DeWalt DC012 radio/charger

got the radio a week ago for my 17th bday. the radio is very light for what it is, has a heavy duty plastic "roll cage" around it, and rubber buffers/shock abzorbers so it it somewhat protected from falls. it will charge any DeWalt 18 volt battery (when plugged in) and it will run off the battery when its not plugged in. the display is very easy to read, especially with the orange backlighting. the cord is a very heavy cord, ample for the radio and the 3 aux outlets. there is 5 presets, 2 FM functions, one AM and AUX for a line in from a phone or ipod or something. there is also a bass boost mode. the sound is better than i expected, and competes with my 400 dollar sony system in my room. so far, i have NO complaints whatsoever, aside from the 100 dollar battery pack which is NOT included, which kinda pissed me off when i saw the price of it. overall i like it, and highly reccomend it.

For what it's worth, I own the previous model (DC011), and have for about 3 years. I am a contractor and use DeWalt cordless tools. I have 2 18v XRP hammer drills, the 18v impact drill, the 18v recip saw, and the 18v circular saw. The radio was a perfect complement to my existing tools.

Three years in, I have some pointers. First- It was less than a year before the radio tuner knob started acting funny. Turning the knob does not cause the frequency to step up or down smoothly as it should. It bounces all over the place randomly and if you want to tune in a station you don't have programmed, you're better off using the seek buttons.

Second, one of the plastic cord wrap cleats on the bottom broke about 6 months ago, so now I wrap the cord around the roll cage.

Third, a couple months ago, the battery door got smashed up, needing all kinds of jerry-rigging because the door is supposed to hold the battery in against spring pressure.

Fourth- One thing that has always made me crazy about this- I listen to a lot of A.M. radio when I get tired of the F.M. stations playing the same dang 12 songs all day long. When tuned into an A.M. station and charging a battery, every few seconds it emits a buzz thru the speakers. Sometimes if I'm really trying to listen to the the program, I will either take out the battery, or unplug it and run off the battery to avoid the unpleasant noise.

Sound quality and volume have always been very good. It's probably worth noting that while I AM a contractor and my tools do take some abuse, I generally take good care of them and do not throw them around. Some of the above breakages are completely inexplicable (and disappointing) to me.

I certainly hope that DeWalt has gotten some of these issues sorted out in the newer model.

thats a shame doc.. DeWalt is usually a good brand. they have the new DC013 radio out too, but that was almost 200 bucks.. more than i wanted to spend on a radio.. for no real benefits either.. i guess time will tell, hopefully it does good

Indeed- which is why I have stuck with DeWalt for a loooong time. My first 18v cordless drill had to be 12 years old or so before a bad speed control forced it into retirement recently. Before that, I had a 12v that lived a long, very productive life, too.

thats deffinatly a DeWalt.. i have left drills and cordless saws out in the rain several times, each time firing right up like new

my grandfather has 2 of these, but he is a contractor, and therefore has about 10 bateries before he evenn knew this radio existed. i have 7 18 volt batteries, still looking for one of these for myself( on craigslist). and also looking for a 20 volt max lithium-ion radio, but looks like DeWalt hasn't released one yet.

you should send me a battery.. lol

hate to dig this up, but its something thats been ticking me off lately, since i finally got batteries for it. there is NO low battery indicator, so it just randomly shuts off.. its really annoying, and at a price tag of almost 200 bucks, you'd think DeWalt could have done something for a low battery indicator. other than that, so far so good, no problems to speak of