“One-Off” Products (Limited Production Run)

While I’m normally fairly positive when it comes to Ryobi, one thing I can definitely critique them on is their tendency to release innovative and useful products that are unique to the One+ platform.  These usually fall into one of two categories: 1) “that’s neat, I can definitely use it and no one else makes it”, or 2) “that uses a Ryobi battery? I can buy that instead of [proprietary brand ‘X’] and get more use out of all of those batteries I’ve amassed during Ryobi Days!”.  

For the latter scenario, I’m thinking about the pool accessories they came out with in the late 2010s.  I’m the not-so proud owner of an aboveground pool after my wife purchased one last year.  It was a self-fulfilling prophecy, but the pool was neglected since I was the only person expected to maintain it, despite getting into it exactly once last year (to clean it–other times I’d work from the outside).  It’s that time of the year again, and fortunately I have some help to get the pool good and clean and ready for this season.  Anyway, it would have been nice to buy the stick vacuum, Bluetooth radio with lights, and the other couple of pool accessories they originally released, but instead I ordered an Aiper vacuum last year.  A quick glance at their website and some other research shows that another Ryobi pool vacuum is coming out this year, but I think I’ll pass on it as there’s no guarantee filters will be available in another year or two.

My P3260 Devour sweeper falls into the former category.  I lived in a loft apartment in a converted cotton mill when I bought it, and it was great to use on the concrete floors.  A couple of years ago I priced replacement brushes to have on hand, and should have bought them then, as most parts for the thing are no longer available.  The wiring diagram is available, and the sweeper is pretty simple, so it should be easy to keep going for a long time, but once the brushes wear out it’s pretty much going to be garbage (unless I can find similar brushes to rig up).  

Most of Ryobi’s tool line can likely be kept going for a while, and if parts aren’t available for, say, an impact driver 5-10 years after its purchase it’s no big deal to just replace it, given Ryobi’s prices on many of their tools.  More niche products like the Devour and the older pool accessories, though, are fairly limited use items that would be nice to see supported by Ryobi for more than a handful of years.  

How many of you have experience with buying a Ryobi product, only to see it discontinued and impossible to repair/replace a year or two later?

I am with you and it’s frustrating.  I feel like they don’t care.  They are for the homeowner and they think most people don’t want to fix them.  They want you on the battery platform and then when something fails, just toss it away and buy a new one.  

Eric – TIA wrote:

On 4/16/2025 at 7:07 AM, Eric – TIA said:

I am with you and it’s frustrating.  I feel like they don’t care.  They are for the homeowner and they think most people don’t want to fix them.  They want you on the battery platform and then when something fails, just toss it away and buy a new one.  

That’s true.  To be honest, I don’t think it’s too big of an issue when it comes to standard tools like drivers and saws.  Ryobi is durable enough to last most homeowners indefinitely, and the prices are low enough that it’s no big problem to simply replace a tool if it does eventually fail and isn’t covered under warranty.  There are exceptions, of course, mostly the top-end Ryobi tools like the HP series, but with Ryobi Days around I know I can spend $100 and get some fresh batteries and whichever tool I need to replace.  Frankly, if I wanted to buy once and never worry about buying again, I’d go with Ridgid.  I’ve had good experiences registering my tools under the LSA, and I think the Octane 3Ah battery was the only thing I’ve had fail so far.  It took five minutes to file a claim, I sent the battery back using a prepaid shipping label, and I got a new 4Ah battery a couple of weeks later.  Sure, it lacks the Bluetooth feature of the Octane battery (which might have contributed to its failure), but without question, Ridgid replaced a six or so year old battery with a brand new one, which I then registered.

Any company that sells products requiring expendable or wearable parts, like filters and brushes, should either use off-the-shelf parts or plan to support those products for the foreseeable future.  Going back to my first cordless system, the Porter Cable 18v, I got the vacuum for cheap and, despite the platform being in its waning days, I could still find filters for it.  Fortunately, I found a bunch of new filters at the Auburn Opelika (Alabama) ReStore for a couple of dollars each.  I picked them all up only to give them along with all of the tools to a friend a year or so later.