Oregon 450 batteries and screen protection

[+TeamPennyFinder]

With my Oregon 450 on the way I got to thinking about rechargable batteries. I was looking on Amazon and found this:

 

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00470SOLG

 

ReVIVE REFRESH Professional Series AA / AAA Ni-mh Ni-Cd Smart Charger - LCD Status Display ** Includes (4) Premium truCELL 2700 Series Rechargeable AA Batteries

 

I snagged it hoping it was a good deal. Is the above ok for the Oregon 450 or did I screw up?

 

Also as for screen protectors. What is recommended and where to get?

 

Thank You.

 

My excitement is building. LOL!

[+autigerman]

This charger should be ok, it doesn't look like anything special but you should get your money's worth out of it. The batteries are 2400mAh and you don't want any less power than that. It doesn't say if they are low discharge or not, but the next go round that is what I would recommend for you. If you want a good charger look for something from La Crosse Technology or Maha. For batteries go with Sanyo Eneloops or one of the models from Maha. I'm using the Maha Imedion in my 550T with no problems. A good place to look for chargers and rechargable batteries is Thomas Distributing.

 

As far as the screen protector, order the one from Zagg, NOW. Get it and put it on before using the GPS. Otherwise you'll risk scratching the surface like I did.

[+TeamPennyFinder]

When I get up the money I will snag four of the newer gen sanyo eneloops. The 2500 ones. I looked at the LaCrosse charger but it was slightly out of my current price range and did not come with any batts. But I will also save toward that. Also interested in Birdseye sat pics.

 

Wow! The start up costs on geocaching is not cheap. LOL!

[+eusty]

I'm one of those who don't use a screen protector as I have it on my belt or in my handy while caching. I've a soft case for it when I'm not.

 

Remember to set the battery type on the Oregon to match the batteries you are using

 

[+TeamPennyFinder]

Thanks. I just set the batt type to alkaline. Will have to remember to switch it back when my charger and batts get here.

 

I have also just ordered a zagg screen protector. Found a 25% off coupon that worked. Saved a little money.

[+BAMBOOZLE]

When I get up the money I will snag four of the newer gen sanyo eneloops. The 2500 ones. I looked at the LaCrosse charger but it was slightly out of my current price range and did not come with any batts. But I will also save toward that. Also interested in Birdseye sat pics.

 

Wow! The start up costs on geocaching is not cheap. LOL!

 

The Sanyo Eneloop 2500's are the way to go.

 

It does cost a bit to get a good quality GPS along with the charger/batteries but you're good to go for years. In the long run its about automobile expenses.... I've gone 200,000 miles or so ( thats about 13,000 gallons of gasoline = $39,000 ) then there is meals and lodging...............

[+BAMBOOZLE]

I'm one of those who don't use a screen protector as I have it on my belt or in my handy while caching. I've a soft case for it when I'm not.

 

Remember to set the battery type on the Oregon to match the batteries you are using

 

Me too....exactly.

[+Styk]

biggest problem with cheap chargers is that thety charge too fast. This heats the batteries and heat is the ultimate enemy of rechargables. I have 2 La Crosses. I set them to the lowest setting. I use 2nd gen batteries with low leakage, that way i can charge them and they retain most of their charge for a couple of months.

[+ecanderson]

I have also just ordered a zagg screen protector. Found a 25% off coupon that worked. Saved a little money.

Next time (or for others, if you don't run up against a 'next time'), be aware that Zagg makes a 'universal' kit of a 3X 2.5" x 4" sheets from which you can cut several protectors for small phones, handheld GPS units, etc. I found that I was paying the same amount for these much larger sheets as for smaller pre-cuts that were device specific.

[+pppingme]

I'm not a fan of cheap chargers, this one lists for $17 and includes $10 worth of batteries, you can do the math.

 

Reading the specs, one thing that they repeated several times that stuck out to me was "auto cut-off", this typically means its running on a timer that just runs for xx minutes then shuts off, NOT the best way to charge batteries. No where did I see the charging current or any other real specs on the unit, google search seemed to turn up the same lack of information.

 

I'd be scared of this unit.

 

A good charger (several have been mentioned) will easily pay for itself because they are easier on the batteries, making them last longer (both in terms of overall life or number of cycles and in terms of how completely they charge the batteries so they last longer per charge).

[+ecanderson]

Can't really tell if that charger is any good, but "auto cut off" doesn't necessarily mean a timer at all. In fact, that they have added temperature control actually speaks well for this thing, whatever it is.

 

• Detects defective and non-rechargeable batteries. Equipped with MPC technology to regulate power flow and monitor temperature
• Auto-cutoff enables trickle-charging when full to extend the life of your batteries.

The former is interesting in that most cheap chargers do NOT bother with temperature monitoring of the cells during charge. The "MPC" piece is odd - that points to a notebook computer outfit and their charging hardware? Not familiar.

 

The latter could very easily be the standard -dV charge cut off used by most chargers for NiMH cells.

That it will charge 1 cell, or 3 is also a good sign. It is not charging two in serial as many of the cheaper chargers do - each cell is being charged individually, a good thing.

 

I dunno. It's an odd duck, but might actually be a decent enough piece of gear. Even comes with a car adapter for field charging. I believe that this is the outfit that is importing it: http://www.accessory...lay-p-1962.html

Edited January 8, 2012 by ecanderson

[+2KatzHunt]

Can't really tell if that charger is any good, but "auto cut off" doesn't necessarily mean a timer at all. In fact, that they have added temperature control actually speaks well for this thing, whatever it is.

 

• Detects defective and non-rechargeable batteries. Equipped with MPC technology to regulate power flow and monitor temperature
• Auto-cutoff enables trickle-charging when full to extend the life of your batteries.

The former is interesting in that most cheap chargers do NOT bother with temperature monitoring of the cells during charge. The "MPC" piece is odd - that points to a notebook computer outfit and their charging hardware? Not familiar.

 

The latter could very easily be the standard -dV charge cut off used by most chargers for NiMH cells.

That it will charge 1 cell, or 3 is also a good sign. It is not charging two in serial as many of the cheaper chargers do - each cell is being charged individually, a good thing.

 

I dunno. It's an odd duck, but might actually be a decent enough piece of gear. Even comes with a car adapter for field charging. I believe that this is the outfit that is importing it: http://www.accessory...lay-p-1962.html

[+2KatzHunt]

Can anyone help me with this? We got a Maha C-9000 charger and Eneloop 2000 mAh AA batteries for our Oregon 450 for Christmas. When I place the batteries in the charger, it automatically sets the rate at 1000 mAh, but I don't think that is what I want. The instructions for the charger are a tad confusing (to me anyway). Should I manually set the charge rate at 2000 mAh? Or lower? Or higher? Whats the best rate to use? We used the batteries once (with the factory charge) and now it's time for the first charge using the C-9000. Should I be doing anything else with the batteries/charger? Thanks!

[+ecanderson]

For 2000mAh cells on the Maha, I'd probably run 500mAh (0.25C). 2000mAh is too much current for a NiMH cell.

[+2KatzHunt]

For 2000mAh cells on the Maha, I'd probably run 500mAh (0.25C). 2000mAh is too much current for a NiMH cell.

Thank you! Just out of curiosity, and because I don't know, if they are 2000 mAh batteries, would charging at 500 mAh not fully charge them? Or does 500 mAh charge them fully but just at a slower rate?

[+BAMBOOZLE]

I think the 500 mah would be the RATE of charge. I used the 1000 mah factory set charge rate on my 2500 mah Sanyo Eneloops and it fully charged them......I think the 500 mah rate would have charged them fully also but just would have taken longer.

[stebu]

I think the 500 mah would be the RATE of charge. I used the 1000 mah factory set charge rate on my 2500 mah Sanyo Eneloops and it fully charged them......I think the 500 mah rate would have charged them fully also but just would have taken longer.

 

The charging rate is actually measured as current (mA) and the time (h) you apply the current gives you the total charge (energy, mAh) that is transferred into the cells during charging process.

 

So cahrging with 1000mA current for two hours is the same as charging with 500mA current for 4 hours;

both amount to 2000mAh (current multiplied by time).

 

This is just a rough explanation, the cells are not ideal and might be designed for certain charging current. So DO NOT read this mail so, that the above mentioned energy transfer can also be done with 20A (20 000 mA) current in 0.1 hours. You could ruin or explode your cells with such a high current.

[+Viajero Perdido]

For the C-9000, the lowest recommended rate, and the rate I always use, is 0.3C.

 

So for a 2000 mAh cell, press the downarrow button after inserting until the display reads 600 (2000*0.3), then press Enter. If you don't do that, after a few seconds the charger assumes you want the default 1000 mA. The unit charges at that rate until it detects the cell is fully-charged, however long it takes. Below 0.3C it can't reliably detect a fully-charged cell, according to the manual. But lower rates are better for battery life, so I always choose 0.3C.

 

That charger has been keeping my regular caching AAs going well beyond what should've been end-of-life for them; I can't believe how many charges those old things are taking. Speaks well for the charger.

[+pppingme]

Heat is the hardest thing on batteries, and the faster you charge them, the hotter they get.

 

I typically use a 200 mA rate (for 2400mAh batteries). The only time I use a higher rate is if I need a fast turn around (I keep 4 rotating sets of batteries for my gps to avoid this).

 

Also, when charging fast, the batteries won't charge as full, so they don't last as long in terms of either how long they will power your gps that day, or in terms of self discharge rate, a fast charge has a negative effect on both of these.

 

If you can't comfortably hold the back of your hand against the battery while its charging, then you're charging it way too fast.

[+Chrysalides]

I don't know why the Maha says to charge it at minimum 0.3C - someone much more knowledgeable than me once suggested it is in the design of their charge detection circuit. For my 2000 mAH Eneloops, that means 600 mA. I've been using my LaCrosse BC-9009 to recharge them at 200 mA (0.1C) since I have them. They've been through many cycles, and the original set (still in use) is over 4 years now and still working fine. They're starting to show signs of age though. They're inexpensive enough (amortized over so many years) that I'm not going to obsess too much over giving them all the TLC I can.

Edited January 11, 2012 by Chrysalides