Sanyo Eneloop batteries and charger: Work for Texas Instrume

Anyone have this system?

I really don't use a LOT of batteries but the idea of
throwing them away bothers me as we have no way to
recycle them here locally

I'm wondering if they would work ok in graphing
calculator?

Sorry to post here but didn't know where else to put
it.
Also, is there any diff between a cheap $13 Kodak NiMH
charger and more expensive $40 one?

 

UCLAN <nomail@thanks.org> wrote:

BTW, I've used a Maha MH-C401FS charger for over two years. About $35.
I don't recommend cheap chargers for the reasons given by another poster.

OK thanks

I was really unsure of the cheap vs expensive charger!

 

[Haywire1]

I have Eneloops, Ray-O-Vac "Hybrid", and Duracell Low-Self-Discharge
batteries, and love them all. My children (and the rest of my family,
including me...) go through a lot of batteries, so I sprang for the best
charger (Just an opinion, there are other very good ones out there) - the
Ansmann Energy 16 (Paid $119 at Amazon.com) If you're just interested in
charging just AA's and AAA's, I think the LaCrosse BC-900 is a much better
choice (tells you actual maH accumulated charge!) for much less ($40 at
Amazon, free shipping) and comes with 4 each (total 8) AA and AAA batteries,
plus other accessories. It has features even my Ansmann does not, like
user-selectable charge rates, and a test mode with actual battery capacity
readout on a digital display. I haven't used one, but the reviews seem to
indicate that people are very happy with it.

If you don't want to spend the extra money on a good charger, I would
recommend you have extra batteries on hand, so you can switch them out when
one set is dead in your device(s), and charge only completely dead batteries
for only the time recommended by your charger for your capacity batteries.
As long as you're diligent in taking them off charge when they are done, and
are not trying to charge only "partially dead" batteries, you should be o.k.
Regardless of how they are charged, LSD batteries beat the pants off
"conventional" Nimh and Nicads - I use 'em in nearly everything. Circuit
City has been closing these out (eneloop) real cheap, like $6.00 for 4 AAs
or AAAs - I cleaned my store out - I can't imagine why they don't intend to
stock these any more. I don't think they marketed them properly in the
stores to explain to people what their advantages are.

me@privacy.net> wrote in message
news:rb04b4lc7vc0iicbnddgu5msee7kq24de0@4ax.com...

Anyone have this system?

I really don't use a LOT of batteries but the idea of
throwing them away bothers me as we have no way to
recycle them here locally

I'm wondering if they would work ok in graphing
calculator?

Sorry to post here but didn't know where else to put
it.
Also, is there any diff between a cheap $13 Kodak NiMH
charger and more expensive $40 one?

 

"Haywire1" <haywire1@email.com> wrote:

If you don't want to spend the extra money on a good charger, I would
recommend you have extra batteries on hand, so you can switch them out when
one set is dead in your device(s), and charge only completely dead batteries
for only the time recommended by your charger for your capacity batteries.
As long as you're diligent in taking them off charge when they are done, and
are not trying to charge only "partially dead" batteries, you should be o.k.

OK

Well I just don't want to spend a ton of
money cause I only have a "few" devices
that use AA or AAA right now and am
afraid the payback would be too long if
spending much money for charger and the
cells

 

[UCLAN]

William Sommerwerck wrote:

I don't understand this business about "low self-discharge" NiMH batteries,
as I'ven never noticed any particular problem with them.

There *is* no problem with them. I use several brands, including Sanyo
Eneloop. Low self-discharge NiMH batteries have made regular NiMH batteries
obsolete, IMO. [Except for in heavily used high current applications, only
because the capacity of low-discharge NiMH batteries is not yet as high as
regular NiMH batteries.]

 

[UCLAN]

Geoffrey S. Mendelson wrote:

I don't understand this business about "low self-discharge" NiMH batteries,
as I'ven never noticed any particular problem with them.

In order to have a lower self discharge rate, they have to have a higher
internal resistance. This lowers the effective charging rate, and the
output current.

I'm using Recyko+ battries sold by GPT out of Hong Kong. They are the
same batteries as one of them (there are only three companies that make
them), but I don't know which.

In order to get them to work, I have to charge them an awfully long time
with the chargers that have a fixed rate. For example the one that came
with the AAA batteries should charge them in 12 hours, I leave them on
at least 24 to get a useful charge. I also have one that times the
charge for 7 hours and I have to charge them twice.

With a normal NimH battery of the same capacity, the charger would charge
it completely in 7 hours.

That is a fault with your charger more than a fault of the batteries. I can
charge LSD NiMH batteries in a few hours in my Maha charger.

 

[nobody >]

William Sommerwerck wrote:

"Haywire1" <haywire1@email.com> wrote in message
news:48b375ed$0$31922$470ef3ce@news.pa.net...
I have Eneloops, Ray-O-Vac "Hybrid", and Duracell Low-Self-Discharge
batteries, and love them all. My children (and the rest of my family,
including me...) go through a lot of batteries, so I sprang for the best
charger (Just an opinion, there are other very good ones out there) - the
Ansmann Energy 16 (Paid $119 at Amazon.com) If you're just interested in
charging just AA's and AAA's, I think the LaCrosse BC-900 is a much
better
choice (tells you actual maH accumulated charge!) for much less ($40 at
Amazon, free shipping) and comes with 4 each (total 8) AA and AAA
batteries,
plus other accessories. It has features even my Ansmann does not, like
user-selectable charge rates, and a test mode with actual battery capacity
readout on a digital display. I haven't used one, but the reviews seem to
indicate that people are very happy with it.

I would recommend the MAHA (Powerex) MH-C9000, which I _have_ used and am
very enthusiastic about.

I don't understand this business about "low self-discharge" NiMH batteries,
as I'ven never noticed any particular problem with them.

You've been lucky. I deal with a lot of 2-way radio handhelds that sit
idle for months at a time. The early NiMH batteries would self-drain to
unuseability in less that a month. At wurk, we replaced them all (at
least the ones we could find) after a year with newer technology NiMH
batteries like the Eneloops and such.

 

[nobody >]

William Sommerwerck wrote:

I don't understand this business about "low self-discharge" NiMH
batteries,
as I'ven never noticed any particular problem with them.

You've been lucky. I deal with a lot of 2-way radio handhelds that sit
idle for months at a time. The early NiMH batteries would self-drain to
unuseability in less that a month. At work, we replaced them all (at
least the ones we could find) after a year with newer technology NiMH
batteries like the Eneloops and such.

But why would you expect _any_ rechargeable battery (regardless of
chemistry) to keep its charge for several months?

It's not ME that's expecting that, it's the end users. You can baffle
them with technical answers until pigs fly, but they keep doing what WE
know doesn't work and complaining anyway.

Management is constantly bringing up having devices with rechargeable
batteries in emergency kits, but the only options are to let the idiots
break open a kit for a drill and finding a dead battery from
self-discharge or cooked to death from being in a charger. I've gone
thru this too many times to count on all upper and lower digits, even
including that digit in my pants.

The new-tech NiMH batteries will hold up for over three months and still
at least do a few radio checks. We put a huge placard in the kit to
CHARGE the damned radio overnight after drills, but they just toss them
back in the kits and bitch.

Back when you could get mercury-celled primary batteries, we'd put those
in the kits, but same idiots would pull them out of the kits for day-to
day use "just because we ran out of radios" and run them down and bitch
when they wouldn't charge. Same for alkaline primary battery packs....

You can't win.......

 

[UCLAN]

William Sommerwerck wrote:

There *is* no problem with them. I use several brands, including Sanyo
Eneloop. Low self-discharge NiMH batteries have made regular NiMH batteries
obsolete, IMO. [Except for in heavily used high current applications, only
because the capacity of low-discharge NiMH batteries is not yet as high as
regular NiMH batteries.

No, I meant regular NiMH cells.

I have a big pile of them, and recharge them as needed.

Yeah, I have a pile of them too. I just never use regular NiMH since the
low discharge ones got so cheap. I can put a pair of low discharge NiMH
AA cells in my 2-cell AA flashlight (which might go weeks without use),
and it's ready to use when needed. Last had to recharge those batteries
months ago. Try *that* with regular NiMH cells. Kodak even sells the
low discharge cells in a 4-pack, fully charged and ready to use. Find
*that* with regular NiMH cells? Heck no. My regular NiMH cells are now
only used in high-current, heavy use applications - where self discharge
isn't an issue. I have six remote control units and a cordless mouse that
use low-discharge NiMH batteries. They operate almost as long as alkalines.
Try *that* with regular NiMH cells.

 

[UCLAN]

me@privacy.net wrote:

Anyone have this system?

I really don't use a LOT of batteries but the idea of
throwing them away bothers me as we have no way to
recycle them here locally

I'm wondering if they would work ok in graphing
calculator?

I use Sanyo Eneloop AA batteries (as well as other brands of low
self-discharge NiMH batteries) in several devices, including a
police scanner, AA cell flashlight, cordless mouse, remote controls,
etc. I'll never go back to regular NiMH batteries, or alkaline for that
matter. I always have four or so fully charged ready to go.

BTW, I've used a Maha MH-C401FS charger for over two years. About $35.
I don't recommend cheap chargers for the reasons given by another poster.