Which Rechargeable Batteries Do You Use?

kramer2718 asks: "I go through a lot of batteries in my digital camera, remote controls, etc. I'd like to go to the rechargeable route for the environment and for my pocketbook, but I don't know which rechargeable batteries are the best. Can anyone out there give me some advice about which brand and types of batteries work well?"

NiMh for me

[thomasdz]

I'm a big fan of "middle of the road" NiMh
I know I'm not getting the biggest bang for the buck, but lately, any of the Lithium batteries scare me and NiCad's have that memory effect (and Cadmium is a environmental baddie).
They ALL have their good points and bad points... heck good old lead-acid is great for long-term, always topped up storage like emergency lighting and car batteries.

And by the way, Offtopic I know...I really detest things that have four AAA cells instead of two AA cells... you don't get a huge saving in thickness and AA cells seem to last way longer anyway

I was going to do another "funny" post (anonymously), but I'm late for an appointment already, so here it is:
Rechargable? Heck, I stick a copper penny and zinc-coated nail into a lemon if I want a battery. None of these newfangled

So mod me funny OR insightful OR offtopic! This post has it all.
TDz.

Re:MAHA NiMH.

[nek]

I can't agree more. Couple those high-capacity NiMH MAHA cells with a good MAHA charger and it's a match made in heaven. I have been using some 2500 maH MAHA cells in some wireless Clear-Com and radios and wireless mics for a year now and have saved $500 in battery costs. At home, I use them in my digital camera, iPod speakers and portable radios. MAHA kick ass. I recommend their new 8-bay AA/AAA charger: http://www.thomas-distributing.com/maha-mh-c801d-b attery-charger.htm [thomas-distributing.com]

Re:Check out this site

[berzerke]

...cells ranging from 1500 to 2700mAh...

Be warned that the manufacturer's cheat with the higher mAh batteries. They say they are a certain size, but actually the batteries are slightly bigger than their stated size. More chemicials mean more mAh, but more chemicals also need more space.

The upshot of this is if the battery compartment is tight, the larger mAh batteries won't fit as they are not the standard size. There is an upper limit. For AA, it seems to be about 2000-2200 mAh from my experience. The 2400 AA's I bought actually fit in only a few of my devices.

Cheapo advices

[Vo0k]

- avoid "famous brands", like Duracell, Philips etc. You pay premium for the name while the quality doesn't change.

- Capacity - same as with HDDs except you get amper-hours per dollar, instead of gigabytes/$. If you want to bother, calculate mAh/$ ratio for all available and pick the best. If you don't, the rule of thumb is to pick a notch or two below the highest available on market. With smaller you pay extra for costs common to manufacturing any capacity, with bigger you pay extra for cutting edge.

- make sure you get a matching charger. Some don't work with lower capacities, some with high. Good bargains for rechargables+chargers can be found. Chargers without auto-off suck.

- all rechargables discharge by themselves over time. If you use them in remotes etc, prepare for recharging bi-weekly or so. Sucks. Use in devices you use a lot. It still pays with wireless mouse/keyboard too.

- It's good to get two sets for each device, one charging, one in use. If you want the cheaper way, get one set of normal cheap batteries for time when the rechargables recharge. Remember to replace as soon as the rechargables are charged.

- Despite what they say on the packages, you can recharge standard single-use Alkalines - about 2-5 times (as opposed to hundreds with rechargables) with a slow charger. Just in case, place the charger with batteries down, on a surface that's easy to clean and not expensive, don't leave unattended and if it's not auto-off, unplug before they reach designated full capacity (that's when they start to heat up and are most prone to explode.)

endlessly rechargeable

[indy_Muad'Dib]

http://www.usbcell.com/ [usbcell.com]

Re:The ones that came with my laptop comp

[Dr.Dubious DDQ]

As far as I've ever been able to find, C and D rechargeables are complete rip-offs.

Every time I see a rechargeable C or D, they appear to have exactly the same capacity as a mid-range AA. Apparently, they just stick a AA core inside a C or D sized "shell". Anybody ever found a "real" NiMH D-Cell?

Re:Check out this site

[Russellkhan]

I've also had no problems. I use 2700 & 2900mAH AAs in my Canon digital camera, which has what looks to me to be a fairly tight compartment (individual slots for each battery - and yes, it looks tight with standard non-rechargables, not just with my high mAH batteries).

I'd mention the problem to whichever place you bought your batteries from. You may get a refund or exchange, and I'm sure they'd be interested in knowing that the product doesn't conform to its spec.

Charger makes more difference than battery.

[Myself]

The charger is much more important than the batteries you're putting in it. Most brands perform just fine, for a while. Knowing when a set (or an individual cell) is past its peak is the key. I picked up a LaCrosse BC-900 [lacrossetechnology.com] charger just over a year ago, and it's awesome. Most chargers leave you "blind" as to the actual capacity, they just tell you "this one's full!". Being able to really test the batteries is great. I found a neglected set in a box that I hadn't touched in about 4 years. Some of them had failed short. After a moment with a benchtop power supply I'd awoken them, but none would hold much charge. (showing ~500mAh capacity) So I tossed 'em in the LaCrosse for a refresh cycle, and after a few days they were all performing within a few percent of their original rating. No other charger would've given me the information I needed, or the automatic refresh cycle, to bring those back from the dead.

My BC-900 melted last week. It was the rev-32 firmware, which apparently wasn't careful enough about stopping activities when a cell overheated. It took out a Powerex 2300mAh cell, which was sputtering and smoking and stank up the whole end of the house. I've got an email in to LaCrosse right now, but even if they won't replace my (three months out of warranty) unit for free, I plan to pick up a new one (running rev 33 firmware) as soon as possible. A near-fire hasn't diminished my love of this charger, that's how revolutionary it is.

Re:The ones that came with my laptop comp

[Anonymous Coward]

I use AA to C converters you can get them on ebay, sure they dont last as long but it simplifies things if you also have alot of stuff that needs AA, cheaper too - also saves some weight in my cycle light.