoll Rand announced their IQV12 series of compact power tools in late 2013.
Stem-style 12V cordless power tools tend to be more compact, as the battery plugs into the handle. Slide-style 12V cordless power tools tend to have slimmer grips, as the battery connects at the end of the handle.
Bosch and Makita started off with 10.8V labeling. Milwaukee went with 12V and then M12, and Dewalt started with 12V Max.
I once asked Milwaukee Tool about the M12 labeling, and was told that their original batteries did in fact deliver a nominal voltage of 12V. I can’t say when that changed, but improvements in cordless battery tech came in 2010 when Milwaukee announced new RedLithium batteries in 2010.
Milwaukee and Bosch have multi-voltage chargers, which can recharge the brands’ 12V and 18V-class batteries. This is the standard for Milwaukee, while Bosch’s multi-voltage charger is an optional upgrade.
Dewalt’s adoption of a slide-style form factor allows for more compact multi-voltage chargers, as their 12V and 20V Max (18V nominal) class platforms both have slide-style batteries.
Multi-voltage chargers go back quick a bit. Makita’s 18V charger, for example, can also recharge their 14.4V batteries.
I wonder how much of an impact Milwaukee’s charger had on M12 adoption and popularity, especially the brand’s decision to include a multi-voltage charger with every M18 cordless power tool kit.
But then again, nearly ever Dewalt 20V Max cordless power tool is also kitted with a multi-voltage charger that can recharge their 12V Max battery packs.
Readers occasionally comment about how different tools are “late to the market.” However, history has shown us that tools or product system don’t have to be first in order to be the biggest or best.
I think that Milwaukee’s M12 cordless power tool system is proof that the disadvantages of being a later entry could dissolve over time. Milwaukee’s Packout modular tool box system is another excellent example of this.
I find the origins and evolutions of 12V cordless power tool systems to be quite interesting, especially the very different paths that Milwaukee and competing brands took over the years.
TomD
The early M12 tools were nothing to write home about. But continued iteration and improvements over time build an impressive assortment of tools.
The intentional strategic use of M12 for a lot of the specialized tools has helped, too.
The battery packs being instantly and visually identifiable as not being the M18 is also nice.
Most Milwaukee enjoyers will say that they have one battery system even if they have M18 and M12.
Bonnie
I think the thing that really set M12 apart eventually was the commitment to a broad system of tools. Everyone else kind of just stuck to the core basics (drill, driver, couple saws), treating their 12V systems as secondary or casual homeowner style tools. Like Bosch only really pushed their little installation drivers and drills which were (and I think still are) incredibly popular, but they’re not making 12V ratchets, transfer pumps, caulking guns, etc.
Makita and DeWalt also both ended up pushing more on compact 18v tools than subcompact 12V.
As much as I don’t love the ergonomics of M12 tool grips, staying the course and not having to start over from scratch with sliders really did help them establish that broad appeal and keep their market share.
Luis
Bosch DOES have a 12V ratchet. They have also had brushless orbital sanders, a planer, compact router and some other tools that were not even available on M12 until recently. Of course they still have a fraction of what M12 or Bosch 18V (the core lineup) have, but apart from the ratchet they also introduced a bunch of detail polishers and a bigger orbit sander this year. They’re #2 or #3 biggest 12V lineup despite not being well represented in brick and mortar stores.
Agreed about the stem kind of batteries. It was the right call for M12 and for the average Joe it can be perceived as the most compact solution despite not being the most ergonomic solution.
Bonnie
I’d forgotten they announced that 12v ratchet for the UK, good point. Did it ever make it over to the states?
S
This comment represents one of the biggest issues with Bosch.
No one really knows what they offer.
About 15 years ago, I fully committed to changing all of my power tool from ridgids limited ‘core offerings’, and researched every brand I could find and every sales avenue I could aquire the brand through.
I ended up with Milwaukee, and still use them, specifically because of the sheer variety of tools compatible with only 2 battery types.
But in that research, Bosch became a surprise contender. I had no idea they offered so many tool options, in so similar genres as Milwaukee.
But it came down to availability. Bosch is available a lot of places online only, which meant if my drill went down, I was out of work for the unknown 3-30 days it took to express ship a new one–not all online retailers are fast. And that was a variable I wasn’t comfortable carrying.
Stuart
https://toolguyd.com/bosch-cordless-ratchets-launch/
Not yet. Some Bosch 12V tools never do.
Lance
Bosch PS20, the original)and still the best) screwdriver I’ve ever used. It’s the only tool I miss from the 12v Bosch lineup.
rob masek
I loved the Craftsman Nextec system. It wasn’t “professional”, But I did a lot of work with them over the years. I have bought into a few systems that died, Craftsman c3 and Nextec, and i feel like Makita lxt gets nothing new. https://toolguyd.com/tag/craftsman-nextec/?utm_source=post&utm_medium=web&utm_campaign=tag
Luis
Makita LXT is clearly not the brand’s core lineup anymore. But it’s still their most expansive lineup to date and it seems they’re back from standby with their 21700 cell batteries, now up to 12Ah in capacity
Stuart
Nextec was great. I hoped that Skil, now owned by the company (Chervon) that developed Nextec tools for Craftsman, would unleash the full potential that Sears turned their backs on.
Norm
Yep. That was my first tool set. I wish milwaukee would come out with that hammer. Loved the thing.
Stuart
I believe Chervon (Skil) holds a patent that prevents other brands from launching auto hammers. Ryobi had an 18V model for a short time, and if I recall correctly there was a lawsuit or similar disagreement over the IP.
Jronman
Festool had a brushless C12 driver back in 2005. I don’t know if they had 10.8/12v max tools before then.
Peter
Yeah, I was about to say that.
I have one in a drawer waiting for some batteries.
Was/is maybe still is a great tool.
Luis
was that a Li-ion system, though?
Matt_T
Was introduced as Ni-mh, then upgraded to Li-ion in 2010, according to a quick web search. So it’s just a late to market 12V Ni-xx battery which is closer to last than first.
If we were discussing brushless motors the Festool might be first….
Stuart
Many brands had NiCad-powered tools. What I’m talking about here are modern Li-ion tool systems, where 12V max battery packs are based on 3-cell arrays of 18650 battery cells.
Peter
Sorry I missed that.
Stuart
It was a good point to bring up, but without digging into other predecessor tools from 20 to 30 years ago, it’s difficult to say which NiCad or NiMH tools influenced the earlier Li-ion designs.
Online shopping was still very immature, and the same with media, and so there aren’t many primary sources of info.
Matt_T
With a little digging I found Festool pdf catalogs dating back to 2004. The C12 is basically a brushless update to the prior CDD12 installation driver. It’s an interesting design but it definitely isn’t the father of modern 10.8/12V systems. It likely has influenced the designs of all modern installation driver heads and the weird shape of the M12 version.
chip hershberger
I use 90% m12 because of the large platform, 9% Bosch sanders ,laser and planer ,they at time of purchase were not offered in m12.
And finally 1% Metabo multidriver.
The Metabo has a very slim handle but almost feels too small in my also small hands. A larger tool lineup will always get my $ over a smaller but more ergonomic but sparse lineup.
Offering specialty tools for plumbing,electrical and mechanical has allowed Milwaukee into almost every store around. From big box ,auto parts,and MEP stores.
I always grab 12v, unless they run out of power. Circular saws and vacuums are currently out of 12v range for anything other than spot use,same with lighting.
For any brand selling at Lowe’s seems to be their death or stagnation, vs HD doesn’t have so many competitors failing . Ridgid being the outlier.
ebt
IIRC, Matsushitsa/Panasonic had the first keyless chuck (1986) and battery tool (1979). And in the 1990’s, both Panasonic and Makita had first cordless tools to market (Makita drill I had … still had a chuck key). Great for car stereo installs.
Also, I have a set of Panasonic impact/drill driver that is atleast 15 yrs old (14v) and still going. At work, (1996-1997), the panasonics we had, used the yellow button for battery release. The current model I have 14.4v, has a gray top button to release.
chip hershberger
My brother-in-law was still using his n-cad 14.4 Panasonic impacts with digital torque control until 2 years ago. That is a tool that hasn’t been duplicated since.
WastedP
My father bought a cordless Rockwell drill, I think Carter was still president. The battery was not removable, and I remember it lacked stamina.
fred
Back then Rockwell International (the now defunct Aerospace conglomerate – and nothing to do with the current Rockwell Tool (Positec Group) – also owned Porter-Cable and Delta. Probably to compete with low-cost B&D and other brands – sold at home centers – they had a line of tools with the Rockwell name on them. A cousin had a pale green plastic cased corded drill from them which would smoke if you pushed it.
NiCad cordless drill of that vintage IIRC were mostly rather wimpy. Makita’s offerings – in the 7.2V and Then 9.6V class – always seemed to us to be wanting. For our plumbing business – our first cordless game-changer drill was a Porter Cable 12V that they dubbed “Magnequench”
https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_nkw=397110239037&_sacat=0&_from=R40&_trksid=m570.l1313
Plain+Grajny
My first cordless drill driver was in 1985. A Makita 9.6v 6095D model. Different system than what your talking about here.
A W
When was the Craftsman Nextec program announced? I seen to recall purchasing a 12V tool from them around 2010 or so.
Brandon
Fall 2008 they were announced and I remember seeing them around Christmas of that year when I bought my first C3 19.2 set.
Jason
Oh man I totally remember Makita launching their first 10.8v 2-piece kit. Slick white color with black grips in a metal case, honestly I think it sold because it looked awesome
Jim
I’m still using a Bosch PS40-2 impact marked 10.8 volts almost every day. Bought it in about 2006.
I also have their power screw driver (free with the impact).
Their 12volt drill I bought a bit later.
The tools have been excellent. I had problems with one 3.0ah battery but that’s all.
3 months ago I bought their 4 in 1 installation tool that came with two 2.5ah batteries and a charger for $99.
I think this was thanks to Tool Guyd
I also have a few M12 tools that I really like but I can’t hate on the Bosch tools.
Dan
I bought into the Bosch 10.8v system as soon as it came out. Those first tools were great, especially for the time. I used them daily for work up til a few years ago when I switched to Makita. I felt the quality of the Bosch tools had declined to a point where I couldn’t count on them anymore.
Andy
I go all the way back to Makita’s 7.2vdc nicad system. Used them up to about 10 years ago.
Joel
I got all excited about a Panasonic drill/driver…must have been….2002-ish, because it had a new battery chemistry — was it NiMH or Lithium? Anyhow, my friends made fun of me until their DeWalts needed new batteries and my Pana kept going strong. The housing melted in a vehicle fire, but it kept on working despite a funny smell thereafter. Finally sold it for $20 at a yard sale around 2013 and replaced it with a M-12 w/hammer that I still use regularly.
Nate
Have we ever talked about the failed Black & Decker VPX system? Its specs claimed 7v because it was a 2-series pack of LiFePO4 cells, which have a lower nominal voltage compared to most other lithium chemistries. The unimpressive number is probably why they almost never actually mentioned the voltage, and when it DID get mentioned, the lower absolute number might’ve dissuaded uninformed consumers, despite the chemistry having significantly higher discharge capability than contemporary cells of other chemistries.
It was just compact little tools, that looked like toys but punched WELL above their weight. Nobody expected the low end of the consumer market to have the high end in pro-grade battery tech, but there we were! (And the line was bizarrely hobbled; they never released an impact driver of any sort, etc.)
I picked up the drill kit because in 2007, it was one of the only ways that a hobbyist could get their hands on LFP cells, for any amount of money. But rather than strip the pack, I kept the tool because I was delighted with its performance. And as the line flopped commercially and went on clearance, I bought many more. The recip saw. Several flashlights. Tire inflators. Absurdly small AC power inverters (which immediately saw use running strings of christmas lights on toy vehicles).
That was 2007. I gave the whole pile to my brother in 2022, and he just built a boat with them. They’re still going.
MM
I completely forgot about that platform! I never used it personally but I remember seeing them in catalogs.
Now that you mention it though, a 2-series pack of tabless 21700’s would probably work great for a lot of compact tools.
Stuart
Yep. A post about that caught me some heat on another blog I wrote for before ToolGuyd.
It was a novel idea – especially the 14V drill/driver that was powered by 2 batteries.
MM
Aren’t there some other older systems that used multiple batteries in one tool? If I recall correctly the old B&D Versapak tools took either one or two packs depending on the tool, though I don’t know if they were operating in series or parallel.
Stuart
Yes. VPX was Li-ion, but I don’t believe VersaPak was.
I thought the VersaPak batteries were internal and VPX externally-accessible, but it looks like the VP were inserted into their respective tools in a similar manner.
Mopar
While not directly 10.8/12v related, I can’t help but wonder if some of Milwaukee’s decisions are based on Ryobi’s? I know Stuart has gone to great pains to research and explain how much autonomy Milwaukee has, but their growth really seems to have started shortly after they were acquired by TTI in 2005. Tyobi already had established their 18v ONE+ battery platform by the time TTI acquired Ryobi in 2000 .
I believe that Ryobi’s decisions on breadth of their ONE+ tool line is a large part of their success as their decision not to change their battery case design when they upgraded from NiCad. I still have Ryobi blue tools that are 20+ years old that still see use because they will work with the same battery as the tool I bought last month.
I have to wonder if TTI/Milwaukee took a page from TTI/Ryobi when they decided to so quickly expand their M12 (as well as M18 and Packout) offerings into so many different tools and trades? It certainly seems to have worked, because if I were starting off today, I could buy every cordless tool I need on the M12/M18 platform.
Stuart
At the time, Ryobi was exclusive to Home Depot, but Milwaukee was not.
https://toolguyd.com/milwaukee-doesnt-sell-tools-amazon-reasons/
Milwaukee was also a very different brand back then, hungry for market share but also struggling a little to survive. There was little connecting how the two brands operated, or at least I don’t see any obvious parallels.
Milwaukee didn’t expand M12 very quickly – speed isn’t why they were successful.
I’d say the differences started showing around 2010 – https://toolguyd.com/milwaukee-m12-palm-nailer-multi-tool-2010-launch/
At that time, Milwaukee launched an M12 palm nailer, M12 PEX expansion tool, their first heated jackets, and an oscillating multi-tool.
Milwaukee started doing things with M12 that other brands had not been doing with their own 12V-class cordless power tool systems, and they continued doing the same for the following 15 years.
Today, M12 has many core tools, tools that replace manual tools, easing fatigue and frustrations, tools that replace air tools, and also specialty products such as drain cleaning tools, fitting tools, and the umpteenth generation of heated gear. None of this came quickly, it was all gradual and strategic.
Frank D.
Can’t beat the Bosch system for ergonomics & size. If only Bosch would sell the whole product line here. Sigh.
Had a nextec early on. I had battery issues, at the time. I think I donated it.
Also had a Makita 12v stem pack drill and driver. Pretty much rebuilt a 100 yr old house with it. Until batteries faded, paid to have them rebuilt and by the time those faded I was in Ridgid 24v … that got abandoned quickly. Was able to get one pair of replacement batteries. Then nothing.
Which is a long way to say: established systems from big brands with a major investment into a wide platform of tools matter.
I’m sticking to Bosch ( Dremel ) 12v, Ridgid 18v & Ryobi 18v these days. Oh, and some 4v Ryobi for compact handy stuff.
MattT
I got my first cordless drill/driver in the late 90s. It was a 12V by Porter-Cable back when 12V was considered very powerful and Porter-Cable was still a semi-pro brand. It was fantastic until it gave up the ghost after about a decade.
Gregory Blum
Got mine in ‘95. I liked it enough to rebuild the batteries and kept it sat idly in my garage for years after I bought an impact driver.
I’m still sad about the demise of Porter Cable.
mark w
Great article Stuart. I learned a ton and enjoyed your thoughts.
Hard to beat M12’s form factor for batters in my opinion. I love how the handle feels and how compact the tools can be for automotive use.
Gregory Blum
Of course, there was a time when 12v systems were the power upgrade choice. I remember being blown away at the power my new 12v Porter Cable drill/driver delivered in comparison to the Makita 9.6v drills I had used previously in the (early 90s). The thing was a tank and used either NiCd or NiMH batteries.
Much happier to carry my M12 Surge driver these days.