What is it?
The Husqvarna Aspire S20-P4A looks like the Swedish brand has taken its Aspire H50-P4A hedge trimmer and put it on a hot wash. This more compact garden tool is targeted at those looking for a precision piece of kit to tackle a range of garden tasks, from cutting grass round delicate plants, to giving shrubs a quick tidy-up.
Just like the H50-P4A, the Husqvarna Aspire S20-P4A uses a Lithium Ion 18V battery, but the clever bit here is that its designed around the 'Power for all Alliance' battery system, which means the S20-P4A can use batteries from another ten plus manufacturers who've signed up to the alliance. The idea being the your garden shed or garage isn't littered with multiple batteries and chargers - if you've invested in a compatible Gardena lawnmower for example, you can swap the battery out and use it on the S20-P4A. It also promises to reduce costs as you can buy products standalone if you already have a compatible battery - the Husqvarna Aspire S20-P4A is sold on its own for £109.99 or £159.99 with a battery and charger for example.
The Husqvarna Aspire S20-P4A comes with two tools - a 20cm long cutting deck that can be swapped out for a grass shear blade, while it weighs in at a modest 1.2kg without a battery attached.
What's it like?
As we found with the Aspire H50-P4A hedge trimmer, the Husqvarna Aspire S20-P4A shrub shear is a doddle to set up and get trimming. First thing you'll want to do is charge up the battery, and we only had to wait a little over half and hour for it to be fully topped up.
The battery slots in to place with a reassuring clunk, while there's a easy-to-read three-stage battery status indicator in easy view on the handle, so even if you're working in bright sunlight, you should easily be able to see how much juice you have left. It's then a question of which tool you want or need to work with. Which ever one you choose though, they lock onto the chassis easily, while they're easy to swap over - a quick release system requires you to press to orange buttons on the head of the shrub shear and you can take the tool off and swap it for the other one.
To start, press the power button, but simply pressing the trigger won't fire it into life - you'll need to depress a secondary button at the same time to get going to avoid it starting by accident. In the hand and it balances really nicely making it a breeze to manoeuvre, while there's a comfy and tactile grip.
It's also pretty quiet in use, while there's also a hoot supplied with the shrub shear that means its easy to store when not in use.
Should I buy one?
While it's not an essential garden tool, if you're looking for a quality garden multitool to keep plants, shrubs and grass in check, then Husqvarna Aspire S20-P4A fits the bill perfectly.
