In article .com,
"bridger" wrote:

My take is that the latest round or two of tool engineering has been
about user comfort & ergonomics, weight reduction and yes, flash.

There was a run of cordless drills which had the battery packs inside
the actual grip. They were thick, clumsy and uncomfortable. Now that
they dangle most packs off the bottom of the grip, the comfort is there
again with the added bonus of the battery pack acting as a counter
weight, easing the torque twisting of the drill. Nice when using a
cordless as a screwdriver. My 14.4 Milwaukee even lets me shift the
balance front-to-back by flipping the pack. Nice touch.

But that paisley/mandala rubberized crap all over some of those tools is
not conducive to comfort in my hands. I hate the feel of that rubber
stuff. The leather grip on my Estwing hammer feels good to me. The
identical hammer with rubber handle feels awful to me. I want another
leather Estwing. A good hickory handle feels pretty good too.

Seems that the designers are catering more to the visual interface than
the tactile one...like fishing lures. What a laugh those things can be.