LTT is trying to justify their items as "buy once cry once" to demonstrate that they're high quality item that you'll be satisfied buying and will use for a long time. I understand this, but honestly their prices are insane.

Most of their items are at least double (even triple) the alternatives. And although it's great items, don't get me wrong, it's not 2 or 3 times better. It's either minor improvements at best or just similar at worst.

I'm giving this screwdriver a three star review because it is a good screwdriver, but not a legendary screwdriver like the full size LTT screwdriver. It is solidly built, comfortable in the hand, and super fun to fidget with, but it feels like an unfinished design.

The three areas where this screwdriver could use a bit of extra work are in the shank, the shoulder between the shank and the handle, and the bit storage.

On the WAN Show Linus mentioned once that this was intended to basically be a drop in replacement for the IFixIt precision screwdriver, so I am working off the assumption that the overall length and diameter of the IFixIt driver are the constraints for the design. That being said, the first issue is that the LTT driver is a few millimeters shorter than the IFixIt driver both in the shank and in overall length. This is a small detail that actually makes a huge difference, as I'll get to later.

The second issue is that the shank transitions to the handle in a sharp 90 shoulder rather than at an angle. This causes any tiny bits of metal swarf, as one might encounter in a shop, to get stuck in the shoulder because of the magnet and become incredibly difficult to remove. This shoulder also makes it harder to get the precision driver down into tight areas.

Both of these issues were problematic the very first time I used the driver. I was trying to take a Dell monitor off its stand, which involves depressing a small button through a hole. I tried to use the LTT driver, but it got stopped on the shoulder and couldn't fully depress the button. Had the driver's overall length been exactly the same as the IFixIt driver, (making the shank slightly longer than IFixIt's) or the transition been slightly tapered, I probably could have depressed the button. I actually find that the bits fit more snuggly despite not being set as far back in the driver as the IFixIt, so a longer shank could have given this driver a very long reach compared to any other driver.

The final issue I have is with the bit storage. This driver officially fits three bits, however, you can unofficially fit six bits. If you flip three bits over and place them between the other three, they will fit just fine. This is how I use the driver, but every time I want to remove the bits I have to be careful lest I risk dropping my three unretained bits. A tiny change to the design could have allowed for these three bits to be properly retained without changing the overall size of the driver at all. I suspect CW may have intentionally forgone this feature because some larger bits would not fit with the extra clips. If that is the case, I consider this a poor choice for a few reasons.

First, by comparison, the original LTT driver uses custom size bits to achieve a greater amount of bit storage, but allows for a reduced number of normal size bits. It would, therefore, be in keeping with the precedent set by the original driver to allow for six bits at the cost of some larger bits. Second, very large bits already don't fit, so there are not many bits that would be excluded by adding clips to the top of the bit storage. Third, larger bits aren't typically necessary for a precision driver anyway, so for a few select large bits to not fit is a very minor issue. Using magnets to secure the bits in the storage compartment could also have made more room at the cost of making the bits a bit less secure.

I want to be very clear in saying that I in no way mean any disrespect to the CW team. I have an immense respect for them and their work and I do love this product. I merely want to provide constructive feedback from one engineer to another. I would love to see a Precision Screwdriver V2 that incorporates some of these improvements and I wish the CW team good fortune as they continue to deliver incredible products.

Coming from iFixit, this is a great little package with compatibility with the iFixit drivers I already have. The magnetic lid is helpful to keep things organized and the whole package is really ergonomic and tidy. Having iFixit and this is a great way to get everything I own fixed.

Super high quality and fun!

My wife borrowed the screwdriver and made a great summary of using it:

“Also this LTT screwdriver set is incredible. Each bit has what it is engraved making it easy to work out which bit I need, and the lid is magnetic so you can stand the screws up in, and I love how powerful the magnets in everything are”