You might have seen this before, but here’s a quick look at the Reekon T1 Tomahawk Digital Tape Measure, brought to you by the same folks that made the M1 Caliber miter saw measuring tool.
This isn’t just a digital tape measure, it’s an extremely feature-rich tape measure – there’s a lot going on here.
Let’s start slow. This is a 25′ tape measure with replaceable tapes. You can choose between inch markings, or metric.
There’s an OLED display at the top, which shows your live measurements.
Click a button, and your measurements are saved to a side-mounted e-paper display.
You can choose different units for the displays, and you can also select different reference points for your measurements. Do you need to take an inside measurement? No problem.
There’s also a green laser for quicker off-center markings. The laser can also aid tape measure alignment, to ensure parallel or perpendicular measurements.
You can also attach a pencil to the side of the tape measure, for one-handed markings.
The T1 Tomahawk has a removable rechargeable battery, and can be charged via USB-C.
It also features Bluetooth connectivity, which will allow for additional functionality via Reekon’s ROCK app.
A spring locking feature allows for blade changes. The T1 has been rated for drops up to 1m. It’s self-calibrating, and with accuracy said to better than 1/32″ (0.5mm).
Kickstarter Price: $199 and up
Shipping: $10 to US, $20 to most other countries
ETA: December 2022
As you might know, Kickstarter is a fundraising platform. Instead of purchasing products, you back a project a pledge a certain amount of money depending on the reward selected.
At the time of this posting, the Kickstarter campaign has been fully backed, with nearly 7,500 backers pledging $1.63M, well in excess of the $10K goal.
Reekon has successfully brought one Kickstarter project to market, the M1 miter saw measuring tool.
If you’re more comfortable waiting, the retail version will have an MSRP of $260.
Discussion
To be honest, I’m not a fan of digital tape measures.
I’ve been aware of the Reekon T1 tape measure for more than 2 months now. I’ve heard from the inventor, I’ve seen the social media coverage, and I’ve received a couple of “wow, have you seen this?!” messages.
I… think I might want to get my hands on one.
My initial impression can be summed up in 3 harsh words: expensive, excessive, gaudy.
But, as time went on, my impression softened quite a bit, and I am now much more open-minded.
One demo video shows how the T1 Tomahawk can be used to make targeted markings. Do you need to leave a mark at 17-3/4″? It can help you do this quickly and accurately.
Another demo clip shows the T1 making incremental measurements, where you can zero it out while it still records total length.
Did you damage your blade? Don’t worry, you can replace it.
USB-C is nice. A replaceable battery pack is also nice. The battery pack features 2x 18500-sized cells with 1500mAh capacity. They say that “under normal work use, it can run for multiple days on a single charge.”
Maybe it’s delicate? No – it seems that Reekon has been thorough in their drop testing. There are also multiple attachment points for wrist straps and other securing devices.
Reekon has shared very many usage applications, and I keep thinking the same things – “that will save me time,” “that could improve my accuracy,” and “that looks convenient.”
The pencil mount, green laser, replaceable blade, dual displays for real-time and stored measurements, zero-reference shift, measurement mode options – all of these things look to combine to offer a very unique tool.
I found myself partially hesitant about the price. But, quality costs money, features cost money, and reliability costs money.
I’m not sold on the idea that *I* need a digital tape measure, but the Reekon T1 does look well-featured, well-thought-out, and well tested. What’s your take on it?
