Update: Three and a half years later, I stand by my comments below. Excellent unit and working great after this much time. I'm not a heavy duty frequent user, but it sees its share of work.

I've only had this unit for a month so I will revise this review after some more time passes. However, I have used it for a fairly large project (built a large cedar wood shed) which required drilling a few hundred 3 inch screws. This drill is a good combination of size and power and unless you are a serious professional who needs all-day long-lasting industrial strength, this unit will do fine. You'll get a good long stretch out a single battery and by the time you could wear one out, the other one will have recharged. The two speed functionality is great (one for drilling, the other for bit driving) and I recommend it highly if you can spend the extra dollars for a drill that has it.

As far as construction and quality - you basically have two choices when it comes to cordless power tools. They're either made in Europe (Switzerland or Germany) or they're made in the far east (China, Taiwan). This is true regardless of the nationality of the name brand on the equipment. The stuff from Europe is of higher quality, but you'll pay for it. If you want to pay the price for a Bosch from Germany or a Milwaukee from Switzerland (I know it sounds funny that Milwaukees are not made in the USA, but that's the way it is) it may very well be worth it. If you're going the next price level down, you will have no choice but the far east. Porter-Cable (this unit is made in Taiwan) is a solid American company (division of Pentair, "PNR" on the NYSE) and their quality requirements should be much higher than lesser name brands that also build in the far east. As an aside, I don't know about you, but my 401k and my fellow American laborers have a lot riding on the success of American companies, so I prefer to buy from them instead of foreign competitors if the quality is just as good. Anyway, the construction of this unit seems very solid (I'll revisit that after some time passes) and the logistics of the layout are very good. The batteries pop in and out fairly easily and the recharger has a nice indicator to let you know the status of the battery (one thing about batteries - if they're fully charged, don't leave them in a running charger for days on end - take them out and recharge them when you need them). This unit is also a nice size and weight compared to the higher voltage units. You really ought to stongly consider just how much juice you need and not over-do the power. If you don't need the extra power don't get it because it'll cost you extra money and it'll cost you extra effort to use the larger unit. Overall - this is an excellent unit so far and I couldn't be happier with it.

I went shopping for a "mid-grade" drill. I don't need a 18v powerhouse for woodworking and occasional home improvement. The torque on this drill is very good for a 9.6v - better than a lot of 12v drills. I just got this, so I can't speak about it's durability. The feel and operation is great. It easily drilled 3.5" deck screws into 2x4's. That's the most I would ever do with this drill. Should work good for everything else that I need it to.Update - 10 months later and this is still a great drill. The 2 batteries and 1 hour charger are a must have for any drill. I've built several woodworking projects with this, plus many home repairs. It has sufficient power for these applications, and doesn't wear you out holding it like a larger drill would.

10/2003 - Decided that a 9.6v was a good weight/power trade off. This baby has a ton of torque. I've built several large planter boxes, a shed, and a deck with it - I've driven hundreds and hundreds of decking screws into pressure treated lumber, most of them 1.5 inches, but often 2.125 or 3 inch screws. You get plenty of run time out of each battery. Just the charge from one battery is usually enough for a moderate project (like a planter box with 120 deck screws (I used a second drill to do the piloting of holes and the P-C to do the driving)). If you leave the other battery in the charger you'll always be good to go. I like this drill so much that I was considering buying a second one.

Update 7/2006 - I've owned this drill for five years now - through moving between two houses and all the small projects that each move entails. It's been a champ. I've also used the PC 14.4 and 19.2 versions, which are substantially heavier; my brother has all three and we finished his basement using them all, but we preferred the 9.6 due to its lighter weight. For general use around the house, it's really unbeatable. And instead of buying a 14.4 or 19.2 for my second drill, I was so pleased with this model that I bought a second one from amazon(though the amazon price has gone up considerably).

I've had a steady stream of low cost cordless drills over the last fifteen years and when the built-in battery in my most recent one finally died I decided it was time to spend a bit more and get a much better drill. After much looking around I settled on the Porter-Cable 9820 as it appeared to be a great combination of power, features, modest weight, price, and included accessories. I also wasn't interested in spending $50-100 to get something that was really only just a bit better than all the $35 ones I'd bought and discarded over the years.I've had the Porter-Cable 9820 just about a month now and have used it for several jobs, ranging from numerous household projects to rebuilding a redwood fence crushed by a 25' limb in a recent storm. It has proven to be everything I was looking for. I am particularly pleased to have two interchangable batteries, a fast and hefty charger, two selectable drill speeds, broad range adjustable clutch, controls that are very conveniently placed, and what seems to me to be a perfect combination of high power and yet comfortably handleable weight. I'm no power tool expert, but it seems very well made -- everything about it has a good, solid feel. And all at what I consider a very reasonable price.Highly recommended.

I bought this as a second, small job, cordless drill. I was surprised by the power. The run-time isn't as long as a more powerful model, but that's expected. I have found myself using this powerful, lightweight drill on more demanding jobs than I thought I would use it for. This drill would be great for all "around the house" projects, and it carries the dependability and longevity of Porter Cable. I am not disappointed.

I bought this little gem for attacking a few projects that I would have balked at with the corded B&D drill I have; like climbing on the roof to re-attach some trim that was pulled loose by the cable attachment. Putting down the subfloor for a small interior porch is a cinch also. Why 4 out of 5? Well, I used the little guy for putting 1" holes in hardwood in a standing cabinet my wife bought, and the 1st battery went dead just as I was getting through the 3/4" hardwood. Put the second fully charged battery on an just barely made it through the second shelf before that battery went dead. Had to finish the job with the trusty [$$]B&D. But overall, so far I really like the thing, though I wished there was a way to "test before I buy" I might have forked over the extra money for the 12v version.

I was very happy with the quality of this drill. The drill is very well made and seems to have more power than the 12 volt Skill drill that it replaced. The clutch seems very precise. The two speed ranges are great. Very happy with this drill.

I was pleasantly surprised to find that this product has a lot more torque than you'd expect from its power rating. It handled everything I needed to do, including driving 4" screws into decking. Unlike previous purchases, the drill chuck grips the tool without any slippage. Also, the batteries have very good staying power, and are quick to recharge. I view this as a flagship product in terms of both quality and price.

This is a nice all around cordless drill kit for home use and is capable of use in contractor duties.

Every thing work as expected. 2 battery good for longer project around the house. Light weight, fit right in my hand. Good Cordless Drill for the money. Cost me $47. But Amazon increased the price from $47 to $79
after a few days. That's very sad. It's not a good value any more. $79
is too high for a 9.6 volt Drill/Driver, made in China or Taiwan or who ever made it.

This drill works. I recently used it to drill a 3/4" hole(using a 3/8 bit, then 3/4 bit) through 8" reinforced concrete, it worked like a charm. It works well around the house and on my DIY projects. I have a ryobi 14.4(10 mins on a charge) but there is no comparison to this porter cable has lots more power.Battery life is good and the quick charge is great.
My wife likes how it handles as well.

This drill/driver is both reliable, and dependable. It's durable case gives the user a sense that it will NEVER fail.
It's light enough and small enough for any size hands, but handles even the toughest jobs.
I highly reccommend this tool.

I wanted a lightweight cordless drill that had enough power to do all the normal things you would do around the house. The first project was a wooden swingset and clubhouse. The drill had no problem with any of the screws or in drilling any holes. It's not a large powerful drill but unless you do cotracting work it performs exceptionally. I highly recomment it.

I love my new porter-cable cordless drill. It has the power I need, and is light weight. I had been useing dewalt, this new drill out performs an is more user friendly.

Thank You; Jerry DBA Burnet heating & Air.

Over the years I have used many cordless drills. Compared to all the others, the Porter Cable is more powerful, very well balanced and the battery lasts a long time. When I bought this drill I didn't realize the charger was also good for my 14.4 volt drill. That is a plus I never expected.

Now I have this powerful light weight 9.6 drill for hard to get at spots and overhead drilling and the 14.4 drill for other jobs.

So far it has been great working with this drill. I had no previous experience with drills , - so cannot compare to other products. But I must say that for the novice like me using Porter-Cable 9820 was a very easy and exciting experience. Double gear is a very nice feature when you work on drilling different types of surfaces and using this as a screwdriver.

One con: comes with no drills - need to buy the set yourself.

Good quality and looks more/less reliable . Must have for regular household - it comes with 2 batteries and has enough power for all the tasks in the house. Made in Taiwan and one can see it.

Do not compare this drill to Milwaukee or Makita or Bosch - this drill/driver cost just a fraction of these.