+Team Trout Posted July 27, 2003 Share Posted July 27, 2003 Check it out the newly updated Great Battery Shootout! by Dave Etchells http://www.imaging-resource.com/ACCS/BATTS/BATTS.HTM And it's no surprise, Maha's has done it again. Their latest, the Powerex 2200mAh, has grabbed the top spot. I've got a few sets of these and they last forever in my Meridian. Quote Link to comment
+RobRee Posted July 27, 2003 Share Posted July 27, 2003 as if anyone would doubt the powerex and maha setup. lol. i love them. robbie A family that Geocaches together... eventually gets wet. required reading My first bible Great Orienteering Site! PERSONAL PROTECTIVE MEASURES AGAINST INSECTS AND OTHER ARTHROPODS OF MILITARY SIGNIFICANCE Quote Link to comment
peter Posted July 27, 2003 Share Posted July 27, 2003 Does anyone know of a site that does battery testing at current levels that are more realistic for GPS receivers? Dave's tests are done at a current of about one Amp which is decent simulation of digital cameras but not GPSRs that are closer to 0.15 Amps. While the relative rankings may end up about the same there isn't any guarantee of that. He previously also compared some alkaline cells and got ratings less than half as good as one charge of the NiMHs - this is true for digicam use but not at all accurate in most GPSRs. Quote Link to comment
+infosponge Posted July 27, 2003 Share Posted July 27, 2003 I've been using those 2200's for about a week now and love 'em. This is the first time I've been happy with the performance of rechargables in my GPSR. When I get a chance I'm going to load a fresh set in my Meridian and just leave it on until it runs down to get a better idea of the battery life. http://www.tampabaygeocaching.com Quote Link to comment
+embra Posted July 27, 2003 Share Posted July 27, 2003 Please be sure to post your results, Tim. Max Often wrong but seldom in doubt Quote Link to comment
+Searching_ut Posted July 27, 2003 Share Posted July 27, 2003 Overall, I like Daves Battery shootout. It's tough to compare batteries primarily because there are so many variables. Just a days difference on when they have been charged makes a fair difference on NiMh's sometimes. Temperature during use, discharge rates etc can also make a big difference. I just wish he would hurry up on his charger test. At one time he mentioned he thought the Rayovac ps4 might cook the batteries a little. I'd love to see quantifiable data however because my Maha 204 seems to get them up to a terminal temp about 5 degreesF hotter than my rayovac, even though the Maha charges quite a bit slower. (Can be quite variable depending on how far discharged they were prior to charging) I don't know if battery brand, charger variation etc make a difference however, but it would be interesting to see data from someone such as dave who has access to a lot of different battery/charger combo's. Quote Link to comment
peter Posted July 27, 2003 Share Posted July 27, 2003 quote:Originally posted by Searching_ut:I'd love to see quantifiable data however because my Maha 204 seems to get them up to a terminal temp about 5 degreesF hotter than my rayovac, even though the Maha charges quite a bit slower. This is opposite to my experience. I haven't measured the peak temperatures, but cells in my Ray-O-Vac get noticeably warmer than in my Maha C204F. Neither makes them too hot to comfortably hold in my hand and the temperature drops quickly so I haven't been concerned about cell damage with either of these chargers. Ray-O-Vac had some problems with the initial design of their one-hour charger and later models are marked PS-4B. I wouldn't be surprised if other chargers also have slight variations in their designs with or without any change in the model name which would further complicate any attempt at meaningful testing. Quote Link to comment
+infosponge Posted July 28, 2003 Share Posted July 28, 2003 OK, my first run of the Powerex 2200 mAh cells lasted 10.5 hours to the low battery warning. This is a pair of the 2200's that have been discharged 3 times now and charged with the MAHA C401FS charger on the "slow" setting. I just left the Meridian Platinum running with the compass turned off and the almanac screen active. I'll run through this cycle a few more times, as well as trying to see how much time is left after the low battery warning. I generally use my GPSR in a mix of battery/12V car adapter usage, so 10 hours is more than enough for a solid day of cache-a-thon-ing with juice to spare. http://www.tampabaygeocaching.com Quote Link to comment
TNRonin Posted July 28, 2003 Share Posted July 28, 2003 If I get these can I use my rayovac charger that I've been using with my alk rechargable? Thanks. Maxpedition Hard Use Nylon Gear Quote Link to comment
+infosponge Posted July 28, 2003 Share Posted July 28, 2003 I think you need a charger designed for NiMH. quote:Originally posted by TNRonin:If I get these can I use my rayovac charger that I've been using with my alk rechargable? Thanks. http://www.tampabaygeocaching.com Quote Link to comment
TNRonin Posted July 28, 2003 Share Posted July 28, 2003 Well crud! Maxpedition Hard Use Nylon Gear Quote Link to comment
+infosponge Posted July 28, 2003 Share Posted July 28, 2003 There's a link to info about that here: http://www.alltekpower.com/faq/index.asp?a=4&q=24 http://www.tampabaygeocaching.com Quote Link to comment
TNRonin Posted July 28, 2003 Share Posted July 28, 2003 Here is the one I've got. Rayovac Charger I need to do some research. I would like to go to the batteries. I can't afford to get the whole setup. Maxpedition Hard Use Nylon Gear Quote Link to comment
+RobRee Posted July 29, 2003 Share Posted July 29, 2003 quote: This is the smaller version of the popular PS3 battery charger. It chargers 4 batteries at once and will charge AA and AAA batteries. This "smart" battery charger will charge Nickel Cadmium, Nickel Metal Hydride and rechargeable alkaline batteries. nimh ronin. i would prefer it had a switch to setting, but states it is ok. robbie A family that Geocaches together... eventually gets wet. required reading My first bible Great Orienteering Site! PERSONAL PROTECTIVE MEASURES AGAINST INSECTS AND OTHER ARTHROPODS OF MILITARY SIGNIFICANCE Quote Link to comment
+infosponge Posted July 29, 2003 Share Posted July 29, 2003 I ran another test, this time with the Meridian (basic, green) and it went 11 hours to the low battery warning. http://www.tampabaygeocaching.com Quote Link to comment
+Team Lyons Posted July 29, 2003 Share Posted July 29, 2003 I use Quest Platinum 1800mah NiMh's with a Quest "Q2" charger I bought from my local camera shop and I couldn't be happier. I can snap well over 125 pics on my digital camera with them and when using them in my V or Etrex I've gone over nine hours without any warning lights or anything. Quote Link to comment
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