Milwaukee is launching a new M18 Rapid Charger, model 48-59-1802, capable of recharging up to 2 M18 cordless power tool batteries simultaneously.
Milwaukee states that their new M18 Dual Bay Simultaneous Rapid Charger can recharge two battery packs more than 3X faster compared to their standard sequential chargers. Or, if you have multiple standard chargers, this one saves you an outlet compared to using two separate chargers.
Referring back to the chart provided when the Milwaukee M18 Super Charger was announced, the standard charger can fully recharge a 5.0Ah XC battery in 105 minutes, and the Rapid Charger can recharge the same battery in 60 minutes.
By extension, assuming the Rapid Charger charging rate hasn’t changed, this new dual port charger can recharge one or two 5.0Ah XC batteries in the same 60 minutes. That would be compared to 210 minutes for a single standard charger, at the least.
Here’s a look at Milwaukee’s entire charger lineup, including M12, M18, and in-tool charging solutions.
The new dual battery charger is wall-mountable and features the usual LED charge indicator lights.
No, this new charger does NOT feature an M12 port, it’s an M18-only battery charger.
Price: $139
ETA: February 2020
Discussion
Milwaukee’s new M18 dual Rapid Charger is about as clear a cordless power tool release can be. It charges one or two M18 batteries with two independent circuits, meaning you don’t have to wait for one battery to finish charging before the other begins.
It’s a convenience accessory for some, a must-have for others, and perhaps unnecessary for others.
The $139 price tag is inline with Milwaukee’s other chargers.
Psychologically, I don’t like buying new chargers when I have a perfectly good pile of chargers from various kits and bundles. So who might buy this one? I think it might serve well as a truck or van charger, or maybe in portable kits where several tools and batteries might be in use at the same time.
Milwaukee says that the new charger:
represents another opportunity for M18 users to experience significantly-reduced charge durations, allowing them to get more work done throughout the day.
This is the perfect language. This charger isn’t a must-have, but it will charge two M18 batteries at the same time, and while only occupying a single plug.
Personally, I think their Rapid Charge Station is a more versatile product, but for an M18-exclusive user, or a heavy M18 and light M12 user, this new dual battery Rapid Charger gives you two simultaneous circuits in a smaller and less expensive package. The Rapid Charge Station has 3 M18 ports and 3 M12 ports, but it only has three independent circuits.
Milwaukee’s standard chargers can be quite slow to recharge Milwaukee’s highest capacity High Output and HD batteries. If this new dual battery Rapid Charger will save you time or reduce the inconvenience of having to monitor a single-port charger, it might be a worthy upgrade to consider.
