OH, theres 1800x version coming also :o
yeah, it's already out, in Japan and on ebay. Will hit European market in beginning of February, i.e. in a ~3 or 4 weeks.
Too bad the "new" chargers suck like the old ones (seems to be the same functions and same speeds as the chargers released at the same time as the 1500 cycle eneloops).
Only if you charge one single battery will it take less than two hours, lame.
i think one of the new chargers determines the remaining capacity (discharge state) of the cells *before* you begin the recharging. no LCD display but some advanced LED indicators. or it's a model to be released. anyway, that's lame too because simply by looking at the voltage-capacity diagram (e.g. HKJ's measurement graphs) we would know what the remaining capacity is .. as long as you have some multimeter (or hobby charger) at hand.
know the voltage, and you know the remaining capacity. -- that's because Eneloops have a clearly defined discharge graph by Panasonic's highest quality standards.
One of the chargers released with the 1500 cycle batteries also had a battery testing function (And that is not counting the Eneloopy...). If it works like the Eneloopy then it's not so great...
I checked them out in Japan and they were all expensive and underpowered.
mfm, which chargers do you own (or use)?
i'm on a C9000. that's better than eneloop original chargers because the C9000 has a LCD display.
I have lots of chargers, some of the newer Sanyo Eneloop models and some others. But mostly I use the Sanyo MQH02 Super-quick Charger (Korea model) and also the USB-powered Sanyo KBC-E1A (2xAA individual channels, can charge USB devices, Japan model).
thanks for letting us know!
hmm. instead of several NimH chargers maybe 1 good charger with display wouldve been less cost-intensive? the mobility of travel chargers is cool if you really need a mobile charger in addition to the 8-pack of AA's in your pocket.
ever thought of buying a proven charger with display? (rebranded copy of BC-700, or the C-9000)
I always thought that those super fast chargers are batt killers :(
It's OK to charge Eneloop at 1C, that's what's specified in the datasheet.
Thought of it, but I'm not a big enough battery nerd to justify it. Also the chargers have different purposes, like I use the USB model to charge my gadgets during intercontinental flights (and then charge the batteries back using the USB output of my laptop).
I usually use 0,5C for Eneloops.
BTW, just tested one pair of my oldest ones. Constant use in Peltor Alert for about over one year. Potentiometer broken, so cannot turn them off (charge every week). So, at minimum some 60 cycles easy, still they clock 1940 and 1924 and they are the 1st gen...
Yep, the 1C is the "2000mA" specified in the datasheet for AA, and it's called "Fast Charge". And for achieving the utmost capacity, i.e. between 1900 and 2000 mAh, we would have to charge with 200mA (=0.1C) which would take a whole night!
we cant call ourselves "nerdy" if we're interested in the specs, capacity and runtimes of our flashlights (incl. their expensive LiIon cells). btw, the new price of the C9000 is 37.91€. The best original Eneloop charger (MQR06) costs at least 22€. Eneloop chargers cant be called inexpensive ;)
Hey, kreysler, thanks for that info :) I thought 1C was =1A.
MFM, it's OK to charge them @1C. But... will faster charger kill battery faster than low mA charger? I don't mind to let my batts a few hours more in charger if that will help to make them last longer :| (I mean entire batt life, not the capacity)
true, even that is mentioned in the Eneloop handbook. slowly charging (but not too slow!) is healthier. charger manuals recommend not to charge slower than 0.33C (for reasons i didnt understand) and their chargers performo the 0.1C charge process only in special occasions ("break in").
optimal speed is considered to be 0.5C. Since the slower the better, i would probably go for 0.34C haha (i.e. for an Eneloop AA 2000mAh-cell an amperage of 680mA).
hey, here the reading with the background info and recommendations: C9000 manual (PDF)
Very nice link to that MAHA-deal! Too bad for me, the shipping of 17€ ruins it :D
oh, shipping was free for national customers only sorry!
( jus'saying that the Maha has a reduced price, see amazon.com )
Ahh, so it seems! I bet they will sell tons of them (that one cannot be shipped to Finland either but no worries, got one already).
Hm, these are charging times written on my GPs:
"Standard charge: 16 hrs @ 200mA"
and these one on Varta Ready 2 Use:
"Charge 15 h. @ 210mA • quick charging possible"
And those Varta came with "Varta Easy Energy Pocket Charger". Specs are:
"PRI: 220-240V ~50/60Hz 5W
SEC: AA-2x (3V=160-185mA 0.555VA)
AAA-2x (3V=70-80mA 0.24VA)"
What do you think? Very slow charger? :|
Costco is currently selling an Eneloop kit for $26. It includes a charger, 8xAA, and 4xAAA.
Same kit is selling for $39 on Amazon
A good amount of professional Eneloop info is listed on cpf.
slow is healthy. it is very instructional to compare the current Eneloop charger (www.eneloop.info) models. Charging speeds are given in the PDF/PDFs:
---------------------------------------------------------------
see pic below, the old charger MDR02 suggests
AA: 550mA/cell => 230min.
AAA: 380mA/cell => 135min.
---------------------------------------------------------------
See pic below, the USB charger NC-MDU01 what a f***ing name ha suggests:
AA: 850mA/cell => 140min.
AA: 450mA/cell => 280min.
AAA: 850mA/cell => 60min.
AAA: 450mA/cell => 120min.
---------------------------------------------------------------
see pic below, the charger MQN04 nice name suggests:
AA: 250mA/cell => 10h.
AAA: 120mA/cell => 8h.
---------------------------------------------------------------
see pic below, the charger NC-MQN09W suggests:
AA: 300mA/cell => 7.5h.
AAA: 150mA/cell => 6h.
---------------------------------------------------------------
and finally, see pic below, the charger NC-MQR06W suggests:
AA: 1680mA/cell => 75mins.
AA: 1120mA/cell => 110mins.
AA: 560mA/cell => 220mins.
AAA: 840mA/cell => 65mins.
AAA: 560mA/cell => 100mins.
AAA: 280mA/cell => 200mins.
---------------------------------------------------------------
see pic below, the official specs for Eneloop AA suggest:
AA: 1C == 2000mA/cell => 1.1h.
AA: 0.1C == 200mA/cell => 16h.
---------------------------------------------------------------
see pic below, the official specs for Eneloop AAA suggest:
AAA: 1C == 800mA/cell => 1.1h.
AAA: 0.1C == 80mA/cell => 16h.
---------------------------------------------------------------
If we collect the above 10 data points for AA and for AAA respectively and visualize them in a graph, then by visual inspection we can tell that the points are consistent (they both form a smooth curve with no outliers):
AA: relationship between input amperage/cell (mAh) vs. charge time (mins.)
AAA: relationship between input amperage/cell (mAh) vs. charge time (mins.)
It also means that we could choose any input amperage-per-cell from the blue curve, i.e. an amperage which lies between 0.1C (the "Break-In") and 1C (the "Fast Charge"):
Freedome for everyone!! 
So following the Maha recommendation of min. 0.33C we get from the graphs: