Kaiweets ES20 Electric Screwdriver Review [2024]

The Kaiweets ES20 electric screwdriver kit has been developed for the specific purpose of repair work on cell phones. Even so, in the short time I’ve had it in my office, I’ve used it to not only work on cell phones but to make repairs to instrumentation and audio recording equipment as well. The shift to smaller and smaller electronics has made it harder and harder for the average do-it-yourselfer to work on these devices. This difficulty ends with the Kaiweets electric screwdriver. 

Overview

While I refer to the ES20 as an electric screwdriver, it’s more like a complete repair kit for small electronics, providing all the necessary tools for a large variety of repair tasks. About the only thing it doesn’t contain is soldering equipment. That’s probably not an issue though, as most repairs are made at the board level, rather than the component level. 

The kit comes in a heavy-duty cloth case, measuring 9” x 5” and about 1.5” thick, with a strong hook-and-loop closure. When opened, its three sections unfold to 17” wide, with flaps covering all three sections, helping to hold the tools in place. 

What’s Included

Two of the three sections in the case are dedicated to well-organized holders for the 120 bits that the kit sports, one of the more visually impressive parts of the kit.

Not only does it have the standard Phillips, Torx, star, straight, and hex bits, all sized appropriately for working on compact electronics, like smartphones; but it also has spanners, square drive, tamper-resistant Torx, tri-wing, and several other types of bits that I’m not sure how to identify.

It is clearly the most complete set of bits I have ever encountered. 

(Ever get confused about drill bit sizes? Get started with our guide on drill bit size for a #8 screw.)

Screw Memory Mat

One of the flaps contains a magnetized rubber sheet, called a “screw memory mat,” printed in a way to easily organize the screws taken out of phones and other devices while working on them. This simple device demonstrates how much attention to detail was given to making this kit as complete as it could possibly be.

Electric Screwdriver

The screwdriver itself is stored in a plastic sleeve, protecting it from moisture and accidental bumping. That bumping could be disastrous, as it would be easy to put the kit away with one of the buttons on the screwdriver depressed, discharging the battery. The tool is quiet enough in operation, that it probably wouldn’t be heard, as it discharged itself. 

Measuring 5/8” in diameter and 7-1/16” long the electric screwdriver itself is quite compact, making it easy to get into tight places. it has three buttons on it, one controlling the 3 LEDs spaced equidistantly around the bit holder and the other two controlling forward and reverse drive directions.

The LED control does double duty, allowing you to change the screwdriver’s programmed torque, when it is depressed for more than 3 seconds. In operation, the screwdriver runs at 200 RPM, both in forward and reverse. The tool’s internal battery can be charged with any USB type C charging cable. One comes in the kit. 

Performance

One would not expect a tool this compact to have much torque, but I was unable to stop the bit from turning with my fingers. It has enough torque to ensure that it will be able to loosen stubborn screws. Granted, it won’t be able to remove bolts from a car engine or drive wood screws into a cabinet, but that’s not what it was designed for. 

While the screwdriver is the star of the show, it isn’t the only tool included. The kit comes with extensions for the screwdriver, both a short, straight one and a longer flexible one. The flexible extension, which is 5” long, allows the screwdriver body to be as much as 90 degrees out of alignment with the screw head and still work, allowing the screws to be removed and put back in.

Putting screws in at difficult angles can be challenging, but that has been thought of. A magnetizer, demagnetizer has been included in the kit, allowing any of the bits to be magnetized, so that they can hold the screws. A pair of fine-point, angled tweezers are also included, making it possible to pick up screws that have fallen into the case of the device being repaired or to be placed in their sockets for tightening. 

Other Inclusions

Today, most small electronics, especially phones, are built so that the case snaps together, rather than being assembled with screws. That saves time, space, parts, and labor in manufacturing, even though it can cause problems for the repairman who is unaware.

Since the main purpose of the kit is phone repair, they have included the necessary spudger, POM pry tool, and pry picks (both thin and thick) to get a phone case open. There’s even a suction cup for holding and positioning the phone’s glass and a special tool for opening the SIM card compartment. Everything is there to make the necessary repairs. 

Conclusion

I am not a cell phone repairman, although I do have an electronics background. However, that background was long enough ago, that they were just starting to use snap-together cases; so, while I understood the concept, I didn’t have much in the way of experience in opening them. As you probably see from the content I make, I'm more of a woodworker, and I'm more familiar with power tool brands more than anything else.

Even so, the tools provided in the kit made it possible for me to open a broken smartphone case in about a minute. That’s what having the right tools will do for you. 

Overall, I am very pleased with Kaiweets ES20 electric screwdriver kit. It has earned itself a permanent place in my office, where it is ready at hand for any repairs I need to do.