On occasion, the Doctor used it to either detect, disarm or detonate explosive weapons. ( TV: The Sea Devils, PROSE: Cold Fusion, etc.) He often used it to interact with or disable various forms of circuitry and technology. ( TV: The Mutants, Frontier in Space, Planet of the Daleks, etc.) The sonic screwdriver could also be used to repair devices ( TV: The Ark in Space, The Sontaran Stratagem, etc.) and perform maintenance on the TARDIS's control console. ( TV: The Hand of Fear)

For the 50th anniversary special, " The Day of the Doctor" (2013), another version was seen in the hands of John Hurt's War Doctor. The design was similar to the one used by Tom Baker's Fourth Doctor. This time the halo and bullet tip had been removed, replaced by a red light as well as a large red dial added to the base. Character Options released a version of this sonic screwdriver on 23 November 2013 at London's ExCel labelling it "The Other Doctor's Sonic". [9] It was established as a plot point in that episode that the sonic screwdrivers employed by various Doctor incarnations all use the same software, something the War Doctor exploited by running a calculation over a course of several centuries with the Tenth and Eleventh Doctors seeing the calculation completed through their models. It is also directly implied after the fact that the sonic screwdriver has actually been a part of every doctor's retinue, despite its disappearance for doctors six & seven; the Tenth Doctor says to the Gallifreyan high command, as all thirteen doctors are about to change history by saving the planet, that the calculations for doing what's about to be done have been "running all my lives." In addition, when combined, the screwdrivers of the War, Tenth, and Eleventh Doctor could create a sonic force field blast to repel and destroy a Dalek. In contrast with Nathan-Turner's attitude that the sonic screwdriver should not be used as a cure-all, the new production team gave it even more functionality than previous versions. Some of the uses in the new series include: repairing electronic equipment; re-attaching materials such as barbed wire; detecting, intercepting and sending signals; remotely operating the TARDIS; burning, cutting, or igniting substances; fusing metal; scanning and identifying substances; amplifying or augmenting sound; modifying mobile phones to enable "universal roaming"; disabling alien disguises; resonating concrete; reversing teleportation of another entity. It is sometimes used to disassemble robotic enemies or turn other objects into weapons; healing cuts and wounds. In " The Parting of the Ways" (2005) and " Utopia" (2007), it is used to operate the TARDIS controls remotely; when the Doctor attempts to counteract the Master's theft of the TARDIS, it is used to limit the TARDIS' destination. In " Doomsday" (2006), the Doctor states that the sonic screwdriver does not kill, wound or maim; however, it is sometimes brandished in a threatening manner, such as in " The Christmas Invasion" (2005), " The Impossible Planet" (2006), " The Runaway Bride" (2006), " The Lazarus Experiment" (2007), " The Day of the Doctor" (2013), and The Infinite Quest (2007). In " World War Three" (2005), when confronted by a group of Slitheen, the Doctor threatens to "triplicate the flammability" of a bottle of port wine with the sonic screwdriver, though one of the Slitheen realises he is bluffing. In " Closing Time" (2011), ringed energy beams are seen emitted from the device, giving it a more weapon-like appearance, particularly when used to disable a weakened Cyberman at a distance. The Third Doctor wields an early model of the Doctor's sonic screwdriver. ( GRAPHIC: Doctor Who Evergreen)During his imprisonment by INC on Ha'olam, the Eighth Doctor's sonic screwdriver was confiscated. After his escape, he briefly used a replacement screwdriver resembling a slender metal rod with a crystal at its tip. ( PROSE: Seeing I) The unlicensed fan fiction novel Time's Champion speculates that the Sixth Doctor has re-built the sonic screwdriver. [ citation needed] He used a similar device in The Nightmare Fair, a script which was never produced for television but has been adapted twice. Doctor Who Electronic Sonic Screwdriver Collection – Fourth Doctor". Character Options . Retrieved 12 May 2016. [ permanent dead link] The Doctor has used other sonic devices similar to the sonic screwdriver, including the "door handle" of Inferno ( Liz Shaw having one of her own) and a pen-sized white noise generator in Four to Doomsday.

It was unique from previous sonic screwdrivers in that it had a changeable handle as opposed to a changeable emitter, ( TV: The Woman who Fell to Earth) which had previously either had interchangeable heads, ( TV: The Sea Devils - The Visitation) an extendable emitter, ( TV: Smith and Jones - The Eleventh Hour) "claws" deployed when the sonic was activated, ( TV: The Eleventh Hour- Last Christmas) or a large emitter glowing in a rotating fashion. ( TV: Hell Bent - Twice Upon a Time) It was also the first of the Doctor's sonic devices to have a curved handle, allowing for a more natural grip. The sonic screwdriver could create sparks or flames to light candles ( TV: The Girl in the Fireplace) or ignite flammable gasses. ( TV: Evolution of the Daleks, COMIC: The Hunt of Doom) It could also cut through rope, ( TV: The Age of Steel, The Runaway Bride, The Fires of Pompeii) corrode and reconnect thin metal objects, such as barbed wire, ( TV: The Doctor Dances) and shatter glass and ice. ( TV: Army of Ghosts, COMIC: Arctic Eclipse) It could also be used as a conventional screwdriver without touching screws. ( TV: The Doctor's Daughter, Dreamland) This model was lost and replaced by the Doctor repeatedly, having been bitten in half by a sky shark and left behind, ( TV: A Christmas Carol) left with the Ganger Doctor, ( TV: The Rebel Flesh) destroyed by Danny Fisher ( COMIC: The Blood of Azrael) and, in one instance, simply burnt out due to overuse. In the latter instance, a replacement was given to him by Santa Claus. ( COMIC: Silent Knight) One of the Twelfth Doctor's sonic screwdrivers was incinerated by the Governor when he was admitted into the Prison. Clara Oswald attempted to give him a new one disguised as a large candle in a birthday cake, but the Governor refused to give the cake to the Doctor. To circumvent this, the Doctor created a sonic spoon in the interim for the time being. ( PROSE: The Blood Cell) The Doctor had given Clara one of his screwdrivers when they faced the Fractures but had forgotten to reclaim it, leading his companion to keep it for herself. ( COMIC: Clara Oswald and the School of Death) Ultimately, he left one of his screwdrivers with Davros after abandoning him as a child. Davros had this screwdriver in his possession for many years after. ( TV: The Magician's Apprentice, The Witch's Familiar) During his youth, Davros studied the device, deducing its alien origins and modifying the output of its laser to act as a true weapon. ( PROSE: The Last of the Dals) By the time that Davros was dying and had sent Colony Sarff to collect the Doctor, the screwdriver had become heavily damaged and inoperable, visibly weather-beaten from exposure to war and conflict, and with one of the clawed prongs broken off. Sarff presented the ruined screwdriver to the Doctor as Davros's calling card. ( TV: The Magician's Apprentice, The Witch's Familiar)Freezing the Teselecta in place; this caused sparks to fly inside of it. ( TV: The Wedding of River Song) When the Doctor handles the screwdriver, the clinking noises produced (when he throws and catches it) are created by repeating the motions with a corkscrew, the handles of which bump against the casing to produce the required noise. These noises are dubbed over the footage in post-production.