Anyone used the 'new technology' NiMH batteries?

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Davidc

Guru
Location
Somerset UK
I mean the ones that are supposed to hold their charge better for longer.

I bought some to try, an dthey don't seem much better than the ordinary ones. I can't find any detailed specifications for them on the web either.

I charged up some of the new ones and some of the ordinary ones, checked their capacity* then recharged them and left them 2 months. The standard ones were as expected just below half, the new ones a bit better at just over 0.65.

They cost the same, the capacity of the new type is (850mAh against 1100 mAh) and this test ended with both close to the same after 2 months.

This is too small a sample to judge from, but so far I'm not impressed! I value the higher initial capacity more than this level of longevity of charge so won't be buying more. I'd be interested in how others have found them.

* To make it real-world I used an electron 4 LED front light and ran it on constant until it died (they go out quickly).
 

AlanW

Guru
Location
Not to sure?
Yes I am using them at the moment.

Performance wise there is no difference. Well lets put it this way, if there is then I haven't noticed it anyway.

But the big plus and as you mention, they hold thier charge for ages.

In fact I had a charging fest over the weekend. :blush:

I bought quite a lot of AA and AAA batteries around Christmas time, including this new Hybrio type. I have a Annsmann Smart charger, which tells you by means of coloured LEDs how much power each battery has remaining.

The std rechargeble batteries indicated that they had less than 25% power remaining, while the Hybrio ones showed more then 75%.

They are all stored in the same place and were all charged at the same time when purchased

So the figures speak for them selves really I guess?
 

toekneep

Senior Member
Location
Lancashire
I use the hybrio ones too. They seem excellent compared to other rechargeables and offer a massive advantage of convenience, especially at the time of year when you need them occasionally rather than daily.
 
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Davidc

Davidc

Guru
Location
Somerset UK
Maybe I'll have to change brand.

I bought them to try because in the summer I don't rotate them fast enough and end up with my spare sets only lasting a few hours out of the saddlebag.
 

AlanW

Guru
Location
Not to sure?
Another point I forget to mention, I no longer use rechargable batteries in LED front lights. Because the voltage is lower than normal batteries, ie 1.2 volts compared to 1.5 volts, normal batteries are much brighter.

I also prefer the way that normal batteries start to go dim, rather than being plunged into sudden darkness that happens with the rechargeable.:blush:
 
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Davidc

Davidc

Guru
Location
Somerset UK
AlanW said:
Another point I forget to mention, I no longer use rechargable batteries in LED front lights. Because the voltage is lower than normal batteries, ie 1.2 volts compared to 1.5 volts, normal batteries are much brighter.

I also prefer the way that normal batteries start to go dim, rather than being plunged into sudden darkness that happens with the rechargeable.xx(

The reduction in brightness doesn't worry me much - it's small enough to be within the normal range for standard batteries, but I agree that the way rechargeables just die is alarming.

I always have 2 lights to allow for failures, and on both bikes one set is usually dynamo, so it doesn't cause a problem. I keep a set of spares in the tool bag, that's why I tried the long life ones, in the summer the ones in the toolbag sometimes come out with low charge.

I'll give the ones you've used a try, a set of standard AA ones is on its way out (2 dead, 2 reduced capacity), judging by the rated capacity they're about 4 years old so not done too badly.
 
Crap test!!
Nimh batteries exhibit less 'memory' than NiCad batteries, so will over the course of a year fill up to the same point, rather than get less and less charge over the year like NiCad batteries. Also, if you keep charging them from half empty, NiCad's would defintely lose out as they would start to show the half empty level as full, whereas Nimh won't...or will do, but less quickly.

http://www.batteryuniversity.com/

Not something that you can test over a few days unfortunately.
 

marinyork

Resting in suspended Animation
Location
Logopolis
Yes. There's the issue that some standards are so good that the hybrids aren't 'worth it'. My maplin standards perform getting for as well as the hybrids except at very long time scales. The unirosses of which I only now have one pair alive were crap. They only hold charge for a week now, the maplins have been used an equivalent amount of time before the previous unirosses died. Me and a friend have been through about 50 uniross batteries of various generations. The maplin hybrids are good, just they are so pricey. Some other brands work as well for less money.
 
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