[NTLK] AA NiMH Rechargeables

[Jim Lee]

On Jan 29, 2010, at 1:57 PM, Bradley Loeding wrote:

> Anyone have good things to say about these fairly new low-self
> discharge hybrid NiMH batteries? For example Sanyo has a brand called
> Eneloop. How many days of average use can one expect to get with these
> in a MP2x00?
>
> -Brad


I use Sanyo Eneloops in my DSLRs, as well as the Newton(s), and every  
other device I have that takes AA's or AAA's.  I can't praise them  
highly enough, though you should use an intelligent charger to charge  
them.  I use the LaCrosse BC-9009.  Most discussions I've seen about  
hybrid batteries list LaCrosse as the cream of the crop.  It really  
helps to prolong the life of the cells over a simple heat-sensing or  
(worse) timer-based charger.  It works by monitoring and charging each  
cell *individually* (up to 4 at a time), not by putting 2 or 4 cells  
in parallel, as all other types of chargers do.  You can do real  
damage (with other chargers) by trying to charge unequally discharged  
cells. I can't remember what I paid for the LaCrosse, but it was  
certainly less than $50 USD.

The Duracell "pre-charged" NiMH batteries are just re-badged Sanyo  
Eneloops.  Make sure you buy the package that says made in Japan, not  
made in China or anywhere else.  Only the Japan-made ones are Eneloops  
and of high enough quality.   Another good brand is Ray-O-Vac Hybrid.

The two advantages to these batteries are:

1. Low self discharge - they can retain >80% of their charge after a  
year of sitting on the shelf.

2. Flat terminal voltage, even under load, until they are completely  
discharged.  This is particularly important for my DSLRS, as it gives  
them faster focusing speed.


And to answer your original question, the ones I have are 2650 mA/Hr,  
so you can calculate based on your own usage.  I get about 2 weeks or  
so on my MP2100, more on the MP130, and I use the backlight heavily.   
The advantage is that I can carry a pre-charged set of spares and  
never worry that they're flat from just sitting around too long.

-Jim