I started using the Sony Lithium rechargeable batteries that I picked up off of amazon with a nice recharger. Love them. Great battery life, better than both the Duracell and Energizer sets have provided in my experience.
@Lite: is combing the desert.: And for those not in the know, your recycled batteries end up in India where women polish carbon rods in them with no filtration system and their babies in their laps.
And generally, Rechargables are best for short bursts of power use. IE: A camera. Not flashlights. Standard Alkalines tend to work better for flashlight/extended current draw devices. And pretty much all the Alkalines run the same. So buy the Costco brand and save your money. (Oh, and recycle your batteries if you're an eco-warrior.)
@Lite: is combing the desert.: That used to be the rule of thumb, but it doesn't hold true for some of the newer rechargeable batteries like Sanyo Eneloops. The Energizer rechargeables don't use the latest and greatest technology. I don't know about the Duracells.
@blomster: It was true as of October or so of last year. I honestly use AA batteries so infrequently that I don't really think much about them. What I do know is that when I need batteries, I need them right then and there. Not to sit around for hours waiting for them to recharge because I was an idiot and didn't have them sitting in a charger 24/7 ahead of time.
@Lite: is combing the desert.: It's not the power usage profile that matters, but the minimum voltage that's needed to operate. NiMH/NiCad rechargables have a nominal 1.2v charge, and they don't drop much until they're dead. Hybrid NiMH rechargables start out at 1.25v, and also run fairly consistent until they die. Alkalines start out somewhere above 1.3v and gradually lose voltage as you use them, eventually ending up well below the 1.2v offered by even the weakest rechargable. If you've got a device that won't work with less than 1.2v, then rechargables won't cut it at all, but if you've got something that was specifically tailored to run on slightly less than 1.2v, rechargables are a much better bet than even alkalines. And for something that uses a bare trickle of power (like a TV remote), the thing that really matters most is shelf discharge, since you'll probably lose more power from a NiMH/NiCad through that process than you'll actually use by pressing buttons on the remote.
@RedwoodFlyer: Whoops, you're right (I was pretty tired when I typed that up).
Anyways, one other thing of note is that, with 9v batteries, you can actually get NiMH versions that are _more_ powerful than the alkaline equivalents. Alkaline 9v batteries are made by stacking 6x 1.5v cells (6x1.5=9). Typical rechargable 9v batteries were made by stacking 7x 1.2v cells, which only results in a weak 8.4v, but if you stack eight cells instead, you end up with a 9.6v "9v" battery, and the voltage doesn't drop much until it's depleted. I special-ordered several of them for use with LEGO constructions. I built a rather heavy, oversized monorail train a few years back, with a second battery box that powers cabin lights at both ends. Regular alkaline 9v batteries barely have enough power to make the lights visible through three layers of trans-red parts, and it'll just barely crest a ramp with a fresh battery. With a pair of 9.6v batteries installed, not only is the power significantly increased, but the batteries weigh a lot less, and the steady voltage level means I can keep it running at full speed, with lights, for a few hours instead of maybe 20 minutes without lights.
The Engergizer batteries are crap. I have to charge them up before I use them, because they lose their charge the moment I disconnect them from the charger.
Even if they aren't plugged into any devices, if I don't use them after a month, they are empty.
My brother-in-law suggested the Sanyo Eneloop, and I would recommend them to anyone. Keeps their charge for a long time, and I've only had to charge them once so far, after having them plugged into my Rock Band guitar for 4 months of heavy use. The kit from Costco comes with some adapters to turn the AAs into Ds and Cs.
@Shook-Yang: That's the problem with old-school NiMH and NiCad rechargables. They suffer from a high rate of "shelf discharge", which basically means the charge bleeds off pretty quickly even if you don't have them hooked up to anything. Eneloops and other hybrid NiMH batteries are designed to retain a high percentage of the original charge for at least a year, which is why they even go so far as to ship them precharged, which might be a first for any sort of rechargable battery (certainly for AAA/AA/C/D/9v batteries).
Static discharge is not a very good measure of battery life, unless all you're using batteries for is turning on a flashlight until it's dead. It's kinda like claiming that my Honda gets 45MPG. But only when it's driving on a specific downward slope with a 30MPH tail wind and a big van in front of me.
A better test might be number of photos you can take with a point & shoot digital camera with the flash on.
@Dave Lindsay: Off-topic, but if you're only getting 45mpg out of your Honda (assuming not the Ridgeline), you're slumming. /threadjack
I like the # of photos test idea, my crusty ol' camera has a really fierce low-voltage cutoff. It'll barely even fire up for rechargeables, and if the batteries are even slightly cold, it won't come on at all.
Interesting. Did you also measure current output, or the brightness of the light when you tested?
Or, is this just some kind of arbitrary run-time test...
Obviously it seems like the Durecell battery will last longer, but why? Is it running under-voltage etc?
Being a big lover of flashlights, especially LED versions that use 123 Lithiums etc these are all questions I tend to ask. Pretty much I want to know if the Energizer is running brighter for shorter vs dimmer for longer as any good LED flashlight will have a voltage regulation circuit in it...
@Lite: is combing the desert.: Concurred, first thing I thought of whilst reading was "how bright was that flashlight compared to the energizer batts?"
In any case, lasting double the time on slightly less mA-hr is quite a feat.
@Lite: is combing the desert.: Also, at what point was the flashlight deemed unusable? Unless you measure light output, just because the bulb is lit doesn't mean that the amount of light being put out by the flashlight is actually useful for illumination of objects.
It's an interesting arbitrary test, but we have no clue by what criteria you judged the review.♦
@shiftyeyedgoat: Lasting double the time at such a low current output that the flashlight isn't useable isn't a feat. It just means that you won't replace the batteries when you should.
My favorite edc keychain flashlight is an Arc AAA, it has two illumination modes. One for normal battery output, and a low power mode (moonlight) for when the battery is drained. The battery will run for another few hours in moonlight mode, but it isn't really useful as a source of illumination at that point.
@HeartBurnKid, creepy morbid freak: These Duracells sound like hybrid NiMH, while the Energizers sound like old-school NiMH. It's not really a fair comparison. The testing method is also flawed, as I don't really care how long I can run a power-miser flashlight with them. I'm more concerned with high-drain devices, like a camera or cordless headphones. Back when I got my first pack of Eneloops, I tested them against the best Energizer had to offer at the time by running a stock original GBA with no game cart inserted. I don't remember the specific results, but the Eneloops spanked the Energizers soundly.
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It's not the power usage profile that matters, but the minimum voltage that's needed to operate. NiMH/NiCad rechargables have a nominal 1.2v charge, and they don't drop much until they're dead. Hybrid NiMH rechargables start out at 1.25v, and also run fairly consistent until they die. Alkalines start out somewhere above 1.3v and gradually lose voltage as you use them, eventually ending up well below the 1.2v offered by even the weakest rechargable. If you've got a device that won't work with less than 1.2v, then rechargables won't cut it at all, but if you've got something that was specifically tailored to run on slightly less than 1.2v, rechargables are a much better bet than even alkalines. And for something that uses a bare trickle of power (like a TV remote), the thing that really matters most is shelf discharge, since you'll probably lose more power from a NiMH/NiCad through that process than you'll actually use by pressing buttons on the remote.
02/13/09
02/13/09
Whoops, you're right (I was pretty tired when I typed that up).
Anyways, one other thing of note is that, with 9v batteries, you can actually get NiMH versions that are _more_ powerful than the alkaline equivalents. Alkaline 9v batteries are made by stacking 6x 1.5v cells (6x1.5=9). Typical rechargable 9v batteries were made by stacking 7x 1.2v cells, which only results in a weak 8.4v, but if you stack eight cells instead, you end up with a 9.6v "9v" battery, and the voltage doesn't drop much until it's depleted. I special-ordered several of them for use with LEGO constructions. I built a rather heavy, oversized monorail train a few years back, with a second battery box that powers cabin lights at both ends. Regular alkaline 9v batteries barely have enough power to make the lights visible through three layers of trans-red parts, and it'll just barely crest a ramp with a fresh battery. With a pair of 9.6v batteries installed, not only is the power significantly increased, but the batteries weigh a lot less, and the steady voltage level means I can keep it running at full speed, with lights, for a few hours instead of maybe 20 minutes without lights.
02/12/09
Even if they aren't plugged into any devices, if I don't use them after a month, they are empty.
My brother-in-law suggested the Sanyo Eneloop, and I would recommend them to anyone. Keeps their charge for a long time, and I've only had to charge them once so far, after having them plugged into my Rock Band guitar for 4 months of heavy use. The kit from Costco comes with some adapters to turn the AAs into Ds and Cs.
02/13/09
That's the problem with old-school NiMH and NiCad rechargables. They suffer from a high rate of "shelf discharge", which basically means the charge bleeds off pretty quickly even if you don't have them hooked up to anything. Eneloops and other hybrid NiMH batteries are designed to retain a high percentage of the original charge for at least a year, which is why they even go so far as to ship them precharged, which might be a first for any sort of rechargable battery (certainly for AAA/AA/C/D/9v batteries).
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A better test might be number of photos you can take with a point & shoot digital camera with the flash on.
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/threadjack
I like the # of photos test idea, my crusty ol' camera has a really fierce low-voltage cutoff. It'll barely even fire up for rechargeables, and if the batteries are even slightly cold, it won't come on at all.
What's the full-charge voltage for Eneloops?
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Or, is this just some kind of arbitrary run-time test...
Obviously it seems like the Durecell battery will last longer, but why? Is it running under-voltage etc?
Being a big lover of flashlights, especially LED versions that use 123 Lithiums etc these are all questions I tend to ask. Pretty much I want to know if the Energizer is running brighter for shorter vs dimmer for longer as any good LED flashlight will have a voltage regulation circuit in it...
02/12/09
In any case, lasting double the time on slightly less mA-hr is quite a feat.
02/12/09
It's an interesting arbitrary test, but we have no clue by what criteria you judged the review.♦
02/12/09
My favorite edc keychain flashlight is an Arc AAA, it has two illumination modes. One for normal battery output, and a low power mode (moonlight) for when the battery is drained. The battery will run for another few hours in moonlight mode, but it isn't really useful as a source of illumination at that point.
02/12/09
02/13/09
These Duracells sound like hybrid NiMH, while the Energizers sound like old-school NiMH. It's not really a fair comparison. The testing method is also flawed, as I don't really care how long I can run a power-miser flashlight with them. I'm more concerned with high-drain devices, like a camera or cordless headphones. Back when I got my first pack of Eneloops, I tested them against the best Energizer had to offer at the time by running a stock original GBA with no game cart inserted. I don't remember the specific results, but the Eneloops spanked the Energizers soundly.