Differences between Ryobi drills blue & green for me to upgrade

[JLawrence08648]

I see on CL the blue and green cordless Ryobi tools being advertised for sale. If the green tools are an upgrade then maybe I'd like to upgrade if it was worth it.

I have 3 Ryobi blue tools, all I've upgraded by buying the 18v lithium batteries, circular saw, reciprocating saw, and 3 drills.

What is the difference between the Ryobi blue tools and the green tools?

I know the green tools all use lithium batteries and they are being advertised as brushless. Beyond that? Newer electronics? Greater battery life?

 

[dogememe]

I've only ever had Ryobi green, they're great. I have a drill, impact, and vacuum. Had a leafblower too that someone gave me that was handy for cleaning out the engine bay of an old truck but then I lost the leafblower.

I am rough on my tools and 0 problems with any of it.


I have three chargers and like 10 batteries. So I always have powered up tools ready to go when and where I need it.

 

[Pelican]

Just don't let those batteries discharge completely or you'll be SOL.
Happened to me, there is no protection and once the battery goes below a certain level the charger will not recognise it and will not charge it.
There is apparently a convoluted way to give it enough life that the charger will recognize it, but it involves dismantling the battery and using some minor tools to that effect. A new 18V battery was ca$70 at Home Depot. Ran into a Makita Promo for a kit w/brushless drill, 2 batteries, charger and a handy carrying case for ca$100. guess who won!

Ryobi ought to protect those batteries and not let them drain completely, not everyone uses them every couple of months.

 

[Lyman]

I have only ever heard of green tools from them. I own a few drills a blower and a weed eater. I love them all. Everything works as it should with no issues.

 

[55hambone]

The green tools are not all brushless motors. P238 and P237 are both impact drivers, but Ryobi only lists the P238 as brushless. Several other examples exist as well. I have both blue and green, and I'm not looking to replace anything until it dies.

 

[Dave9]

You'd have to compare specific models not just the color.

Generally speaking with each generation, the drills got a bit better but they still had the low tier for inclusion in their multi-tool kits, and then there's the hammer drill which is larger, heavier but more torque, and then there's the brushless generation after they'd already been green for a few.

If your blue does not seem underpowered for what you're using it for, I'd keep using it.

Yes the brushless does have greater battery life, but for a tool (type) you already own, you'd come out further ahead spending the money on a larger battery since they now have 6Ah and 9Ah, but even a 4Ah is no slouch for getting a good amount of work done. The brushed green vs blue don't have much battery life difference though the more powerful drills probably consume battery a bit faster due to a larger drivetrain.

Here's a site that has specs and pics for a lot of them but it may be dated, not have all the latest generation tools:

http://www.toolboyworld.com/eBay/Ryobi_One_Tools.htm

 

[Wolf359]

Basically the difference is the blue was the old nicad batteries the green use the new lithium ones. But as stated previously the specs of the drill matter. Some drills are hammer drills, some regular, etc. You need the exact model to compare between the two because some of the old blue drills were pretty good too.

 

[ZebRuaj]

I bought a blue multipack set when I became a homeowner. They updated generations to green. I wanted to jump ship but didn't. Updated the nicads batteries to lithiums and the blues felt like they had a jolt infused. Some of the new greens are brushless. Those would be the only ones worth upgrading to if you have the itch.

I slowly updated to team red for the tools I heavily used. Keep the blues and greens at home and as lenders for friends who need it in a pinch.

 

[joel95ex]

get the green. they're lithium and can use the old nicad battery packs if they're the same voltage (like 12, or 18) the lithium batteries do not self-discharge so they'll always be ready. just don't let them discharge and sit, charge them up. low charge is what causes lithium's to have problems

 

[1978elcamino]

I have a ton of Ryobi 18v tools, some blue and green are exactly the same, the older are blue. However, if you plan to upgrade I would recommend going brushless. Best deals are had during christmas and fathers day.

 

[bchannell]

The difference is technology updates over the years. The green are far ahead of the old blue. Just like the old Makita or Milwaukee are lightyears behind the newer brushless, more advanced technology. I have a fairly new Milwaukee 18v hammer drill that is amazingly more powerful than the same hammer drill of just a few short years ago. I can dril a 4" hole in a joist with the new drill and if you don't use the aux handle and it gets bound in the lumber, you're in for a world of hurt, The old drill was strong, but easily manageable without the aux handle. I never used to worry about getting hurt, it would just bind and stop. Now I have to be careful, it'll hurt you.That's the same difference in Ryobi tools over the years, the newest brushless heavy duty drills are mooi powerful.