Husqvarna 115iHD45 cordless hedge trimmer review: lightweight with plenty of power

The Husqvarna 115iHD45 cordless hedge trimmer bears all the quality hallmarks you’d expect from this highly respected brand. It delivers decent trimming power for domestic use in gardens big or small and, of course, the cordless operation makes it effortless to navigate around your borders and hedges. 

Two summers ago we planted a small L-shape privet hedge to act as a windbreak on our exposed lawn, which gets all the worst weather straight off of Dartmoor. It grew reasonably well but was starting to look a little straggly as summer progressed, so the arrival of the Husqvarna 115iHD45 cordless hedge trimmer was perfectly timed. 

Since there was still plenty of juice left in the battery once I was done with the privet and a few holly bushes and small firs around our garden, I then popped around to my mother-in-law’s garden and whipped her box hedging and some shrubs into shape, literally. 

Keep reading to discover how I, a complete hedge trimming novice, fared with the Husqvarna 115iHD45. And if you’re looking for more options, do check out our other top choices for the best hedge trimmer, too. 

Key product specs of the Husqvarna 115iHD45 cordless hedge trimmer

• Battery: 2Ah 36V Li-ion
• Battery duration: 75 to 105 minutes (approx)
• Charging time: 70 minutes
• Cutting Length: 45cm
• Tooth Spacing: 25mm
• Weight: 4.0kg
• Cutting Speed: 3000 cut/min
• Modes: Standard or ecoFirst 

First impressions of the Husqvarna 115iHD45 cordless hedge trimmer

In the comically shaped box is the hedge trimmer, battery, charger and instruction booklets. You can also buy the trimmer without the battery and charger, which would be useful if you already had them for other Husqvarna gardening tools. It is compatible with a range of Husqvarna products including pole saws, mowers, strimmers, leaf blowers and even a chainsaw. 

The hedge trimmer itself looks exactly as you might expect a medium-size domestic model to look, with two comfortable handles, solid body and blade protected in a durable casing. 

Getting started

I probably shouldn’t admit this when being commissioned to review a product, but I didn’t actually look at the instruction booklet before I started cutting, despite never having used a hedge trimmer in my life. I simply popped the battery on to charge – it arrives partially charged so took about half an hour to complete – and then slid it into the trimmer, took the blade cover off and pressed the Start/Stop button until the green LED illuminated. Then it’s just a case of holding down the power trigger safety lockout on the front handle, much like you would with the best cordless lawn mowers, before pressing the power trigger on the rear handle. A child could have worked it out. 

For the sake of this test, I have since given the instruction book a good read and discovered that I didn’t miss anything vital. It really is a very intuitive plug-and-play tool. However, if you do need the instructions, I can confirm they are very easy to follow and there is also some useful information regarding troubleshooting and maintenance that might come in handy in the future. 

Using the Husqvarna 115iHD45 cordless hedge trimmer

There are two options settings-wise, full power or eco mode. Next to the Start/Stop button is a second button with a green ‘e’ emblem, which, when pressed, reduces the power for a longer cutting time. Husqvarna calls this the savE mode, and it’s designed to be used when conditions do not call for full power. You’ll earn about 30 minutes extra trimming time and it’s ideal for young and/or well-maintained hedges that are more leafy than twiggy. 

Bearing in mind that this was my first attempt at hedge trimming, the less-than-perfect results in terms of sharp lines and straight levels are 100% user-error! In fact, I’d say the Husqvarna 115iHD45 hedge trimmer did a great job, despite my lack of experience in how to trim a hedge. It cut through our hedges and shrubs like butter, never stumbling or struggling. 

It is designed to blast through twig diameters of up to 25mm, which it did so ably and without pause over at my mother-in-law’s more mature gardens. When inspecting my efforts, my husband, a seasoned hedge-trimmer, was impressed by how it cut cleanly through thicker branches. He also noted that it didn’t break rather than cut when it came across clumpier masses, which is his worst bugbear apparently.

Battery life

I gave the battery two timed run-outs, one in standard mode and one on eco, using my watch as a timer (pausing whenever I shut off the power to move to a different area or give my arms a rest). 

In standard power mode, when I was cutting my mother-in-law’s much older, gnarlier hedges and shrubs it lasted a commendable 73 minutes, and in eco mode on our much younger hedges and leafier bushes, it lasted just shy of 105 minutes. 

In our garden I very nearly ran out of hedges to harass before I ran out of power in fact, which is a happy situation to be in. Charging takes 70 minutes, which is also pretty impressive stuff. I could stop for a leisurely Sunday lunch (or even get out the best lawn mower to tidy up the lawn) before returning to my trimming with fresh vigour. 

Possibly the only downside of this trimmer has nothing to do with the machine itself, but the charging unit. It’s a fiddly plug-in affair that doesn’t sit as neatly on the worktop as a nice docking station. 

How easy is it to use the Husqvarna 115iHD45 cordless hedge trimmer?

As already mentioned, operating the Husqvarna 115iHD45 hedge trimmer is super easy and it’s a pretty compact machine so I didn’t feel that it was hard to manoeuvre. The reach isn’t particularly long, but fortunately I didn’t have any high hedges to cut. 

I did find it harder to angle the trimmer when doing the tops – so on the horizontal rather than vertical plane – but mainly due to holding my arms at an unnatural shoulder height position. I imagine it would be a similar scenario for any hedge trimmer with the same chainsaw-esque two-handle design. 

Weight-wise, this is by no means a heavy hedge trimmer (4kg with the battery in) but my arms did tire after about 30 minutes or so. They were not so tired that I had to stop, but it was enough to feel it the next day! I would think an elderly or generally less-abled person would be able to use it perfectly easily in shorter bursts, especially if their hedges are under waist level and regularly maintained.

Additional features

There are few bells and whistles on the Husqvarna 115iHD45 hedge trimmer, but my husband did point out that it has an excellent anti-vibration system. He has had experiences with hedge trimmers that could rival a pneumatic drill on that score, whereas this model feels very smooth in use. 

I particularly liked the eco mode for its noise-reducing capacity, being somewhat sound sensitive (or intolerant). Anyone with near neighbours will appreciate the low-key noise levels of this hedge trimmer, too. 

I also liked the power level indicator on the battery. This simple feature is handy when charging and also in use as it helps you decide whether you have time remaining to start the next hedge. Nobody needs a partially trimmed bush. Finally, a small point (or not) in the 115iHD45’s favour is the inclusion of a tip protector, which reduces accidental damage to garden fences and garden paths while enthusiastically trimming away. 

How does the Husqvarna 115iHD45 cordless hedge trimmer rate? 

The only customer reviews I can find online are in German. Although I don’t speak the lingo, the star ratings – 4.8 stars on Google and 4.6 stars on Amazon (both out of 5 stars) – are universally recognised as impressive. 

With a little assistance from Babelfish, I discovered German owners found it easy to handle, lightweight and suitable for intensive domestic use, possibly even commercial for up to 90 minutes use. 

About our review – and reviewer

Linda Clayton has been an interiors journalist for 20 years, giving her expert design advice for the likes of Gardeningetc, Homes & Gardens, Livingetc, Ideal Home and Real Homes ever since.  

She currently lives in Devon with her husband and two children, and recently renovated and extended the house. The property was previously a commercial nursery and boasts a half-acre plot, giving her plenty of space to road test the latest garden tools. 

As with all our reviews, the Husqvarna 115iHD45 cordless hedge trimmer was tested first-hand in Linda's garden, using it just as you would so you know exactly what you are buying. The product was given to us free of charge and we tested it for as long as possible.