REASONS TO BUY
Exceptionally ergonomic
Not too noisy
REASONS TO AVOID
Expensive
So-so power
Mediocre battery life
The DeWalt DCBL790M1 is discontinued as of October 2019
DeWalt DCBL790M1 Review
The DCBL790M1 is priced like a top-tier model but couldn't really compare to their performance in our tests
The well balanced Dewalt DCBL790M1 leaf blower.
Credit: Jenna Ammerman
By Austin Palmer ⋅ Senior Review Analyst ⋅ July 11, 2019
Contributions From: David Wise & Jenna Ammerman
RELATED: The Best Leaf Blowers of 2025
Our Verdict
Overall, the DeWalt DCBL790M1 finished just behind the top group of products, leaving it without an award. It failed to impress in our most significant metrics — power and battery life — significantly holding it back. While it is one of the easiest and least fatiguing cordless blowers to use and one of the quietest, it is priced comparably to the top products, making it quite hard to recommend.
Our Analysis and Test Results
The DCBL790M1 finished just behind the Snapper 82-Volt Max and ahead of the Ryobi RY40460. Both of these blowers are quite a bit less expensive and more powerful, with all three having similar battery performances. The DeWalt is more ergonomic and quieter, but its significant price increase over the other two makes both the Snapper and the Ryobi much better bargain buys.
The DCBL790M1 was only average in power. Credit: Jenna Ammerman
Power
We weren't particularly impressed with this cordless blower's performance. It floated the inflated beach ball to a height of around 4 feet or so. It also didn't have a particularly impressive range, with this blower only able to clear sand up to just shy of 11 feet (129 inches) from the nozzle — quite a bit less than the almost 20 feet of the top blowers.
Our tests included floating a beach ball and seeing how far we could blow sand across our parking lot.
The DCBL790M1 is relatively average when it comes to clearing mixed debris. We set to work clearing some of our parking areas with the DeWalt, which was covered in leaves, lawn clippings, dirt, sand, and small pebbles. It can move the lighter items a fair distance, but we still had to do quite a bit more walking compared to the best models. It also totally struggled with larger pebbles or when the pine needles clumped together, only really able to move them at point-blank range.
Battery
The DCBL790M1 runs on a nominal 40-volt battery system and includes a single 4 amp hour battery.
The battery compartment is at a nice angle, making it easy to insert/remove the battery. Credit: Jenna Ammerman
Unfortunately, this blower didn't have the most impressive battery life, only lasting for 17 minutes and 44 seconds, which is less than half of the operating time that the top products had. For our second assessment of this metric, we timed how long it took to recharge a totally dead battery with the included charger.
The charging station and battery for the DCBL790M1. Credit: Jenna Ammerman
The DeWalt's battery took one hour and 26 minutes to reach a full charge.
Ergonomics
The DCBL790M1 is a bit on the larger and heavier side, weighing in at almost ten and a half pounds with its battery installed.
The DCBL790M1 had a nice, comfortable handle to hold onto. Credit: Jenna Ammerman
However, the DeWalt is almost perfectly balanced, maintaining an essentially ideal blowing angle with no effort at all on your part. The grip is fine to hold, but it is a bit on the larger side, so it could be a bit more difficult to hold for those with more petite hands.
The DCBL790M1 is one of the heaviest models tested, but well balanced. Credit: Jenna Ammerman
The intake is on the right side of this blower, which can be a bit frustrating if you use it in your left hand, as it will occasionally try and suck in your pants if they are on the baggier side.
Your clothing might get sucked in with side mounted intakes! Credit: Jenna Ammerman
This cordless blower has a cruise control setting and a trigger interface.
The cruise control lever on this model was easy to press no matter which hand you are using. Credit: Jenna Ammerman
Noise
The DeWalt generates about 90 dBa of noise for the user, which isn't necessarily the quietest model we have seen. However, our judges liked that the tone of the DCBL790M1 is super mellow and it lacks a high-pitched whine that many other blowers had.
Some models are much louder than others. Credit: Jenna Ammerman
The sound does attenuate a bit at some distance away, only causing 82.9 dBa for a bystander 50' away.
Value
Regrettably, the DeWalt is a terribly value, with a price tag that is comparable to the top models but with a lower performance.
Clearing off pine needles scattered about on a local bike path. Credit: Jenna Ammerman
Conclusion
The DeWalt is a decent cordless leaf blower, but we are a bit reticent to recommend it due to its relatively weak performance in our power and battery metrics.
—Austin Palmer, David Wise, and Jenna Ammerman
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