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I Hate Batteries

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Rick Law:

--- Quote from: Red Squirrel on April 07, 2020, 01:08:38 pm ---What I would love to see is a standard moving towards lithium ion. 18650 and similar cells.  Maybe have one the size of an AAA but not quite same size, and then 18650 for larger devices. 

Or another thing would be for devices to be designed around the voltage of rechargeable alkaline replacements instead of non rechargeable.  The lower voltage of Ni-MH compared to alkaline usually means the device won't perform or last as long as it will hit the low voltage cut off sooner.  Especially devices that need 4+ in series as the voltage drop adds up.  I try to use rechargeables where I can though.  There are places I found where they just don't work, like Wii remotes.  Would be interesting to see if you could retro fit lithium ion in those. Not sure what the voltage tolerance is though.  A single lithium cell is going to be a little bit more voltage than two alkalines and it might not like that and it might let the magic smoke out. :o

--- End quote ---

They do make rechargeable LiIon smaller than 18650 but larger than AAA: the AA size 14500 Lithium Ion rechargeable batteries.

Too bad no one makes a AA size "pass through case" - like the AAA to AA adapter, but instead of having an AAA holder, it just connect through.  With that, for situation where 2xAA NiMH is used in series, one can use a real 14500 LiIon with a "pass through case".  The voltage is a bit higher, but good for things that can take it.  I replaced the 2x D Cell with a single 18650 for my emergency radio.  I love it - it can take the extra volt and the radio is much louder.



--- Quote from: james_s on April 08, 2020, 09:09:42 pm ---The charger I have is a LaCrosse BC-900, I bought it probably 10 years ago so I'm not sure if this is still the best option but I've been happy with it.

Eneloop cells are excellent, I also have some Fujitsu and some of the Japan-made Amazon branded ones, I haven't had any trouble with any of them.

There aren't any 9V Eneloop as far as I know but I have a bunch of EBL ones that have been good.

Avoid cheap junk, there are a LOT of low cost random Chinese batteries out there that don't perform as advertised.

--- End quote ---

The Chinese made TEnergy Centura (LSD) is not a bad replacement for Eneloop's.  A lot cheaper but performs very well.  They came out just around when Eneloop switched from 1st Gen to 2nd Gen.  Interestingly, the AA sized Centura was the first to hit the market and it had specs almost exactly like Eneloop 1st Gen and performs accordingly.

I was an Eneloop-only user until I was "forced" into Centura.  Eneloop's are AA sized only.  I needed 9V for my DMM, so I ventured into Centura-land.  I like it so much I started using their AA's and AAA's as well.  I saved my Eneloop as critical or emergency only.  Centura AA, AAA, 9V are my "regular" battery.  Good thing about Centura's 9V is 7-cells instead of the typical 6-cells, so it has a nominal voltage of 8.4v whereas 6 cell "9v battery" ones (7.2v) are no where near 9v.

Except for the 9V Centura, I too use a LaCross (model BC-700) NiMH recharger for my NiMH.   I use Opus (model BC-3400) which does LiIon and NiMH.  Interesting: apart from the size difference (for the larger 18650), the LaCross and Opus LCD display, buttons, and software look and work exactly the same with just some very very minor differences.  I think they probably OEM from the same guy - and I think they are good chargers.  I depend on them, both of them.

james_s:
I had several kinds of Tenergy cells early on and they were all junk, not one of them lived up to the capacity claims, they didn't hold a charge nearly as long in storage and most of the ones I had have since failed. They may well have improved greatly since then but once bitten twice shy.

Rick Law:

--- Quote from: james_s on April 09, 2020, 05:07:09 am ---I had several kinds of Tenergy cells early on and they were all junk, not one of them lived up to the capacity claims, they didn't hold a charge nearly as long in storage and most of the ones I had have since failed. They may well have improved greatly since then but once bitten twice shy.

--- End quote ---

They must have improved.  My Centura cells have been excellent - may be there are fake T-Energy cells out there too???

I should run some random tests to see if quality changed - between when I formed my opinion vs my latest Centura purchases.

james_s:
Well it was probably 8 years ago when I last bought some, it's entirely possible that they've gotten good, and yes it's also possible that there are fakes floating around.

Rick Law:
Whenever I purchase the AA/AAA, I regularly tested every cell using the charge-test function on the LaCross BC700 before first use.  Of the >dozens of 4 pack cells (AA/AAA combined), All of them meet their posted capacity with one exception.  One AAA missed by a very small margin (790 instead of 800mAH).  I recall that particular one since that was the first miss for my Centuras.  After using the "refresh" with the LaCross, it came back to above 800mAH, 807mAH if memory serves.  With 9V, I don't have the convenience of a charger like BC700 and have to use DMM logger.  I do it on some but not every new cells.

The first time I purchased my 9V Centura, I tested the L of the LSD and see how well it held charge.  When I first purchased Centura AA/AAA, I also tested the L in the LSD - not every cell but randomly selected a pack from the shipment.  I compared the voltage and capacity (1,3, and 6) months later and even at 6 months, they were near nominal.  I don't have my notes anymore, but my recollection was the AA Centura was holding voltage as well as my (Gen1) AA Eneloops.

The last round of test of new purchase was Feb 2016 (I wrote that on the package wrapper), so it was a while ago.  Things do change.  Even the same brand can-food I got now is not the same as the same darn thing 5 years ago.

I should redo the test after I get my work bench cleaned up.

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